Dear Murderer (2017) s01e03 Episode Script
Dog Days
1 [DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS.]
I have a lot of personal stuff, Jim.
I manufacture it just to keep myself busy.
It's a small town.
Your peccadillos, they don't go unnoticed.
I hate other people thinking that I don't know.
I should've told you, but I haven't seen you.
Bev left.
This is supposed to change things for us? Make it somewhat easier, what, less sordid? We've got the biggest trial in New Zealand legal history - on our plates.
- I know, I know.
- [CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING.]
- There can be no more despicable label - attached to any man than that of spy.
- I've never lost a spy trial yet! [CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING.]
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS.]
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYS.]
Ohh Baby, baby, baby I want to tell you right now - Ohh - [BRUNO WHINES.]
- Baby, baby, baby - [HORN HONKING.]
I want to tell you right now This cult of personality It's not becoming of the profession, David.
I imagine not.
I mean, listen to this.
"Mr.
Bungay is a sort of Rumpole of the High Court, a barrister of theatrical presence" "whose color and earthy eloquence sets him apart from the gray bulk of his fellow practitioners.
" OLDFIELD: [SCOFFS.]
Gray bulk? - Not bad, huh? - Not bad? - [BRUNO WHINES.]
- Rumpole? Yes, Rumpole.
I'm much better-looking than Leo McKern.
Aren't I, Bruno? Yes, I am.
I blame this whole Sutch business.
He courts the press now like some sort of popular singer.
It's undignified.
Is he going to be censured, or something? OLDFIELD: One can hardly be censured for hogging the limelight.
Well, perhaps the limelight will blind him, and he'll fall off the stage.
[LAUGHS.]
- [CLASSICAL MUSIC PLAYS.]
- [SIGHS.]
[GERMAN ACCENT.]
They run tests on just 50-odd pregnancies, and they're suggesting measurement of alpha-fetoprotein in maternal blood should be mandatory? No, no, no.
- [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
- [SIGHS.]
More testing first.
[KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Ja? Can I help? That's for what happened at your surgery today.
Erich?! Erich! - Fuck my missus, would ya?! - Leave him alone! - [CRYING.]
- DR.
GEIRINGER: [GROANING.]
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
CAROL: Oh.
Oh.
Oh.
PETERSON: The cops paid a visit to follow up, and, regardless of the assault, Dr.
Geiringer's being charged with rape.
During a gynecological examination.
PETERSON: Mm.
What do we know of the complainant? Not a lot yet.
Well, we'd better make it our job to find out.
I'm sure they'll pop that in a takeaway cup for you.
- [LIGHTER CLICKING.]
- Right.
Licking him into shape.
Who's that? 2:00.
Corporate.
Maureen Kemp? You've got to be joking.
She's the oldest virgin in New Zealand.
Even you wouldn't get a look-in.
Well, she's only twentysomething.
I recognize her, I think.
Oh! Janice? You might.
She works down the street.
I thought you meant the other one.
Facing us.
What the hell would I mean her for? - Eh, for the challenge? - [SCOFFS.]
CASTLE: Janice is just a clerk.
She's far too young and sweet to have you unleashed on her.
I think we can let Janice decide that, can't we? Besides, she might appreciate a brush with fame.
Right.
So, not game for Maureen, then? Can't handle the rejection? How do you know she'd say no? You wanna bet? Maureen is impervious to all charm.
And reputation.
Tim.
Betting on a woman's virtue is ungentlemanly.
How much? What about Janice? - I thought you - How much? 20 bucks.
CASTLE: 20 bucks? I'm gonna need some time, though.
Let's allow three months.
Three months? Good work, Bruce.
Okay.
I want those on my desk in the morning, okay? And remember to tell the Crown that we're looking at the complainant's psych reports, okay? Because it's a trial, Bruce.
- Not an ambush.
- [DOORBELL RINGS.]
Look, gotta go, okay? Bye.
- [RINGING CONTINUES.]
- It's all right, Bruno.
I'll scare her off.
Arf, arf, arf! Uh Evening.
I'm looking for the owner of a Jaguar.
- Registration - Oh.
Not again.
Owned by a Bruno von Kraut? Night security officer.
Yes.
Yeah.
I keep telling you people there is no person of that name who lives at this address.
But he's the registered owner of this vehicle.
At this address.
I mean, I've got unpaid parking, speeding I don't know what to tell you.
You know? Look.
My name's Mike Bungay, okay? Here's my card.
I can guarantee you As a barrister, I'm not in the habit of lying.
There is no person called Bruno von Kraut who lives here.
Night.
A dog can't own a car! Why not? There's nothing in the act that says he can't.
But you you lied, as well, Mike.
You said he didn't live there.
No.
I said no person of that name lives there.
And, handsome, charming though he may be, Bruno is not a person, Ian.
- He's a dog.
- [BOTH LAUGH.]
It's not funny.
It's serious.
Look, you know how it works.
A sheriff mentions something to a registrar, the registrar talks to some judge, the judge goes to the D.
L.
S and bingo! You're being accused of making false declarations, Mike.
- You could be struck off.
- Well, that's ridiculous.
I've didn't make false declarations.
Bruno is the registered owner.
Well, maybe.
But you're the habitual user.
No, I'm the driver.
The dog's the habitual user.
- I drive him everywhere.
- [LAUGHS.]
[SIGHS.]
[BREATHES DEEPLY.]
Oof.
You know I love you, baby More every day You are my sweetheart, baby In every way You are the one that I will Always adore Say you'll be mine forevermore I'll always love you, baby That much I know - I'm never, ever gonna - [LAUGHS.]
- Ah, fuck you.
- Let you go There was no intercourse.
Even accepting the evidence of the complainant Without criticism at this stage It doesn't amount to rape.
I therefore apply for the indictment to be quashed under Section 347 of the Crimes Act.
- Your Honor.
- BEATTIE: Yes, yes.
I'm going to refuse that application, Mr.
Bungay.
If I may request a discussion, Your Honor? BEATTIE: Yes, the application is refused.
I shall, if necessary, give my reasons in writing later.
Proceed.
BUNGAY: Completely out of hand.
Just like that.
Now I have to parade this poor young woman's medical and sexual history through the court And attack her supporting testimony.
No choice.
You know the trouble with your line of work? - What? - Morality and justice.
They're not always on the same side of the coin.
[SIGHS.]
Look, truth comes at a price, darling.
You know? You can't just stop and ask whether it's worth it.
Because you know what? It always is.
Well, isn't that just sometimes unbearable? BUNGAY: No.
It's just the profession.
You know, it might not be pretty, but it is the way it is.
No escape.
Come here.
Dr.
Frazer.
In 1972, you saw the complainant in a psychiatric unit.
DR.
FRAZER: At Wellington Hospital.
I did.
Yes.
BUNGAY: And what was your assessment of the complainant's sexual adjustment? Your Honor.
I'll allow it.
Doctor? Uh, it was, um It was unusual for a girl of 16 to be having sexual relations with older men, as well as her own age group.
Her sexual problems, though, were secondary, were they not? DR.
FRAZER: Yes.
She was quite severely depressed, following a miscarriage.
At 16? And did you consider that she needed psychological treatment? Yes.
I gave her 11 appointments for psychotherapy.
LARSEN: There was, quite clearly, nonconsensual intercourse, and there are clearly reasons why the victim did not protest or resist.
Because the offending happened during a gynecological examination.
And one might well understand the doubt, the hesitation, confusion of the victim.
Or victims.
Because, as you have heard, there is more supporting evidence that's emerged.
I saw him about eight years ago, when I was 19.
I made another appointment, and that was when when intercourse occurred.
But you did nothing about it? For eight years? I couldn't think clearly at the time.
But when I saw about this BUNGAY: You came forward.
After eight years.
You were, in fact, subpoenaed, - weren't you? - Yes.
And you say you went back to see Dr.
Geiringer nine months after he raped you? That's Yes, that's right.
But I only saw him once that time.
Just to get a referral to another doctor.
Well, I put it to you that the accused did not have intercourse with you.
[VOICE BREAKING.]
And I say he did.
He did.
[TIRES SCREECHING.]
Maureen.
I understand that professional etiquette requires us to maintain a measure of distance while we're at work.
But.
We are not at work.
And we all know how scarce taxis are at this hour.
Is that not the truth, ladies and gentlemen of the jury? [LAUGHTER.]
So, please, Maureen, allow me to express my deep regard for you by offering you a ride in Bruno's chariot, thus affording his driver the opportunity to unburden himself of some long-held views as to your attributes.
And I'm not talking about your legal skills, Maureen.
I'm talking about yo [VEHICLE DOOR OPENS.]
- [VEHICLE DOOR CLOSES.]
- I rest my case.
[APPLAUSE.]
[ENGINE STARTS.]
So.
Your place or mine? [ENGINE REVS, TIRES SCREECH.]
$5, $10, $20.
Do not say anything.
It'll be all right.
You're in court in half an hour.
What you gonna do about that eye? It's all in hand.
Ah, Bruce.
Miss Covington.
Oh.
I see what you mean, Bruce.
I'll do my best.
I've, uh, been watching the Geiringer trial.
Mm.
Pick another one, darling.
I like to be proud of what I do.
Are you sure you want to put Geiringer in the box? Yeah.
He'll be fine, as long as he remembers what we said during our little chats.
This is not about medical politics.
No? I'm a target, you know.
All of this bad feeling over the independent, NZMA.
No.
This is about the viability of this woman's complaint.
Yes, I can identify this as the Sims' position.
And, in your expert opinion, Dr.
Rutherford, would you say it's possible for a male standing at the side of an examination table to be able to have intercourse with a woman lying in the Sims' position? I would consider it impossible.
Unless he was a contortionist.
Are you a contortionist, Doctor? No.
And do you consider it necessary to arouse a woman sexually to facilitate a gynecological examination? I do not, no.
Is it ever the case that, during a gynecological examination, the examiner would become sexually aroused? It might happen from time to time.
With a young novice.
Or an attractive young client? Not after doing thousands of vaginal examinations, no.
And I think it would be very unlikely in the middle of a Friday morning surgery after seeing 16 patients.
What did the test results reveal in her first appointment, in December? A moderate growth of Staphylococcus and another bacteria, which can cause a number of unpleasant diseases.
And that was present at the time of the January examination, which is the subject of the complaint against you? Yeah.
And, personally, I don't believe there would be any medically trained person who would willingly bend down and have a smack - of Staphylococcus.
- Yes.
Yes.
Thank you, Doctor.
That's Thank you.
WOMAN: [WHISPERING.]
There she is, there she is.
REPORTER: Excuse me, ma'am.
Excuse me, ma'am.
[REPORTERS SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY.]
REPORTER #2: How do you feel about this? I don't get it, mate.
How do you celebrate a victory like that? Well, it's a victory for the law, Stuart.
Erich Geiringer might be arrogant and self-opinionated, but he's not a proven rapist.
The jury understood that.
So you celebrate.
- Mike Bungay? - The same.
You should be ashamed of yourself.
- Hey.
- Oh, take it easy, Stuart.
[EXHALES SHARPLY.]
The bra-burners are gonna be out in force now.
And they're entitled to their opinions, too Even if they are uninformed ones.
I mean, you get it, don't you? You get it.
I do.
Yeah, I do.
And so does the law.
See, 'cause losing isn't losing.
It's just being on the wrong end of the right decision.
[SIGHS.]
[SIGHS.]
[BREATHES DEEPLY.]
[BOTH GRUNT.]
Oh, Tri Trish.
Trish! [SIGHS.]
Trish.
Trish.
Wait, please.
Look.
You know how I feel about you.
Yes.
But you just don't know how to live it.
I can.
I will.
You won't, Mike.
I've sat and watched you try and deal with this in all the wrong ways for years now.
It's like you're trying to repair some kind of damage and doing more in the process.
[SIGHS.]
I keep waiting for you to see it.
But it's just not gonna happen, is it? But I do care for you.
I do.
[SIGHS.]
Look.
[SIGHS.]
I - You know I can't be on my own.
- TRISH: Mike.
I have been divorced once and betrayed twice.
Lots more times, if we're really honest, right? Well, I'm not prepared to put myself through it any more.
I wish you well, though.
[SOBS.]
I really do.
[ENGINE STARTS.]
Mike? Someone to see you.
Michael Anthony Bungay? Yes, I am.
Blood alcohol summons.
Or is the dog still driving? - [CHUCKLES.]
- Thank you very much.
Bruce? Yeah? You're a bloody idiot.
[GROANS.]
The police seem to be actively pursuing the poor chap, - if you ask me.
- "Poor chap"? He's a menace.
He can't be allowed to get away with it.
Just a black mark? He should be struck off.
[CHUCKLES.]
If they struck off every lawyer who notched up a drink-driving offense, Lionel people would be hard-pressed to find representation.
Perhaps the police need to aim a little higher.
SALLY: [MOANS.]
BUNGAY: Sally [BOTH MOANING.]
Move in with me.
Peterson.
Sharing chambers? - Mmm.
- And clients.
We have the space, and it'll take some of the pressure off.
- He's had a good mentor.
- [CHUCKLES.]
Teaching him how not to win friends and influence people? I suppose I'll have to stop calling him "young Bruce," will I? - You're tired.
- [SIGHS.]
You should cut down on the booze.
- I'll be okay.
- Go and have a holiday.
Go up to my bach, rest a few I don't need a fucking re Aah! Aah.
Aah.
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
He'll need an ECG to confirm, but I'd say he's having a heart attack.
I'll call an ambulance.
- BUNGAY: Ian? - Yeah, what is it? Just don't let him put me in the Sims' position, okay? [BOTH LAUGH.]
[MONITOR BEEPING.]
You didn't get married again, did you, Mike? Without mentioning it to Stuart? No.
Why? Just a bit of a problem.
The hospital can only allow next of kin to visit, and there's four different women out there, all insisting that's them.
Oh, God.
What happens, Joy, if you turn off these machines? You could die.
Oh, good.
Turn them off.
The bypass surgery went well.
He's gonna be fine.
BUNGAY: Stuart! Come here, come here, come here.
Oh.
Gimme those.
Underneath there, underneath there.
- Go on.
- You're supposed to be resting.
Oh, you sound like your wife.
She comes in here all the time, checking up on me, when she should be ministering to the truly sick.
I am resting, anyway.
I've given myself a whole six weeks to prepare for this next trial.
That's resting.
You'll get there, too, as well, won't you? [GASPS.]
Oh.
Oh.
Hi, Sally.
Oh, look, I can't look at this now, mate.
- Right.
- I should be resting.
Yep.
Oh.
Stuart McEwan, Sally Burke.
- Nice to meet you.
- Albeit briefly.
He was just leaving.
I'll tell you what.
Just leave that on the floor there, and I'll look at it when I get home.
Good idea.
Well, you enjoy your rest.
Pleasure.
See you.
Thanks for the grapes.
Hello, love.
Any mail for me? I'm not your delivery service, you know.
- [CHUCKLES.]
- Just some bills and stuff.
And this from the Department of Corrections.
BUNGAY: Hmm.
"Dear Mr.
Bungay, I have heard on the radio and read in the newspapers that you're extremely ill.
I would just like to wish you a long, lingering, and very painful death.
" [CHUCKLES.]
"Yours faithfully, Alf bloody Benning.
" Alf bloody Benning.
BUNGAY: "Dear Murderer it is a beautiful spring morning here in sunny Wellington.
I have French champagne in the chiller and some fine prime fillet steaks defrosting.
My friends and I are heading off shortly to enjoy a leisurely picnic.
" [CHUCKLES.]
"What are you doing? Best, Mike Bungay.
" Provocation, ladies and gentlemen, isn't easy to prove, but all of us, surely, at some time have experienced the need to respond to unjustified criticism or a perceived slight.
We can all understand the impulse - to want to strike back - as my client did.
Without thought or premeditation, killing his brother.
In which case, you cannot find him guilty of murder.
Hello, mate! Come here.
Come on.
There's a good boy.
There's a good boy.
[SIGHS.]
SALLY: You're later than I expected.
I didn't know what was happening.
Again.
It would've been helpful.
- I've had a busy day, too.
- Sorry.
I haven't cooked.
I had a deadline.
Well, we can eat out.
They brought in a verdict.
Reduced to manslaughter.
A win.
- Yay.
Hm.
- Oh, that's good.
Have you had a drink? Um, just the one.
- Don't tell the doctor, though.
- [TELEPHONE RINGS.]
Underground Airways.
Mike.
Me.
Oh, you didn't have to call, Ian.
You can congratulate me tomorrow.
This isn't about the case, Mike.
We got another letter.
- Three strikes, I think.
- What? You're being censured by the Law Society, Mike.
You really could be struck off this time.
It's bloody ridiculous.
It was a joke.
Well, the D.
L.
S.
don't see the funny side.
They regard it as highly unprofessional.
Oh, come on.
Benning was a disgruntled client.
He tells me to drop dead.
I tell him I don't intend to oblige.
They're going to strike me off for that? It's not just that, Mike! It's all the bloody grandstanding Bruno, drunk driving, the screwing around.
Then you've got the feminist lobby out for your blood.
Them! They've been itching to pounce since Geiringer.
And now they're flexing their muscles even more since that Marilyn Waring child got into Parliament.
You're such a bloody misogynist! No, I'm not, actually.
I love women.
I want them to be empowered And in power.
I just don't like this particular lot snapping at my heels all the time.
- So cool your heels for a bit.
- Why?! Why can't I just go into the D.
L.
S.
and have it out with Colleen Singleton? Colleen Singleton is just the messenger.
She's the executive fucking director! And I bet her bra's smoldering somewhere in some bonfire, too.
GREIG: Oh, for God's sakes! Colleen is just doing her job.
She's not part of some feminist conspiracy against you.
Just lie low while we appeal the censure and hope it goes away.
Just like last time.
Oh, good luck with that.
They're jealous, if you ask me.
A few magazine articles, a nice car, a rental property.
They think I'm getting too fucking big for my boots.
And maybe they're right.
But put simply, Mike, pull your head in.
Before they cut it off.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
Don't dignify it.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY.]
Perhaps the police could.
ELLIE: Mike.
Haven't seen you in ages.
[MOANS.]
[BOTH BREATHING HEAVILY.]
You haven't lost your touch, have you? [LAUGHS, SIGHS.]
No.
Just my mind.
[CHUCKLES.]
That's not very nice.
I didn't mean you.
Ahh.
We shouldn't have done this.
For your sake, as much as anything.
Why not? I love hotel rooms.
I'm living with somebody, Ellie.
You probably know her.
She's another journo.
Yeah, Mike.
I do.
[SIGHS.]
I must have a relationship death wish.
You too.
Your mates will crucify you if they find out you're back in bed with the enemy.
You know, being a part of the feminist push doesn't mean I can't go to bed with someone.
Even if that someone is the enemy.
So how about another offensive? It was bloody ridiculous.
Nearly everyone thought that letter was funny.
Count yourself lucky.
A formal censure? - That's getting off lightly.
- Having my wrist slapped by a bunch of sanctimonious hypocrites? I don't think so.
GREIG: Your Honor.
Talking of sanctimonious hypocrites I need a drink.
Aren't you driving back up the coast? All right, all right.
I'll wait till I get up to the beach.
Yeah, you should take Sally up there with you.
Well, she's probably working.
Besides, I'm going up there to get away from Sally.
[KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Room for another small one inside? Um The bubbles make me drunk.
Not necessarily a bad thing.
I can't.
Not tonight.
I'm sorry, Ellie.
I've got a client due.
You know, for a committal hearing tomorrow.
Shit.
I wish you'd told me before I cracked the Veuve.
You should've called.
I didn't have to call last week.
BUNGAY: I didn't have a client last week.
Shit.
Best-laid plans.
You had a plan? Yeah.
Well, I didn't drive all this way - for just a shag, Mike.
- You did last week.
Look, I've been thinking.
Why not leave Sally permanently? I mean, you and I, we make a great team.
In all departments.
Is that That's your plan? To suggest we get hitched? Why not? Because all your friends and colleagues hate me.
You only think you know me.
And I'm too busy to be even maintaining the relationship that I've already got! And because Fucking hell, Ellie.
I've got a client due.
You can't just breeze in here and open Pandora's bloody box and expect me to deal with it just like that! It's not hard, Mike! It's yes or no, isn't it? All right, then.
No.
I'm sorry you've driven all this way.
You prick.
- You're a prick, aren't you? - I don't know.
Am I? You're a selfish asshole.
Quite possibly, but I'm a very busy selfish asshole.
ELLIE: I thought we had something going.
We did! Okay?! Yes! Temporary distraction.
Amnesia through orgasm.
Fun.
Fantasy.
- What do you want me to say?! - Fuck you, Mike! Yeah, all right.
I'm fucked already, aren't I? You know? If being busy and committed is fucked, then fine! Well, I hope it makes you happy! - [GLASS SHATTERS.]
- Fuck! Maybe tell Sally the deal.
Let her know what comes first.
[DOOR OPENS, SLAMS.]
[TELEPHONE RINGING.]
[SIGHS.]
Hello? Uh Oh.
Yeah, it is.
Hey, Bushy.
How you going? What can I do for you? What's - He's a friend of yours or - [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Oh, can you hang on just a minute, Bushy? I'll just be a sec.
Sorry.
I'm later than I expected.
I'm so glad you are, believe me.
Mm.
[SMOOCHES.]
- Busy? - [CHUCKLES.]
Something like that.
Look, I'm just on the phone.
I won't be long.
But help yourself to some champagne.
Sorry about that, Bushy.
What's his name again? Minnitt? Double "N," "I," double "T.
" Okay.
Well, I'll have to organize an instructing.
It won't be till tomorrow morning, though.
Yeah.
Yeah, okay, mate.
Good.
I'll let them know that I'll be down tomorrow.
Yeah.
Okay.
G'night.
[SIGHS.]
This is nice.
Treat? You don't want to marry me, do you? [SCOFFS.]
What? - You think I'm crazy? - [SIGHS.]
That's good.
MINNITT: My name is Minnitt, 37 Upland Road, Kelburn.
[GUNSHOT.]
I've just shot my wife.
- OFFICER: Do you have a gun? - - MINNITT: Yes.
- What sort of gun? MINNITT: A .
303.
OFFICER: And is your wife dead? MINNITT: Yes.
So, there is no question as to whether or not the accused shot his wife.
I agree.
I don't intend to dispute it.
So, what, then, Mike? Insanity? Provocation.
You know all about provocation.
You've been provoking people for years.
That's probably why you're on all the police watch lists.
Informally, maybe.
LARSEN: Oh, I think you'll find it's a little more orchestrated than you imagined.
Really? Interesting as that may be the core question in this case, it seems to me, is simple.
But did what Mrs.
Minnitt said deprive the accused of the ordinary powers of self-control to the extent that he shot his wife? Exactly.
The position of the body by the bed indicated that Mrs.
Minnitt was kneeling or stooping when she was shot.
Her blood alcohol content was quite high, yes.
About 208 milligrams to 100 milliliters of blood.
There were also traces of Valium and another drug.
The poor woman was an alcoholic.
She was drunk, abusive.
And her solicitor said that Minnitt had been violent before.
His violence was an outlet.
But why lose control to such an extent on this specific occasion? How many times was there physical violence in your 14 years of marriage? It happened on four occasions.
The first was in February when I discovered that she was being unfaithful.
We separated briefly.
Did you strike her then? I did, yes.
And the second time? Was in September or October of last year.
I heard her come in at 4:00 a.
m.
, and I realized she'd gone to bed in the bottom bedroom.
I asked her where she'd been.
Smoking outside.
What's it to you? And I slapped her three or four times across the face.
Her problem with alcohol was quite formidable, you see, and she wouldn't admit it.
What were your feelings for her up to the 15th of May? I married her because I loved her.
She was kind and very thoughtful and generous and loving.
But he beat her.
And shot her.
Because he lost control.
This was worse than any argument they'd ever had.
There were two problems His wife's addiction to alcohol and her affair with another man.
Leigh Minnitt went to Hastings without telling her husband.
To be with that man.
When she returned to Wellington after being phoned by Dr.
Minnitt's sister At his request they talked.
They got on well.
But on May the 15th, she told him that she was leaving again.
I'll be gone for a month.
At least.
MINNITT: Please.
He begged her not to go, and then she let out this torrent of abuse.
14 years of uninterrupted misery you've given me, you useless geriatric! Dr.
Minnitt can't remember all that she said, but it included that he was physically repulsive.
You nauseate me whenever you come near me! BUNGAY: "Geriatric fool.
A sterile bastard.
" That he nauseated her every time he came near her.
That he had given her 14 years of uninterrupted misery.
She then told him that his penis was too small.
You and your tiny useless prick! What? And that's the thing that pushed him over the edge? - You shut your mouth.
- BUNGAY: Minnitt felt that she was making physical comparisons between him and her lover.
You shut up! BUNGAY: He begged her to stop.
But she did not.
The ferocity continued.
You call that thing a penis? It's a joke.
[BREATHING SHAKILY.]
Shut up, Leigh! BUNGAY: And within seconds, he had loaded the rifle and fired the shot.
[GUNSHOT.]
And when he did this, he was so distraught, he had completely lost control due to the ferocity of that verbal assault.
MINNITT: The noise of the rifle in that confined space shocked me into a kind of sobriety.
Normality.
And my wife was lying dead at my feet.
And for a moment, I thought it was some kind of savage dream.
Sometime later, when he regained control, he then phoned the police.
My name is Minnitt, 37 Upland Road, Kelburn.
I've just shot my wife.
CROWD: [CHANTING.]
Court condones wife murder.
Court condones wife murder.
Court condones wife murder.
Court condones wife murder.
My client is a man of impeccable character, Your Honor, who, for the past 23 years, has served his community well as a doctor.
He has gone beyond the call of duty, and is held in the highest esteem by his professional colleagues.
Provocation.
No premeditation.
Completely and utterly emotionally battered.
This case does not call for anything other than a merciful sentence.
- Come on! - Miscarriage of justice, Judge! Silence, or I will have this court cleared! This is not a case of manslaughter, where death was unintended.
But, because it was under provocation, it was not murder.
- WOMAN: Rubbish.
- I see no need for the sentence to reflect any deterrent element as far as Dr.
Minnitt is concerned.
But the court must express the community's condemnation of the use of firearms and its denunciation of what the accused has done.
WOMAN: All right.
- [INDISTINCT SHOUTING.]
- SALLY: This is my house! I live here! - I'll get it cleaned off.
- I'll get a cab.
No.
No.
You're staying, okay? It's actually my house.
My apartment, to be exact.
- Oh, fuck off! - I can organize a hotel.
No, Jim! You've driven all this way from Napier again.
You're staying.
You're not fucking going scouting some hotel.
No, it's okay, Jim.
It's fine.
I'm sorry.
It's just that BUNGAY: It's nothing! Just vandalism.
No, it's an expression of anger! - Of a job well done?! - In your opinion! But don't you read the newspapers? Watch television? You know, there are meetings! There are articles! They are painting Minnitt as a well-connected wife-beater who's got a slap on the wrist for taking it up a notch to murder! And you are as good as his accomplice in their eyes! It's my job! All right? The jury brought in the verdict! Only because you persuaded them to! It's my job! Oh, and that makes you feel so bloody good about yourself, doesn't it?! You know, this whole thing is like a metaphor for your life.
Never mind the women who get hurt or fucked over, just as long as justice and Bungay prevail! Mighty Mike The Cock of the Court! I can't do this.
I thought I could, but I can't.
You know, it's always him.
It's his work, it's his priorities.
I have a bloody career, too.
It's a fucking good one! Or at least it could be.
[SIGHS.]
If he's not gonna change, maybe then there's something you should do.
You know, Helen and I are happy.
We don't have issues like this to deal with.
Look, the only advice I can give you is just get out, you know, before things - Oh, that's fucking brilliant.
- [SIGHS.]
If anyone should understand my position, it's you.
What? And I'm the villain here? - Look, Mike - Hey! Stop it! Stop it! Go on, get the fuck out, Jim! Go and find your hotel.
Get out! She's right, you know.
This is your life.
And you may win as many verdicts you like, or get what you consider to be justice for as many of your clients as you like, but, in the end, what does it all amount to if you destroy everything you need in the process? What I need.
Like he knows what I fucking need.
And you do? Yeah.
I need a drink.
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
I have a lot of personal stuff, Jim.
I manufacture it just to keep myself busy.
It's a small town.
Your peccadillos, they don't go unnoticed.
I hate other people thinking that I don't know.
I should've told you, but I haven't seen you.
Bev left.
This is supposed to change things for us? Make it somewhat easier, what, less sordid? We've got the biggest trial in New Zealand legal history - on our plates.
- I know, I know.
- [CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING.]
- There can be no more despicable label - attached to any man than that of spy.
- I've never lost a spy trial yet! [CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING.]
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYS.]
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYS.]
Ohh Baby, baby, baby I want to tell you right now - Ohh - [BRUNO WHINES.]
- Baby, baby, baby - [HORN HONKING.]
I want to tell you right now This cult of personality It's not becoming of the profession, David.
I imagine not.
I mean, listen to this.
"Mr.
Bungay is a sort of Rumpole of the High Court, a barrister of theatrical presence" "whose color and earthy eloquence sets him apart from the gray bulk of his fellow practitioners.
" OLDFIELD: [SCOFFS.]
Gray bulk? - Not bad, huh? - Not bad? - [BRUNO WHINES.]
- Rumpole? Yes, Rumpole.
I'm much better-looking than Leo McKern.
Aren't I, Bruno? Yes, I am.
I blame this whole Sutch business.
He courts the press now like some sort of popular singer.
It's undignified.
Is he going to be censured, or something? OLDFIELD: One can hardly be censured for hogging the limelight.
Well, perhaps the limelight will blind him, and he'll fall off the stage.
[LAUGHS.]
- [CLASSICAL MUSIC PLAYS.]
- [SIGHS.]
[GERMAN ACCENT.]
They run tests on just 50-odd pregnancies, and they're suggesting measurement of alpha-fetoprotein in maternal blood should be mandatory? No, no, no.
- [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
- [SIGHS.]
More testing first.
[KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Ja? Can I help? That's for what happened at your surgery today.
Erich?! Erich! - Fuck my missus, would ya?! - Leave him alone! - [CRYING.]
- DR.
GEIRINGER: [GROANING.]
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
CAROL: Oh.
Oh.
Oh.
PETERSON: The cops paid a visit to follow up, and, regardless of the assault, Dr.
Geiringer's being charged with rape.
During a gynecological examination.
PETERSON: Mm.
What do we know of the complainant? Not a lot yet.
Well, we'd better make it our job to find out.
I'm sure they'll pop that in a takeaway cup for you.
- [LIGHTER CLICKING.]
- Right.
Licking him into shape.
Who's that? 2:00.
Corporate.
Maureen Kemp? You've got to be joking.
She's the oldest virgin in New Zealand.
Even you wouldn't get a look-in.
Well, she's only twentysomething.
I recognize her, I think.
Oh! Janice? You might.
She works down the street.
I thought you meant the other one.
Facing us.
What the hell would I mean her for? - Eh, for the challenge? - [SCOFFS.]
CASTLE: Janice is just a clerk.
She's far too young and sweet to have you unleashed on her.
I think we can let Janice decide that, can't we? Besides, she might appreciate a brush with fame.
Right.
So, not game for Maureen, then? Can't handle the rejection? How do you know she'd say no? You wanna bet? Maureen is impervious to all charm.
And reputation.
Tim.
Betting on a woman's virtue is ungentlemanly.
How much? What about Janice? - I thought you - How much? 20 bucks.
CASTLE: 20 bucks? I'm gonna need some time, though.
Let's allow three months.
Three months? Good work, Bruce.
Okay.
I want those on my desk in the morning, okay? And remember to tell the Crown that we're looking at the complainant's psych reports, okay? Because it's a trial, Bruce.
- Not an ambush.
- [DOORBELL RINGS.]
Look, gotta go, okay? Bye.
- [RINGING CONTINUES.]
- It's all right, Bruno.
I'll scare her off.
Arf, arf, arf! Uh Evening.
I'm looking for the owner of a Jaguar.
- Registration - Oh.
Not again.
Owned by a Bruno von Kraut? Night security officer.
Yes.
Yeah.
I keep telling you people there is no person of that name who lives at this address.
But he's the registered owner of this vehicle.
At this address.
I mean, I've got unpaid parking, speeding I don't know what to tell you.
You know? Look.
My name's Mike Bungay, okay? Here's my card.
I can guarantee you As a barrister, I'm not in the habit of lying.
There is no person called Bruno von Kraut who lives here.
Night.
A dog can't own a car! Why not? There's nothing in the act that says he can't.
But you you lied, as well, Mike.
You said he didn't live there.
No.
I said no person of that name lives there.
And, handsome, charming though he may be, Bruno is not a person, Ian.
- He's a dog.
- [BOTH LAUGH.]
It's not funny.
It's serious.
Look, you know how it works.
A sheriff mentions something to a registrar, the registrar talks to some judge, the judge goes to the D.
L.
S and bingo! You're being accused of making false declarations, Mike.
- You could be struck off.
- Well, that's ridiculous.
I've didn't make false declarations.
Bruno is the registered owner.
Well, maybe.
But you're the habitual user.
No, I'm the driver.
The dog's the habitual user.
- I drive him everywhere.
- [LAUGHS.]
[SIGHS.]
[BREATHES DEEPLY.]
Oof.
You know I love you, baby More every day You are my sweetheart, baby In every way You are the one that I will Always adore Say you'll be mine forevermore I'll always love you, baby That much I know - I'm never, ever gonna - [LAUGHS.]
- Ah, fuck you.
- Let you go There was no intercourse.
Even accepting the evidence of the complainant Without criticism at this stage It doesn't amount to rape.
I therefore apply for the indictment to be quashed under Section 347 of the Crimes Act.
- Your Honor.
- BEATTIE: Yes, yes.
I'm going to refuse that application, Mr.
Bungay.
If I may request a discussion, Your Honor? BEATTIE: Yes, the application is refused.
I shall, if necessary, give my reasons in writing later.
Proceed.
BUNGAY: Completely out of hand.
Just like that.
Now I have to parade this poor young woman's medical and sexual history through the court And attack her supporting testimony.
No choice.
You know the trouble with your line of work? - What? - Morality and justice.
They're not always on the same side of the coin.
[SIGHS.]
Look, truth comes at a price, darling.
You know? You can't just stop and ask whether it's worth it.
Because you know what? It always is.
Well, isn't that just sometimes unbearable? BUNGAY: No.
It's just the profession.
You know, it might not be pretty, but it is the way it is.
No escape.
Come here.
Dr.
Frazer.
In 1972, you saw the complainant in a psychiatric unit.
DR.
FRAZER: At Wellington Hospital.
I did.
Yes.
BUNGAY: And what was your assessment of the complainant's sexual adjustment? Your Honor.
I'll allow it.
Doctor? Uh, it was, um It was unusual for a girl of 16 to be having sexual relations with older men, as well as her own age group.
Her sexual problems, though, were secondary, were they not? DR.
FRAZER: Yes.
She was quite severely depressed, following a miscarriage.
At 16? And did you consider that she needed psychological treatment? Yes.
I gave her 11 appointments for psychotherapy.
LARSEN: There was, quite clearly, nonconsensual intercourse, and there are clearly reasons why the victim did not protest or resist.
Because the offending happened during a gynecological examination.
And one might well understand the doubt, the hesitation, confusion of the victim.
Or victims.
Because, as you have heard, there is more supporting evidence that's emerged.
I saw him about eight years ago, when I was 19.
I made another appointment, and that was when when intercourse occurred.
But you did nothing about it? For eight years? I couldn't think clearly at the time.
But when I saw about this BUNGAY: You came forward.
After eight years.
You were, in fact, subpoenaed, - weren't you? - Yes.
And you say you went back to see Dr.
Geiringer nine months after he raped you? That's Yes, that's right.
But I only saw him once that time.
Just to get a referral to another doctor.
Well, I put it to you that the accused did not have intercourse with you.
[VOICE BREAKING.]
And I say he did.
He did.
[TIRES SCREECHING.]
Maureen.
I understand that professional etiquette requires us to maintain a measure of distance while we're at work.
But.
We are not at work.
And we all know how scarce taxis are at this hour.
Is that not the truth, ladies and gentlemen of the jury? [LAUGHTER.]
So, please, Maureen, allow me to express my deep regard for you by offering you a ride in Bruno's chariot, thus affording his driver the opportunity to unburden himself of some long-held views as to your attributes.
And I'm not talking about your legal skills, Maureen.
I'm talking about yo [VEHICLE DOOR OPENS.]
- [VEHICLE DOOR CLOSES.]
- I rest my case.
[APPLAUSE.]
[ENGINE STARTS.]
So.
Your place or mine? [ENGINE REVS, TIRES SCREECH.]
$5, $10, $20.
Do not say anything.
It'll be all right.
You're in court in half an hour.
What you gonna do about that eye? It's all in hand.
Ah, Bruce.
Miss Covington.
Oh.
I see what you mean, Bruce.
I'll do my best.
I've, uh, been watching the Geiringer trial.
Mm.
Pick another one, darling.
I like to be proud of what I do.
Are you sure you want to put Geiringer in the box? Yeah.
He'll be fine, as long as he remembers what we said during our little chats.
This is not about medical politics.
No? I'm a target, you know.
All of this bad feeling over the independent, NZMA.
No.
This is about the viability of this woman's complaint.
Yes, I can identify this as the Sims' position.
And, in your expert opinion, Dr.
Rutherford, would you say it's possible for a male standing at the side of an examination table to be able to have intercourse with a woman lying in the Sims' position? I would consider it impossible.
Unless he was a contortionist.
Are you a contortionist, Doctor? No.
And do you consider it necessary to arouse a woman sexually to facilitate a gynecological examination? I do not, no.
Is it ever the case that, during a gynecological examination, the examiner would become sexually aroused? It might happen from time to time.
With a young novice.
Or an attractive young client? Not after doing thousands of vaginal examinations, no.
And I think it would be very unlikely in the middle of a Friday morning surgery after seeing 16 patients.
What did the test results reveal in her first appointment, in December? A moderate growth of Staphylococcus and another bacteria, which can cause a number of unpleasant diseases.
And that was present at the time of the January examination, which is the subject of the complaint against you? Yeah.
And, personally, I don't believe there would be any medically trained person who would willingly bend down and have a smack - of Staphylococcus.
- Yes.
Yes.
Thank you, Doctor.
That's Thank you.
WOMAN: [WHISPERING.]
There she is, there she is.
REPORTER: Excuse me, ma'am.
Excuse me, ma'am.
[REPORTERS SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY.]
REPORTER #2: How do you feel about this? I don't get it, mate.
How do you celebrate a victory like that? Well, it's a victory for the law, Stuart.
Erich Geiringer might be arrogant and self-opinionated, but he's not a proven rapist.
The jury understood that.
So you celebrate.
- Mike Bungay? - The same.
You should be ashamed of yourself.
- Hey.
- Oh, take it easy, Stuart.
[EXHALES SHARPLY.]
The bra-burners are gonna be out in force now.
And they're entitled to their opinions, too Even if they are uninformed ones.
I mean, you get it, don't you? You get it.
I do.
Yeah, I do.
And so does the law.
See, 'cause losing isn't losing.
It's just being on the wrong end of the right decision.
[SIGHS.]
[SIGHS.]
[BREATHES DEEPLY.]
[BOTH GRUNT.]
Oh, Tri Trish.
Trish! [SIGHS.]
Trish.
Trish.
Wait, please.
Look.
You know how I feel about you.
Yes.
But you just don't know how to live it.
I can.
I will.
You won't, Mike.
I've sat and watched you try and deal with this in all the wrong ways for years now.
It's like you're trying to repair some kind of damage and doing more in the process.
[SIGHS.]
I keep waiting for you to see it.
But it's just not gonna happen, is it? But I do care for you.
I do.
[SIGHS.]
Look.
[SIGHS.]
I - You know I can't be on my own.
- TRISH: Mike.
I have been divorced once and betrayed twice.
Lots more times, if we're really honest, right? Well, I'm not prepared to put myself through it any more.
I wish you well, though.
[SOBS.]
I really do.
[ENGINE STARTS.]
Mike? Someone to see you.
Michael Anthony Bungay? Yes, I am.
Blood alcohol summons.
Or is the dog still driving? - [CHUCKLES.]
- Thank you very much.
Bruce? Yeah? You're a bloody idiot.
[GROANS.]
The police seem to be actively pursuing the poor chap, - if you ask me.
- "Poor chap"? He's a menace.
He can't be allowed to get away with it.
Just a black mark? He should be struck off.
[CHUCKLES.]
If they struck off every lawyer who notched up a drink-driving offense, Lionel people would be hard-pressed to find representation.
Perhaps the police need to aim a little higher.
SALLY: [MOANS.]
BUNGAY: Sally [BOTH MOANING.]
Move in with me.
Peterson.
Sharing chambers? - Mmm.
- And clients.
We have the space, and it'll take some of the pressure off.
- He's had a good mentor.
- [CHUCKLES.]
Teaching him how not to win friends and influence people? I suppose I'll have to stop calling him "young Bruce," will I? - You're tired.
- [SIGHS.]
You should cut down on the booze.
- I'll be okay.
- Go and have a holiday.
Go up to my bach, rest a few I don't need a fucking re Aah! Aah.
Aah.
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]
He'll need an ECG to confirm, but I'd say he's having a heart attack.
I'll call an ambulance.
- BUNGAY: Ian? - Yeah, what is it? Just don't let him put me in the Sims' position, okay? [BOTH LAUGH.]
[MONITOR BEEPING.]
You didn't get married again, did you, Mike? Without mentioning it to Stuart? No.
Why? Just a bit of a problem.
The hospital can only allow next of kin to visit, and there's four different women out there, all insisting that's them.
Oh, God.
What happens, Joy, if you turn off these machines? You could die.
Oh, good.
Turn them off.
The bypass surgery went well.
He's gonna be fine.
BUNGAY: Stuart! Come here, come here, come here.
Oh.
Gimme those.
Underneath there, underneath there.
- Go on.
- You're supposed to be resting.
Oh, you sound like your wife.
She comes in here all the time, checking up on me, when she should be ministering to the truly sick.
I am resting, anyway.
I've given myself a whole six weeks to prepare for this next trial.
That's resting.
You'll get there, too, as well, won't you? [GASPS.]
Oh.
Oh.
Hi, Sally.
Oh, look, I can't look at this now, mate.
- Right.
- I should be resting.
Yep.
Oh.
Stuart McEwan, Sally Burke.
- Nice to meet you.
- Albeit briefly.
He was just leaving.
I'll tell you what.
Just leave that on the floor there, and I'll look at it when I get home.
Good idea.
Well, you enjoy your rest.
Pleasure.
See you.
Thanks for the grapes.
Hello, love.
Any mail for me? I'm not your delivery service, you know.
- [CHUCKLES.]
- Just some bills and stuff.
And this from the Department of Corrections.
BUNGAY: Hmm.
"Dear Mr.
Bungay, I have heard on the radio and read in the newspapers that you're extremely ill.
I would just like to wish you a long, lingering, and very painful death.
" [CHUCKLES.]
"Yours faithfully, Alf bloody Benning.
" Alf bloody Benning.
BUNGAY: "Dear Murderer it is a beautiful spring morning here in sunny Wellington.
I have French champagne in the chiller and some fine prime fillet steaks defrosting.
My friends and I are heading off shortly to enjoy a leisurely picnic.
" [CHUCKLES.]
"What are you doing? Best, Mike Bungay.
" Provocation, ladies and gentlemen, isn't easy to prove, but all of us, surely, at some time have experienced the need to respond to unjustified criticism or a perceived slight.
We can all understand the impulse - to want to strike back - as my client did.
Without thought or premeditation, killing his brother.
In which case, you cannot find him guilty of murder.
Hello, mate! Come here.
Come on.
There's a good boy.
There's a good boy.
[SIGHS.]
SALLY: You're later than I expected.
I didn't know what was happening.
Again.
It would've been helpful.
- I've had a busy day, too.
- Sorry.
I haven't cooked.
I had a deadline.
Well, we can eat out.
They brought in a verdict.
Reduced to manslaughter.
A win.
- Yay.
Hm.
- Oh, that's good.
Have you had a drink? Um, just the one.
- Don't tell the doctor, though.
- [TELEPHONE RINGS.]
Underground Airways.
Mike.
Me.
Oh, you didn't have to call, Ian.
You can congratulate me tomorrow.
This isn't about the case, Mike.
We got another letter.
- Three strikes, I think.
- What? You're being censured by the Law Society, Mike.
You really could be struck off this time.
It's bloody ridiculous.
It was a joke.
Well, the D.
L.
S.
don't see the funny side.
They regard it as highly unprofessional.
Oh, come on.
Benning was a disgruntled client.
He tells me to drop dead.
I tell him I don't intend to oblige.
They're going to strike me off for that? It's not just that, Mike! It's all the bloody grandstanding Bruno, drunk driving, the screwing around.
Then you've got the feminist lobby out for your blood.
Them! They've been itching to pounce since Geiringer.
And now they're flexing their muscles even more since that Marilyn Waring child got into Parliament.
You're such a bloody misogynist! No, I'm not, actually.
I love women.
I want them to be empowered And in power.
I just don't like this particular lot snapping at my heels all the time.
- So cool your heels for a bit.
- Why?! Why can't I just go into the D.
L.
S.
and have it out with Colleen Singleton? Colleen Singleton is just the messenger.
She's the executive fucking director! And I bet her bra's smoldering somewhere in some bonfire, too.
GREIG: Oh, for God's sakes! Colleen is just doing her job.
She's not part of some feminist conspiracy against you.
Just lie low while we appeal the censure and hope it goes away.
Just like last time.
Oh, good luck with that.
They're jealous, if you ask me.
A few magazine articles, a nice car, a rental property.
They think I'm getting too fucking big for my boots.
And maybe they're right.
But put simply, Mike, pull your head in.
Before they cut it off.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
Don't dignify it.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY.]
Perhaps the police could.
ELLIE: Mike.
Haven't seen you in ages.
[MOANS.]
[BOTH BREATHING HEAVILY.]
You haven't lost your touch, have you? [LAUGHS, SIGHS.]
No.
Just my mind.
[CHUCKLES.]
That's not very nice.
I didn't mean you.
Ahh.
We shouldn't have done this.
For your sake, as much as anything.
Why not? I love hotel rooms.
I'm living with somebody, Ellie.
You probably know her.
She's another journo.
Yeah, Mike.
I do.
[SIGHS.]
I must have a relationship death wish.
You too.
Your mates will crucify you if they find out you're back in bed with the enemy.
You know, being a part of the feminist push doesn't mean I can't go to bed with someone.
Even if that someone is the enemy.
So how about another offensive? It was bloody ridiculous.
Nearly everyone thought that letter was funny.
Count yourself lucky.
A formal censure? - That's getting off lightly.
- Having my wrist slapped by a bunch of sanctimonious hypocrites? I don't think so.
GREIG: Your Honor.
Talking of sanctimonious hypocrites I need a drink.
Aren't you driving back up the coast? All right, all right.
I'll wait till I get up to the beach.
Yeah, you should take Sally up there with you.
Well, she's probably working.
Besides, I'm going up there to get away from Sally.
[KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Room for another small one inside? Um The bubbles make me drunk.
Not necessarily a bad thing.
I can't.
Not tonight.
I'm sorry, Ellie.
I've got a client due.
You know, for a committal hearing tomorrow.
Shit.
I wish you'd told me before I cracked the Veuve.
You should've called.
I didn't have to call last week.
BUNGAY: I didn't have a client last week.
Shit.
Best-laid plans.
You had a plan? Yeah.
Well, I didn't drive all this way - for just a shag, Mike.
- You did last week.
Look, I've been thinking.
Why not leave Sally permanently? I mean, you and I, we make a great team.
In all departments.
Is that That's your plan? To suggest we get hitched? Why not? Because all your friends and colleagues hate me.
You only think you know me.
And I'm too busy to be even maintaining the relationship that I've already got! And because Fucking hell, Ellie.
I've got a client due.
You can't just breeze in here and open Pandora's bloody box and expect me to deal with it just like that! It's not hard, Mike! It's yes or no, isn't it? All right, then.
No.
I'm sorry you've driven all this way.
You prick.
- You're a prick, aren't you? - I don't know.
Am I? You're a selfish asshole.
Quite possibly, but I'm a very busy selfish asshole.
ELLIE: I thought we had something going.
We did! Okay?! Yes! Temporary distraction.
Amnesia through orgasm.
Fun.
Fantasy.
- What do you want me to say?! - Fuck you, Mike! Yeah, all right.
I'm fucked already, aren't I? You know? If being busy and committed is fucked, then fine! Well, I hope it makes you happy! - [GLASS SHATTERS.]
- Fuck! Maybe tell Sally the deal.
Let her know what comes first.
[DOOR OPENS, SLAMS.]
[TELEPHONE RINGING.]
[SIGHS.]
Hello? Uh Oh.
Yeah, it is.
Hey, Bushy.
How you going? What can I do for you? What's - He's a friend of yours or - [KNOCK ON DOOR.]
Oh, can you hang on just a minute, Bushy? I'll just be a sec.
Sorry.
I'm later than I expected.
I'm so glad you are, believe me.
Mm.
[SMOOCHES.]
- Busy? - [CHUCKLES.]
Something like that.
Look, I'm just on the phone.
I won't be long.
But help yourself to some champagne.
Sorry about that, Bushy.
What's his name again? Minnitt? Double "N," "I," double "T.
" Okay.
Well, I'll have to organize an instructing.
It won't be till tomorrow morning, though.
Yeah.
Yeah, okay, mate.
Good.
I'll let them know that I'll be down tomorrow.
Yeah.
Okay.
G'night.
[SIGHS.]
This is nice.
Treat? You don't want to marry me, do you? [SCOFFS.]
What? - You think I'm crazy? - [SIGHS.]
That's good.
MINNITT: My name is Minnitt, 37 Upland Road, Kelburn.
[GUNSHOT.]
I've just shot my wife.
- OFFICER: Do you have a gun? - - MINNITT: Yes.
- What sort of gun? MINNITT: A .
303.
OFFICER: And is your wife dead? MINNITT: Yes.
So, there is no question as to whether or not the accused shot his wife.
I agree.
I don't intend to dispute it.
So, what, then, Mike? Insanity? Provocation.
You know all about provocation.
You've been provoking people for years.
That's probably why you're on all the police watch lists.
Informally, maybe.
LARSEN: Oh, I think you'll find it's a little more orchestrated than you imagined.
Really? Interesting as that may be the core question in this case, it seems to me, is simple.
But did what Mrs.
Minnitt said deprive the accused of the ordinary powers of self-control to the extent that he shot his wife? Exactly.
The position of the body by the bed indicated that Mrs.
Minnitt was kneeling or stooping when she was shot.
Her blood alcohol content was quite high, yes.
About 208 milligrams to 100 milliliters of blood.
There were also traces of Valium and another drug.
The poor woman was an alcoholic.
She was drunk, abusive.
And her solicitor said that Minnitt had been violent before.
His violence was an outlet.
But why lose control to such an extent on this specific occasion? How many times was there physical violence in your 14 years of marriage? It happened on four occasions.
The first was in February when I discovered that she was being unfaithful.
We separated briefly.
Did you strike her then? I did, yes.
And the second time? Was in September or October of last year.
I heard her come in at 4:00 a.
m.
, and I realized she'd gone to bed in the bottom bedroom.
I asked her where she'd been.
Smoking outside.
What's it to you? And I slapped her three or four times across the face.
Her problem with alcohol was quite formidable, you see, and she wouldn't admit it.
What were your feelings for her up to the 15th of May? I married her because I loved her.
She was kind and very thoughtful and generous and loving.
But he beat her.
And shot her.
Because he lost control.
This was worse than any argument they'd ever had.
There were two problems His wife's addiction to alcohol and her affair with another man.
Leigh Minnitt went to Hastings without telling her husband.
To be with that man.
When she returned to Wellington after being phoned by Dr.
Minnitt's sister At his request they talked.
They got on well.
But on May the 15th, she told him that she was leaving again.
I'll be gone for a month.
At least.
MINNITT: Please.
He begged her not to go, and then she let out this torrent of abuse.
14 years of uninterrupted misery you've given me, you useless geriatric! Dr.
Minnitt can't remember all that she said, but it included that he was physically repulsive.
You nauseate me whenever you come near me! BUNGAY: "Geriatric fool.
A sterile bastard.
" That he nauseated her every time he came near her.
That he had given her 14 years of uninterrupted misery.
She then told him that his penis was too small.
You and your tiny useless prick! What? And that's the thing that pushed him over the edge? - You shut your mouth.
- BUNGAY: Minnitt felt that she was making physical comparisons between him and her lover.
You shut up! BUNGAY: He begged her to stop.
But she did not.
The ferocity continued.
You call that thing a penis? It's a joke.
[BREATHING SHAKILY.]
Shut up, Leigh! BUNGAY: And within seconds, he had loaded the rifle and fired the shot.
[GUNSHOT.]
And when he did this, he was so distraught, he had completely lost control due to the ferocity of that verbal assault.
MINNITT: The noise of the rifle in that confined space shocked me into a kind of sobriety.
Normality.
And my wife was lying dead at my feet.
And for a moment, I thought it was some kind of savage dream.
Sometime later, when he regained control, he then phoned the police.
My name is Minnitt, 37 Upland Road, Kelburn.
I've just shot my wife.
CROWD: [CHANTING.]
Court condones wife murder.
Court condones wife murder.
Court condones wife murder.
Court condones wife murder.
My client is a man of impeccable character, Your Honor, who, for the past 23 years, has served his community well as a doctor.
He has gone beyond the call of duty, and is held in the highest esteem by his professional colleagues.
Provocation.
No premeditation.
Completely and utterly emotionally battered.
This case does not call for anything other than a merciful sentence.
- Come on! - Miscarriage of justice, Judge! Silence, or I will have this court cleared! This is not a case of manslaughter, where death was unintended.
But, because it was under provocation, it was not murder.
- WOMAN: Rubbish.
- I see no need for the sentence to reflect any deterrent element as far as Dr.
Minnitt is concerned.
But the court must express the community's condemnation of the use of firearms and its denunciation of what the accused has done.
WOMAN: All right.
- [INDISTINCT SHOUTING.]
- SALLY: This is my house! I live here! - I'll get it cleaned off.
- I'll get a cab.
No.
No.
You're staying, okay? It's actually my house.
My apartment, to be exact.
- Oh, fuck off! - I can organize a hotel.
No, Jim! You've driven all this way from Napier again.
You're staying.
You're not fucking going scouting some hotel.
No, it's okay, Jim.
It's fine.
I'm sorry.
It's just that BUNGAY: It's nothing! Just vandalism.
No, it's an expression of anger! - Of a job well done?! - In your opinion! But don't you read the newspapers? Watch television? You know, there are meetings! There are articles! They are painting Minnitt as a well-connected wife-beater who's got a slap on the wrist for taking it up a notch to murder! And you are as good as his accomplice in their eyes! It's my job! All right? The jury brought in the verdict! Only because you persuaded them to! It's my job! Oh, and that makes you feel so bloody good about yourself, doesn't it?! You know, this whole thing is like a metaphor for your life.
Never mind the women who get hurt or fucked over, just as long as justice and Bungay prevail! Mighty Mike The Cock of the Court! I can't do this.
I thought I could, but I can't.
You know, it's always him.
It's his work, it's his priorities.
I have a bloody career, too.
It's a fucking good one! Or at least it could be.
[SIGHS.]
If he's not gonna change, maybe then there's something you should do.
You know, Helen and I are happy.
We don't have issues like this to deal with.
Look, the only advice I can give you is just get out, you know, before things - Oh, that's fucking brilliant.
- [SIGHS.]
If anyone should understand my position, it's you.
What? And I'm the villain here? - Look, Mike - Hey! Stop it! Stop it! Go on, get the fuck out, Jim! Go and find your hotel.
Get out! She's right, you know.
This is your life.
And you may win as many verdicts you like, or get what you consider to be justice for as many of your clients as you like, but, in the end, what does it all amount to if you destroy everything you need in the process? What I need.
Like he knows what I fucking need.
And you do? Yeah.
I need a drink.
[BREATHING HEAVILY.]