(phone vibrating)
(Danny grunts)
Yeah?
Detective Reagan? It's Anna Zoltin.
I don't know if you remember me.
Yeah, of course I do. What is it?
I'm sorry, I know it's late.
I just... I didn't know who else to turn to.
What's wrong? Are you in trouble?
I'm just scared.
Okay.
Anna, look, you're gonna have to call 911, okay?
Or just go down to the precinct, and I'll be there soon.
I don't even know if you can help me.
He said the cops can't help me.
Well, who said that?
Nobody can help me.
I don't know why I called.
Okay, Anna, A--
Anna?
You promised the police chief of Belfast a tour
of the Real Time Crime Center
before he leaves for Ireland this evening.
What else you got?
Overnight, robbery on 169th and Washington Avenue.
Suspects armed with handguns.
Fits the Manhattan North robbery pattern.
Harbor Unit's pulling out a floater in Brooklyn as we speak,
and a Detective William Carter called.
Old partner of mine. What did he want?
To tell you human remains were recovered
that may be connected to a case you two worked 25 years ago.
Tell my detail we're heading back out.
And your 0900 chiefs' briefing?
Push it.
Okay. Got it. Thanks. 10-4.
M.E.'s still an hour and a half out.
Sad.
Beautiful young girl.
Still has makeup on, too.
Must have just happened.
Ours is not to speculate.
We secure the scene, and then we wait.
Here comes the brain trust now.
Just our luck.
Sonny Malevsky.
That's Sonny Malevsky?
Yeah, why?
Just...
I think he used to work with my brother Joe.
Oh, yeah?
MALEVSKY: Renzulli.
Hey.
Ah, you finally got your stripes.
Mercy promotion?
Don't bust my chops, all right?
Who's the new fish?
Reagan.
So you're the PC's youngest.
Is this your first floater, kid?
Yeah. Well, looks fresh.
You should see 'em after a couple of weeks,
after the fish and the crabs get to 'em.
Let's see what we got.
Commissioner.
Bill. As you were.
Right over here.
Looks like trauma to the skull.
Could be Leo Gates.
Clothes match the description.
We got the backpack.
Skeletal remains appear to be those of a child.
It's him.
We don't know that yet, Frank.
(firmly): It's him.
I don't even know if the mother still lives around here anymore.
She does.
Nine-year-old boy.
Have the M.E. make a positive I.D.
before we start opening up old wounds.
It's no longer missing persons, it's a homicide.
I want the entire case file on my desk forthwith.
Keep this away from the press as long as you can.
I don't want the perp to rabbit if he's still around.
Sure. No problem, sir.
Looks like you were right all along, Frank.
It gives me small comfort.
So, kid, you probably think she jumped
from the Manhattan bridge and floated down,
but you would be wrong,
because she would have hit the East River at 65 miles an hour,
and there's no contusions.
That's not to say she wouldn't have broken her neck,
but it looks like somebody did it for her.
Let's see if there's anything in these pockets.
(chortles)
"Detective Daniel Reagan."
Now, there is one for the small world department.
Renzulli, looks like this one's gonna be a homicide.
Hey, kid,
maybe you want to call your brother.
He might want to come down here
and finish what he seems to have started.
Captioning sponsored by CBS
JACKIE: So did you call back this Anna Zoltin?
I couldn't call her back, okay?
She called from a blocked number.
All right, so what were you supposed to do?
You're supposed to drive around all five boroughs
in the middle of the night, looking for this girl?
She didn't tell you where she was.
I know, I know. I just feel bad, okay?
Girl was getting her life back together,
and this happens?
I know.
How'd you know her, anyway?
A Vice sting about a year ago.
A bunch of call girls, half a dozen johns.
High-end operation.
I'm sure it was a very classy situation.
She was an escort, okay? I'm not gonna make excuses for her.
But she lost her little girl; She was trying to get her back.
She did what she had to do.
Spoke to the ADA, got her sentence reduced
to mandatory rehab.
She was a good kid, Jackie.
I'm sure she was.
It's nice.
And unlike the guys I put away.
They're too busy throwing darts at my picture
in the middle of the night to ask me for help.
Yeah, well, this girl needed help; now she's dead.
Well, listen, here's what we're gonna do.
We're gonna figure out who did this,
and we're gonna string him up by his family jewels.
It's not gonna bring her back,
but it's gonna make you feel better.
(sighs)
BAKER: Your afternoon schedule, sir.
(clears throat) Bronx Borough President's
Man of the Year Luncheon at 1300,
followed by Queens Community Board meeting
in Jackson Heights.
Police Foundation honors the Mayor
at a cocktail reception 1700 to 1830 hours.
I've marked these DD-5s for reinterview.
See that Detective Carter gets back to me
with the new fives as soon as he does them.
Yes, sir.
This is a letter of condolence written to the mother.
"Dear Mrs. Gates,
"I am very sorry that your son has disappeared.
"I know how terrible you must feel.
I am sorry for that."
It's not signed.
Was it written by a man or a woman?
I'd say a man, sir.
(Frank sighs, cell phone rings)
(phone beeps on)
Sir...
the autopsy's in.
Leo Gates's
dental records are a match.
Thank you, Baker.
Cancel the rest of my schedule.
Okay, thanks. Right here, look at this.
Nonpareil Escorts.
That's the place Anna was working
when I busted her a year ago.
Vice has had the place padlocked down for four months now.
Well, I got something over here.
The receptionist at Anna's accounting firm
said that some guy used to send her roses all the time.
Getting pretty heavy. She didn't like it.
She put a restraining order against him.
Receptionist didn't have
the guy's name, but I got in touch with the florist who did.
And you got it? Yes.
Guy's name is Richard Hansen.
He's an attorney.
No priors. Madison Avenue address.
And he's on the Board of
the East Side Parks Conservancy. Fantastic.
Let's go see if we can't persuade Mr. Hansen
to come on down here
and let us pick his brain
about why the Green Thumb keeps sending our victim flowers.
Good.
Commissioner Reagan.
Mrs. Gates.
You found Leo.
We did.
Where did you find him?
In the old building next to the post office,
two blocks from school.
So, he...
...he was so close all those years.
There was, uh...
a false wall in the basement.
Did he suffer?
The medical examiner determined the cause of death
to be blunt force trauma to the head.
It was, most likely, instantaneous.
Well, I guess that's something.
That building...
Does it have any meaning for you?
Friends there? People you knew?
We passed it on the way to school.
Every day, I walked with him.
But he'd been begging me for weeks
to let him walk home by himself.
It was raining that day.
I keep asking myself, is that the reason
I didn't go and get him,
because it was raining?
Laura...
There are some things
none of us can ever completely control.
And one of them is protecting our kids
every moment of the day.
I just think...
You know, if only I'd been with him...
If only I'd made sure he walked with a friend...
(clears throat)
I guess I should call Father John.
We can have a funeral now.
Thank you, Frank.
There's no need to thank me...
until I bring Leo's killer to justice.
You threatened to come to my home?
It was either your home or your office.
I didn't kill Anna Zoltin.
No, she killed herself.
She took her own hands
and strangled herself right before dumping
her body in the river.
Where were you the night Anna Zoltin was killed?
At a charity fund-raiser for my kid's school.
Oh, regular father of the year, huh?
Anna Zoltin took out an order of protection against you
the night before she was murdered.
Wonder why she did that. What'd she do--
threaten to tell your wife? Is that why you killed her?
Why would I throw away my life for a whore?
Hey, that whore was somebody's daughter
and she was also somebody's mother.
But she wanted to quit and you wouldn't let her, would you?
You wanted to keep having sex with her,
but you wouldn't let her say no.
I can afford any woman I want.
DANNY: Really?
How about we call Mrs. Hansen down here
and see how she feels about that?
RICHARD: Okay.
I was a regular client of Anna's.
When she told me she quit, I tried using other call girls,
but she was really special.
You know what I mean?
DANNY: Not firsthand.
But keep talking.
I offered to pay her rent plus double
what she made as an escort, but she turned me down.
The flowers were my attempt to change her mind.
And did it help? No.
But, look, I wasn't the only one who thought she was special.
I heard from other girls in the escort agency
tha-that her boss
was always hitting on her.
You have a name for us?
The only thing I know is that his first name is John.
Well, there's a start.
Yeah.
You'd better pray your alibi checks out.
BAKER: I just wanted to drop these DD-5s off
for the commissioner.
Well, the commissioner is not home yet.
I know that, sir.
I'm retired.
You don't have to call me sir.
What should I call you?
Henry.
Something on your mind, Ms. Baker?
It's a cold case of his, involving a child.
It's consumed him.
We all have these cases.
I had one back in '55-- the remains
of a kid in a duffel bag off the FDR.
I still take the case out every now and then.
It's always bad when it's children, but...
if I may say, sir, he's in a very dark place.
He and the detective who was in charge of the case were at odds.
There was a witness who said
he thought he saw the kid get into a car,
but Francis wasn't having any of it.
He was convinced the kid never left the block;
that he was murdered.
He'll find the forensic anthropologist's report
there as well.
Blunt force trauma to the skull was caused
by the round striking end of a hammer.
His own kids were that age back then.
It tore him up.
It's the losses that keep you up at night.
How'd your anniversary go?
It was good.
I got my wife a snow globe.
I know it's, uh,
too lowbrow for your Harvard tastes,
but my wife loves snow globes.
Fake snow-- I get the appeal.
You get the appeal?
Yeah.
Tell me how you know Sonny Malevsky.
Why are you so interested in that putz, huh?
I'm just curious.
Well, some guys become cops
because they love law enforcement,
some guys for job security,
some guys because they don't know what else to do.
And then you got guys like Malevsky
who's just on a big power trip.
Anything more than that?
What, like, corruption?
That's a big word.
Let's just say I think that he's someone--
when you're talking to him,
you better have one hand on your wallet.
Know what I mean?
Yeah.
Hey.
You still up, Pop?
Your aide dropped off
some fives for the Gates case.
They smell of the precinct.
I hope you don't mind.
It's the losses that keep you up at night.
You miss it, don't you?
I do.
Wasn't done being a cop.
You did what you had to do.
Same as you.
No, I wanted the job.
You should feel proud, Francis.
You're the only chief the rank and file would have accepted
after that last bum of the mayor's.
The time had come and you stepped up.
Here.
Take these.
They're yours.
What are you looking for?
I don't know.
Something to jog my memory.
What is it you always said, Pop--
there's a lot in a detective's head that isn't written down.
But you've got a photographic mind for this stuff.
Yeah?
Well, there's something I can't remember
or overlooked or didn't consider.
(sighs)
Night, Francis.
Night, Pop.
(sighs)
Yeah, yeah, thanks.
Anything yet?
Hansen's alibi checks out.
What? (groans)
You know, it's guys like that
that make me want to stay single.
Yeah, well, he told the truth.
Maybe he's telling the truth
about this John guy who owned the agency.
Says he was obsessed with Anna.
Well, let's see; let's check it out.
Black Book.
Yeah, well,
the escort service was owned by a John.
John Vega.
Huh, what's he up to now?
Owns a business called
Executive Clientele.
(typing)
Well, look at that. Oh, well.
It's not hard to tell what John's new business is doing.
No.
You're listed as the company owner, Mr. Vega.
Hey, hey, just call me Johnny.
Johnny the Pimp?
(laughs)
Our ladies do not engage in sexual intercourse.
Right, your clients just pay $1,000 a pop
for stimulating conversation.
Is that it?
Our clients are out- of-town businessmen
or Europeans who just want beautiful ladies
to show them around the city,
you know, business dinners with 'em and stuff.
Yeah, you know Anna Zoltin?
Yeah, I think she used to work for my accountant.
Really? Well, they told us
that she delivered many packages here.
No, no, tha-that's not true.
How about the fact that she was as an escort
at Nonpareil while you were running it?
I... I don't recall.
DANNY: You recall where you were two nights ago?
Hillary, pull up Jolene, will you?
I was at her place all night.
Well, we're going to need her contact information
to corroborate.
Sure, I'll make sure you get that before you leave.
And, hey, you ever want to try any of our services,
I'll make sure you get the NYPD discount.
No, thanks. I'm married.
That's too bad.
You don't know what you're missing.
Neither do you.
BAKER: 250 interviews of people
in the building across the street,
and not one of them saw Leo enter that building,
never mind with anyone.
What do you think, sir?
I don't know.
Had to be someone in that building on that day;
someone that wouldn't raise suspicions.
If it moves, you duct tape it; if it squeaks, you WD-40 it;
if it's stuck, you hit it with a hammer.
Sounds about right, sir.
Get me Bill Carter on the phone.
(sighs)
Jolene DeMaine.
Detective Reagan.
This is my partner Detective Curatola.
Johnny told me that you'd be looking for me.
Oh, did he? Yeah.
He was with me that night. Really, doing what?
Dinner, and then we hung out all night.
Where? Where?
My place.
Look, I'm sorry, I really need to go.
I'm late. Hey, you know what?
If you think of anything,
why don't you give us a call, okay?
I won't.
That went well. Yeah.
BAKER: Hold for the commissioner.
Where are you with the new interviews, Bill?
Um, I've located some of them, sir.
In fact, right now, I'm with the witness Todd Connelly.
He's not on my list.
No, I know, but it just--
it occurred to me that he may have said
that he saw Leo Gates entering the Corolla
to throw the investigation.
The murderer put him up to it.
What about Ted Wessel?
Wessel?
The superintendent of the building
where Leo Gates' bones were found, a re-interview
I specifically requested.
Yeah, I haven't found him yet, sir.
Find him.
Do it quick and do it right
or you'll be walking a beat so far out in Queens,
you'll need a passport
to get back to Manhattan.
Yes, sir.
Find out everything there is to know
about Theodore Wessel--
every detail of his life from the day he was born.
Hey, okay, so Johnny Vega has a criminal history--
assault, extortion, gambling, promoting prostitution.
So what is he doing still on the street? Well,
this is his first go-round with murder, though.
He's got an alibi for that.
We can't even get enough to subpoena his phone records.
All right, so there's got to be something.
Besides Nonpareil, is there any way
we can connect this guy to Anna?
I've been through her phone records, her e-mails.
There is absolutely nothing
from Vega, but there are tons of phone calls
back and forth from Anna Zoltin and Jolene DeMaine
nearly every day, including the night she was killed,
right after she called you.
Jolene DeMaine?
Mm-hmm.
Sounds like she knows something she's not letting on.
Mm-hmm.
You got a second to talk?
I already talked to you.
Yeah, but you never told us
that you and Anna were friends.
We know you spoke to Anna the night she was killed,
'cause I did, too.
She sounded afraid
that someone was going to find out she reached out to me.
I'm thinking it was Johnny Vega she was afraid of.
JACKIE: But you told us
that you were with him the night Anna was killed.
I did see him that night.
Just not the whole night.
Look, I can't help you.
Come on, you're going to let this guy get away
with killing your friend?
You know he strangled her so hard
that he broke a bone in her neck.
Don't. Well, then, tell us the truth.
You have no idea what Johnny's really like.
So you give him an alibi?
I can end up like her. You can also end up
in prison for hindering prosecution.
Jolene, tell us what happened.
Johnny had a thing for her.
He was always creeping on her.
And finally, she started saying
that she'd go to the cops if he didn't stop harassing her.
She told me about you.
She said that we could trust you.
You can.
Keep talking.
Anna told me
that she dropped off the checks at Executive.
When she got there, Johnny tried to jump her,
but she fought him off,
and she told him that that was it,
that she was going to go to the cops.
She ran out of there.
And she called me from her cell.
She was petrified
that he was coming after her.
So I told her that I'd meet her at her place.
What time was that?
It was around midnight.
When I got there, she was so scared,
her hands were shaking.
She told me she was going to meet you at the precinct.
And I said that I would wait with her.
Did you?
There was a knock on the door.
And Anna told me to hide while she answered it,
so I ducked into her bedroom.
And it was Johnny Vega.
He was furious.
They had words, then I didn't hear anything,
so I peeked out to make sure that she was okay,
and I saw...
...and I saw him strangle her.
Did he see you?
No. No.
God, I didn't move.
I waited until he left... with Anna.
And the next day, when Anna's body showed up,
he said that that's what happens when people talk to cops.
Let's go scoop this piece of garbage.
(beep)
Johnny Vega!
Get your hands out of your pockets.
Keep 'em where I can see them.
You come to take me up on that NYPD discount?
I don't have anything for the young lady,
unless she goes that way.
We're here to arrest you for the murder of Anna Zoltin.
You know what? Whatever.
Great. Turn around.
Turn your ass around.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law.
You have the right to consult with an attorney.
You have the right
to have the attorney present during questioning.
You can't afford an attorney,
one will be appointed to you at no cost.
That Johnny Vega is one cool cucumber.
As long as he's held without bail
for second degree murder, I don't care.
Detective Reagan. Curatola.
Special Agent Stuart LeMarque.
Oh, FBI.
To what do we owe the pleasure?
You arrested John Vega today. Yeah.
Creates a little bit of a problem for us.
Really? Why is that?
He's instrumental in a RICO case we got going.
Well, he's a confidential informant.
Oh, makes sense now, why he has all those
get-out-of-jail-free cards on felony collars.
This guy's a made member of the Rulanti crime family.
He's a like a son to Tommy Rulanti.
Well, I don't care if he's like a son to the pope.
He's not getting a pass from us, so forget it.
Our case hinges on Vega's cooperation, all right?
We're going after the bigger fish here.
As opposed to the little homicide here.
I need you to understand that we have an opportunity
to deal the Rulanti crime family a crippling blow.
And we have an opportunity to lock this punk up
for second degree murder, and we will.
You really think the FBI is gonna let some NYPD detective
blow a multimillion dollar RICO case?
Maybe.
Putz.
He's having trouble playing with others again?
(groans) FBI trying to tell me who we can and can't arrest.
Well, if it's about Johnny Vega, we have other problems.
What, are they trying to lean on you to dismiss?
No, his defense team has requested
our eyewitness's statement.
Are you kidding me?
Then Johnny's gonna know it was Jolene DeMaine.
Oh, it is a death sentence for her.
It's within the law, Danny.
(bell tolling)
I'm just saying, what kind of law is it?
It's the kind that guarantees a fair trial.
Fair trial. I got a witness
who risks her life to come and give you
recorded testimony; you turn around and give it
to the murderer. Is that fair? (phone humming)
Well, the judge hasn't ruled on it yet, Danny.
And that's why cops hate Mondays.
Excuse me.
Well, it doesn't seem right, Mom.
DANNY: It's not right.
The defender has the right
to know who's accusing him.
That's so they can figure out who to intimidate.
Without discovery statutes, it's not a level playing field.
(grumbles) DANNY: We're talking about
playing with people's lives here.
JAMIE: Well, Nick, would you really want
a world where anyone could have someone
locked up, just on their anonymous say-so?
That doesn't sound so good, either.
Thank you, Jamie. Except in this case,
you know it's an intimidation tactic.
Wrecks your only case.
HENRY: See what I mean? No.
Un-thank you, Jamie.
DANNY: The bottom line is,
all the FBI cares about is making their splashy case
against the Rulanti crime family.
And meanwhile, Anna Zoltin just floats
right down the East River into oblivion,
and no one even arrests the murderer.
Yeah, what did you say they said, Danny?
"Come on, she's just a call girl?"
Oh, pretty much. "Just a call girl."
What's a call girl?
I don't know.
Uh, a...
That is a girl who talks on her cell
all the time. JACK: So...
kind of like Aunt Erin?
(laughter)
Sorry.
(laughter continues)
JAMIE: Yeah.
No.
Sorry.
HENRY: Anything?
Dead end.
Ah. What was so funny?
Oh, a barrel of laughs in here, Dad.
Between the FBI and the DA's office trying
to kill my witness. Oh, enough with the drama.
Nothing undermines our way of life
more than the taking of it.
I'll drink to that.
The truth is, Judge Fenton could rule either way tomorrow.
I could lose my witness.
I'm a little worried about it.
Well, in that case, be ready.
(sighs) How do you mean?
Ready with another case against him.
How did the FBI
get Johnny Vega to cooperate against the Rulanti family
in the first place?
They have something on him.
Interstate prostitution trafficking, for instance.
Okay.
And we know how the Feds like
to memorialize their cases on tape.
Wiretaps. Surveillance.
And since the cases haven't been brought,
none of it's been released.
Well, maybe the right people haven't been asking.
I do have a friend in the U.S. Attorney's office.
Well, if things don't go your way tomorrow...
JUDGE FENTON: Ms. Reagan,
I have read your objection
to the defense's motion to compel discovery.
Your Honor, the release of said testimony
would reveal the identity of the witness
and put his or her life in danger.
Objection.
Much as we appreciate
Ms. Reagan's apparent competency in legal matters,
we don't subscribe to her ability
to predict the future, Your Honor.
Sustained.
Ms. Reagan, your objection is denied.
The recording will be entered into evidence
and made available to the defense.
At this time, we would also request
a consideration for bail.
Objection.
Mr. Vega has strong family ties.
Whose family-- his own or the Rulantis?
DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Objection!
(knocking)
Jolene?
Jolene, Jolene, listen.
Johnny Vega made bail.
We just want to take you somewhere safe.
I don't think so. Look, the judge ruled
the defense can hear the record of your testimony against
Johnny Vega, so get some clothes on and let's go.
No. No, I can't. I'm sorry.
What is it? Did he contact you?
It doesn't matter! Did Johnny threaten you again?
I'm not going to testify, all right?
You already gave a statement to the ADA.
I lied.
see him kill Anna, all right?
Just leave me alone!
DANNY: This is what he wants, you know.
He wants you to be scared!
(sighs)
I'm well aware of John Vega.
And I know about the RICO.
I'm not willing to bend on murder.
Well, with the last name Reagan, why would you?
But you know that giving you access to the FBI's surveillance
is going to cause beaucoup problems for me.
David, you're a dedicated U.S. Attorney.
I know you don't want this guy walking around
anymore than I do.
I can't jeopardize the Rulanti case.
You won't be jeopardizing it.
I will wait to bring my pretrial motions
against Vega until after your RICO charges.
You'll still have first dibs.
Can we discuss this over dinner?
David... I want that material.
Hey, Danny, it's me.
Got something for your viewing and listening pleasure.
(Jackie and Danny sigh)
Ugh!
Six hours of this, and nothing.
No. I can't do it anymore.
I cannot watch any more
mobsters and whores hanging out.
Tell me about it.
(taps button)
Well, there's Johnny Vega.
Wait a minute-- check this guy out.
(sighs) What?
Yeah. It's another
midlife crisis overpaying some 20-year-old
to make him feel desirable.
Forget it.
I lost interest after the first four hours.
No, there's something about this guy.
I've seen him around somewhere.
Wait. Do me a favor? Yeah.
Run this license plate.
King-Nora-Queen,
eight-six-three-three.
Whoa.
What? You're never going to believe this.
What?
The plate belongs to Judge Fenton.
Are you kidding me?
And it's not even my birthday.
MAYOR: Uh, we missed you at the Police Foundation Honors, Frank.
Police Foundation honors its mayor,
uh, am I wrong in thinking that the police commissioner
might want to make an appearance?
I'm sorry, Mr. Mayor.
I had urgent police business.
So,um...
now, what's your excuse for ducking our meeting today
with the FBI Bureau Director in Charge?
I don't have one.
What am I supposed to do with that?
They want your guys to back off the Vega case.
I am not your apologist, Frank,
and when the federal government wants-- demands!--
a meeting, I won't have you
letting me stand there alone like an idiot, holding my...
BAKER: Sir...
What is it, Baker?
I'm sorry, but you said
to interrupt if we heard from Detective Carter,
and he's on line one.
He's located Theodore Wessel.
I have to take this call, Mr. Mayor.
Yeah, I understand.
Urgent police business, right?
Lives at stake.
Etcetera.
Bring him in.
(wry laugh) You're tired?
Well, that's too bad, 'cause nobody's gonna sleep
until I find out what happened!
I don't know what happened.
How many times do I got to tell you?
I didn't have nothing to do with it. You did!
You killed a kid, and then you
buried him behind the wall!
You were the super of the building.
Nobody would've thought anything
if they saw you down there covered in dust!
You don't know what you're talking about.
Everybody in the building had access to the basement.
There's 150 storage lockers in the laundry room.
You know what? I can't stand the sight of you.
(door opens)
He's not giving it up, Frank.
I know. (sighs)
We got nothing without his confession.
CARTER: I've been in there with him for four hours.
I want to talk to him.
Okay, Commissioner.
Remember me?
I think you're the police commissioner.
I am now.
You were the superintendent of a building
that Leo Gates passed by on the way to and from school.
We talked on, uh...
November 10, the day... after Leo
went missing.
I was the super of the building.
I already told the detective that.
Well, can I, uh,
get you something to eat or drink, Mr. Wessel?
I just want to get out of here.
I'm not gonna tell you anything different than I did him.
We found this...
in Leo Gates' backpack with his remains.
It's a fourth grade writing assignment.
Kind of a fill-in-the-blank biography.
November 9.
"Leo Gates," name, "cares deeply about:
"my family.
"What do you want to be?
"Professional baseball player.
"What do you love?
"Anything to do with baseball.
"What do you fear?
Not being able to hit a baseball."
Imagine that, Ted.
Before November 9, all Leo was afraid of
was not being able to hit a baseball.
Why are you doing this?
Well, I just wanted to clear some things up.
When we talked on November 10,
you were wearing
"blue work shirt, khaki trousers,
"tan work boots
and a tool belt."
Well...
that's all I really had in my notes... that mattered,
but... I have a pretty good memory, Ted.
So...
I'm in my office, staring out...
at my city, and I thought
of what my superintendent used to say:
"If it moves, you duct-tape it, if it squeaks, you WD-40 it,
and if it's stuck, you hit it with a hammer."
And I don't know, I think that kind of jogged my memory,
because all of a sudden, I had this...
kind of photograph in my mind,
and I realized that when we talked...
your hammer was missing from your tool belt.
And that's when I knew.
I-I wouldn't hit a kid in the head with a hammer.
That's how Leo was killed; how'd you know that?
Detective Carter told me.
No, he didn't.
I read it in the paper.
It wasn't in the paper, Ted.
P-People steal tools all the time.
I mean, you set something down, they steal it.
(pulls chair back)
Few days ago...
...I had to tell Laura Gates-- that's Leo's mom--
I had to tell her that Leo was dead.
In a way,
she seemed relieved to know,
finally.
Because not knowing...
had taken a terrible toll on her, Ted.
When you lose a child, it, uh...
it seems so unfair.
I know.
I lost a son.
And I think you'll understand that...
you never really recover from a loss like that.
Read it.
Could you read it out loud? Please?
"Dear Mrs. Gates,
"I am very sorry that your son has disappeared.
"I know how terribly you must feel.
I am sorry for that."
I think
a good person wrote that letter, Ted.
A man with a conscience.
Someone who made a mistake
and regretted it and carried it with him the rest of his life.
A mistake that haunted him
till it broke up his marriage
and turned him to alcohol to dull the pain.
A mistake that left him broken...
and that he never recovered from.
You wrote that letter, Ted.
(sobbing)
It was raining.
He was all wet.
That's all.
(continues sobbing) Well...
...just tell how you didn't mean to do it.
Just write down everything.
(continues sobbing)
I would like to file
a motion to dismiss the charges against my client.
On what grounds, Counselor?
This is absurd, Your Honor.
The only witness has recanted her statement.
Hold it. Excuse me.
Hey, don't mind us, Judge.
FENTON: Excuse me, there's a court in session here.
Sir, you are out of order. Hey, I'm not the only one who's out of order.
Sir, sit down!
I don't want to sit.
Sir, I will find you in contempt!
The only one in contempt here is you, Judge!
Judicial misconduct, solicitation-- tell him.
I'm Vincent Pellegrino
from the Office of Court Administration.
Please step down, Your Honor.
And don't call him "Your Honor."
That word's reserved for people who actually have some.
Hey, Johnny boy.
What is going on?
Well, Judge Fenton has a starring role in one of those videos.
He got caught with his pants down--
both literally and figuratively.
Ain't that right, Judge?
(gallery murmuring)
That's why he's been ruling on the side of Johnny Vega.
PELLEGRINO: This hearing is adjourned,
pending a judicial review.
Hey. Not bad for a little fish, huh?
Hey, look who's here!
Hey, Dad! Hey, Dad.
Hey.
I heard what went on in there.
Oh, yeah, classic Danny.
Couldn't wait until the hearing was over.
He had to burst into the courtroom on his big, white horse.
Yeah. Good times.
Hey, we hear the commissioner got
a signed confession.
Great day for the family business.
We're gonna go across the street and celebrate,
pat ourselves on the back. Can you come?
I got stuff to do.
Go ahead, you kids go.
Are you sure?
Yeah. I'll take a rain check.
Bye.
DANNY: See ya, Dad.
Proud of you.
I knew when they found Leo's remains
that you'd get the person responsible.
I know it's small comfort.
It's the only comfort I have,
that he'll be held accountable.
I understand.
You lost a son, too.
Not a day goes by I don't think of him.
(sighs)
I have something.
When they found Leo...
this was in his backpack.
(gentle laugh)
(laughs)
Leo loved baseball.
Can I thank you now?
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Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org