Helen: I understand, but his lawyers are good and they may take this to trial. I just don’t want to be surprised by anything. For example, they might even claim that Mr Kingston and Sister Caroline were having a physical relationship.
Sister #2: What??
Helen: Their job is to get him off. They’re not beneath arguing anything.
Sister #2: Caroline wasn’t having any physical relationship. If that’s going to be their legal strategy, good luck to them. They got the wrong nun. She went there to help a man she thought was in need.
Sister #1: Miss Gamble, you are going to put this man in jail, aren’t you?
Helen: Yes. I’m definitely gonna do that.
-------------------- Commercial --------------------
The prison.
Lindsay: This woman, Cynthia Simonson, you say you didn’t kidnap her.
Kingston: I met her in a bar in Kenmore (sp?) Square. She left with me. Happily. She was at the bar with friends, ask them.
Lindsay: And you came back to your apartment.
Kingston: To play Scrabble.
Lindsay: We’re back to being cute now?
Kingston: She left with me to spend the night together. Which we did.
Lindsay: Then why’d you keep her locked up inside?
Kingston: I didn’t. I went out to get coffee in the morning and I have a barred door and padlock. It’s the only way it locks.
Lindsay: And the reason you have a barred door?
Kingston: Safety. I don’t wanna get ripped off. Plus which, I had a nun in my closet and I didn’t want people popping in.
Outside the prison. Police are escorting Lindsay through a loud, angry mob of protesters.
Policeman #1: C’mon (They huddle around Lindsay, pushing back the crowd as they go)
Policeman #2: You got your car here?
Lindsay: I walked.
Policeman #2: Well, you won’t be walking back. We’ll get you to a cab.
Policeman #3: You know where the back entrance is?
Lindsay: Yeah (she’s suddenly hit by two eggs)
Policeman #2: Hey! Back off!
Policeman #3: Well, use it next time.
The office. Lindsay is at her desk, Lucy is trying to remove the egg shells from her hair.
Lindsay: Why me? Why always me??
Bobby: Well, it won’t be you from here on end. I’ll be with you every step. What about the supposed kidnapping of the college girl?
Lindsay: He said she went back to his place voluntarily.
Ellenor: What difference does it make? He carved up a nun.
Bobby: It may raise fourth amendment issues. Do we have an address on her?
Lindsay: Yeah, it’s in my coat pocket. Probably soaked in yolk.
Bobby: Ellenor, try to talk to this girl. Eugene, I guess we should try to contact Dr Crane in case we want to go with insanity.
Eugene: Dr Crane charges five grand. This is court appointed. The state will never authorise that kind -
Bobby: Just give him a call in case we decide to go that route. Given what he did, there’s gotta be a chance he’s insane.
Eugene: So, we’re going to the max for this psycho.
Bobby: Do we have a choice?
They all look glum.
A courtroom.
Undercover Police Officer: We had a few drinks, talked.
Tisbury (defence counsel): And, at some point, officer, you told him you were a prostitute.
Police Officer: I said I was a lady of the evening, yes.
Tisbury: And how did Mr Burrows respond?
Police Officer: He was surprised at first. Maybe shocked.
Tisbury: What happened next?
Police Officer: We kept talking. I eventually asked him if he’d like to go upstairs to his hotel room. He said yes.
Tisbury: Did you ever quote him a price?
Police Officer: Four hundred dollars.
Tisbury: And then?
Police Officer: We went upstairs, he paid me the money, at which point I told him I was an undercover police officer. I placed him under arrest, read him his rights and took him into custody.
Tisbury nods at the judge and returns to his seat. Jimmy stands.
Jimmy: Why were you working this bar undercover?
Police Officer: Mainly because high price call work it. It was a problem.
Jimmy: And this is an upscale, hotel bar, right, officer?
Police Officer: Yes.
Jimmy: Lot of out of town business people frequent it, including many law-abiding people, right?
Police Officer: Yes.
Jimmy: In fact, mostly law-abiding, wouldn’t you say?
Police Officer: Probably.
Jimmy: And you weren’t out to sting my client specifically, were you?
Police Officer: No.
Jimmy: In fact, you didn’t even know who he was, when you sat down.
Police Officer: No, I didn’t.
Jimmy: And when you first sat down next to him, you told him you were an executive secretary, isn’t that right?
Police Officer: Yes.
Jimmy: How long were the two of you talking before you said you were a prostitute?
Police Officer: Maybe an hour or so?
Jimmy: An hour or so. So, for a while, he could’ve thought ‘hey, this woman thinks I’m attractive’. Is that possible?
Police Officer: I guess.
Jimmy: You guess. Well, in fact, that was the idea, wasn’t it?
Police Officer: I suppose it was.
Jimmy: So, before you told him that you worked for hire, do you think it was possible that he was already hoping, maybe, something could happen upstairs in his hotel room?
Police Officer: I don’t know what he was thinking.
Jimmy: Did you feel, sitting there, he was physically attracted to you?
Police Officer: Yes, I did.
Jimmy: Your honour, I’d like to see her as she was that night.
Tisbury: Objection. There’s no point -
Jimmy: It certainly goes to our entrapment defence.
Judge: I agree. The court will be adjourned for one hour. The witness will return in the same attire she wore that evening.
Helen’s office.
Bobby: Life with parole, we both save ourselves a lot of aggravation.
Helen: Are you out of your mind?
Bobby: He could’ve been out of his, Helen, in which case -
Helen: There’s no way I’m making any deal which allows this guy to see the street again.
Bobby: I understand the public outcry, but -
Helen: It has nothing to do with public outcry - (pause as she composes herself, and pulls out pictures of the crime scene. She shows them to Bobby) Look at what he did. (another pause as Bobby looks at the pictures) You want him free one day?
Bobby: (looks at her) No. But if you don’t offer us something, we have no choice but to go to trial. We’ll agree to life.
Helen: I can’t agree to parole. Come on. Did you really expect me to?
Bobby: I don’t feel like devoting six months of my life to this guy.
Helen: Judge Hiller did that to you. Not me.
A courtroom. The police officer is now dressed in a tight black evening dress and is modelling it for the jury.
Jimmy: Could you stand facing the front? (she turns around) Okay. Now facing me. (she turns again) Could you just walk over to the foreman, hold his hand?
Tisbury: Objection.
Jimmy: A woman like this touches you... It has an effect, your honour.
Judge: Go ahead.
She walks over to the foreman, who looks rather uncomfortable, and takes his hand. The rest of the jury watch.
Jimmy: Now, smile at him like you did my client.
She smiles. The foreman smiles back rather bashfully, then looks down.
Tisbury: Objection. (stands) Objection!
The conference room.
Lindsay: I really appreciate you coming in.
Cynthia Simonson: Well, you shouldn’t thank me too fast. I have absolutely no intention of helping you.
Ellenor: Believe me, we completely understand. We, ah, we just have a few questions. The police say you were locked inside Mr Kingston’s home.
Cynthia: Yeah, it was like one of those barricaded doors.
Ellenor: And you went there willingly, correct?
Cynthia: Yeah, I spent the night (there’s a pause)
Lindsay: At what point did you decide that you were kidnapped?
Cynthia: When I woke up. He was gone, and uh, I couldn’t get out, the door was padlocked. I called the police. I was panicked.
Lindsay: And when they got there, you told them that there were guns in the closet?
Cynthia: I told them that was what he told me. (there’s a pause as Ellenor and Lindsay consider this.)
Lindsay: And that’s when they opened it up?
Cynthia: Yeah. It’s the last thing I remembered before passing out. When they opened the door on her... I spent the night with him. I could’ve been next.
Ellenor and Lindsay look at each other.
Bobby’s office.
Lindsay: Good news, or bad, depending on how you look at it.
Bobby: What?
Lindsay: We got a shot at getting this case kicked.
Bobby: Excuse me?
Ellenor: Fourth amendment. Could be a bogus search.
Bobby: (shocked) How do you figure? They moved in on a kidnapping.
Lindsay: There was no kidnap here, Bobby. He was coming back to the place with donuts.
Bobby: The police didn’t know that.
Ellenor: Bobby, there was nothing exigent.
Lindsay: The arresting officer’s taking the stand tomorrow at the PC hearing. And if he says what I think he’s gonna say, out little nun killer could walk.
Bobby: Lindsay, there was a woman locked up inside his apartment and a chopped up nun.
Lindsay: And I’m telling you we might be able to suppress the chopped up nun.
Bobby: (slowly) I don’t really want to.
Lindsay: You think I do?
Bobby doesn’t answer. They all look uncomfortable.
-------------------- Commercial --------------------
Helen and Lindsay’s apartment.
Helen: You're kind of quiet this morning.
Lindsay: Well, you try taking the side of evil.
Helen: Yeah, well, I’d say let’s head in together but my hair doesn’t like egg shampoo.
Lindsay: Well, you know, we’re supposed to be on different sides. It wouldn’t look so good if we marched in together, would it?
Helen: No. See you there?
Lindsay: (nodding) See you there.
In the elevator at the courthouse.
Lindsay: She has no idea she’s about to be ambushed. I feel like a snake.
Ellenor: Lindsay, it would’ve been unethical of you to give her the idea.
The doors open on a hall packed with media and security.
Security guard: Come on!
Bobby, Lindsay and Ellenor look stunned, the crowd gets louder.
Bobby: Won’t you clear them out?
Security guard: Open to the public.
Bobby: This is incitement!
Security guard: Let’s all keep moving, please.
A courtroom.
Burrows: I paid the woman the money, I don’t deny that.
Rebecca: But?
Burrows: But I didn’t go into the bar looking for a call girl. I sat down at the bar. I ordered a night-cap then she sat down.
Rebecca: Okay. But, Mr Burrows, she didn’t force you to hire her services.
Burrows: We were talking. Getting along. You know, I should’ve known something was up. Pretty women never come up to me. Things were getting flirtatious, and I started thinking ‘hotel bar, I’m on the road, she says she’s on the road’ and my mind is going right to where a man’s mind goes to in these situations.
Rebecca: Which is where?
Burrows: My penis. (the gallery laughs delicately)
Judge: (warningly) Mr Burrows.
Burrows: I’m just being honest. I haven’t slept with a woman in four years. I don’t even go looking for it, I’m a realist. But now, suddenly I’m thinking this is a possibility.
Rebecca: And then?
Burrows: Then she tells me she’s a lady of the evening.
Rebecca: And how did you respond?
Burrows: I was crushed. One minute I was thinking this beautiful woman was actually attracted to me, and then the next I come crashing back down to earth. But as we continued talking, I begin to realise why she’s sitting there, smiling at me, and it occurs to me that this possibility that I’d been so excited about still exists! And all of the little dreams I’d been dreaming... Well, suddenly four hundred dollars seemed cheap and I said yes. She got me as thirsty as she could, she led me to a trough and then I get arrested because I wanted to drink.
Another courtroom. The gallery is full, the front row is half filled with nuns.
Arresting Officer (on the stand): We were responding to a 911. When we got there, we found the girl behind the padlocked steel door.
Helen: Then what happened?
Arresting Officer: We cut through the door, freed the woman. She told us the suspect had guns or something in the closet. We opened the closet door, and found the remains of the nun.
Ellenor: After you cut through the front door, to reach Ms Simonson, there was no real emergency, was there, officer?
Arresting Officer: I suppose not.
Ellenor: And did you feel Ms Simonson had the authority to give you permission to open the closet?
Arresting Officer: Well -
Ellenor: You knew it wasn’t her home, right? (he doesn’t answer) And, by the way, how did you open the closet?
Arresting Officer: Crowbar.
Ellenor: Your honour, at this time, the defence asks that you suppress the entire contents of that closet.
Everyone except for Bobby, Ellenor, Lindsay and Kingston look shocked. The gallery begin mumbling. Lindsay looks slightly ashamed.
Judge Hiller: Quiet down! (bangs gavel) I’ll see counsel in chambers.
Judge Hiller’s chambers.
Ellenor: It’s a no-brainer. No exigency, no plain sight.
Helen: The police were responding to what they thought was a kidnapping.
Lindsay: But after they went in, they had the girl.
Helen: And if there’s cause for an arrest there’s cause for a search incident to an arrest.
Bobby: Did you just make that up?
Helen: Hold on -
Bobby: They could’ve secured the premises, got the warrant. They could’ve come back and searched. Instead, they just skipped the warrant.
Helen: If there was one kidnap there could’ve been two. Somebody clearly could’ve been in that closet.
Bobby: (at the same time as Ellenor and Lindsay) Oh, Helen, don’t insult the -
Lindsay and Ellenor: On, come on. (Ellenor rolls her eyes)
Judge Hiller: All right, let’s just cut through this. I’m told you’d agreed to life with parole. Let’s just do that.
Bobby: That offer isn’t on the table anymore.
Judge Hiller: Bobby, I suggest you take it.
Bobby: Why?
Judge Hiller: Because, that officer could have reasonably believed there were exigent circumstances.