Law & Order (1990) s19e14 Episode Script
Rapture
In the criminal justice system the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups, the police who investigate crime and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders.
These are their stories.
Mommy says only five more minutes, because that's what the judge said.
The judge? Did he say Mommy had to move you to damn Iowa? You swore.
I have to tell Mommy.
I am so tired of playing this game with you.
Your mother is a thoughtless pain in the ass, and you are a rude, thoughtless little pig who Just hold on.
Hold on, this might be work.
What? I'm on the computer with my kid, and I get this e-mail from my Uncle Larry.
Listen.
"Dear Kurt, the end has come.
I am with Jesus now.
" With Jesus? No way that guy's going up.
He's going down.
You told the sergeant downstairs you wanted to report a murder? Yeah, right here.
Look.
Uh, let's see.
"The end is come.
"It's not too late for you.
Any sinner can be saved.
"Look at me.
I killed your Aunt Jen, but I found God "and He forgave me.
" Aunt Jen, that that would be Uncle Larry's wife? She left him years ago.
That's what he told people.
He said she ran off with a boyfriend.
Guess we need to go talk to Uncle Larry.
I called his house.
Nobody answered.
Personally, I don't like the guy.
But he keeps to himself, never has nobody over, so what're you going to do? The wife was okay.
When was the last time you saw him? Been a few days.
Hello! Mr.
Novak? His nephew said he had a cabin up in the Adirondacks.
Maybe he went up there to stick his head in the oven.
He lives alone, never has company.
What's he need a freezer like that for? Whoa.
Aunt Jen.
Raoul, what are you doing in here? Larry Novak? Yeah? You're not dead.
Who says I'm dead? Your nephew, he received an e-mail.
Kurt? I never sent Kurt an Oh, no.
Those e-mails went out? You mind telling us about the dead body in your freezer? Oh, God! Those e-mails weren't supposed to You know what this means? Yeah.
It means you're under arrest.
You're coming with us.
Lord Lord Why have I been left behind? Good news, Larry.
I checked it out.
It didn't happen.
Are you sure? Yeah.
No planes falling from of the sky, no people vanishing into thin air.
All present and accounted for.
So the e-mails, it was a mistake? So, okay, what the hell are they talking about? The rapture.
The rapture? Yeah.
As in the last days, the Book of Revelation? Right, when Jesus comes back and takes all good Christians to heaven.
I'm planning on retiring before that.
Those e-mails were only supposed to go out after.
After the rapture.
Are you sure it didn't happen? I'm still here, aren't I? You believe in Jesus? I do.
Okay, is this a Sunday School class or a murder interrogation? He confessed in the car.
Now we're just chatting.
Didn't ask for a lawyer? Says he doesn't need one.
He says Jesus is going to get him out of jail when the rapture comes.
Hmm.
It's all on the website.
Unraptured.
com, "Sending God's word to those left behind.
" It's a subscription service.
You pay five bucks a month, and you write e-mails to your unsaved loved ones.
The server stores them until the rapture comes.
Then, while you're shooting up to heaven, the computer sends them off.
Little, uh, farewell messages.
And how's the computer supposed to know when the rapture happens? "We are three Christian men living in different states.
"We log on to the website every day.
"But if two of us fail to log on for two days in a row, "the system assumes that the rapture has occurred.
" And they didn't log on because they had been sucked up to heaven.
There's no internet up there.
Yeah, but the rapture didn't occur.
As far as we can tell.
I'm still here.
You mentioned.
So, why didn't those three Christian men log on? The webmaster lives in the city, Sam Burwell.
Well, go see how he's doing.
So, are you really a believer? Or were you just getting the guy to talk? Well, I've been seen in a church from time to time.
Really? So, are you going to fly up to heaven when Jesus comes back on the clouds? I never said I believed in the rapture.
But you never know.
Sam Burwell.
Police! Guy probably went on a bender and forgot where he put his laptop.
Probably explains why he hasn't logged on.
Sam Burwell.
Bullet in the head, a couple of bruises.
Starting to get ripe, been here a while.
Found a shell casing.
Oh.
Looks like a nine.
Signs of struggle, but no forced entry.
Computer's here, Unraptured Central.
Answering machine is full, probably irate customers.
Cell phone, too.
Eleven missed calls, all from the same guy, Jason Altobell.
Sam? Where are you, man? I can't get a hold of Keith either.
Why didn't you sign in? The e-mails went out! I was scared at first.
I thought I'd been left behind.
But I looked out my window, and everything looked normal.
There was nothing on the news What about the third guy? Keith? He was at his parents' cabin in Colorado.
His internet went down in a storm.
He figured Sam and I would cover.
Only two of us had to log on at a time.
Poor Sam.
Do you know what happened? Not yet.
When was the last time that you saw Sam? Two months ago at a church retreat.
But I just talked to him Friday, and everything was fine.
This whole thing has to be bad for business, those e-mails going out.
It's not about business.
I mean, Sam was trying to make a living from it, but it barely paid.
He was broke.
He wanted to perform a service.
He saw the signs, you know? Jews returning to the Holy Land, the European Union, the financial crisis.
Yeah.
Signs of the end times.
Jesus is coming.
We wanted to let people know they could still be saved, even after the rapture.
Anyone take offense to that? It's probably nothing.
Sam didn't even mention it, but I heard he got into a fight with somebody at Rapture-Con.
Rapture-Con? It's an end times convention, like Comic-Con, but for prophecy nuts.
We're in the last days.
That's what we've been hearing.
Oh, no, I meant the convention.
It ends tomorrow.
That guy you asked about, Burwell? He had a booth here.
Did you track down that altercation we asked you about? Yeah.
That's Burwell.
These people can get pretty in your face about what they believe.
Hey, stop it right there.
Can you blow that up and print it? Absolutely.
Yeah, I mean, I'm a Christian, but these guys are kind of extreme.
It's like they can't wait for Jesus to come back and blow up the planet.
I'm pretty sure He wants to make things better, not worse.
All right, let's see if somebody knows this guy.
How about we start with the Good Samaritan.
I knew Sam.
That's his booth, Unraptured.
com, right there, but I've never seen the other man before.
He had a visitor's nametag.
It just had a last name, Corliss.
Corliss? Did you hear what they were fighting about? By the time I got in there, it was mostly just cursing.
Him, not Sam.
Sam said the guy was giving him a hard time about us.
About Sacred Exodus? Sam's a Was a supporter.
He was thinking of joining us on a trip.
He'd just made a donation.
What exactly do you do, Mr.
Reeves? Actually, it's Reverend.
We help Jews from the former Soviet Union return to Israel.
The Bible says, in the last days, Gentiles will gather God's chosen people back from the lands of the north.
It's a precondition for the Lord's return.
You send Jews home to die in the battle of Armageddon.
Is that what people object to? The people we aid live in poverty, endure anti-Semitism, so if Sam's death had anything to do with our work, I would feel terrible.
But God is doing powerful things, and Sam's donation, it will be his legacy.
How much did he give you? A hundred thousand dollars.
All right.
Thanks for your help.
His partner says Burwell was broke.
Suddenly, he has a hundred grand to blow on a God project? Yeah, the same day that Mr.
Corliss shows up to pick a fight.
I'm guessing that's not a coincidence.
Okay, I'm into Sam Burwell's subscriber list.
There's a Steve Corliss.
And? Just an e-mail address.
There might be more in the paper files.
Uh, here we go, Steve Corliss.
He subscribed to the service.
Got an address in Nassau County.
And showed up to Rapture-Con the other day to hassle Burwell? Not unless he was raised from the dead.
Bank notice.
Steve Corliss's monthly payment to the website was terminated owing to death of cardholder.
Burwell got this notice last Tuesday.
Tuesday? Looks like Burwell deleted Corliss's e-mails that day.
The ones that were supposed to go out after the rapture, they're in the junk folder.
The guy died, so Burwell canceled his subscription.
You want to see them, Corliss' e-mails? Yeah.
This one's to his brother.
"Dear Evan.
If you're reading this, I am in a better place.
"Even though you're a sinner, Jesus loves you, and so do I.
"To help you through the end times, "I have left you something I no longer need, "two hundred gold coins in my desk drawer.
" There's your hundred grand.
"The gold is for you, brother.
You're the only one who knows.
" Unless Sam Burwell saw that e-mail.
The house is in probate now.
I'm handling the estate.
Has anyone been out here recently? Well, his brother stayed here over the weekend.
Did his brother have to break in? No.
He had a key.
I gave it to him.
Here's the desk.
This drawer's got a false bottom.
If there was anything in there, it's gone now.
Burwell sees the e-mail, and decides he can put the gold to better use than Steve Corliss' sinner brother.
Figures no one will ever find out.
But somebody did.
That must be Steve.
That's got to be his brother, Evan.
Hallelujah.
The fight at Rapture-Con wasn't about Sacred Exodus.
Burwell found out that one of his subscribers had hidden gold coins, and he stole them.
So, the dead guy's brother somehow figured out what Burwell had done, and somehow tracked him down.
It'd be nice if your theory had a few less somehows in it.
That's Corliss' brother.
Did two years on felony assault back in '98.
Criminal possession of a controlled substance, larceny.
Yeah, he lives up in Syracuse.
The local police went to the house, and he's not home.
We know he stayed at his brother's house last weekend.
Phone records from that house have somebody calling the Gold Exchange on Saturday, the day after the fight at Rapture-Con.
The place that buys gold coins.
So Corliss' brother got some of the coins back from Burwell? Yeah.
Somehow.
For the badge, $11.
I'm not selling it, I wear it.
This man bring you some gold? Twelve Krugerrands, $10,000.
Only 12? He said he might come back with more, but he hasn't.
Hmm.
If the price of gold goes up, you'll pay the difference? Builds customer loyalty.
You have his home address or phone number? Cell phone.
Call him, and tell him he's in luck.
Gold is up.
$11? It's not from Tiffany's, man.
It just doesn't seem right.
Mmm-hmm.
What, do you want it to be solid gold? Hey, here he is.
Let's go.
Hey, Evan! Oh, come on, man.
You should have read the business page.
The price of gold went down this week.
I didn't kill him.
But you saw this, right? The e-mail about the gold? Yeah.
My brother knew he was dying.
He was going to heaven the old-fashioned way.
So yeah, he sent me a print-out.
And you went to his house Sit down.
And surprise, no gold.
And you figured the website guy might have peeked at the e-mail.
So you caught up with him at Rapture-Con.
We only talked.
He said he didn't know anything about gold, so I left.
But you didn't go straight home, did you, Evan? Because you ended up with 12 coins.
Okay.
All right.
Yeah, yeah.
I followed him home, and I got in Burwell's face outside of his apartment, and I persuaded him a little bit harder.
And you knocked him around.
Because he stole from me.
I told him I was going to call the cops, and then he suddenly remembers taking the gold and gives me 12 coins.
Said he sold the rest and had given it to some charity, something about flying Jews to Israel.
So I said, "Get it back, or else.
" Or else you'd kill him.
Right? Right, which is why I didn't kill him.
He was so scared.
Scared to death.
He was going to get my money.
So when we find this guy who runs the charity, he'll tell us that Burwell wanted his donation back? Damn straight.
And tell him I still want it back.
I never saw Sam after that day at Rapture-Con.
Thing is, the building log downstairs showed that he signed in on Sunday.
The convention took the day off.
I was at church.
I think George was here.
My colleague, George Darvey.
You work for Sacred Exodus, but you don't go to church? I'm more in the operations than the theology end.
George handles the logistics, chartered flights, travel documents, actually getting our Jewish friends to Israel.
He's familiar with that part of the world.
He's just in the US for a few days.
You were in the service? I worked for the government.
Did you see Sam Burwell on Sunday? Yeah.
I was catching up on some paperwork.
He stuck his head in.
He wanted some DVDs of our missions to show his friends.
That's it? Yeah.
He didn't happen to ask for his donation back? Why would Sam do that? Because he stole it.
Oh, no.
Not Sam.
Nothing like that.
He just wanted to know where his donation was going to be spent.
Where's that? Uzbekistan.
A Mr.
Burwell did call.
He, uh, said he had an urgent request about a planeload of Jewish émigrés.
It was a little complicated.
What was the request? He wanted to know if there was any way we could refund the emigration tax that had been charged on the group.
He'd been told some charity's money was unavailable because it had gone to the tax payment.
He wanted it back? Yes.
He asked if a refund was possible.
We told him we couldn't help.
Taxes are taxes, right? No.
There is no such tax.
We told Mr.
Burwell he'd been misinformed.
Supposedly the tax is $1,000 a head.
George Darvey's been charging it to Sacred Exodus for every group he's handled.
But there is no such tax, so the money just goes into his pocket.
Quarter of a million dollars so far.
He's been playing Reeves and the Sacred Exodus people for fools.
Well, believers, they're in the habit of believing.
Well, when Burwell asked for his donation back, Darvey told him the same story, but Burwell went and checked it out for himself, and Darvey wouldn't have been too happy.
Who is this Darvey? Marine Corps Force Recon, other-than-honorable discharge.
He did some work for Blackwater.
He started his own security firm in Beirut.
Hmm.
Look it here.
When Darvey flew to the US last week from Tashkent, he declared an unloaded weapon in his checked baggage, 9mm pistol.
I'll call Patrol and have them keep an eye on him.
You two go to his hotel and sit him down for a chat.
Okay.
Rush hour traffic.
You should've taken Park 27 Homicide.
Your suspect just walked out of the hotel, got into a yellow cab, registration D1305.
We're two blocks out.
Was he carrying luggage? Affirmative.
May be heading to JFK.
Hold on.
I think he just saw us.
He just turned north on 3rd, crossing 58th.
Stay with him.
We're there.
Want to give us a hand? Grab that guy.
We're after him.
You can't go in there.
What do you mean? If that's not his house, we can.
No, you can't.
The Iranian Mission.
It's an embassy, sovereign territory.
We can't go in.
Looks like we got left behind.
That man inside is a murder suspect.
So you say.
He is telling a different story.
Well, we'd love to hear it.
He says he's been framed by New York police in collaboration with Zionists.
Do we look like Zionists? I am consulting with my superiors in Iran.
Until we decide whether to grant Mr.
Darvey asylum, he will remain in our embassy, which, as you know, may not be entered or searched without our permission.
Pretty please.
Detective Bernard suggested that we use Mr.
Nozari as a battering ram to break through the gate.
Mr.
Nozari? The embassy's security chief.
He's the one who explained that we're all Zionist stooges.
Well, that sounds about right.
And we, of course, are the Great Satan.
This is Ms.
Barsett from the State Department.
So she should know.
I've asked her to help us out.
But there does seem to be a little problem with the Vienna treaty on foreign relations.
All foreign missions are inviolable and may not be entered or searched without consent.
We're aware.
Very good.
That treaty also requires foreign diplomats to respect local laws and avoid interfering in local affairs.
So sue them.
But you can't go in and get the guy.
That would violate a basic principle of international law.
So a killer sits in there eating caviar, while we do nothing? We're trying to negotiate the Iranians out of building nuclear weapons.
We don't need to get distracted by a common criminal.
Common murderer.
Darvey left his suitcase in the trunk of the cab with the gun inside.
Ballistics are a near-perfect match.
I'm sorry.
We have to respect the treaty.
And if we don't, what are they gonna do? Invade our embassy in Iran and take 50 hostages? Oh, wait, they already did that.
In 1979.
We're trying to move on.
You'd think the Iranians would be happy to have more Jews gathered in Israel for Armageddon, make a juicier target for their bomb.
If you can figure out what Ahmadinejad is really thinking, we'd love to hear about it.
Meanwhile, you can't go into that embassy.
It's outrageous.
Our elected officials should be bringing every pressure to make the Iranians respect our laws.
Now, if I'm elected District Attorney, I won't take no for an answer in a case like this.
If he's elected District Attorney, I'm resigning and burning down my office on the way out.
I like the part about not taking no for an answer.
A few years ago, the FBI caught some embassy guards surveilling bridges and subways, looked like they were spying, scouting for terrorists.
Yeah, they couldn't arrest them, but they were declared persona non grata.
They had to leave the country.
Iranians squawked, but there was nothing they could do.
Leverage? It's worth a try.
Excuse me.
Would you take our picture? Of course.
How does this look? Very nice.
Oh, would you mind taking some more, just to be safe? You mind telling us what you guys are doing? We're going for lunch.
Can I see your camera? It's not my camera.
It belongs to her.
I've never seen that before in my life.
Ah.
So that's how it is.
Thank you, officers.
So why are you taking pictures around here? What have you got? Look at that.
Empire State Building, Penn Station.
Are these snaps for your friends in al-Qaeda? This is about Darvey.
You want him back.
Why don't you call your people.
See what they think.
Hey, how long? Just wait.
Hey.
He called his embassy, and they called her.
I thought we had an understanding.
They were photographing landmarks.
Take their names.
Report it to the FBI.
Let them go.
Right.
And don't do anything else without telling me.
Please.
Sure.
I want to do something else.
You really don't miss it? What, intelligence work? Try and get a decent corned beef sandwich in Pakistan.
This guy was great in the field.
He's got to be bored to death in Manhattan.
Well, I manage to stay awake.
So you heard about this guy, Darvey? He ran into the Iranian embassy.
Yeah.
Maybe.
I didn't know you were bringing a date.
It's her case, too, Tom.
Okay.
Darvey, he runs into the Iranian embassy because you're on his tail.
He sells them a story and they buy it.
They're shipping him out tomorrow morning to Iran.
Embassy car to embassy plane.
How do you know that? Come on.
I got two minutes.
We're on the move.
The Iranians have listening gear, right? They monitor our communications, other embassies, the Israelis? Yeah.
Sure.
And maybe you know what frequency the Israelis broadcast on, their secure stuff.
Maybe.
And maybe you can help us out.
Detective Lupo simply arranged for a little radio transmission.
By NYPD Intelligence, pretending to be Israelis on an Israeli channel we know the Iranians monitor? Something like that.
And what have we arranged to be broadcast? Their favorite song? I Left My Heart in Tel Aviv? A message that an Israeli agent named Loudmouth has penetrated his target.
Loudmouth? Code name.
Is there such an Israeli agent? Has he penetrated a target? No.
We made it up.
But, uh, don't tell anyone.
In your experience, does this kind of thing tend to work? In my experience, yes.
They're moving Darvey out at 6:00 a.
m.
What do you say? God help us.
Please remove your cars.
This is a diplomatic vehicle.
It is as inviolable as the embassy.
You must let us proceed.
No problem.
We just thought since you're taking Mr.
Darvey to Iran that you'd like to be fully informed.
We are aware of your charges against him.
No, that's not what I'm talking about.
I'm talking about his friends, the Israelis.
This is crap.
It's some kind of trick.
Since when do you inform to Iran about the Israelis? When one of their Mossad thugs goes rogue and commits murder in our city.
You're saying Mr.
Darvey works for Mossad? What do you say, Darvey? You want to get out of the car and try our justice system, or go to Iran and try theirs? You still hang spies, right? Or do you behead them? This is ridiculous.
Here, some reading for the plane.
His date of recruitment, scope of operations, code name "Loudmouth," it's all here.
May I see that? You're not believing this? We'll talk on the plane.
I'm getting out.
You will move your cars now, please.
Done.
Guys, clear the way.
Hey, wait a minute.
You can't let them just take me.
Sorry.
Inviolable.
Welcome home.
Put your hands behind your back.
Oh, and, uh, he was right.
It's some kind of trick.
Have a nice flight.
Now the Iranians are telling the world that Israeli thugs are murdering innocent people in New York, and the source of that slander is the office of the District Attorney.
Thanks a lot.
He's leaving out the part that it was a trick.
Yes, he is.
Do you know how many Jewish voters there are in Manhattan? Jack, with all due respect, is this a prosecutor's office or a campaign headquarters? Don't give me that.
I'm the one who gave you the go-ahead.
And now you're saying you shouldn't have? Just convict the son of a bitch.
What exactly did you say to Mr.
Burwell? I told Burwell to get me my money back, or else.
Or else what? Well, I left that part up to his imagination.
But I did manage to put a good scare into him.
He said he was going to go back to that charity and get them to give it back to me.
That charity being Sacred Exodus, where Mr.
Darvey worked? Yes.
And he was highly motivated? Very highly.
Thank you.
He was motivated because you threatened to kill him, isn't that right? It was a bluff.
I wasn't going to kill him.
But you did beat him up.
A little, to make my point.
And your point was, you'd do something worse to him if he didn't get the money, and he didn't get the money.
I didn't know that.
Tell me again, why should we believe anything you say? I didn't speak to Sam Burwell that day.
To your knowledge, did anyone else in your organization speak to him? Mr.
Darvey said that he did.
Did Mr.
Darvey tell you that Mr.
Burwell asked for his donation to be refunded? No.
He didn't say anything like that.
What did he say? That Sam came by to pick up some information about our work, how we bring Jews from the former Soviet Union back to their Biblical homeland.
And you do this work with Mr.
Darvey's help in Central Asia? That's right.
And he presents accountings of his expenditures there, and Sacred Exodus pays those bills? We believe we're doing God's work.
We are happy to pay whatever it costs.
I refer you to People's Four, Mr.
Darvey's accountings, which include $95,000 for Uzbekistan exit taxes for Jewish emigrants.
Did you pay that? We did.
Have you since learned that Uzbekistan has no such tax, that Mr.
Darvey made it up and put the money in his own pocket? Well, that's what they say.
That what who says? Officials of that government.
It's a corrupt part of the world.
Bribes are often paid.
Mr.
Darvey billed you for taxes, not bribes.
We believe we are destined for heaven, Mr.
Cutter, but we're not naive.
Who in his right mind would put bribes in writing? What government official wouldn't deny that they exist? He's cutting the legs out from under our case.
No swindle, no motive.
It's a cover-up.
He's lying.
Mr.
Reeves? Reverend.
Reverend.
You are aware that Mr.
Darvey is accused of shooting your friend, Sam Burwell, in the head because he was on the trail of exposing Mr.
Darvey as a crook.
Objection! That's what they're trying to prove here, which they seem to be not even to be close to doing.
Sustained.
Are you now saying that the hundreds of thousands of dollars in nonexistent taxes that Mr.
Darvey billed you for were actually disguised bribes that you knew about? I know that part of the world is corrupt.
You already said that.
Is it now your testimony that that money was actually spent, legally or otherwise, on behalf of your project? Mr.
Darvey says it was.
I believe him.
How is Sacred Exodus funded? By donations.
And how have donations been running since Mr.
Darvey was arrested for murder? They're down, of course.
Do you think they'd go back up if he's acquitted? I suppose they might.
But if he's convicted, and donations stay down, what would be the consequences for Sacred Exodus? Our work would be delayed.
We could bring fewer Jews to Israel.
And what would be the consequence of that? I'm not sure I know what you mean.
And I'm sure you do.
In bringing Jews to Israel, aren't you fulfilling Biblical prophecy? Yes.
What prophecy? When the Jews return, the stage will be set for the end times.
And for the second coming of Jesus Christ? Yes.
Are you looking forward to the second coming? Of course.
To hasten its coming, would you lie? Isn't that what any good Christian would do? What any good Christian should do? Everything I've said here today is the truth, so help me God.
We're proud to sponsor this debate between the candidates for District Attorney.
You know, Jack, I really ought to put your man Cutter on my campaign staff.
First he pisses off the Jews, then he attacks devout Christians as perjurers.
What's he going to do next, indict Muhammad? He's prosecuting a murderer, which, as a candidate for District Attorney, you should understand, instead of distorting it to inflame religious passions for political gain.
The governor told me you were too high-minded to run a decent campaign.
But really, I had no idea.
Please join me in welcoming the candidates How'd it go? He didn't accuse me personally of being the Antichrist, but not well.
We have to go after him harder.
Chapell? Mmm-mmm.
Reverend Reeves, our lying witness.
His testimony destroys our case.
I thought you had Darvey's gun.
Well, ballistics are a probable match, but they're not airtight.
Without a motive We've got to make Reeves tell the truth.
What do you suggest, an inquisition? We shut down his charity entirely.
By his own testimony, it was paying illegal bribes.
We lock it up and seize its assets.
Shutting down a Christian charity? Maybe I can still get the Buddhist vote.
This isn't about religion.
We keep telling ourselves.
Before you actually do anything, see if the threat alone suffices.
We need to talk.
You lied on the stand.
We're prepared to take action against your organization, to shut it down entirely.
Why are you here? I just told you.
No.
Why are you here, on Earth? What is the purpose of your life? I'm not sure that's relevant right now.
It's the only thing that is relevant.
You get up every morning.
You take a train to work.
You put people in jail, people who break man's laws.
"Thou shalt not kill.
" Not just man's.
These are extraordinary times.
The signs are so clear.
The rise of the European Union, of Russia, the financial collapse, Iran's nuclear bomb.
Armageddon is so close.
"The Lord himself will come down from heaven, "and the dead in Christ will rise.
" I am blessed to know why I'm here, to play a small role in this majesty, to bring the Jews back to the Holy Land.
This is a precondition.
And this trial, this prosecution, is an impediment.
You don't know that.
You can't know that.
"At that time, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, "with power and great glory.
His second coming.
"But no one knows about that day or hour, "not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
" And not me, and not even you.
Matthew, Chapter 24.
God will do what God will do, on His schedule.
Meanwhile, we should do what we should do.
George Darvey murdered your friend.
Now it's our duty to punish that.
You didn't know Sam.
He believed.
Nothing was more important to him than our work.
"Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's.
" This is Caesar's department, Reverend.
This is so difficult.
You know something, don't you? Something you haven't told? What do you do when things get difficult? Sam called me that day, after he had been to see Mr.
Darvey.
He said that he needed his money back, but that Mr.
Darvey said it was impossible, it was already spent, given to the Uzbek government for some sort of tax.
Sam said he was desperate, and that he was going to call the Uzbek embassy and try to get it refunded.
And what did you do after that conversation with Mr.
Burwell? I assumed Mr.
Darvey had told Sam the truth.
We had, after all, been paying that tax all along.
So, I called Darvey and told him what Sam was going to do.
How did Mr.
Darvey react? He seemed concerned.
He said we couldn't let that happen.
Did he say what he meant by that? No.
I didn't ask.
I should have asked.
Especially after After what? After Sam was murdered.
I believe I inadvertently caused Sam's death.
I only hope God can forgive me.
Guilty.
Jury took less than a day.
Because God told Reverend Reeves to tell the truth? God and Connie.
Matthew, Chapter 24.
You study the Bible? I prepare for court.
I prepared for church.
Uh-huh, good.
Maybe you can prepare for me.
The Interfaith Council invited me and Joe Chapell to a panel discussion, "Religion and the Law.
" Sounds fascinating.
I think I feel the flu coming on.
These are their stories.
Mommy says only five more minutes, because that's what the judge said.
The judge? Did he say Mommy had to move you to damn Iowa? You swore.
I have to tell Mommy.
I am so tired of playing this game with you.
Your mother is a thoughtless pain in the ass, and you are a rude, thoughtless little pig who Just hold on.
Hold on, this might be work.
What? I'm on the computer with my kid, and I get this e-mail from my Uncle Larry.
Listen.
"Dear Kurt, the end has come.
I am with Jesus now.
" With Jesus? No way that guy's going up.
He's going down.
You told the sergeant downstairs you wanted to report a murder? Yeah, right here.
Look.
Uh, let's see.
"The end is come.
"It's not too late for you.
Any sinner can be saved.
"Look at me.
I killed your Aunt Jen, but I found God "and He forgave me.
" Aunt Jen, that that would be Uncle Larry's wife? She left him years ago.
That's what he told people.
He said she ran off with a boyfriend.
Guess we need to go talk to Uncle Larry.
I called his house.
Nobody answered.
Personally, I don't like the guy.
But he keeps to himself, never has nobody over, so what're you going to do? The wife was okay.
When was the last time you saw him? Been a few days.
Hello! Mr.
Novak? His nephew said he had a cabin up in the Adirondacks.
Maybe he went up there to stick his head in the oven.
He lives alone, never has company.
What's he need a freezer like that for? Whoa.
Aunt Jen.
Raoul, what are you doing in here? Larry Novak? Yeah? You're not dead.
Who says I'm dead? Your nephew, he received an e-mail.
Kurt? I never sent Kurt an Oh, no.
Those e-mails went out? You mind telling us about the dead body in your freezer? Oh, God! Those e-mails weren't supposed to You know what this means? Yeah.
It means you're under arrest.
You're coming with us.
Lord Lord Why have I been left behind? Good news, Larry.
I checked it out.
It didn't happen.
Are you sure? Yeah.
No planes falling from of the sky, no people vanishing into thin air.
All present and accounted for.
So the e-mails, it was a mistake? So, okay, what the hell are they talking about? The rapture.
The rapture? Yeah.
As in the last days, the Book of Revelation? Right, when Jesus comes back and takes all good Christians to heaven.
I'm planning on retiring before that.
Those e-mails were only supposed to go out after.
After the rapture.
Are you sure it didn't happen? I'm still here, aren't I? You believe in Jesus? I do.
Okay, is this a Sunday School class or a murder interrogation? He confessed in the car.
Now we're just chatting.
Didn't ask for a lawyer? Says he doesn't need one.
He says Jesus is going to get him out of jail when the rapture comes.
Hmm.
It's all on the website.
Unraptured.
com, "Sending God's word to those left behind.
" It's a subscription service.
You pay five bucks a month, and you write e-mails to your unsaved loved ones.
The server stores them until the rapture comes.
Then, while you're shooting up to heaven, the computer sends them off.
Little, uh, farewell messages.
And how's the computer supposed to know when the rapture happens? "We are three Christian men living in different states.
"We log on to the website every day.
"But if two of us fail to log on for two days in a row, "the system assumes that the rapture has occurred.
" And they didn't log on because they had been sucked up to heaven.
There's no internet up there.
Yeah, but the rapture didn't occur.
As far as we can tell.
I'm still here.
You mentioned.
So, why didn't those three Christian men log on? The webmaster lives in the city, Sam Burwell.
Well, go see how he's doing.
So, are you really a believer? Or were you just getting the guy to talk? Well, I've been seen in a church from time to time.
Really? So, are you going to fly up to heaven when Jesus comes back on the clouds? I never said I believed in the rapture.
But you never know.
Sam Burwell.
Police! Guy probably went on a bender and forgot where he put his laptop.
Probably explains why he hasn't logged on.
Sam Burwell.
Bullet in the head, a couple of bruises.
Starting to get ripe, been here a while.
Found a shell casing.
Oh.
Looks like a nine.
Signs of struggle, but no forced entry.
Computer's here, Unraptured Central.
Answering machine is full, probably irate customers.
Cell phone, too.
Eleven missed calls, all from the same guy, Jason Altobell.
Sam? Where are you, man? I can't get a hold of Keith either.
Why didn't you sign in? The e-mails went out! I was scared at first.
I thought I'd been left behind.
But I looked out my window, and everything looked normal.
There was nothing on the news What about the third guy? Keith? He was at his parents' cabin in Colorado.
His internet went down in a storm.
He figured Sam and I would cover.
Only two of us had to log on at a time.
Poor Sam.
Do you know what happened? Not yet.
When was the last time that you saw Sam? Two months ago at a church retreat.
But I just talked to him Friday, and everything was fine.
This whole thing has to be bad for business, those e-mails going out.
It's not about business.
I mean, Sam was trying to make a living from it, but it barely paid.
He was broke.
He wanted to perform a service.
He saw the signs, you know? Jews returning to the Holy Land, the European Union, the financial crisis.
Yeah.
Signs of the end times.
Jesus is coming.
We wanted to let people know they could still be saved, even after the rapture.
Anyone take offense to that? It's probably nothing.
Sam didn't even mention it, but I heard he got into a fight with somebody at Rapture-Con.
Rapture-Con? It's an end times convention, like Comic-Con, but for prophecy nuts.
We're in the last days.
That's what we've been hearing.
Oh, no, I meant the convention.
It ends tomorrow.
That guy you asked about, Burwell? He had a booth here.
Did you track down that altercation we asked you about? Yeah.
That's Burwell.
These people can get pretty in your face about what they believe.
Hey, stop it right there.
Can you blow that up and print it? Absolutely.
Yeah, I mean, I'm a Christian, but these guys are kind of extreme.
It's like they can't wait for Jesus to come back and blow up the planet.
I'm pretty sure He wants to make things better, not worse.
All right, let's see if somebody knows this guy.
How about we start with the Good Samaritan.
I knew Sam.
That's his booth, Unraptured.
com, right there, but I've never seen the other man before.
He had a visitor's nametag.
It just had a last name, Corliss.
Corliss? Did you hear what they were fighting about? By the time I got in there, it was mostly just cursing.
Him, not Sam.
Sam said the guy was giving him a hard time about us.
About Sacred Exodus? Sam's a Was a supporter.
He was thinking of joining us on a trip.
He'd just made a donation.
What exactly do you do, Mr.
Reeves? Actually, it's Reverend.
We help Jews from the former Soviet Union return to Israel.
The Bible says, in the last days, Gentiles will gather God's chosen people back from the lands of the north.
It's a precondition for the Lord's return.
You send Jews home to die in the battle of Armageddon.
Is that what people object to? The people we aid live in poverty, endure anti-Semitism, so if Sam's death had anything to do with our work, I would feel terrible.
But God is doing powerful things, and Sam's donation, it will be his legacy.
How much did he give you? A hundred thousand dollars.
All right.
Thanks for your help.
His partner says Burwell was broke.
Suddenly, he has a hundred grand to blow on a God project? Yeah, the same day that Mr.
Corliss shows up to pick a fight.
I'm guessing that's not a coincidence.
Okay, I'm into Sam Burwell's subscriber list.
There's a Steve Corliss.
And? Just an e-mail address.
There might be more in the paper files.
Uh, here we go, Steve Corliss.
He subscribed to the service.
Got an address in Nassau County.
And showed up to Rapture-Con the other day to hassle Burwell? Not unless he was raised from the dead.
Bank notice.
Steve Corliss's monthly payment to the website was terminated owing to death of cardholder.
Burwell got this notice last Tuesday.
Tuesday? Looks like Burwell deleted Corliss's e-mails that day.
The ones that were supposed to go out after the rapture, they're in the junk folder.
The guy died, so Burwell canceled his subscription.
You want to see them, Corliss' e-mails? Yeah.
This one's to his brother.
"Dear Evan.
If you're reading this, I am in a better place.
"Even though you're a sinner, Jesus loves you, and so do I.
"To help you through the end times, "I have left you something I no longer need, "two hundred gold coins in my desk drawer.
" There's your hundred grand.
"The gold is for you, brother.
You're the only one who knows.
" Unless Sam Burwell saw that e-mail.
The house is in probate now.
I'm handling the estate.
Has anyone been out here recently? Well, his brother stayed here over the weekend.
Did his brother have to break in? No.
He had a key.
I gave it to him.
Here's the desk.
This drawer's got a false bottom.
If there was anything in there, it's gone now.
Burwell sees the e-mail, and decides he can put the gold to better use than Steve Corliss' sinner brother.
Figures no one will ever find out.
But somebody did.
That must be Steve.
That's got to be his brother, Evan.
Hallelujah.
The fight at Rapture-Con wasn't about Sacred Exodus.
Burwell found out that one of his subscribers had hidden gold coins, and he stole them.
So, the dead guy's brother somehow figured out what Burwell had done, and somehow tracked him down.
It'd be nice if your theory had a few less somehows in it.
That's Corliss' brother.
Did two years on felony assault back in '98.
Criminal possession of a controlled substance, larceny.
Yeah, he lives up in Syracuse.
The local police went to the house, and he's not home.
We know he stayed at his brother's house last weekend.
Phone records from that house have somebody calling the Gold Exchange on Saturday, the day after the fight at Rapture-Con.
The place that buys gold coins.
So Corliss' brother got some of the coins back from Burwell? Yeah.
Somehow.
For the badge, $11.
I'm not selling it, I wear it.
This man bring you some gold? Twelve Krugerrands, $10,000.
Only 12? He said he might come back with more, but he hasn't.
Hmm.
If the price of gold goes up, you'll pay the difference? Builds customer loyalty.
You have his home address or phone number? Cell phone.
Call him, and tell him he's in luck.
Gold is up.
$11? It's not from Tiffany's, man.
It just doesn't seem right.
Mmm-hmm.
What, do you want it to be solid gold? Hey, here he is.
Let's go.
Hey, Evan! Oh, come on, man.
You should have read the business page.
The price of gold went down this week.
I didn't kill him.
But you saw this, right? The e-mail about the gold? Yeah.
My brother knew he was dying.
He was going to heaven the old-fashioned way.
So yeah, he sent me a print-out.
And you went to his house Sit down.
And surprise, no gold.
And you figured the website guy might have peeked at the e-mail.
So you caught up with him at Rapture-Con.
We only talked.
He said he didn't know anything about gold, so I left.
But you didn't go straight home, did you, Evan? Because you ended up with 12 coins.
Okay.
All right.
Yeah, yeah.
I followed him home, and I got in Burwell's face outside of his apartment, and I persuaded him a little bit harder.
And you knocked him around.
Because he stole from me.
I told him I was going to call the cops, and then he suddenly remembers taking the gold and gives me 12 coins.
Said he sold the rest and had given it to some charity, something about flying Jews to Israel.
So I said, "Get it back, or else.
" Or else you'd kill him.
Right? Right, which is why I didn't kill him.
He was so scared.
Scared to death.
He was going to get my money.
So when we find this guy who runs the charity, he'll tell us that Burwell wanted his donation back? Damn straight.
And tell him I still want it back.
I never saw Sam after that day at Rapture-Con.
Thing is, the building log downstairs showed that he signed in on Sunday.
The convention took the day off.
I was at church.
I think George was here.
My colleague, George Darvey.
You work for Sacred Exodus, but you don't go to church? I'm more in the operations than the theology end.
George handles the logistics, chartered flights, travel documents, actually getting our Jewish friends to Israel.
He's familiar with that part of the world.
He's just in the US for a few days.
You were in the service? I worked for the government.
Did you see Sam Burwell on Sunday? Yeah.
I was catching up on some paperwork.
He stuck his head in.
He wanted some DVDs of our missions to show his friends.
That's it? Yeah.
He didn't happen to ask for his donation back? Why would Sam do that? Because he stole it.
Oh, no.
Not Sam.
Nothing like that.
He just wanted to know where his donation was going to be spent.
Where's that? Uzbekistan.
A Mr.
Burwell did call.
He, uh, said he had an urgent request about a planeload of Jewish émigrés.
It was a little complicated.
What was the request? He wanted to know if there was any way we could refund the emigration tax that had been charged on the group.
He'd been told some charity's money was unavailable because it had gone to the tax payment.
He wanted it back? Yes.
He asked if a refund was possible.
We told him we couldn't help.
Taxes are taxes, right? No.
There is no such tax.
We told Mr.
Burwell he'd been misinformed.
Supposedly the tax is $1,000 a head.
George Darvey's been charging it to Sacred Exodus for every group he's handled.
But there is no such tax, so the money just goes into his pocket.
Quarter of a million dollars so far.
He's been playing Reeves and the Sacred Exodus people for fools.
Well, believers, they're in the habit of believing.
Well, when Burwell asked for his donation back, Darvey told him the same story, but Burwell went and checked it out for himself, and Darvey wouldn't have been too happy.
Who is this Darvey? Marine Corps Force Recon, other-than-honorable discharge.
He did some work for Blackwater.
He started his own security firm in Beirut.
Hmm.
Look it here.
When Darvey flew to the US last week from Tashkent, he declared an unloaded weapon in his checked baggage, 9mm pistol.
I'll call Patrol and have them keep an eye on him.
You two go to his hotel and sit him down for a chat.
Okay.
Rush hour traffic.
You should've taken Park 27 Homicide.
Your suspect just walked out of the hotel, got into a yellow cab, registration D1305.
We're two blocks out.
Was he carrying luggage? Affirmative.
May be heading to JFK.
Hold on.
I think he just saw us.
He just turned north on 3rd, crossing 58th.
Stay with him.
We're there.
Want to give us a hand? Grab that guy.
We're after him.
You can't go in there.
What do you mean? If that's not his house, we can.
No, you can't.
The Iranian Mission.
It's an embassy, sovereign territory.
We can't go in.
Looks like we got left behind.
That man inside is a murder suspect.
So you say.
He is telling a different story.
Well, we'd love to hear it.
He says he's been framed by New York police in collaboration with Zionists.
Do we look like Zionists? I am consulting with my superiors in Iran.
Until we decide whether to grant Mr.
Darvey asylum, he will remain in our embassy, which, as you know, may not be entered or searched without our permission.
Pretty please.
Detective Bernard suggested that we use Mr.
Nozari as a battering ram to break through the gate.
Mr.
Nozari? The embassy's security chief.
He's the one who explained that we're all Zionist stooges.
Well, that sounds about right.
And we, of course, are the Great Satan.
This is Ms.
Barsett from the State Department.
So she should know.
I've asked her to help us out.
But there does seem to be a little problem with the Vienna treaty on foreign relations.
All foreign missions are inviolable and may not be entered or searched without consent.
We're aware.
Very good.
That treaty also requires foreign diplomats to respect local laws and avoid interfering in local affairs.
So sue them.
But you can't go in and get the guy.
That would violate a basic principle of international law.
So a killer sits in there eating caviar, while we do nothing? We're trying to negotiate the Iranians out of building nuclear weapons.
We don't need to get distracted by a common criminal.
Common murderer.
Darvey left his suitcase in the trunk of the cab with the gun inside.
Ballistics are a near-perfect match.
I'm sorry.
We have to respect the treaty.
And if we don't, what are they gonna do? Invade our embassy in Iran and take 50 hostages? Oh, wait, they already did that.
In 1979.
We're trying to move on.
You'd think the Iranians would be happy to have more Jews gathered in Israel for Armageddon, make a juicier target for their bomb.
If you can figure out what Ahmadinejad is really thinking, we'd love to hear about it.
Meanwhile, you can't go into that embassy.
It's outrageous.
Our elected officials should be bringing every pressure to make the Iranians respect our laws.
Now, if I'm elected District Attorney, I won't take no for an answer in a case like this.
If he's elected District Attorney, I'm resigning and burning down my office on the way out.
I like the part about not taking no for an answer.
A few years ago, the FBI caught some embassy guards surveilling bridges and subways, looked like they were spying, scouting for terrorists.
Yeah, they couldn't arrest them, but they were declared persona non grata.
They had to leave the country.
Iranians squawked, but there was nothing they could do.
Leverage? It's worth a try.
Excuse me.
Would you take our picture? Of course.
How does this look? Very nice.
Oh, would you mind taking some more, just to be safe? You mind telling us what you guys are doing? We're going for lunch.
Can I see your camera? It's not my camera.
It belongs to her.
I've never seen that before in my life.
Ah.
So that's how it is.
Thank you, officers.
So why are you taking pictures around here? What have you got? Look at that.
Empire State Building, Penn Station.
Are these snaps for your friends in al-Qaeda? This is about Darvey.
You want him back.
Why don't you call your people.
See what they think.
Hey, how long? Just wait.
Hey.
He called his embassy, and they called her.
I thought we had an understanding.
They were photographing landmarks.
Take their names.
Report it to the FBI.
Let them go.
Right.
And don't do anything else without telling me.
Please.
Sure.
I want to do something else.
You really don't miss it? What, intelligence work? Try and get a decent corned beef sandwich in Pakistan.
This guy was great in the field.
He's got to be bored to death in Manhattan.
Well, I manage to stay awake.
So you heard about this guy, Darvey? He ran into the Iranian embassy.
Yeah.
Maybe.
I didn't know you were bringing a date.
It's her case, too, Tom.
Okay.
Darvey, he runs into the Iranian embassy because you're on his tail.
He sells them a story and they buy it.
They're shipping him out tomorrow morning to Iran.
Embassy car to embassy plane.
How do you know that? Come on.
I got two minutes.
We're on the move.
The Iranians have listening gear, right? They monitor our communications, other embassies, the Israelis? Yeah.
Sure.
And maybe you know what frequency the Israelis broadcast on, their secure stuff.
Maybe.
And maybe you can help us out.
Detective Lupo simply arranged for a little radio transmission.
By NYPD Intelligence, pretending to be Israelis on an Israeli channel we know the Iranians monitor? Something like that.
And what have we arranged to be broadcast? Their favorite song? I Left My Heart in Tel Aviv? A message that an Israeli agent named Loudmouth has penetrated his target.
Loudmouth? Code name.
Is there such an Israeli agent? Has he penetrated a target? No.
We made it up.
But, uh, don't tell anyone.
In your experience, does this kind of thing tend to work? In my experience, yes.
They're moving Darvey out at 6:00 a.
m.
What do you say? God help us.
Please remove your cars.
This is a diplomatic vehicle.
It is as inviolable as the embassy.
You must let us proceed.
No problem.
We just thought since you're taking Mr.
Darvey to Iran that you'd like to be fully informed.
We are aware of your charges against him.
No, that's not what I'm talking about.
I'm talking about his friends, the Israelis.
This is crap.
It's some kind of trick.
Since when do you inform to Iran about the Israelis? When one of their Mossad thugs goes rogue and commits murder in our city.
You're saying Mr.
Darvey works for Mossad? What do you say, Darvey? You want to get out of the car and try our justice system, or go to Iran and try theirs? You still hang spies, right? Or do you behead them? This is ridiculous.
Here, some reading for the plane.
His date of recruitment, scope of operations, code name "Loudmouth," it's all here.
May I see that? You're not believing this? We'll talk on the plane.
I'm getting out.
You will move your cars now, please.
Done.
Guys, clear the way.
Hey, wait a minute.
You can't let them just take me.
Sorry.
Inviolable.
Welcome home.
Put your hands behind your back.
Oh, and, uh, he was right.
It's some kind of trick.
Have a nice flight.
Now the Iranians are telling the world that Israeli thugs are murdering innocent people in New York, and the source of that slander is the office of the District Attorney.
Thanks a lot.
He's leaving out the part that it was a trick.
Yes, he is.
Do you know how many Jewish voters there are in Manhattan? Jack, with all due respect, is this a prosecutor's office or a campaign headquarters? Don't give me that.
I'm the one who gave you the go-ahead.
And now you're saying you shouldn't have? Just convict the son of a bitch.
What exactly did you say to Mr.
Burwell? I told Burwell to get me my money back, or else.
Or else what? Well, I left that part up to his imagination.
But I did manage to put a good scare into him.
He said he was going to go back to that charity and get them to give it back to me.
That charity being Sacred Exodus, where Mr.
Darvey worked? Yes.
And he was highly motivated? Very highly.
Thank you.
He was motivated because you threatened to kill him, isn't that right? It was a bluff.
I wasn't going to kill him.
But you did beat him up.
A little, to make my point.
And your point was, you'd do something worse to him if he didn't get the money, and he didn't get the money.
I didn't know that.
Tell me again, why should we believe anything you say? I didn't speak to Sam Burwell that day.
To your knowledge, did anyone else in your organization speak to him? Mr.
Darvey said that he did.
Did Mr.
Darvey tell you that Mr.
Burwell asked for his donation to be refunded? No.
He didn't say anything like that.
What did he say? That Sam came by to pick up some information about our work, how we bring Jews from the former Soviet Union back to their Biblical homeland.
And you do this work with Mr.
Darvey's help in Central Asia? That's right.
And he presents accountings of his expenditures there, and Sacred Exodus pays those bills? We believe we're doing God's work.
We are happy to pay whatever it costs.
I refer you to People's Four, Mr.
Darvey's accountings, which include $95,000 for Uzbekistan exit taxes for Jewish emigrants.
Did you pay that? We did.
Have you since learned that Uzbekistan has no such tax, that Mr.
Darvey made it up and put the money in his own pocket? Well, that's what they say.
That what who says? Officials of that government.
It's a corrupt part of the world.
Bribes are often paid.
Mr.
Darvey billed you for taxes, not bribes.
We believe we are destined for heaven, Mr.
Cutter, but we're not naive.
Who in his right mind would put bribes in writing? What government official wouldn't deny that they exist? He's cutting the legs out from under our case.
No swindle, no motive.
It's a cover-up.
He's lying.
Mr.
Reeves? Reverend.
Reverend.
You are aware that Mr.
Darvey is accused of shooting your friend, Sam Burwell, in the head because he was on the trail of exposing Mr.
Darvey as a crook.
Objection! That's what they're trying to prove here, which they seem to be not even to be close to doing.
Sustained.
Are you now saying that the hundreds of thousands of dollars in nonexistent taxes that Mr.
Darvey billed you for were actually disguised bribes that you knew about? I know that part of the world is corrupt.
You already said that.
Is it now your testimony that that money was actually spent, legally or otherwise, on behalf of your project? Mr.
Darvey says it was.
I believe him.
How is Sacred Exodus funded? By donations.
And how have donations been running since Mr.
Darvey was arrested for murder? They're down, of course.
Do you think they'd go back up if he's acquitted? I suppose they might.
But if he's convicted, and donations stay down, what would be the consequences for Sacred Exodus? Our work would be delayed.
We could bring fewer Jews to Israel.
And what would be the consequence of that? I'm not sure I know what you mean.
And I'm sure you do.
In bringing Jews to Israel, aren't you fulfilling Biblical prophecy? Yes.
What prophecy? When the Jews return, the stage will be set for the end times.
And for the second coming of Jesus Christ? Yes.
Are you looking forward to the second coming? Of course.
To hasten its coming, would you lie? Isn't that what any good Christian would do? What any good Christian should do? Everything I've said here today is the truth, so help me God.
We're proud to sponsor this debate between the candidates for District Attorney.
You know, Jack, I really ought to put your man Cutter on my campaign staff.
First he pisses off the Jews, then he attacks devout Christians as perjurers.
What's he going to do next, indict Muhammad? He's prosecuting a murderer, which, as a candidate for District Attorney, you should understand, instead of distorting it to inflame religious passions for political gain.
The governor told me you were too high-minded to run a decent campaign.
But really, I had no idea.
Please join me in welcoming the candidates How'd it go? He didn't accuse me personally of being the Antichrist, but not well.
We have to go after him harder.
Chapell? Mmm-mmm.
Reverend Reeves, our lying witness.
His testimony destroys our case.
I thought you had Darvey's gun.
Well, ballistics are a probable match, but they're not airtight.
Without a motive We've got to make Reeves tell the truth.
What do you suggest, an inquisition? We shut down his charity entirely.
By his own testimony, it was paying illegal bribes.
We lock it up and seize its assets.
Shutting down a Christian charity? Maybe I can still get the Buddhist vote.
This isn't about religion.
We keep telling ourselves.
Before you actually do anything, see if the threat alone suffices.
We need to talk.
You lied on the stand.
We're prepared to take action against your organization, to shut it down entirely.
Why are you here? I just told you.
No.
Why are you here, on Earth? What is the purpose of your life? I'm not sure that's relevant right now.
It's the only thing that is relevant.
You get up every morning.
You take a train to work.
You put people in jail, people who break man's laws.
"Thou shalt not kill.
" Not just man's.
These are extraordinary times.
The signs are so clear.
The rise of the European Union, of Russia, the financial collapse, Iran's nuclear bomb.
Armageddon is so close.
"The Lord himself will come down from heaven, "and the dead in Christ will rise.
" I am blessed to know why I'm here, to play a small role in this majesty, to bring the Jews back to the Holy Land.
This is a precondition.
And this trial, this prosecution, is an impediment.
You don't know that.
You can't know that.
"At that time, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, "with power and great glory.
His second coming.
"But no one knows about that day or hour, "not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
" And not me, and not even you.
Matthew, Chapter 24.
God will do what God will do, on His schedule.
Meanwhile, we should do what we should do.
George Darvey murdered your friend.
Now it's our duty to punish that.
You didn't know Sam.
He believed.
Nothing was more important to him than our work.
"Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's.
" This is Caesar's department, Reverend.
This is so difficult.
You know something, don't you? Something you haven't told? What do you do when things get difficult? Sam called me that day, after he had been to see Mr.
Darvey.
He said that he needed his money back, but that Mr.
Darvey said it was impossible, it was already spent, given to the Uzbek government for some sort of tax.
Sam said he was desperate, and that he was going to call the Uzbek embassy and try to get it refunded.
And what did you do after that conversation with Mr.
Burwell? I assumed Mr.
Darvey had told Sam the truth.
We had, after all, been paying that tax all along.
So, I called Darvey and told him what Sam was going to do.
How did Mr.
Darvey react? He seemed concerned.
He said we couldn't let that happen.
Did he say what he meant by that? No.
I didn't ask.
I should have asked.
Especially after After what? After Sam was murdered.
I believe I inadvertently caused Sam's death.
I only hope God can forgive me.
Guilty.
Jury took less than a day.
Because God told Reverend Reeves to tell the truth? God and Connie.
Matthew, Chapter 24.
You study the Bible? I prepare for court.
I prepared for church.
Uh-huh, good.
Maybe you can prepare for me.
The Interfaith Council invited me and Joe Chapell to a panel discussion, "Religion and the Law.
" Sounds fascinating.
I think I feel the flu coming on.