Monster Read online

  I guess a few weeks before that. I don’t know the exact date.

  PETROCELLI

  What kind of work was he looking for?

  MOORE

  Just a job. I don’t know.

  PETROCELLI

  Does he have a driver’s license?

  MOORE

  I don’t know.

  PETROCELLI

  You really don’t know a lot about your cousin, do you?

  MOORE

  I know I saw him that day.

  PETROCELLI (condescendingly)

  And what do you do for a living?

  MOORE

  I do day’s work, but I wasn’t working that week, because I had hurt my ankle. I went to the doctor that Monday, and you can check that.

  PETROCELLI

  You don’t have to verify what you were doing, Mrs. Moore. Did anybody see Mr. King at your home on that day?

  MOORE

  I don’t think so.

  PETROCELLI

  Do you still have the lamp? The lamp Mr. King so kindly bought for you?

  MOORE

  It broke.

  PETROCELLI

  Should I take that to mean you no longer have the lamp?

  MOORE

  They don’t make things to last anymore. I think it was made in Korea or someplace like that.

  PETROCELLI

  Again, should I take that to mean that you no longer have the lamp?

  MOORE

  I don’t have it now, but I did have it.

  PETROCELLI

  Yes, of course. Thank you. Nothing further.

  CUT TO: GEORGE NIPPING on stand. He is about 50 and wears wire-rimmed glasses. He speaks precisely and generally makes a good impresssion.

  BRIGGS

  Mr. Nipping, do you know, as a matter of fact, if Mr. King is right-handed or left-handed?

  NIPPING

  He’s left-handed. I know that because when he was a kid, I went out and bought him a glove, a baseball glove, and I had to take it back because he was left-handed.

  BRIGGS

  Have you ever known him to do anything of significance with his right hand?

  NIPPING

  No, I’ve never seen him use his right hand for anything.

  We see STEVE writing on a pad.

  CUT TO: The pad. O’BRIEN is writing a note under STEVE’s question, which reads “What’s that about?” She writes: “The wound was on the left side of the body, which might mean that the shooter was right-handed. It’s a weak argument.”

  BRIGGS

  And for the record, how long have you known Mr. King?

  NIPPING

  I’d say about 17 to 18 years.

  BRIGGS

  Thank you.

  CUT TO: NIPPING on stand facing PETROCELLI.

  PETROCELLI

  Have you ever seen Mr. King shoot a man?

  NIPPING

  No, I haven’t.

  PETROCELLI

  So when he shoots a gun, you don’t know what hand he uses. Is that right?

  BRIGGS

  Objection!

  PETROCELLI (ignoring objection)

  If Mr. King was struggling with someone and the gun happened to be on the right side, do you know what he would do?

  NIPPING

  No, I don’t.

  PETROCELLI

  Nothing further.

  CUT TO: FILM CLASS. MS of MR. SAWICKI.

  SAWICKI

  There are a lot of things you can do with film, but you don’t have an unlimited access to your audience. In other words, keep it simple. You tell the story; you don’t look for the camera technician to tell the story for you. When you see a filmmaker getting too fancy, you can bet he’s worried either about his story or about his ability to tell it.

  CUT TO: INTERIOR: ROOM where lawyers meet with their clients. SPLIT SCREEN: One side is O’BRIEN, pacing nervously. On the other side is STEVE, sitting.

  O’BRIEN

  You’re going to have to take the stand—look at the jury and let the jury look at you—and say that you’re innocent. I know the judge will tell the jury not to infer anything if you don’t take the stand, but I believe that the jury wants to hear from you. I think they want to hear your side of the story. Can you handle it?

  We see STEVE nodding in the affirmative.

  O’BRIEN

  The prosecutor’s strongest point against you is the connection between you and King. She has Bobo admitting to being in on the robbery and his link to King. You’ve told me you know King. I don’t know why you’ve chosen this man as an acquaintance, but it’s going to hurt you big-time if you don’t manage to get some distance between you and him in the eyes of the jury. You’re going to have to break the link. He’s sitting there looking surly. Maybe he thinks he’s tough; I don’t know. I do know you’d better put some distance between yourself and whatever being a tough guy represents.

  You need to present yourself as someone the jurors can believe in. Briggs isn’t going to put King on the stand. That helps you, but when he sees us separating you from him, he’s going to realize that his client is in trouble.

  STEVE

  How do you know he won’t testify?

  O’BRIEN

  King made a statement to the police when he was arrested. He said he didn’t know Bobo. But the prosecution can prove that’s a lie. So if he takes the stand, they can use his own statements against him and he’s cooked. If you don’t testify, you’ll just make the tie between you and King stronger in the mind of the jury. I think you have to testify. And the way you spend the rest of your youth might well depend on how much the jury believes you.

  STEVE

  That woman said that King was with her.

  O’BRIEN

  Right, but Petrocelli didn’t even bother with a lengthy cross-examination. Did you notice that? She dismissed Mrs. Moore with her tone of voice. A cousin who likes him testifes that he was with her. Big deal. Against all the evidence against him, it doesn’t count for very much. His lawyer is going to rely on his closing argument to win the case, and I don’t think that’s going to be effective unless he’s very, very lucky. Cases are won on closing arguments only on television, not in a real courtroom.

  SINGLE MS: We see STEVE nodding, but he is looking down. We see O’BRIEN looking at him, studying him closely. She sits down and takes a deep breath.

  O’BRIEN

  (Puts a paper cup on the table.) Okay, Steve, now stay with me. We’re going to play a little game. I’m going to take this cup and place it on the table. Then I’m going to ask you some questions. When I like the answers you give me, I’ll leave the cup facing up. When I don’t like the answers, I’ll turn it upside down. You figure out what’s wrong with the answer you gave me. All right?

  STEVE

  Why? (O’BRIEN doesn’t answer. Then we see STEVE nod his assent.)

  O’BRIEN

  Did you know James King?

  STEVE

  No?

  CUT TO: O’BRIEN turns the cup down.

  STEVE

  Yeah, casually.

  CUT TO: O’BRIEN turns the cup up.

  O’BRIEN

  When was the last time you spoke to him before the robbery?

  STEVE

  Last summer?

  CUT TO: O’BRIEN turns the cup down.

  STEVE

  I don’t know for sure. I mean, he’s not like a guy I talk with a lot.

  CUT TO: O’BRIEN turns the cup up.

  THEN: The camera moves farther and farther away from the pair. We see another prisoner and lawyer enter the room. We don’t hear O’BRIEN’s questions or STEVE’s answers but we see O’BRIEN turning the cup.

  FADE TO BLACK.

  FADE IN: INTERIOR: CELL at nighttime: We barely see the outlines of the inmates, 2 of whom are sleeping on the floor.

  VO (INMATE 1)

  The prosecutor said I was lying. I wanted to ask her what she expected me to do when telling the truth was going to get me 10 years. />
  VO (INMATE 2)

  When they got you in the system, it ain’t time to get all holy. You in the system, you needs to get out the system.

  VO (INMATE 1)

  What’s the truth? Anybody in here knows what the truth is? I don’t know what the truth is! Only truth I know is I don’t want to be in here with you ugly dudes.

  STEVE

  Truth is truth. It’s what you know to be right.

  VO (INMATE 2)

  Nah! Truth is something you gave up when you were out there on the street. Now you talking survival. You talking about another chance to breathe some air 5 other guys ain’t breathing.

  VO (INMATE 1)

  You get up on the witness stand and the prosecutor talks about looking for truth when they really mean they looking for a way to stick you under the jail.

  VO (INMATE 3, in a cry for help)

  I’ve spent half my life in the joint, man. Where’s my life? Where’s my damned life?

  We hear the toilet flush as scene ends.

  CUT TO: INTERIOR: JAIL. STEVE is dressing for court. We see him checking out his hand, which is slightly swollen.

  CUT TO: STEVE sitting in back of van. He holds his hands out in front of his face. They are shaking.

  CUT TO: STEVE on stand.

  O’BRIEN

  Mr. Harmon, did you act as a lookout for the drugstore robbery or check out the store so that a robbery could be safely committed?

  STEVE

  No, I did not.

  O’BRIEN

  Mr. Harmon, did you discuss with anyone that you would act as a lookout or that you would check out the store?

  STEVE

  No, I did not.

  O’BRIEN

  Mr. Harmon, were you in the drugstore owned by Mr. Nesbitt, the victim, on the 22nd of December of last year?

  STEVE

  No, I was not.

  O’BRIEN

  Are you sure in your mind that you know what a lookout would do?

  STEVE

  Yes, I am.

  O’BRIEN

  One last question. Were you in any way involved with the crime that we are discussing here? To make it clear—were you, in any way, involved with the holdup and murder that occurred on the 22nd of December?

  STEVE

  No, I was not.

  O’BRIEN

  Nothing further.

  CUT TO: PETROCELLI riffling through papers. She stops occasionally, looks toward STEVE, and nods. PETROCELLI leans back in her chair and visually confronts STEVE for a long beat. Then she gets up and goes to podium.

  PETROCELLI

  Mr. Harmon, do you know James King?

  STEVE

  I know him from the neighborhood.

  PETROCELLI

  You talk to him much?

  STEVE

  Once in a while.

  PETROCELLI

  Once in a while. When was the last time you spoke to him before the robbery?

  STEVE

  I don’t know exactly, but it was during the school year.

  PETROCELLI

  Didn’t you speak to him in December?

  STEVE

  I don’t think so, but I might have.

  PETROCELLI

  Which is it? You don’t think so or you don’t remember?

  STEVE

  Both. I mean, I might have spoken to him, but we don’t talk about anything important enough to remember.

  PETROCELLI

  What do you talk about?

  STEVE

  Usually I see him in the playground. Maybe he’d say something like “Those guys can’t play ball,” stuff like that.

  PETROCELLI

  “Those guys can’t play ball.” Did you ever see him play ball?

  STEVE

  I don’t remember seeing him play ball.

  PETROCELLI

  You having trouble remembering what you’ve seen?

  STEVE

  No, but I’ve seen a lot of ball games. I watch a lot of ball games.

  PETROCELLI

  Are you nervous? Do you want to take a few minutes?

  STEVE

  No.

  PETROCELLI

  You talk to Bobo sometimes?

  O’BRIEN

  Objection. We’ve been referring to the witness as Mr. Evans.

  JUDGE

  Sustained.

  PETROCELLI

  Have you spoken with Mr. Evans?

  STEVE

  I might have said “Hi” to him. I’ve never had a conversation with him.

  PETROCELLI

  You ever talk to Mr. Cruz? Osvaldo Cruz?

  STEVE

  Yes, he’s about my age. I’ve talked with Osvaldo.

  PETROCELLI

  What did you talk to Mr. Cruz about?

  STEVE

  Same thing, mostly. About playing ball, or the weather. Or what’s going on in the neighborhood.

  PETROCELLI

  Did you hear Mr. Evans’s testimony that—let me put it this way—you heard Mr. Evans’s testimony that you came out of the drugstore just before the robbery. Is that right?

  STEVE

  I heard his testimony.

  PETROCELLI

  And are you saying it was just a coincidence that you were coming out of the store at that time?

  CUT TO: FLASHBACK of O’BRIEN turning over the cup.

  CUT TO: STEVE on witness stand.

  STEVE

  I don’t know exactly when the robbery happened, but I know I wasn’t in the drugstore that day.

  PETROCELLI

  So Mr. Evans was lying?

  STEVE

  I don’t know what he was doing, but I know I wasn’t in the drugstore.

  PETROCELLI

  You heard Mr. Cruz say that you were supposed to go in and “check the store out” for cops. Is that right?

  O’BRIEN

  Objection! I believe the testimony was that Mr. Cruz was told that was the case.

  JUDGE

  Do you want the testimony read back?

  PETROCELLI

  I’ll withdraw the question as framed. Mr. Harmon, do you remember Osvaldo saying that he understood you to be the lookout?

  STEVE

  I heard him say that.

  PETROCELLI

  And according to you, Mr. Cruz was lying, too?

  STEVE

  No, somebody could have told him that, but I know I wasn’t there.

  PETROCELLI

  Then he must have lied, is that right?

  O’BRIEN

  Objection. The prosecution is soliciting an argument.

  PETROCELLI

  Withdrawn. Mr. Harmon, you say you weren’t at the drugstore anytime during the day of the robbery. Perhaps you would tell us where you were.

  STEVE

  I don’t know exactly where I was when the robbery took place. Most of the day I was going around taking mental notes about places I wanted to film for a school film project.

  PETROCELLI

  Well, if you don’t know exactly where you were, can you tell me anyone who might know where you were?

  STEVE

  I don’t even remember where I was. When the detectives asked me where I was, I couldn’t even remember the day they were talking about. They didn’t ask me about it until weeks later.