Disclaimer: This is a cut and dry transcript of the episode "Love and Honor." The characters and plot lines of The Practice belong to David E. Kelley and 20th Century Fox Television. No copyright infringement is intended by this transcript. It is for entertainment purposes only.
This transcript was done by VICKIE.
(Scene, the office of DYD&F)
Rebecca: Lucy, who authorized a Christmas party?
Lucy: Oh, that'd be me.
Ellenor: That would be you? And are you paying for it?
Lucy: Funny.
Ellenor: Lucy!
Lucy: Oh come on Ellenor. You look like a party girl. Lindsay, Bobby and Eugene act like they've never been to one.
Lindsay: What?
Ellenor: Did you know we were having an office Christmas party?
Lucy. Oh come on. It's not like we have to invite any clients. They're all in jail.
Lindsay: Can I turn in my partnership for her job? Looks like more fun being the boss.
Jimmy: Ok, we set?
Lucy: Bags are packed.
Lindsay: Have you packed yours?
Jimmy: Ok, Eugene, Ellenor, we went through this - I'll say it one more time. You don't defend what you did to the brother, you just describe it as a necessary evil. Nobody's righteous, nobody's arrogant, nobody's looking like it's this big inconvenience getting sued either. We know what we did to the kid, our hearts go out. We all clear?
Bobby: Yep.
Jimmy: Nobody says that word qualified immunity. We're not relying on legal jingles. One last thing - I know none of you are crazy about me being first chair. But nobody ever, ever whispers or makes faces or does anything to make the jury think you doubt me. Like you all say, my credibility has to count in the end. Don't hurt it. Ok? Let's go.
Lucy: That man is nervous, big time
Opening Credits
(Scene, the office)
Eugene: What you got against parties?
Rebecca: I don't have anything against parties. It's just -
Jimmy (to Eugene): I'd like you to wear this. (He holds out a baby blue tie)
Eugene: Excuse me?
Jimmy: You look like a hit man.
Eugene: I am not wearing this!
Bobby: You ready?
Eugene: No! He's not telling me how to dress!
(Jimmy yells, Eugene yells)
Bobby: Hey!
Eugene: Sky baby blue!
Jimmy: He looks mean in that tie.
Eugene: I look what?!?!?
Bobby: Jimmy, I understand your thinking on this, but he looks okay.
Lucy: Straight might be nice. (She straightens Eugene's ties then Bobby's.) Crooked works for you (to Jimmy).
(Scene, the courtroom)
Mr. Robin (on the witness stand): It was a mistake I even let him in. He was defending the man who killed my daughter. I invited him into my own kitchen.
Tommy Silva: Why'd you do that?
Mr. Robin: Cuz he impressed me as being honest. So both me and my son talked to him. Steve told him how Susan sometimes would get on the internet….and he asked Steve if he'd say that in court.
Silva: And he agreed?
Robin: He struck us a decent guy, trying to do his job. Steve figured he wouldn't be going against the prosection.
Silva: And what happened when your son took the stand, Mr. Robin?
Robin: He accused my son of killing his sister. He started screaming in court "you did it, you did it," accused of him of cutting off his own sister's head.
Silva: Do you need a second?
Robin: I'm ok.
Silva: Actually, you're not ok, are you Mr. Robin? You're dying.
Robin: I have liver cancer.
Silva: You tell Mr. Young that?
Robin: Yes. In the kitchen, he was asking if Susan could have been depressed about anything. I…I told him of my condition.
Silva: And how did Mr. Young make use of that?
Robin: He said that because I was dying, leaving my estate to Susan and Steve, Steve had a motive to kill Susan quick, before the cancer got me.
Silva: And how do you feel about that statement?
Robin: I guess I don't have to tell you how I feel about that statement.
Silva: I guess you don't.
Jimmy: First, please know how sorry I am about your daughter. Also about your illness. When Mr. Young talked to you that day in the kitchen, he believed somebody other than George Vogelman killed Susan, right?
Robin: I don't know what he thought.
Jimmy: Well, one of the reasons you agreed to speak with him is cuz you could tell he really did believe in Mr. Vogelman's innocence. Would that be fair?
Robin: It wouldn't be fair to say my take on Mr. Young was accurate.
Jimmy: I have nothing else. (He stops and turns around back to look at Mr. Robin) Oh….what Mr. Young did to your son in court, I apologize for that. I apologize for my firm. That never shoulda happened.
(Scene, a room in the courthouse)
Eugene: Why don't you just cut the check?
Jimmy: The jury had to hear that.
Eugene: Not like that they didn't. You could say I sympathize, I feel for you, I understand, but saying what I did was wrong, Jimmy, that's our whole issue in case you missed that!
Jimmy: I didn't miss it!
Bobby: Alright.
Ellenor: If that's our defense, what are you planning to..
Bobby: Hey!
(They all start yelling)
Bobby: Hey! Hey!!!
Ellenor: It is one thing to turtle, it is another to confess!
Eugene: I gotta go before the bar, you think about that? It's not just money with me, my job is on the line!
Jimmy: The bar isn't going to...
Eugene: And you go on record announcing what I did was wrong???
Jimmy: I didn't say that - I said it shouldn't have happened.
Eugene: What's the difference?!?!
Bobby: That's enough!
Eugene: Damn right, it's enough! Enough to lose the case.
Bobby: Eugene. (To Jimmy) Showing compassion is one thing. We cannot admit liability.
Jimmy: I didn't do that.
(Scene, the office)
Lucy: (places a mug on Lindsay's desk) I apologize for being bossy and overstepping myself. I don't really mean to.
Lindsay: Okay.
Lucy: You know, it wasn't totally easy, coming in here to such a tight group where everybody was friends. It's not that I expected to be welcome… but that remark, about me packing my bags….I didn't deserve that.
Lindsay: You're right. I'm sorry.
Lucy: I know that the holidays are hard on people who don't have anybody….I could fix you up, I know some cool guys - (Rebecca grabs her arm and pulls her away) Did I do something wrong again??
Rebecca: Go sit down.
(Scene, the courtroom)
Steve Robin: Suddenly, right there in court, he starts accusing me, saying I killed her. I felt, just shock.
Silva: And what about after the trial?
Steve: It doesn't go away. First, he duped me. I feel like I played a part in freeing the man who killed my sister.
Jimmy: Objection. Assuming facts not in evidence. George Vogelman did not kill Susan Robin.
Silva: Move to strike! That remark assumes facts not in evidence, much less existence. All the facts go to show that he DID kill her.
Jimmy: Objection! Now who's accusing who? A jury-
(They yell)
Judge: Quiet please. The jury has already been informed of Mr. Vogelman's acquittal, as well as its irrelevance to this proceeding. Mr. Silva, continue.
Silva: You said Steve, it doesn't go away.
Steve: People, I can see it in their eyes. Did he? Could he have? Do you know what that feels like? To walk around, with people thinking maybe you decapitated your sister?
Judge: Please, don't address the defendant sir.
Steve: Always some truth behind every rumor, huh? He can't disprove can he? He had no alibi. It's never gonna go away.
Jimmy: You feel violated.
Steve: I was violated.
Jimmy: We can only imagine, most of us, what it must feel like to be accused of such a gruesome murder. Can you imagine what it must feel like to be actually charged with a crime you didn't commit?
Steve: I'm not sure it could be any worse Mr. Berluti.
Jimmy: Yeah it can Steve. Cuz it's not just reputation on the line, it's your life. Forget whispers from the public, you go to a maximum security prison.
Steve: He should. He killed my sister.
Jimmy: What if he didn't? There he is Steve. (We see George) Assuming he's innocent, can you think what it must feel like to be threatened with life imprisonment. That's worse, don't you agree?
(Scene, Bobby's office)
Lindsay: So he's doing well?
Bobby: On the son, he did great. On the father, he wobbled a little.
Lindsay: Who's next?
Bobby: The detective, right after lunch.
Lindsay: Well, good luck.
Bobby: To all of us.
Lindsay: Bobby, um, uh, this Christmas party, we can invite clients?
Bobby: I guess.
Lindsay: What about dates? Are we supposed to bring dates?
Bobby: You know you really should check with Lucy, she knows more what's going on.
Lindsay: Ok.
Bobby: Do... you have a date?
Lindsay: Uh, well, no, I,I haven't asked anyone... I...I was just wondering. Are you bringing anyone?
Bobby: No, um... I'm up next with the detective, so I should really...
Lindsay: Oh, yeah.
(Bobby smiles as she leaves)
Commercial
(Scene, elevator)
Bobby: I'm not going kid gloves on the detective, remember?
Jimmy: I got no problem going hard on witnesses. It's just, family - I want you to get the detective.
Bobby: Okay.
Jimmy: What?
Ellenor: What?
Jimmy: I see you two looking.
Ellenor: I wasn't looking at anything.
Jimmy: You were thinking!
Bobby: Alright Jimmy. C'mon.
Ellenor: I wasn't looking at him!
(Scene, courtroom)
Silva: Did any evidence even suggest that Steve Robin could have been involved in his sister's death?
Detective McKrew: No sir.
Silva: Forensics, DNA, fingerprints?
McKrew: Everything pointed to George Vogelman. Nothing indicated Steve Robin.
Silva: Now Detective, the defense has complained that you never even bothered to investigate Steve Robin.
McKrew: We considered all family members. There was nothing to incriminate him. Nor anybody but George Vogelman.
Bobby: Steve Robin did have motive, financial problems. He'd be the sole beneficiary, that is motive right Detective?
McKrew: Perhaps.
Bobby: And wasn't it established that Steve Robin and his sister were estranged at the time of her death?
McKew: Yes.
Bobby: And who established that Detective, the police or George Vogelman's lawyers?
McKew: You people did.
Bobby: And Steve Robin had no real alibi at the time of his sister's death?
McKrew: As far as I know, neither do you. But without any evidence we can't -
Bobby: I was as much a suspect as an estranged family member with a motive?
McKew: No, no, my point is we need some evidence to trigger at least suspicion before we investigate anybody. There was none on the brother.
Bobby: Did you want there to be? Might it hurt your case against George?
Silva: Objection.
Bobby: Withdrawn. You never even asked the question did you Detective? You never even said hey, what about the brother.
McKrew: Of course we did. We ruled him out.
Bobby: Can you prove he didn't do it?
McKrew: We can't prove it.
Bobby: Well how do you rule him out?
McKrew: Because all the evidence went to your client.
Bobby: All the evidence collected.
McKrew: All the evidence, period.
Bobby: The murder weapon? The murder weapon Detective?
McKrew: We never found the weapon.
Bobby: The bloody clothing worn by the killer?
McKrew: We didn't find any bloody clothing.
Bobby: There likely was bloody clothing, you just didn't find it right?
McKrew: Right.
Bobby: What about the witnesses?
McKrew: There weren't any witnesses.
Bobby: To your knowledge, or can you prove there were no witnesses?
McKrew: To my knowledge.
Bobby: All the evidence period. That means all the evidence you had, right Detective?
McKrew: Yes.
Bobby: Thank you. Oh, at one point you did say what about the brother.
McKrew: Of course we did.
Bobby: Did Tommy Silva sue you?
Silva: Objection.
Bobby: Withdrawn.
(Scene, walking in hallway of courthouse)
Jimmy: We're gonna lead with you Ellenor, then Eugene. Different tie tomorrow right?
Bobby: Ellenor. Expect Silva to cross you personally.
Ellenor: What do you mean?
Bobby: You dated George, he'll try to use that.
Ellenor: That's not relevant!
Jimmy: Your judgment during trial is relevant, he'll try to show that you were clouded by -
Ellenor: Let's bring a motion in liminee.
Jimmy: Too late. You're on at four o'clock.
Ellenor: Continue it till tomorrow.
(Scene, the office)
Bobby: We'll look worse trying to evade, let's just be up front about everything.
Ellenor: You know, that's easy for you to say, it's not your personal life.
Lucy: Who's got a personal life?
Everyone: Lucy!!
Lucy: Hey! Right off. I quit. See ya.
(Bobby drags her into his office)
Lucy: Look, I've tried to fit it... and I realize it's probably my fault that I don't. But let's just all admit it's not working!
Bobby: I won't admit that. I think you've been doing great.
Lucy: You're the only one who's been nice, and Jimmy, sometimes Rebecca, and Ellenor when she's not riled.
Bobby: Lucy, we all snipe at each other. The fact that they dish it out to you like everybody else, that's just a sign of being accepted. I think maybe we just assume you can take it because you're so..
Lucy: But I'm not that tough. I'm just... pushy. A little.
Bobby: Why do you think that is?
Lucy: I'm just used to taking care of people. And you guys, sometimes you seem like you need it a little.
Bobby: We do. You're working out, I promise.
(Scene, courtroom, Ellenor on the stand)
Ellenor: It wasn't that we thought Steve Robin killed his sister, so much as we couldn't exclude the possibility.
Jimmy: Well let's be honest, Steve Robin was a bit of a red herring.
Ellenor: Yes. Which is viable because the police didn't investigate.
Jimmy: Detective McKrew claims they did.
Ellenor: George Vogelman did not kill Susan Robin. George Vogelman passed a lie detector test that we gave him. District Attorney Helen Gamble -
Silva: Objection. Hearsay.
Jimmy: Not offered for the truth, but only as to what the witness heard.
Judge: I'll allow it.
Jimmy: What did District Attorney Helen Gamble tell you?
Ellenor: Basically, that the police had a disincentive to investigate. The victim's head was found in George Vogelman's medical bag. He represented the only chance they had at getting a conviction, they desperately needed to satisfy public pressure, and any new evidence would only serve to undermine what they believed was an open and shut case.
Jimmy: Leaving you with the idea...?
Ellenor: They were more concerned with getting a conviction than they were with finding the real killer.
Silva: Helen Gamble told you this.
Ellenor: She suggested to me that could have been why the police didn't reopen.
Silva: Told you this in confidence?
Ellenor: Pretty much.
Silva: And you sprung a little surprise, calling her to the stand, making her say that under oath. She didn't see that coming, did she?
Ellenor: No.
Silva: You basically sandbagged her.
Jimmy: Objection.
Silva: Withdrawn. What's plan B?
Ellenor: It's sort of a slang code we have for well, shifting guilt to somebody other than our client.
Silva: It's pointing the finger at someone else in court, saying he did it. Is that it?
Ellenor: Basically.
Silva: And basically you decided to plan B Steve Robin in the Vogelman trial.
Ellenor: Yes.
Silva: Stand up in open court, and suddenly say, he killed his own sister.
Jimmy: Asked and answered.
Judge: Let's move on counsel.
Silva: When you decided to plan B Steve Robin, did you think he'd killed his sister?
Ellenor: We didn't know.
Silva: Oh, I understand you couldn't know for positively sure. My question goes to what you thought. Honest answer. Did you really think he killed his sister?
Ellenor: No.
Silva: You'll do anything to get the client off, won't you?
Jimmy: Objection!
Judge: Sustained.
Silva: Have you ever been suspended in connection with jury tampering?
Ellenor: That was an innocuous exchange that happened in an elevator between a colleague and a juror who tried to ask her out on a date.
Silva: You're required by law to report these communications to the judge, aren't you?
Jimmy: Objection, relevance.
Silva: Offered to show a pattern of deceit. It also bears on the witness's honesty, which she puts in issue by testifying
Judge: I'll allow it.
Silva: Want a cup of water Ms. Frutt?
Ellenor: I'm fine. Thank you.
Silva: Did you persuade your colleague not to report the jury tampering because it might cost your client an acquittal?
Ellenor: Yes.
Silva: Client there was an alleged drug dealer?
Ellenor: Yes.
Silva: Couple of months ago, you had another client, a drunk driver? He hit a pedestrian, called you from the scene. You advise him to drink right there on the spot?
Jimmy: Objection!
Silva: Pattern.
Judge: Go ahead.
Silva: You tell this client, let yourself be seen drinking, so that when you fail the breathilizer, you can say you were drinking after the accident?
Jimmy: Your honor, this is getting way off track.
Judge: I agree, let's move one.
Silva: Is there anything you won't stoop to, Ms. Frutt?
Jimmy: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
Silva: You consider yourself an honest person?
Jimmy: Objection!
Judge: Sustained.
Silva: You don't want her to answer that, you think that'd be kind of a slowball?
Jimmy: Objection.
Judge: Sustained.
(Scene, a room in the courthouse)
Ellenor: Where the hell were you??!?!
Jimmy: I was up and down like a jack in a box -
Ellenor: You came in late! And where were you?? (to Bobby)
Bobby: Ellenor! Jimmy's right! If we ducked those questions -
Ellenor: Those questions have nothing to do with this case!!
Jimmy: They had to do with YOU!!
(Bobby yells)
Ellenor: You hung me out!
Bobby: Silva hung you out with your own history. Jimmy did nothing wrong.
(Scene, Helen and Lindsay at home, decorating their Christmas tree)
Helen: You shoulda settled this.
Lindsay: Tell me about it.
Helen: Lindsay, if they come back over the policy, it's gonna be Donnell, Young, Dole and Shut.
Lindsay: I know.
Helen: Aren't you scared?
Lindsay: Yes. I've been thinking about leaving anyway, a little.
Helen: Excuse me??
Lindsay: A little. Ya know, maybe to a bigger firm. I don't know.
Helen: You're in love with him.
Lindsay: What? Who?
Helen: What are you afraid of? Because you two work together? If it's right, it's not gonna -
Lindsay: It isn't right. And I know where it would end, I don't wanna end up like -
Helen: Like what?
Lindsay: He's a work-aholic for one thing.
Helen: What's another thing? Are you waiting for him to totally get over me, cuz it just doesn't happen.
Lindsay: Let's just decorate the tree.
Helen: Sure... You're an idiot.
Lindsay: Decorate!
Commercial
(Scene, Bobby's office)
Bobby: Obviously, Silva has moles. He heard about plan B, Ellenor advising a client to drink….the jury tampering thing was on record, but what happened with Helen Gamble, that wasn't.
Jimmy: The guy is tapped in.
Bobby: Tapped in or not, this doesn't happen unless people in this room are talking.
(They all look at Lucy)
Lucy: I didn't tell!
Bobby: Nobody's saying you did.
Lucy: No, not much!
Bobby: The point is, we can't repeat stuff, not to friends, relatives, anybody, because Tommy Silva knows everybody, everbody. Eugene, you ready?
Eugene: All set.
Jimmy: I don't plan to be protecting you, just like with Ellenor.
Ellenor: Great.
Bobby: C'mon, let's go.
Jimmy: Hold on. You all got your tails between your legs. I think Silva is making a mistake the more of this outside stuff he puts in. The jury tampering, the drunk client - he's trying to win with evidence that's got nothing to do with this case. The jury can see that. So let's not go in the room looking like losers ok? The jury can see that too.
(Scene, courtroom, Eugene is on the stand)
Eugene: When I persuaded Steve Robin to testify, my intent was only to establish his sister being on the internet. I never lied to him.
Jimmy: But let's be fair, when you changed your strategy, you didn't call him up and say, by the way I plan to accuse you.
Eugene: No.
Jimmy: You wanted to spring him.
Eugene: Yes.
Jimmy: Why?
Eugene: By surprising him, I had a better chance of causing him to be outraged. Rage and outrage, they can look alike. If I could get a jury to see rage in him, then they could more easily believe he could have committed a homicide.
Jimmy: Do you believe he killed his sister?
Eugene: I didn't know that he didn't. But I really didn't think that he did either.
Jimmy: So Mr. Young, you're basically admitting you accused Steve Robin of something you yourself didn't really think he did.
Eugene: I do not admit that I am guilty of any wrongdoing.
Jimmy: And why not?
Eugene: Because as a defense lawyer, it is my job to raise questions. To play devil's advocate to what the government is saying, sometimes you might look like a devil doing so.
Jimmy: Don't you feel... bad? Steve Robin, he's probably innocent.
Eugene: Of course I feel bad. But George Vogelman is innocent. He was framed, the police didn't investigate, and I wasn't about to let an innocent man get a life sentence for something he didn't do.
Silva: You're facing possible discipline from the bar, because of this plan B tactic aren't you?
Eugene: I was reported to the bar, I suspect at your urging.
Silva: The bar is conducting an inquiry?
Eugene: Yes.
Silva: You sound, maybe it's me... you sound almost proud of what you did.
Eugene: Like I said, I didn't enjoy having to attack Steve Robin. But once a defense lawyer takes a case, he has to use whatever legal means possible to defend his client. That's what I did.
Silva: In fact, plan B, you guys use this strategy a lot, don't you?
Eugene: We use it on occasion. When we deem it viable.
Silva: Last week, Bobby Donnell had a case.
Jimmy: Objection.
Silva: Pattern, your honor.
Judge: Go ahead.
Silva: A baby was killed, and your firm represented the convicted killer. Bobby Donnell stood up in court, and accused the baby's father, didn't he?
Eugene: I wasn't there, but to my knowledge, the facts supported the question.
Silva: And that too would be a lawyer's job right?
Eugene: Yes.
Silva: In fact, any grieving parent, should his baby be murdered, should expect to be accused of killing his child because that's our system.
Eugene: It's not that simple.
Silva: Well, you're sure making it sound that simple Mr. Young. You're sitting in that chair, and we're talking about accusing family members of murdering their loved ones as basic defense strategies. You sure make it sound easy. That's all I got.
Judge: Mr. Berluti, redirect. Mr. Berluti?
Jimmy: Yes your honor. Going after Steve Robin like that, you weren't a little disgusted with yourself?
Eugene: As I testified, I didn't enjoy doing it.
Jimmy: That wasn't my question. I asked weren't you disgusted with yourself? Didn't you go back to the witness room right after and say something to the effect like you were a monster for doing that? Isn't that what you told Ellenor Frutt?
Eugene: What are you doing?
Jimmy: Last year, your ten year old son said my dad gets killers off. You were disgusted with yourself when you heard that, weren't you? You wanted to quit practicing law.
Silva: What's going on?
Jimmy: I'm asking the witness some tough questions. If he doesn't answer, I'd like to treat him as hostile.
Silva: This is just another stunt, your honor...
Jimmy: Why don't you sit down till you know what you're talking about?
Judge: Alright, I'll give you some latitude counsel.
Jimmy: You like putting killers back out there Eugene? Two years ago, some pedophile you defended, you put him back on the street. He sodomized and murdered two little boys, didn't he? You snapped in court, and you beat up your own client, didn't you? If they hadn't pulled you off him, who knows what would've happened, right Eugene? This spiel, defense lawyers do what we must and we don't apologize, that's a bunch of crap isn't it? You get disgusted with yourself a lot. And you got disgusted with yourself after attacking Steve Robin on the stand, didn't you? Cuz you knew then, like you know now, it was despicable. Isnt't that the truth? We can take your silence as a yes, can't we Eugene? (Eugene looks angry, nostrils flaring)
(Scene, elevator)
Eugene: What the hell was that??
Bobby: Alright.
Ellenor: Eugene.
Jimmy: You were up there like a robot. You couldn't have been worse. If we rested on that, we lose big! You were terrible!
(Scene, office)
Lindsay: How'd it go?
Bobby: Jimmy!
(doors slam)
Lindsay: I don't think it went well. (Rebecca nods)
(Bobby's office)
Bobby: I'm not saying you're wrong, he was a little cold, but exactly how did you make it better?
Jimmy: I let the jury know I had the same reaction to his testimony they had. Bobby, he was more than cold.
Bobby: I'll talk to him. You ready with your closing?
Jimmy: No.
Bobby. Grrrrr...
(Lindsay comes in, Jimmy leaves)
Lindsay: Everything ok?
Bobby: Eugene's testimony went a little rough.
Lindsay: We're finished, aren't we.
Bobby: Had we started up again?
Lindsay: The firm, I... uh... if we lost this case.
Bobby: Oh, uh, we haven't lost, and even if we do, there's a lot to appeal. We're not finished. What?
Lindsay: Uh, that's all.
(Lindsay leaves, Rebecca comes in)
Rebecca: Is it that bad?
Bobby: No, it's just...
Rebecca: Tell me.
Bobby: I kissed Lucy. I should say, she kissed me, and when she did it, it felt wrong. Like I was betraying somebody. Lindsay. Somewhere in the back of my brain, I feel like in some kind of a relationship with her. My head went right to her when Lucy kissed me.
Rebecca: I was talking about the Robin case.
Bobby: What? Oh yeah, it didn't go very well, it wasn't good.
Rebecca: You kissed Lucy.
Bobby: She kissed me, mistletoe, but well...
Rebecca: You kiss Helen Gamble, you kiss Lindsay, there was that whiny thing in the short skirt, and now you kiss Lucy. (She slaps him on the arm) What's wrong with you???
Bobby: Rebecca!!
Rebecca: You know we're about to face bankruptcy and you're running around kissing teenagers! What's wrong with you?
Bobby: Rebecca! I tell you something that's bothering me and you swat me??
Rebecca: You're damn right! She's eighteen years old! (Lucy bursts in)
Bobby: She kissed me!
Lucy: Aarrrrgh!! Why don't you tell the world!
Bobby: Lucy!
Lucy: You know, it's bad enough that she already hates me...
Rebecca: I don't hate you!
(They all yell)
Ellenor: What is going on here??
Rebecca: Has he kissed you too?
Bobby and Lucy: Rebecca!!
Bobby: Let's all get back to work, can we do that?? Back to work!!
(Scene, Jimmy goes into Eugene's office)
Jimmy: I didn't plan to take that approach. I felt it necessary since I found your testimony unsympathetic.
Eugene: Jimmy, close it on your way out.
Jimmy: I would think you'd understand. I was doing whatever I could to save the client. And the client is you.
Commercial
(Scene, Jimmy alone in the office, it is early morning)
Jimmy: Put yourself in their position... OUR position...
(Lucy comes in)
Jimmy: Every defendant...
Lucy: Did you stay here all night?
Jimmy: It's morning?
Lucy: Oh gosh. Oh Jimmy, this does not look like a good closing.
(George Vogelman walks into the office)
George: Hello?
Jimmy: George.
George: Hi Jimmy. Lucy.
Lucy: (whisper) He's got a bag.
Jimmy: What's up?
George: I was thinking, I was the guy you fought for, maybe you should put me up there, get the jury to see it from my side.
Jimmy: I thought about that, but Silva would cross you on the porno tapes, he'd get in how your friends pulled away, how you still didn't get your job back. You were an easy cross in the criminal trial, you'd be even softer in the civil one.
George: I just wish there was something I could do.
Jimmy: Just be in the room. That'd be great.
George: Sure. I'll see ya. (He leaves)
Jimmy: What was Bobby thinking, giving it to me?
Lucy: From what I hear, you're doing great.
Jimmy: Who said?
Lucy: Well, nobody, but I can feel you're doing great.
Jimmy: What?
Lucy: He left his bag. (She runs to the door, but he is gone) He's gone. Think he got lucky last night?
Jimmy: Lucy! He just forgot it. Are you out of your mind?
Lucy: Open it.
Jimmy: I'm not gonna open it. It's a man's private bag. You open it.
Lucy: I'm a girl!
Jimmy: But there's nothing in it but medical supplies. Just, look, maybe there's a phone number inside and we can call him.
Lucy: Right! Right, we'll pretend we don't have his number in the Rolodex. (she goes to open the bag)
Jimmy: We shouldn't do this. Hurry up! (George walks back in)
George: Hello?
Jimmy, Lucy & George: AAAAAHHHHH!
George: Geez!
Jimmy: George, hey.
George: I forgot my bag.
Jimmy: Oh. Here it is.
Lucy: Yeah, we were... just checkin' it for heads. I'm kidding.
(Scene, courtroom)
Silva: There's no honor in being a lawyer today. Used to be a dignified profession. Now….but there's gotta be a line. Steve Robin's sister was murdered. And these people, the lawyers, defending the guy charged with doing it, well they decided, they'll blame Steve. Fool him into taking the stand, out of some duty to tell the truth. And then ambush him with an accusation they pretty much knew to be false. It was indecent. Unthinkable, really. And they do it all the time. Plan B. They figure in a courtroom, they're insulated from slander or defamation, so they think nothing of accusing brothers of killing sisters. Fathers of killing their babies. Anything to get the client off. But there's gotta be a line. Where do we draw it? I really don't know. But when a lawyer knowingly sacrifices a person's reputation with information he knows isn't true, when you go after a grieving brother and say that he chopped off his own sister's head, well I'd say the line has been crossed. Now everyone today is angry about how despicable lawyers have become. Well you have a chance, right now, to send a message. Put these people out of business.
Jimmy: It's an adversarial process, and the rules, though not popular, are pretty simple. The state tries to convict, the defense lawyer does everything he legally can to prevent that conviction. Not almost everything he can, everything. It's not a choice. And if in the mind of the lawyer, pointing a finger at the brother of the victim can secure an acquittal, truth is, he has no right not to, unless he knows for a fact it's a lie. Which here they didn't. The system doesn't work if the lawyer says, in this case, I'll do whatever I can, in that case, I won't. You do whatever you can in every single case. Defense lawyers cling to that rule. It's the only way they can survive. Sometimes, they retreat so far inside that principal, they can seem almost inhuman. That's what you saw in Eugene Young. He didn't even seem like he had much compassion, did he? I actually think he's in denial as to what he does. It's not surprising. Cuz what he has to do a lot of the time would make most people sick. How do you go home at night and sleep after getting a killer free? How can your stomach not turn at the idea of fighting for some rapist? You saw in Eugene Young a man who's freed killers only to have them kill again. You saw in Eugene Young a man who struggles with that. You saw in Eugene Young a man desperately hanging on to his ideology, to survive what he does for a living. But believe it or not, that is where the truest and deepest honor of this profession lies. Doing an ugly job that serves a higher purpose. The state incarcerates, the defense lawyers works every day to check that balance so innocent people don't get caught up in it. And you know what? An innocent man got caught up in it here. The polygraph that he passed was inadmissable, so they jury there couldn't know about it. The circumstantial evidence was so overwhelming and dramatic, he was faced with a sure conviction. The only thing he had was a couple of lawyers willing to do everything they could. As hard as this may be to compute, Eugene Young was dignified in going after Steve Robin, not because Steve Robin probably did it, but because he most likely didn't. And that made the duty ugly. Dirty. Many attorneys would have found a way not to do it, and the innocent man might have gone to jail. Over there, sits somebody who got hurt. And our compassion has to go out to him. It has to. But it also must be tempered with the reality that the worse result would have been a man serving a life sentence in prison for something he didn't do. What this case really is, is a referendum on criminal defense attorneys and our system. You wanna pass judgment on that, I suppose I can't stop you. But I know those people at that table. I work side by side with them every day. There's honor in that job. Trust me.
(lovely shots of Boston...)
(Jimmy is sitting on a step outside eating a hotdog)
Bobby: It's 10:30.
Jimmy: Just let me enjoy it. See this suit? It's my lucky suit. Problem is, it don't fit me. I had to diet all week. I been dreaming of this hotdog since Tuesday. And now I've dropped it. How's that for an omen? Thank you for letting me do it.
Bobby: It was a self-serving decision. Nothing to help you.
Jimmy: I know, and that's what... Spent my whole life thinking I'm not good enough. Sometimes….
Bobby: If we lose, you'll at least know, you're whole life... you've been right.
Ellenor: Jury's coming back!
Bobby: What?
Jimmy: In an hour?
Ellenor: It's Friday, it's Christmas.
Bobby: Let's go.
(Scene, the courtroom)
Judge: The jury has reached its verdict?
Jury Foreperson: We have your honor.
Judge: What say you?
Foreperson: In the matter of Robin versus Donnell, Young, Dole and Frutt, on the count of defamation of character, we find in favor of the defendant. On the count of intentional infliction of emotional distress, we find in favor of the defendant. On the count of negligent infliction of emotional distress, we find in favor of the defendant.
Judge: The jury is dismissed, with the court's thanks.
(Bobby, Jimmy, Lindsay, etc. all hug each other)
Bobby: Great job.
(Scene, the office Christmas party)
Tempest Bledsoe's character: Yeah, I'm a client too. What was your case?
George Vogelman: Oh, it was just some boring litigation stuff.
Tempest: I like this place. People here are good.
George: Yeah.
(Jimmy goes up to Eugene)
Jimmy: Listen. We ok? You and me?
Eugene: Yeah, we're okay. Jimmy - good closing.
(Lindsay goes into Bobby's office)
Lindsay: So we're still in business.
Bobby: Yeah. Still partners, unless you're thinking of leaving.
Lindsay: What?
Bobby: Helen said something.
Lindsay: I'm not going anywhere. I should be honest about... I don't mean to be cold. It's not that I'm not interested. I just know that it's not right. And for once, I'm going with my head.
Bobby: Oh yeah, Lindsay. You and your heart, have been so out of control.
Lindsay: What's that supposed to mean?
Bobby: Nothing. It means your right. I'm going with your head too.
Lindsay: Good. Merry Christmas. (She kisses him gently)
Bobby: Ummmm...
(She puts her fingers on his lips and they kiss passionately. Lucy is looking through the window at them)
Lucy: They're really exchanging fluids with that one.
Helen: C'mon Lucy, You and I haven't really got to know each other yet, so maybe we should just take this time..
George: Hi.
Helen: Hi.
George: You know you're standing under the mistletoe?
Helen: You know the saying George, once you've seen a man holding a severed head, it's hard to look at him again sexually.
(Tempest Bledsoe balks and walks away. We see Eugene and Becca dancing, Ellenor and George dancing, as Jimmy looks on and smiles to himself).
End of Episode