For the People (2018) s02e09 Episode Script
Who Are We Now?
1 My feet go boom, boom, boom Boom, boom, boom Boom, boom, boom My heart beats boom, boom, boom Boom, boom, boom Boom, boom, boom Walking away from you Hi.
Hi.
Have you seen Seth? - No.
- Okay, cool.
Uh, if you see him, can you tell him I'm looking for him? Yep, no problem.
Are you looking for Leonard? No, Seth.
I'm gonna call him.
He doesn't have his phone.
I have his phone.
Why do you have Leonard's phone? No, she's gonna call Seth.
I'm calling Roger.
About Leonard or Seth? Where are you? Where are you? What are you doing? What are you doing? I'm picking up the tickets.
I have the tickets.
- What tickets? - Where are you? - Who is that? - Jill.
Yes? Can you ask her if she's seen Jay? Yeah, he's right here.
Is that Seth? Can I? - Hey.
- Hey.
Boom, boom, boom Boom, boom, boom - Hey.
- Hey.
How's it going? Has he seen Leonard? He's right here.
What are you all doing here? There's something weird going on.
Yes.
I'm looking at Wait, why did you just say yes? Because I'm looking at your office standing in my office.
I'm looking at your office standing in my office.
Is this like the Herschel Walker trade of the Southern District? Is he in your office or this office? Herschel Walker.
He played football.
He was traded from the Dallas Cowboys to the Minnesota Vikings.
18 players.
They basically swapped teams.
I don't follow sport.
"Sport"? Who says "sport"? Oh, God, you did a semester in England, didn't you? University of East Anglia.
How long did you have an accent when you got back? Two years.
Oh, that's why you drink tea.
No.
I drink tea because it's calming.
Really? I find all the leaves stressful.
I'm worried I'm gonna swallow a leaf.
Have you tried meditation? Who has time? They say you only need a minute.
- Who says that? - I don't know, the meditation lobby.
JILL: Sandra! Oh.
Yeah, I'm seeing it here, too.
- Bye.
- Bye.
Coming, coming, coming, coming It's good to be home.
Why are you holding two phones? JILL: Okay, good news Andrew and his husband just got matched with a baby girl to adopt.
- Wow! Ah! So happy for them.
- Amazing! So that means we all need to pitch in and help him out while he's gone.
- Anything.
- Of course.
Obviously, the big thing is the Betty Baker trial.
- That's Andrew? - Did not realize.
Right now, she's just being tried for the East Midtown Mutual Bank robbery, but if you've even glanced at a tabloid in the last six months, you know they suspect her in a string of other robberies around Manhattan.
It's a tough case.
Facts are bad.
Government isn't offering anything.
And there's a sympathetic eyewitness who was shot in the bank.
And the trial starts in two days.
[GROANS.]
I have a verdict coming in, unfortunately.
Love Andrew, but I'm buried right now.
So happy for him and Dan.
Don't be nervous.
Easy for you to say.
How many bombs did you diffuse in Kandahar? One too few.
Well, more than anyone on that jury.
They're gonna find me guilty.
We don't know that.
You have a good story.
That I cashed my dead mom's Social Security checks? That you shed blood for your country and your injuries meant unemployment, which was nowhere near sufficient Which has nothing to do with their verdict.
That has everything to do with your sentence.
You are a veteran.
You do not deserve to be put in a position where the only way you could afford to put a roof over your head was to commit a crime.
Even if the jury finds you guilty and I'm not saying they will the judge will understand what you've been through.
I feel good about this.
Guilty.
Remember, this is not the ballgame.
Mr.
Hardin, we're gonna set a sentencing date.
At that time, I will consider any arguments your lawyer wants to make on your behalf, but having heard the evidence against you, I do want to be clear what you did was deceitful and wrong.
It requires a penalty that will send a message to deter this kind of conduct and address the seriousness of your crime.
JILL: Sounds like Judge Guillotine.
- It's Gallatin.
- No, it's Guillotine.
The way you're saying it, it sounds like the thing with the heavy blade that chops off heads.
Last time I was in front of Guillotine, he sent my client to prison because he said it was time for her to "learn a little life lesson.
" She was 91.
Great.
What am I gonna do? This might be time for you to consider film school.
Thank you for the vote of confidence.
- A sentencing mitigation video.
- A video.
A short film to show Chris' story in images in a way you can't in briefings and arguments.
- This is a real thing? - Absolutely real.
And incredibly effective in the right situations.
Okay.
Well, the last movie I made was this little spy camera I set up in the laundromat No, no.
- You need a professional for this.
- Even better.
Someone who knows how to use music, narration, real emotion.
Who do I contact? No idea.
Well, what kind of budget do we have? No budget.
I've heard about these, but so far as I know, nobody in this office has actually made one.
I'm sorry.
You just got me excited about something I can't do.
Possibly.
If you do go down this road, though, and I really think you should, it should be good, tasteful.
Otherwise, it can really backfire.
Let me know how it goes.
Tasteful? Me? BETTY: Have you ever been to Paris? It's on my list.
Illinois.
Paris, Illinois.
No.
Is that really a place? I'm not judging.
I'm from Sacramento.
It's a place where nothing happens.
What got me through was knowing that someday I would move to New York.
I felt like when I got here, that's when my life would really start.
And now You're here.
I know.
I'm sorry.
I've been getting up to speed on your case, Betty, and I see two big hurdles for us in this trial.
One is the receipt found at the bank that was traced back to your credit card, and the other is the eyewitness testimony from the man who was shot.
We can fight the receipt.
I feel confident about that, but the eyewitness will be more challenging.
It's one person.
Yes, but if he's credible How credible can he be if he's lying? I don't trust anyone anymore.
I completely understand.
I was like that, too.
What changed? I guess I did.
I realized people on the other side can also be on my side.
[CHUCKLES LIGHTLY.]
Yeah, that's crazy.
You were right the first time.
Don't trust anybody.
- Hi! - Hi! Oh, I love your shoes.
You can't see my shoes.
I don't need to see them to know I love them.
I could be wearing those shoes with the articulated toes.
No, you couldn't.
Your taste is way too good for that.
Weird time to admit I own a pair? Can I help you with something? They're actually great for natural foot motion.
Is this another side business? I remember you were peddling water filters at one point.
That was my dad.
If you're interested, we still have 10,757 left.
What do you want? - So, we have a client - "We"? and our client is being sentenced, and Jill recommended a sentencing video, which is why I need you.
I don't know how to make a movie.
Oh, neither do I, but at least you know about movies, and what's your favorite movie? "Lost in Translation.
" No idea what that is.
My favorite movie is about a talking St.
Bernard, and it's not "Beethoven.
" Beethoven didn't talk.
Really? Huh.
I do have a friend in film school.
- Of course you do.
- I'll introduce you, but we are not doing this together.
Hey, do your thing.
Just let me be a fly on the wall.
No, I mean, I'll introduce you, but Listen, it's either help me on this, or you get dragged into her trial.
[SIGHS.]
You have to lose the shoes.
[TELEPHONE RINGS.]
This is Kate.
Hey, it's me.
Have you sent over a witness list yet? - Not yet.
- Oh, okay.
I'm obviously under a bit of a time crunch here.
Right, I realize that, which is why, I mean, technically, I'm not even required Never mind.
I'll get it to you within the next two hours.
Great.
Thank you so much.
And the trial exhibits? - Yes.
On their way.
- Ah, fantastic.
Thank you! [CLICK.]
[SIGHS.]
[TELEPHONE RINGS.]
This is Sandra.
I just want to confirm that defense does not plan to file any additional motions in limine? Not as of yet.
Does that mean defense is still considering some? No, it just means that defense, meaning me, still has time to decide.
I will file them on time.
What do you mean by "on time"? Kate, no motions, okay? Okay.
Thank you.
I'm 95% sure.
[CLICK.]
[DIAL TONE.]
Agent Brentano, can you please look at Government Exhibit 4 and explain to the jury what it is? It's a receipt in the amount of $14.
72 for Taqueria Isidoro.
Have you seen this receipt before? - Yes, it was found - Objection.
Move to strike.
The witness is answering a question she wasn't asked.
If Ms.
Littlejohn wants to know where it was found, she can ask her that.
Thank you, Ms.
Bell.
Agent Brentano, where was this receipt found? On the floor of the bank, just after the robbery.
Do you know how it got there? - I believe it fell - SANDRA: Objection.
No foundation.
Speculation.
Sustained.
Agent Brentano, in reviewing the evidence in this case, did you come to a conclusion as to when and how this receipt came to be on the floor of the bank? Objection.
It's a compound question.
It is, and I appreciate counsel's concern for precision, but I believe the witness can answer both parts.
Agreed.
Overruled.
You may answer.
AGENT BRENTANO: In reviewing the surveillance video, I was able to determine the receipt fell during the robbery.
How did you determine that this receipt belonged to Ms.
Baker.
Objection.
Misstates the testimony.
Assumes facts not in evidence.
[DOOR CREAKS.]
[GROANS.]
I found a meditation app.
Should we try tomorrow at lunch? That witness doesn't matter.
- They all matter.
- Only one matters.
Andrew had this case for weeks.
You've had it for a few days.
This loss is gonna go to him, not you.
Everyone knows that.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
Tomorrow at lunch.
Let's do it.
Mr.
Loomis, can you please tell the jury what happened after you entered East Midtown Mutual Bank? I was waiting for the ATM when I saw this woman enter with her head down.
Uh, she had one of those ski caps bunched on her head.
She was beautiful.
What I saw of her.
I stared for a second, and then she saw me and pulled on the mask.
Turned around again, and that's when I saw the gun in her hand.
And what happened next? There was chaos.
It all happened so fast.
I saw the security guard getting ready to make his move, so naturally I tried to get out of his way.
That's when she shot me.
- Where did she shoot you? - In the stomach.
Mr.
Loomis, is the woman who shot you at the bank here in this courtroom today? No.
[SPECTATORS MURMUR.]
Mr.
Loomis, are you sure? Yes.
Isn't it true that the defendant, Ms.
Baker Objection, the question has been asked and answered.
I am asking a different question.
If the question is about the identity of the person who shot the defendant, it's the same question.
Ms.
Littlejohn, I'll allow you another shot at this if you rephrase it in an appropriate way.
Mr.
Loomis, when you were interviewed by FBI Agent James Wellner, did you identify someone you believed responsible for shooting you at East Midtown Mutual Bank? Yes, I did.
When I looked at her photographs, I thought it was the woman sitting there, Ms.
Baker.
But seeing her now, in person I was wrong.
It wasn't her.
Weeks of preparation, and suddenly he isn't sure Betty - was the person who shot him? - The bank robber's named "Betty"? I'm headed this way.
I'll see you later.
I had a pet hedgehog when I was a kid.
- Guess what its name was.
- Betty.
- Nope.
- Sonic.
No.
Do you want another guess? - No.
- Bill Clinton.
What about him? My hedgehog's name was Bill Clinton.
How would I ever guess that? That's why I gave you three chances.
Anyway, Bill Clinton died when I was 12, I buried him in the backyard, we had a funeral, I presided over it and everything.
Why are you telling me this? Because I just found out that Bill Clinton actually died while I was away at camp when I was 10.
My mom just bought another hedgehog and switched Bill Clinton out.
I couldn't identify my own pet! We went over his testimony 50 times.
We showed him the photo spread.
He identified her without any hesitation.
Nick was sure.
I was sure I was burying the real Bill Clinton.
That's the point.
Isn't the point that your mom lied to you because she didn't want you to know she killed your hedgehog? You know what? That hurts.
Wait, that's it.
You know what's happened in the world since 1986? The Soviet Union fell.
We cloned a sheep.
Cars drive themselves, but the Mets haven't won a World Series in 32 years.
Rooting for the Yankees is like cheering for Jaws or the German guys from "Die Hard.
" - Were they German? - I have no idea.
- His name was Hans.
- Hans Solo wasn't German.
That's, like, an inter-galaxy thing, and his name was Han, not Hans.
Either way, Yankees suck.
Have a great trial.
What are you doing? - Waiting.
- For who? Jill.
To exchange tickets.
You have to exchange tickets in the courthouse hallway? We tried it in the office, but it got confusing.
Long story.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
Look, I know this is complicated, but you and Jill need to move this along.
Me and Jill need to move what along? You and Jill need to move you and Jill along.
Oh, no.
No, there's nothing going I've known you a long time, Roger.
Until you met Jill, the only time I'd ever seen you even smile was when Ronald Mark Wilson was sentenced to death.
He ate his math teacher.
I'm not apologizing for that.
The point is, you're not a happy person.
Or you weren't.
But ever since you've been spending time with Jill, there's a light in your eyes.
Now, I normally wouldn't involve myself in this, but when you're happy, everything around here is happier.
I-I think you're exaggerating a little - [DOOR OPENS.]
- Hey! Hey.
Sorry I'm late.
Judge Friedman brought his Pomeranian to work again, and he ended up gagging on a crispy shrimp burrito under the bench.
The Pomeranian, not Judge Friedman.
Good news is I got a continuance.
[BRITISH ACCENT.]
This is a great moment for me.
Working for us for free? The chance to move people.
Through film.
Well, I'm truly humbled to be able to share my gifts with all of you.
Just the judge.
Tell me your vision for this.
We need to get Judge Gallatin to feel for Chris at sentencing.
To really understand him as a person.
Chris is a decorated bomb specialist.
He served two tours in Afghanistan.
He came back with a shattered shoulder and a fused hip.
He could barely hold down a job.
So, when his mom passed away and her benefit checks kept coming in the mail he was just trying to survive.
Service.
Sacrifice.
Survival.
That's his story.
Exactly right.
I'm gonna get to the heart of it.
That's what we need you for.
The beating, pulsing heart.
Beating and pulsing are those two things? I [MOUTHING.]
Trust me.
[SIGHS.]
Has it been three minutes? 42 seconds.
No, that can't be right.
No 44, 45 It's stressing me out.
I just want tea.
Do not say "tea.
" I never realized how many thoughts I have.
Maybe we're just being too ambitious.
Three minutes is pretty aggressive.
One minute? I can do anything for one minute.
Mm-hmm.
One minute it is, starting now.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
[GROANS.]
What if I don't want to meditate for one minute? Ugh, who has the time? We're in trial.
- Ridiculous.
We tried.
- Yeah.
Whatever happens in there, that is in there.
It isn't personal.
- Of course not.
- Not "of course.
" Well, it's not.
I'm glad you said that, though.
I was feeling bad because of Nick's testimony, and if you want to dismiss the case.
Let's leave that inside.
We're here now.
- Tomorrow? Same time.
- Mm-hmm.
Aren't you supposed to be in court? On my way.
I was meditating.
Good.
That'll come in handy.
- What is this? - From Kate's office.
Oh, is it a dismissal? It is not a dismissal.
What is it? Security photos from all the robberies - they suspect Betty was involved in.
- Why? She's not charged in any of those robberies.
You can't identify her in any of these photos.
No, but you can identify him.
Who? Oh, my God.
I was handed these photos minutes before coming into court.
I only discovered them last night, Your Honor.
Last night was last night.
I turned over the evidence as soon as it was practical.
That is demonstrably untrue.
It was deliberately withheld until the last minute to gain a strategic advantage.
Well, now, this is more what I was expecting.
Mr.
Loomis is now cooperating? Yes, Your Honor.
And there is an immunity agreement in place? Yes, Your Honor.
I'm surprised and unhappy with how long it took you to produce this material, Ms.
Littlejohn.
This is where we are.
I'll allow you to go forward.
Your Honor, respectfully, this is a flagrant Brady violation.
I understand the objection, Ms.
Bell.
We're moving forward.
Ms.
Littlejohn, you are on a short leash here.
Now.
What exactly is Mr.
Loomis testifying to? Betty Baker was my girlfriend.
We had been together a year when she first raised the idea of robbing a bank.
I thought she was joking, but she wasn't.
She was bored.
She needed money.
And she was very convincing.
I went along with it.
I was the scout.
The lookout.
And if we got into trouble, I was going to help us get out.
Mr.
Loomis, can you please tell the jury what happened the day of the East Midtown Mutual robbery? It started just like the others.
The planning.
But on that last day, on the walk to the bank, I felt something different from her.
She kept complaining that she was doing all the work.
I didn't understand what that meant until we got in the bank and she shot me.
She wanted the money.
You previously testified that you could not identify the person who shot you in the East Midtown Mutual Bank.
Was that testimony truthful? No.
It was not.
Why not? Honestly? Because I love her.
And I didn't want her to go to jail.
Even though she did shoot me in the stomach.
But this is the truth.
Betty Baker was the woman under that mask.
How goes bank robbery? - My witness turned on me.
- Not good.
But I turned him, and he turned on the defendant.
It's a lot of turns.
Are we back in the same place? Uh, no, we're in a better place.
When did she tell you this witness had turned? About 15 minutes before he testified.
- That's a Brady violation.
- I made this argument.
I lost.
If you want me to get into this - And do what? - I can talk to Roger.
You don't need to talk to Roger.
She sandbagged me.
I objected.
I lost.
I have to move on.
This could be grounds for appeal.
Maybe, or maybe I win and there is no appeal.
I need to talk to Betty.
ALLISON: Kings are the slaves of history? That doesn't sound like Chris.
No.
It's Leo.
He didn't mention a Leo in his unit.
It's from "War and Peace.
" The narration is from Leo Tolstoy? Every luminous word of it.
Can you tell us what those luminous words mean? It all depends on who is watching.
The judge is watching.
The judge.
The crows that pick at Chris' wounds, in the battle sequence why are they in uniforms? Also, why are there crows? The fossil record is rather dense.
In the video why are there crows in the video? It's a spirit animal, a symbol of death and destiny.
In United States Army uniforms.
A symbol of death and destiny.
She has a good point.
This is federal court.
Could we switch up the uniforms? How are they putting on the uniforms? We may have to do that in post.
Not my preference, of course.
My friend Rusty takes his Dachshund trick-or-treating.
In costume.
I'm just saying.
- This is insane.
- About adding the uniforms in post? I'm worried about that, too.
Doing any of this in any way.
Spirit animals and Russian novels? The brutality of war.
That is Chris' story.
If he was enslaved by a King.
No, see, the Kings are the ones who are enslaved, burdened by Look, I get where Theo's headed with this.
- So do I.
- It's better than any of the videos we've seen.
Your cellphone pointed at the ground is better - than the videos we've seen.
- What's your solution, then? With two days till sentencing.
Something, anything that shows the truth of Chris' life.
Like the stuff I tried to raise every day at trial? Or the cane he used in court whenever he moved an inch? Judge Guillotine didn't care.
Yes, Theo's taking a big swing.
Chris needs one, so let's get back in there and figure out how we are gonna get the crows dressed! I didn't think he'd turn on me.
After you shot him? I only shot him because he was gonna shoot me.
What are you talking about? He was reaching into his jacket.
He had a gun, but the the plan was only for him to use it if I needed backup.
There were no sirens, no cops.
I was about to get away, just like I had the other times, but then I saw his hand in his jacket, the expression on his face.
I just saw it.
Saw what? That he didn't trust me anymore.
And I didn't trust him.
We'd started fighting a lot.
We'd even argued on the way to the bank that day.
How much of the money we could spend without people getting suspicious, what was okay to spend it on, what wasn't, what the long-term plan was gonna be.
He figured out the perfect way to get rid of me, keep the money, and even come out looking like a hero.
So I shot him.
We really did love each other once.
The mistake was going into business together.
What do we know about Nick? He's from Edina, Minnesota.
Moved to New York three years ago.
He played the oboe in college.
- She told you she shot him? - Yes.
But the first time you talked to her, she told you she didn't shoot him.
Clients change their stories all the time for all kinds of reasons.
I don't know which story of hers is true, and I don't have to.
Our job is to make sure the government can actually prove their story.
They have the burden.
- Who's that? - Nick's sister.
Every year, his family takes a holiday photo inside a canoe.
I can kinda see why Betty shot him.
What do we know about her? She was married to a man named Luke, but he spells his name without the "e.
" She's had a lot of money problems since she moved to New York last year.
Any other pictures? - Of Nick? - Of his sister? No, you're not.
I am.
What choice do I have? We have to tell a different story.
Who is this, Mr.
Loomis? That's my sister, Jenny.
- Are you close? - Objection.
Relevance.
I can assure Your Honor this will be relevant.
I'll give you a few more, Ms.
Bell.
Mr.
Loomis, you may answer.
Yes.
Your sister, Jenny, is five foot three inches tall, is that about right? Yes.
- About 120 pounds? - Yes.
Brown hair? Yes.
Isn't it true, Mr.
Loomis, that your sister Jenny is the one who robbed the East Midtown Mutual Bank with you and not Betty Baker? - What? No.
- Objection.
JUDGE BYRNE: Counsel.
She has no evidence that Jenny had anything to do with this.
She doesn't need evidence.
She's asking questions.
She's raising doubt.
That's her job.
- It's a cross.
- Your Honor, she's gonna leave the jury with these wild accusations, and then she's gonna rest her case, and then I will have no ability to respond.
That is correct.
You are putting on a defense you know is false.
I don't know it's false.
I wasn't there.
Neither were you.
The only thing I actually know is that you withheld evidence that you knew would help me.
Ms.
Littlejohn, is there an objection you'd like to make? I object to her.
Overruled.
So, um, the bad guys in "Die Hard" were German.
But one of them was Russian.
So, it's confusing.
Ah, yes.
So, let's say I did want to move this along with Jill.
Okay, what direction? - Forward.
- Yes.
Like, uh, living together.
Right.
Uh, how would you approach that? You were married, right? - You proposed.
- Didn't go well.
- The proposal or the marriage? - All of it.
Well, tell me what you'd say.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
- So, listen - Sounds like you're delivering bad news.
Hold my hands.
Look me in the eye.
Call me by my name.
Tina or Jill? Jill.
Jill, I've been thinking a lot No, stop.
Okay.
Stop.
Thinking a lot? Why are you thinking a lot? This should be easy.
You're offending me.
- Are you Jill or Tina when - Both! Go ahead.
[EXHALES.]
Jill.
You make me happy.
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't want to talk to you.
See you.
Be with you.
That I don't think of you when I'm not with you.
That I don't wish I'd met you a long time before I did.
That I'm not thankful for any time I've gotten to spend with you.
I want to live with you.
I-I want to live together.
I think it's lovely.
[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS.]
- Hey.
- Hey.
Thanks for dropping off the Jenkins dismissal.
I appreciate it.
Sorry about the mix-up the other day.
No problem.
Is that a bird? In a uniform? We're making a sentencing mitigation video, and I mistakenly hired David Lynch, if David Lynch was British and obnoxious and had no talent and really loved crows.
Aren't all those videos stupid? I mean, I think the idea is okay.
To manipulate a judge with a movie.
To do what we can to humanize our clients.
I guess this is one area where prosecutors and defense attorneys really see things differently.
I'm not sure it's all prosecutors and defense attorneys.
It might just be you and me.
Those things are manipulative and ridiculous.
What's ridiculous about telling a client's story? The fact that you're not telling it.
You're turning it into a cheesy infomercial.
Infomercials can be very informative.
If the facts spoke for themselves, they wouldn't need mood lighting and a soundtrack by Enya.
I like Enya.
And the judge in this case didn't hear all the facts.
Whose fault is that? My bad.
We should just keep this stuff out of the apartment.
Yes, this is Switzerland.
SETH: I don't have to respect what you do to get along with you at home.
Are you saying you don't respect what I do? I didn't mean you specifically.
Oh, so I'm a bad lawyer and a cheap stereotype.
I didn't say cheap.
We're just talking about facts versus production values.
No.
We're talking about empathy for people versus being executed by Judge Guillotine.
- It's Gallatin! - I know it's Gallat You know, maybe just stay out of my business here, okay? You're the one who asked me to try to help you put a tiny uniform on a stuffed bird! The pants don't even fit! Betty Baker walked into East Midtown Mutual Bank, pulled a ski mask over her face, demanded money, and threatened to kill whoever got in her way.
When things didn't go as planned, she turned on her boyfriend, Nick Loomis, and shot him.
Without hesitating.
She didn't pause to see if he was all right.
She fled the scene so quickly that, in her haste, she dropped a receipt with her credit card number on it.
This is what happened.
These are the facts.
Ms.
Bell wants you to believe that the truth in this case is muddled.
That the testimony you have heard points to someone other than Betty Baker robbing a bank and trying to kill her boyfriend to cover her tracks, but that is simply untrue.
Mr.
Loomis is a flawed man who has made some very poor choices and big mistakes, but none has been greater than the simple, essential, elemental one of falling for the wrong person.
Of believing someone to be decent and honorable when she is not.
In believing that a relationship can be anything more than expedient and transactional.
That the person he trusted was motivated by something other than avarice and anger and self-regard.
We don't agree on a lot.
That's the nature of this system.
That's why we are here talking to you from opposite sides of the room.
To give you our perspective.
The evidence as we see it.
To let you decide.
But Ms.
Littlejohn and I do agree on one important thing in this case.
The only important thing, really.
That what we do here comes down to trust.
Do you trust Mr.
Loomis? That's it.
If you do, you can and probably should convict Betty Baker.
If you don't, then you cannot convict Betty Baker.
Do you trust him? You know he lied.
He told you he lied.
He came in here, and he looked you in the eye, and he said, "I lied.
" That is the only thing you know for a fact about Nick Loomis.
That the government offered him immunity, and he changed his testimony.
That he is a liar.
That he will say and do whatever it takes to avoid responsibility for his role in this crime.
Ms.
Littlejohn wants you to focus on the relationship between Betty and Nick.
I want you to think about the relationship between Nick and you.
You are good people.
You believe things, and you fight for the things you believe in, and you are honest in that fight.
Your friends and co-workers, your fellow jurors, trust you because they know what you believe.
Nick Loomis is a man who doesn't believe in anything.
And how do you trust someone who doesn't believe in anything? So, we've got to make this quick because I have a hearing to get to.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Okay, your charging documents in the last two fraud cases have been inflammatory and preposterously aggressive.
- Even for you.
- Um, you like smoked fish, right? Yes.
And you have this little weasel first year over here who keeps badgering one of my first years.
- I don't remember his name - Barney Greengrass.
I don't think that's it.
No, I'm saying Barney Greengrass tomorrow morning.
Can you do it? Uh, sure, yes, right.
We can go together.
Uh, meet me here tonight.
The Baker case.
I'm sure you know, Kate Littlejohn withheld Brady material Uh, no, open it later.
Okay.
We're gonna appeal if we lose, which we probably won't.
Byrne left us an opening.
Wait, what happened in the Baker case? When you tell your story, I need you to tell it as if it's happening now.
Right here.
- My story? - Your story.
My whole life story is now? Here and now.
I'm not sure I understand.
Neither do I.
You get it? Uh, blue and the khaki, thanks.
Should Chris shave as well? Oh, he won't be on camera for this.
You're just using the audio? I won't be recording that, either.
It's to give me the emotion.
I'm afraid I still don't understand what to do, exactly.
Thank God you're not a director.
- Just asking what I - [SHOUTING.]
Why don't you stop asking, and let me start doing, okay? [NORMAL VOICE.]
Thank you.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
I think it's time for you to leave.
- Excuse me? - You need to leave, Theo.
Now.
This is about Chris.
Not you.
Not "your work.
" Which seems to be terrible.
[PAPER RUSTLES.]
[DOOR SLAMS.]
He used to be such a normal, down-to-earth guy.
- Really? - Freshman year.
I don't know, maybe not.
We're screwed.
We're totally screwed.
We are.
What? [SIGHS.]
I'd like to take a break.
Clearly, in light of this powerful defense presentation, a prison sentence in this case is unwarranted.
When the door opens, I'm going in first.
[CELLPHONE RINGS.]
[CELLPHONE RINGS.]
- ROGER: Have a seat.
- I don't have time.
I'm waiting for a verdict.
There's not gonna be a verdict.
Sit down.
What's going on? She's pleading out.
Three years on the robbery, and we dismiss the gun charges.
- I never offered a deal.
- I offered it.
I'm about to win this case.
By withholding Brady material Judge Byrne ruled with me.
And if you win, which you probably will, they're gonna appeal, and we're gonna get slapped, and I'm not gonna let that happen.
You negotiated a deal with Sandra behind my back I negotiated a deal.
It wasn't with Sandra.
I don't understand.
You were gonna lose.
I was not going to lose.
When did she offer this? - Who? - Kate.
This didn't come from Kate.
Roger made me the offer.
Are you kidding me? You took my case away and cut a deal with Roger? Yes.
What? You two are in a relationship.
Sandra You were with him the night he was swatted.
You're digging into my personal life? This isn't about your personal life.
This is about professional liability.
You are the Federal Public Defender.
Your name is on every pleading in this office.
You represent every client in this office, and you have a relationship with the Chief of the Criminal Division of the U.
S.
Attorney's Office I've had a relationship with Roger Gunn for seven years.
That relationship has been different things at different times.
I don't know what it is now.
And it's not your business.
We're not married.
We have no entangling interests.
You think I haven't thought about this? This isn't about what I think.
It's about the perception of a conflict.
What happens when some disgruntled client finds out about this and alleges ineffective assistance of counsel? Then they will lose because nothing I have done or am doing is a violation of my professional responsibility.
You don't believe that.
It's complicated It's not complicated.
You're having a relationship that compromises your ability to do your job.
And my ability to do my job.
You want to know what I think? That is what I think.
You're upset about this case.
Yes.
I'm upset about this case.
I am upset because you negotiated a deal with Roger, and I don't know if you did that because it was in the best interest of our client or because Roger offered it.
I'm upset because I don't know if I can trust you.
And it's not just you.
It's It's not just this case.
I'm upset about everything going on around here.
Everything.
Everybody.
Me! Meditating in the park with Kate Littlejohn.
Jay and Seth living together.
Everybody walking around these offices like we're all one big happy family.
We are not.
We cannot be.
How did this happen? They don't have to be enemies, but that doesn't mean they are friends.
Or lovers.
We cannot do this job that way.
We are warriors.
We once were warriors.
Who are we now? Who are you? Yeah, I see this taking over And it's slowly getting colder Anywhere you go, I pray you'll know That I'm fighting for you You're the only one that my soul needs But it's getting colder No, I never want to say it's over Can you feel me holding your hand? Can you rise up to stand? Don't fade into black And you know I'm gonna bring you back You've got nothing to fear Call my name, I'll be here When you're under attack Yeah, you know I'm gonna bring you back Yeah, you know I'm gonna bring you back Yeah, you know I'm gonna bring you back Hey Feel me holding your hand This wasn't part of the plan You're fading to black
Hi.
Have you seen Seth? - No.
- Okay, cool.
Uh, if you see him, can you tell him I'm looking for him? Yep, no problem.
Are you looking for Leonard? No, Seth.
I'm gonna call him.
He doesn't have his phone.
I have his phone.
Why do you have Leonard's phone? No, she's gonna call Seth.
I'm calling Roger.
About Leonard or Seth? Where are you? Where are you? What are you doing? What are you doing? I'm picking up the tickets.
I have the tickets.
- What tickets? - Where are you? - Who is that? - Jill.
Yes? Can you ask her if she's seen Jay? Yeah, he's right here.
Is that Seth? Can I? - Hey.
- Hey.
Boom, boom, boom Boom, boom, boom - Hey.
- Hey.
How's it going? Has he seen Leonard? He's right here.
What are you all doing here? There's something weird going on.
Yes.
I'm looking at Wait, why did you just say yes? Because I'm looking at your office standing in my office.
I'm looking at your office standing in my office.
Is this like the Herschel Walker trade of the Southern District? Is he in your office or this office? Herschel Walker.
He played football.
He was traded from the Dallas Cowboys to the Minnesota Vikings.
18 players.
They basically swapped teams.
I don't follow sport.
"Sport"? Who says "sport"? Oh, God, you did a semester in England, didn't you? University of East Anglia.
How long did you have an accent when you got back? Two years.
Oh, that's why you drink tea.
No.
I drink tea because it's calming.
Really? I find all the leaves stressful.
I'm worried I'm gonna swallow a leaf.
Have you tried meditation? Who has time? They say you only need a minute.
- Who says that? - I don't know, the meditation lobby.
JILL: Sandra! Oh.
Yeah, I'm seeing it here, too.
- Bye.
- Bye.
Coming, coming, coming, coming It's good to be home.
Why are you holding two phones? JILL: Okay, good news Andrew and his husband just got matched with a baby girl to adopt.
- Wow! Ah! So happy for them.
- Amazing! So that means we all need to pitch in and help him out while he's gone.
- Anything.
- Of course.
Obviously, the big thing is the Betty Baker trial.
- That's Andrew? - Did not realize.
Right now, she's just being tried for the East Midtown Mutual Bank robbery, but if you've even glanced at a tabloid in the last six months, you know they suspect her in a string of other robberies around Manhattan.
It's a tough case.
Facts are bad.
Government isn't offering anything.
And there's a sympathetic eyewitness who was shot in the bank.
And the trial starts in two days.
[GROANS.]
I have a verdict coming in, unfortunately.
Love Andrew, but I'm buried right now.
So happy for him and Dan.
Don't be nervous.
Easy for you to say.
How many bombs did you diffuse in Kandahar? One too few.
Well, more than anyone on that jury.
They're gonna find me guilty.
We don't know that.
You have a good story.
That I cashed my dead mom's Social Security checks? That you shed blood for your country and your injuries meant unemployment, which was nowhere near sufficient Which has nothing to do with their verdict.
That has everything to do with your sentence.
You are a veteran.
You do not deserve to be put in a position where the only way you could afford to put a roof over your head was to commit a crime.
Even if the jury finds you guilty and I'm not saying they will the judge will understand what you've been through.
I feel good about this.
Guilty.
Remember, this is not the ballgame.
Mr.
Hardin, we're gonna set a sentencing date.
At that time, I will consider any arguments your lawyer wants to make on your behalf, but having heard the evidence against you, I do want to be clear what you did was deceitful and wrong.
It requires a penalty that will send a message to deter this kind of conduct and address the seriousness of your crime.
JILL: Sounds like Judge Guillotine.
- It's Gallatin.
- No, it's Guillotine.
The way you're saying it, it sounds like the thing with the heavy blade that chops off heads.
Last time I was in front of Guillotine, he sent my client to prison because he said it was time for her to "learn a little life lesson.
" She was 91.
Great.
What am I gonna do? This might be time for you to consider film school.
Thank you for the vote of confidence.
- A sentencing mitigation video.
- A video.
A short film to show Chris' story in images in a way you can't in briefings and arguments.
- This is a real thing? - Absolutely real.
And incredibly effective in the right situations.
Okay.
Well, the last movie I made was this little spy camera I set up in the laundromat No, no.
- You need a professional for this.
- Even better.
Someone who knows how to use music, narration, real emotion.
Who do I contact? No idea.
Well, what kind of budget do we have? No budget.
I've heard about these, but so far as I know, nobody in this office has actually made one.
I'm sorry.
You just got me excited about something I can't do.
Possibly.
If you do go down this road, though, and I really think you should, it should be good, tasteful.
Otherwise, it can really backfire.
Let me know how it goes.
Tasteful? Me? BETTY: Have you ever been to Paris? It's on my list.
Illinois.
Paris, Illinois.
No.
Is that really a place? I'm not judging.
I'm from Sacramento.
It's a place where nothing happens.
What got me through was knowing that someday I would move to New York.
I felt like when I got here, that's when my life would really start.
And now You're here.
I know.
I'm sorry.
I've been getting up to speed on your case, Betty, and I see two big hurdles for us in this trial.
One is the receipt found at the bank that was traced back to your credit card, and the other is the eyewitness testimony from the man who was shot.
We can fight the receipt.
I feel confident about that, but the eyewitness will be more challenging.
It's one person.
Yes, but if he's credible How credible can he be if he's lying? I don't trust anyone anymore.
I completely understand.
I was like that, too.
What changed? I guess I did.
I realized people on the other side can also be on my side.
[CHUCKLES LIGHTLY.]
Yeah, that's crazy.
You were right the first time.
Don't trust anybody.
- Hi! - Hi! Oh, I love your shoes.
You can't see my shoes.
I don't need to see them to know I love them.
I could be wearing those shoes with the articulated toes.
No, you couldn't.
Your taste is way too good for that.
Weird time to admit I own a pair? Can I help you with something? They're actually great for natural foot motion.
Is this another side business? I remember you were peddling water filters at one point.
That was my dad.
If you're interested, we still have 10,757 left.
What do you want? - So, we have a client - "We"? and our client is being sentenced, and Jill recommended a sentencing video, which is why I need you.
I don't know how to make a movie.
Oh, neither do I, but at least you know about movies, and what's your favorite movie? "Lost in Translation.
" No idea what that is.
My favorite movie is about a talking St.
Bernard, and it's not "Beethoven.
" Beethoven didn't talk.
Really? Huh.
I do have a friend in film school.
- Of course you do.
- I'll introduce you, but we are not doing this together.
Hey, do your thing.
Just let me be a fly on the wall.
No, I mean, I'll introduce you, but Listen, it's either help me on this, or you get dragged into her trial.
[SIGHS.]
You have to lose the shoes.
[TELEPHONE RINGS.]
This is Kate.
Hey, it's me.
Have you sent over a witness list yet? - Not yet.
- Oh, okay.
I'm obviously under a bit of a time crunch here.
Right, I realize that, which is why, I mean, technically, I'm not even required Never mind.
I'll get it to you within the next two hours.
Great.
Thank you so much.
And the trial exhibits? - Yes.
On their way.
- Ah, fantastic.
Thank you! [CLICK.]
[SIGHS.]
[TELEPHONE RINGS.]
This is Sandra.
I just want to confirm that defense does not plan to file any additional motions in limine? Not as of yet.
Does that mean defense is still considering some? No, it just means that defense, meaning me, still has time to decide.
I will file them on time.
What do you mean by "on time"? Kate, no motions, okay? Okay.
Thank you.
I'm 95% sure.
[CLICK.]
[DIAL TONE.]
Agent Brentano, can you please look at Government Exhibit 4 and explain to the jury what it is? It's a receipt in the amount of $14.
72 for Taqueria Isidoro.
Have you seen this receipt before? - Yes, it was found - Objection.
Move to strike.
The witness is answering a question she wasn't asked.
If Ms.
Littlejohn wants to know where it was found, she can ask her that.
Thank you, Ms.
Bell.
Agent Brentano, where was this receipt found? On the floor of the bank, just after the robbery.
Do you know how it got there? - I believe it fell - SANDRA: Objection.
No foundation.
Speculation.
Sustained.
Agent Brentano, in reviewing the evidence in this case, did you come to a conclusion as to when and how this receipt came to be on the floor of the bank? Objection.
It's a compound question.
It is, and I appreciate counsel's concern for precision, but I believe the witness can answer both parts.
Agreed.
Overruled.
You may answer.
AGENT BRENTANO: In reviewing the surveillance video, I was able to determine the receipt fell during the robbery.
How did you determine that this receipt belonged to Ms.
Baker.
Objection.
Misstates the testimony.
Assumes facts not in evidence.
[DOOR CREAKS.]
[GROANS.]
I found a meditation app.
Should we try tomorrow at lunch? That witness doesn't matter.
- They all matter.
- Only one matters.
Andrew had this case for weeks.
You've had it for a few days.
This loss is gonna go to him, not you.
Everyone knows that.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
Tomorrow at lunch.
Let's do it.
Mr.
Loomis, can you please tell the jury what happened after you entered East Midtown Mutual Bank? I was waiting for the ATM when I saw this woman enter with her head down.
Uh, she had one of those ski caps bunched on her head.
She was beautiful.
What I saw of her.
I stared for a second, and then she saw me and pulled on the mask.
Turned around again, and that's when I saw the gun in her hand.
And what happened next? There was chaos.
It all happened so fast.
I saw the security guard getting ready to make his move, so naturally I tried to get out of his way.
That's when she shot me.
- Where did she shoot you? - In the stomach.
Mr.
Loomis, is the woman who shot you at the bank here in this courtroom today? No.
[SPECTATORS MURMUR.]
Mr.
Loomis, are you sure? Yes.
Isn't it true that the defendant, Ms.
Baker Objection, the question has been asked and answered.
I am asking a different question.
If the question is about the identity of the person who shot the defendant, it's the same question.
Ms.
Littlejohn, I'll allow you another shot at this if you rephrase it in an appropriate way.
Mr.
Loomis, when you were interviewed by FBI Agent James Wellner, did you identify someone you believed responsible for shooting you at East Midtown Mutual Bank? Yes, I did.
When I looked at her photographs, I thought it was the woman sitting there, Ms.
Baker.
But seeing her now, in person I was wrong.
It wasn't her.
Weeks of preparation, and suddenly he isn't sure Betty - was the person who shot him? - The bank robber's named "Betty"? I'm headed this way.
I'll see you later.
I had a pet hedgehog when I was a kid.
- Guess what its name was.
- Betty.
- Nope.
- Sonic.
No.
Do you want another guess? - No.
- Bill Clinton.
What about him? My hedgehog's name was Bill Clinton.
How would I ever guess that? That's why I gave you three chances.
Anyway, Bill Clinton died when I was 12, I buried him in the backyard, we had a funeral, I presided over it and everything.
Why are you telling me this? Because I just found out that Bill Clinton actually died while I was away at camp when I was 10.
My mom just bought another hedgehog and switched Bill Clinton out.
I couldn't identify my own pet! We went over his testimony 50 times.
We showed him the photo spread.
He identified her without any hesitation.
Nick was sure.
I was sure I was burying the real Bill Clinton.
That's the point.
Isn't the point that your mom lied to you because she didn't want you to know she killed your hedgehog? You know what? That hurts.
Wait, that's it.
You know what's happened in the world since 1986? The Soviet Union fell.
We cloned a sheep.
Cars drive themselves, but the Mets haven't won a World Series in 32 years.
Rooting for the Yankees is like cheering for Jaws or the German guys from "Die Hard.
" - Were they German? - I have no idea.
- His name was Hans.
- Hans Solo wasn't German.
That's, like, an inter-galaxy thing, and his name was Han, not Hans.
Either way, Yankees suck.
Have a great trial.
What are you doing? - Waiting.
- For who? Jill.
To exchange tickets.
You have to exchange tickets in the courthouse hallway? We tried it in the office, but it got confusing.
Long story.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
Look, I know this is complicated, but you and Jill need to move this along.
Me and Jill need to move what along? You and Jill need to move you and Jill along.
Oh, no.
No, there's nothing going I've known you a long time, Roger.
Until you met Jill, the only time I'd ever seen you even smile was when Ronald Mark Wilson was sentenced to death.
He ate his math teacher.
I'm not apologizing for that.
The point is, you're not a happy person.
Or you weren't.
But ever since you've been spending time with Jill, there's a light in your eyes.
Now, I normally wouldn't involve myself in this, but when you're happy, everything around here is happier.
I-I think you're exaggerating a little - [DOOR OPENS.]
- Hey! Hey.
Sorry I'm late.
Judge Friedman brought his Pomeranian to work again, and he ended up gagging on a crispy shrimp burrito under the bench.
The Pomeranian, not Judge Friedman.
Good news is I got a continuance.
[BRITISH ACCENT.]
This is a great moment for me.
Working for us for free? The chance to move people.
Through film.
Well, I'm truly humbled to be able to share my gifts with all of you.
Just the judge.
Tell me your vision for this.
We need to get Judge Gallatin to feel for Chris at sentencing.
To really understand him as a person.
Chris is a decorated bomb specialist.
He served two tours in Afghanistan.
He came back with a shattered shoulder and a fused hip.
He could barely hold down a job.
So, when his mom passed away and her benefit checks kept coming in the mail he was just trying to survive.
Service.
Sacrifice.
Survival.
That's his story.
Exactly right.
I'm gonna get to the heart of it.
That's what we need you for.
The beating, pulsing heart.
Beating and pulsing are those two things? I [MOUTHING.]
Trust me.
[SIGHS.]
Has it been three minutes? 42 seconds.
No, that can't be right.
No 44, 45 It's stressing me out.
I just want tea.
Do not say "tea.
" I never realized how many thoughts I have.
Maybe we're just being too ambitious.
Three minutes is pretty aggressive.
One minute? I can do anything for one minute.
Mm-hmm.
One minute it is, starting now.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS.]
[GROANS.]
What if I don't want to meditate for one minute? Ugh, who has the time? We're in trial.
- Ridiculous.
We tried.
- Yeah.
Whatever happens in there, that is in there.
It isn't personal.
- Of course not.
- Not "of course.
" Well, it's not.
I'm glad you said that, though.
I was feeling bad because of Nick's testimony, and if you want to dismiss the case.
Let's leave that inside.
We're here now.
- Tomorrow? Same time.
- Mm-hmm.
Aren't you supposed to be in court? On my way.
I was meditating.
Good.
That'll come in handy.
- What is this? - From Kate's office.
Oh, is it a dismissal? It is not a dismissal.
What is it? Security photos from all the robberies - they suspect Betty was involved in.
- Why? She's not charged in any of those robberies.
You can't identify her in any of these photos.
No, but you can identify him.
Who? Oh, my God.
I was handed these photos minutes before coming into court.
I only discovered them last night, Your Honor.
Last night was last night.
I turned over the evidence as soon as it was practical.
That is demonstrably untrue.
It was deliberately withheld until the last minute to gain a strategic advantage.
Well, now, this is more what I was expecting.
Mr.
Loomis is now cooperating? Yes, Your Honor.
And there is an immunity agreement in place? Yes, Your Honor.
I'm surprised and unhappy with how long it took you to produce this material, Ms.
Littlejohn.
This is where we are.
I'll allow you to go forward.
Your Honor, respectfully, this is a flagrant Brady violation.
I understand the objection, Ms.
Bell.
We're moving forward.
Ms.
Littlejohn, you are on a short leash here.
Now.
What exactly is Mr.
Loomis testifying to? Betty Baker was my girlfriend.
We had been together a year when she first raised the idea of robbing a bank.
I thought she was joking, but she wasn't.
She was bored.
She needed money.
And she was very convincing.
I went along with it.
I was the scout.
The lookout.
And if we got into trouble, I was going to help us get out.
Mr.
Loomis, can you please tell the jury what happened the day of the East Midtown Mutual robbery? It started just like the others.
The planning.
But on that last day, on the walk to the bank, I felt something different from her.
She kept complaining that she was doing all the work.
I didn't understand what that meant until we got in the bank and she shot me.
She wanted the money.
You previously testified that you could not identify the person who shot you in the East Midtown Mutual Bank.
Was that testimony truthful? No.
It was not.
Why not? Honestly? Because I love her.
And I didn't want her to go to jail.
Even though she did shoot me in the stomach.
But this is the truth.
Betty Baker was the woman under that mask.
How goes bank robbery? - My witness turned on me.
- Not good.
But I turned him, and he turned on the defendant.
It's a lot of turns.
Are we back in the same place? Uh, no, we're in a better place.
When did she tell you this witness had turned? About 15 minutes before he testified.
- That's a Brady violation.
- I made this argument.
I lost.
If you want me to get into this - And do what? - I can talk to Roger.
You don't need to talk to Roger.
She sandbagged me.
I objected.
I lost.
I have to move on.
This could be grounds for appeal.
Maybe, or maybe I win and there is no appeal.
I need to talk to Betty.
ALLISON: Kings are the slaves of history? That doesn't sound like Chris.
No.
It's Leo.
He didn't mention a Leo in his unit.
It's from "War and Peace.
" The narration is from Leo Tolstoy? Every luminous word of it.
Can you tell us what those luminous words mean? It all depends on who is watching.
The judge is watching.
The judge.
The crows that pick at Chris' wounds, in the battle sequence why are they in uniforms? Also, why are there crows? The fossil record is rather dense.
In the video why are there crows in the video? It's a spirit animal, a symbol of death and destiny.
In United States Army uniforms.
A symbol of death and destiny.
She has a good point.
This is federal court.
Could we switch up the uniforms? How are they putting on the uniforms? We may have to do that in post.
Not my preference, of course.
My friend Rusty takes his Dachshund trick-or-treating.
In costume.
I'm just saying.
- This is insane.
- About adding the uniforms in post? I'm worried about that, too.
Doing any of this in any way.
Spirit animals and Russian novels? The brutality of war.
That is Chris' story.
If he was enslaved by a King.
No, see, the Kings are the ones who are enslaved, burdened by Look, I get where Theo's headed with this.
- So do I.
- It's better than any of the videos we've seen.
Your cellphone pointed at the ground is better - than the videos we've seen.
- What's your solution, then? With two days till sentencing.
Something, anything that shows the truth of Chris' life.
Like the stuff I tried to raise every day at trial? Or the cane he used in court whenever he moved an inch? Judge Guillotine didn't care.
Yes, Theo's taking a big swing.
Chris needs one, so let's get back in there and figure out how we are gonna get the crows dressed! I didn't think he'd turn on me.
After you shot him? I only shot him because he was gonna shoot me.
What are you talking about? He was reaching into his jacket.
He had a gun, but the the plan was only for him to use it if I needed backup.
There were no sirens, no cops.
I was about to get away, just like I had the other times, but then I saw his hand in his jacket, the expression on his face.
I just saw it.
Saw what? That he didn't trust me anymore.
And I didn't trust him.
We'd started fighting a lot.
We'd even argued on the way to the bank that day.
How much of the money we could spend without people getting suspicious, what was okay to spend it on, what wasn't, what the long-term plan was gonna be.
He figured out the perfect way to get rid of me, keep the money, and even come out looking like a hero.
So I shot him.
We really did love each other once.
The mistake was going into business together.
What do we know about Nick? He's from Edina, Minnesota.
Moved to New York three years ago.
He played the oboe in college.
- She told you she shot him? - Yes.
But the first time you talked to her, she told you she didn't shoot him.
Clients change their stories all the time for all kinds of reasons.
I don't know which story of hers is true, and I don't have to.
Our job is to make sure the government can actually prove their story.
They have the burden.
- Who's that? - Nick's sister.
Every year, his family takes a holiday photo inside a canoe.
I can kinda see why Betty shot him.
What do we know about her? She was married to a man named Luke, but he spells his name without the "e.
" She's had a lot of money problems since she moved to New York last year.
Any other pictures? - Of Nick? - Of his sister? No, you're not.
I am.
What choice do I have? We have to tell a different story.
Who is this, Mr.
Loomis? That's my sister, Jenny.
- Are you close? - Objection.
Relevance.
I can assure Your Honor this will be relevant.
I'll give you a few more, Ms.
Bell.
Mr.
Loomis, you may answer.
Yes.
Your sister, Jenny, is five foot three inches tall, is that about right? Yes.
- About 120 pounds? - Yes.
Brown hair? Yes.
Isn't it true, Mr.
Loomis, that your sister Jenny is the one who robbed the East Midtown Mutual Bank with you and not Betty Baker? - What? No.
- Objection.
JUDGE BYRNE: Counsel.
She has no evidence that Jenny had anything to do with this.
She doesn't need evidence.
She's asking questions.
She's raising doubt.
That's her job.
- It's a cross.
- Your Honor, she's gonna leave the jury with these wild accusations, and then she's gonna rest her case, and then I will have no ability to respond.
That is correct.
You are putting on a defense you know is false.
I don't know it's false.
I wasn't there.
Neither were you.
The only thing I actually know is that you withheld evidence that you knew would help me.
Ms.
Littlejohn, is there an objection you'd like to make? I object to her.
Overruled.
So, um, the bad guys in "Die Hard" were German.
But one of them was Russian.
So, it's confusing.
Ah, yes.
So, let's say I did want to move this along with Jill.
Okay, what direction? - Forward.
- Yes.
Like, uh, living together.
Right.
Uh, how would you approach that? You were married, right? - You proposed.
- Didn't go well.
- The proposal or the marriage? - All of it.
Well, tell me what you'd say.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
- So, listen - Sounds like you're delivering bad news.
Hold my hands.
Look me in the eye.
Call me by my name.
Tina or Jill? Jill.
Jill, I've been thinking a lot No, stop.
Okay.
Stop.
Thinking a lot? Why are you thinking a lot? This should be easy.
You're offending me.
- Are you Jill or Tina when - Both! Go ahead.
[EXHALES.]
Jill.
You make me happy.
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't want to talk to you.
See you.
Be with you.
That I don't think of you when I'm not with you.
That I don't wish I'd met you a long time before I did.
That I'm not thankful for any time I've gotten to spend with you.
I want to live with you.
I-I want to live together.
I think it's lovely.
[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS.]
- Hey.
- Hey.
Thanks for dropping off the Jenkins dismissal.
I appreciate it.
Sorry about the mix-up the other day.
No problem.
Is that a bird? In a uniform? We're making a sentencing mitigation video, and I mistakenly hired David Lynch, if David Lynch was British and obnoxious and had no talent and really loved crows.
Aren't all those videos stupid? I mean, I think the idea is okay.
To manipulate a judge with a movie.
To do what we can to humanize our clients.
I guess this is one area where prosecutors and defense attorneys really see things differently.
I'm not sure it's all prosecutors and defense attorneys.
It might just be you and me.
Those things are manipulative and ridiculous.
What's ridiculous about telling a client's story? The fact that you're not telling it.
You're turning it into a cheesy infomercial.
Infomercials can be very informative.
If the facts spoke for themselves, they wouldn't need mood lighting and a soundtrack by Enya.
I like Enya.
And the judge in this case didn't hear all the facts.
Whose fault is that? My bad.
We should just keep this stuff out of the apartment.
Yes, this is Switzerland.
SETH: I don't have to respect what you do to get along with you at home.
Are you saying you don't respect what I do? I didn't mean you specifically.
Oh, so I'm a bad lawyer and a cheap stereotype.
I didn't say cheap.
We're just talking about facts versus production values.
No.
We're talking about empathy for people versus being executed by Judge Guillotine.
- It's Gallatin! - I know it's Gallat You know, maybe just stay out of my business here, okay? You're the one who asked me to try to help you put a tiny uniform on a stuffed bird! The pants don't even fit! Betty Baker walked into East Midtown Mutual Bank, pulled a ski mask over her face, demanded money, and threatened to kill whoever got in her way.
When things didn't go as planned, she turned on her boyfriend, Nick Loomis, and shot him.
Without hesitating.
She didn't pause to see if he was all right.
She fled the scene so quickly that, in her haste, she dropped a receipt with her credit card number on it.
This is what happened.
These are the facts.
Ms.
Bell wants you to believe that the truth in this case is muddled.
That the testimony you have heard points to someone other than Betty Baker robbing a bank and trying to kill her boyfriend to cover her tracks, but that is simply untrue.
Mr.
Loomis is a flawed man who has made some very poor choices and big mistakes, but none has been greater than the simple, essential, elemental one of falling for the wrong person.
Of believing someone to be decent and honorable when she is not.
In believing that a relationship can be anything more than expedient and transactional.
That the person he trusted was motivated by something other than avarice and anger and self-regard.
We don't agree on a lot.
That's the nature of this system.
That's why we are here talking to you from opposite sides of the room.
To give you our perspective.
The evidence as we see it.
To let you decide.
But Ms.
Littlejohn and I do agree on one important thing in this case.
The only important thing, really.
That what we do here comes down to trust.
Do you trust Mr.
Loomis? That's it.
If you do, you can and probably should convict Betty Baker.
If you don't, then you cannot convict Betty Baker.
Do you trust him? You know he lied.
He told you he lied.
He came in here, and he looked you in the eye, and he said, "I lied.
" That is the only thing you know for a fact about Nick Loomis.
That the government offered him immunity, and he changed his testimony.
That he is a liar.
That he will say and do whatever it takes to avoid responsibility for his role in this crime.
Ms.
Littlejohn wants you to focus on the relationship between Betty and Nick.
I want you to think about the relationship between Nick and you.
You are good people.
You believe things, and you fight for the things you believe in, and you are honest in that fight.
Your friends and co-workers, your fellow jurors, trust you because they know what you believe.
Nick Loomis is a man who doesn't believe in anything.
And how do you trust someone who doesn't believe in anything? So, we've got to make this quick because I have a hearing to get to.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Okay, your charging documents in the last two fraud cases have been inflammatory and preposterously aggressive.
- Even for you.
- Um, you like smoked fish, right? Yes.
And you have this little weasel first year over here who keeps badgering one of my first years.
- I don't remember his name - Barney Greengrass.
I don't think that's it.
No, I'm saying Barney Greengrass tomorrow morning.
Can you do it? Uh, sure, yes, right.
We can go together.
Uh, meet me here tonight.
The Baker case.
I'm sure you know, Kate Littlejohn withheld Brady material Uh, no, open it later.
Okay.
We're gonna appeal if we lose, which we probably won't.
Byrne left us an opening.
Wait, what happened in the Baker case? When you tell your story, I need you to tell it as if it's happening now.
Right here.
- My story? - Your story.
My whole life story is now? Here and now.
I'm not sure I understand.
Neither do I.
You get it? Uh, blue and the khaki, thanks.
Should Chris shave as well? Oh, he won't be on camera for this.
You're just using the audio? I won't be recording that, either.
It's to give me the emotion.
I'm afraid I still don't understand what to do, exactly.
Thank God you're not a director.
- Just asking what I - [SHOUTING.]
Why don't you stop asking, and let me start doing, okay? [NORMAL VOICE.]
Thank you.
[CLEARS THROAT.]
I think it's time for you to leave.
- Excuse me? - You need to leave, Theo.
Now.
This is about Chris.
Not you.
Not "your work.
" Which seems to be terrible.
[PAPER RUSTLES.]
[DOOR SLAMS.]
He used to be such a normal, down-to-earth guy.
- Really? - Freshman year.
I don't know, maybe not.
We're screwed.
We're totally screwed.
We are.
What? [SIGHS.]
I'd like to take a break.
Clearly, in light of this powerful defense presentation, a prison sentence in this case is unwarranted.
When the door opens, I'm going in first.
[CELLPHONE RINGS.]
[CELLPHONE RINGS.]
- ROGER: Have a seat.
- I don't have time.
I'm waiting for a verdict.
There's not gonna be a verdict.
Sit down.
What's going on? She's pleading out.
Three years on the robbery, and we dismiss the gun charges.
- I never offered a deal.
- I offered it.
I'm about to win this case.
By withholding Brady material Judge Byrne ruled with me.
And if you win, which you probably will, they're gonna appeal, and we're gonna get slapped, and I'm not gonna let that happen.
You negotiated a deal with Sandra behind my back I negotiated a deal.
It wasn't with Sandra.
I don't understand.
You were gonna lose.
I was not going to lose.
When did she offer this? - Who? - Kate.
This didn't come from Kate.
Roger made me the offer.
Are you kidding me? You took my case away and cut a deal with Roger? Yes.
What? You two are in a relationship.
Sandra You were with him the night he was swatted.
You're digging into my personal life? This isn't about your personal life.
This is about professional liability.
You are the Federal Public Defender.
Your name is on every pleading in this office.
You represent every client in this office, and you have a relationship with the Chief of the Criminal Division of the U.
S.
Attorney's Office I've had a relationship with Roger Gunn for seven years.
That relationship has been different things at different times.
I don't know what it is now.
And it's not your business.
We're not married.
We have no entangling interests.
You think I haven't thought about this? This isn't about what I think.
It's about the perception of a conflict.
What happens when some disgruntled client finds out about this and alleges ineffective assistance of counsel? Then they will lose because nothing I have done or am doing is a violation of my professional responsibility.
You don't believe that.
It's complicated It's not complicated.
You're having a relationship that compromises your ability to do your job.
And my ability to do my job.
You want to know what I think? That is what I think.
You're upset about this case.
Yes.
I'm upset about this case.
I am upset because you negotiated a deal with Roger, and I don't know if you did that because it was in the best interest of our client or because Roger offered it.
I'm upset because I don't know if I can trust you.
And it's not just you.
It's It's not just this case.
I'm upset about everything going on around here.
Everything.
Everybody.
Me! Meditating in the park with Kate Littlejohn.
Jay and Seth living together.
Everybody walking around these offices like we're all one big happy family.
We are not.
We cannot be.
How did this happen? They don't have to be enemies, but that doesn't mean they are friends.
Or lovers.
We cannot do this job that way.
We are warriors.
We once were warriors.
Who are we now? Who are you? Yeah, I see this taking over And it's slowly getting colder Anywhere you go, I pray you'll know That I'm fighting for you You're the only one that my soul needs But it's getting colder No, I never want to say it's over Can you feel me holding your hand? Can you rise up to stand? Don't fade into black And you know I'm gonna bring you back You've got nothing to fear Call my name, I'll be here When you're under attack Yeah, you know I'm gonna bring you back Yeah, you know I'm gonna bring you back Yeah, you know I'm gonna bring you back Hey Feel me holding your hand This wasn't part of the plan You're fading to black