(Male announcer) in the cminal justice system,
Sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous.
In new york city,the dedicas
Who investigate these vicious felonies
Are members of an elite squad
Known as the special victims unit.
These are their stories.
Welcome, everyone, to the east river.
Today our job is to load as much as possible
Into the dumpsters.
Thank you again for volunteering.
Remember, we have energy bars and water
In the bus.
Believe it or not, oyster beds used to cover
350 square miles of the river.
Really? I wouldn't want to eat anything caught in there.
I know a great place we could grab some organic sushi.
You ask out all the volunteers?
Only the real eco-Friendly ones.
What's wrong with people using the r as their dump?
They just don't know how easy it is to be green.
Careful.
Oh, my god.
African-American teenager.
Found in the trash bag
Bound at the ankles with cable.
Cable's stripped away at the end.
Guy probably weighted her down before he threw her in.
She was deefore she went in the river.
There's no water in her lungs.
Do you have any idea how she got these gashes
On her arm and on her forehead?
Blunt force trauma.
Perp hit her with something
Before he dumped her.
River would have washed away any fluids.
Know if she was raped?
Abused.
She has significant genital scarring.
Hey, detectives. Got a guy down over here.
[Police radio chatter]
He's clean. Any i.D.?
No driver's license, no plastic.
Got about three bucks in there.
Ohh!
Police, stop!
Ohh!
[Thud]
(Benson) still breathing.
I hope he lives long enough to confess.
Hey.
I'm detective stabler.
Do you remember me?
No.
What happened?
You fell running away from us.
After you gave my partner a right hook to the jaw.
Yeah.
I didn't mean to hit you.
Right now, you got bigger worries than that.
Tell us who the girl is.
What girl?
We ran your prints, jesse.
We know that you have a history of picking up hookers.
Was she one of them?
I don't know wh you're talking about.
Jesse, look at yourself. Your hands are bloody.
You have scratches all over you from the struggle.
Who is she?
(Stabler) hey...
If you put up a fight
And went into the river by accident, you know...
Maybe it's not your fault.
Who is she?
I don't know.
It's all a blur.
Thing's be a lot easier on you if you just cooperate.
It's awho is she?
She was so beautiful.
I have a weakness for younger women.
I killed her?
We need jesse blyer transferred
To the prison ward at bellevue.
I wouldn't.
I just got his tox screen back.
Bellevue handles plenty of addicts.
He's an epileptic.
He tested positive for phenytoin.
His eeg confirms it.
That's why he didn't have any i.D.
The ate won't give him a driver's license.
And it may be why he attacked you.
Epileptics can come out of a seizure
In a hyper-Paranoid state.
He should be paranoid. He just confessetourder.
Well, that's another thing
He postictal and highly prone to suggestion.
Did you ask him leading questions?
The evidence is leading. Highly prone to suggestion.
He's got scratches all over his face and hands.
Probablwhich caused himre, to convulse on the ground.
He's still prime suspect until i hear otherwise.
Transfer him.
I'm not so sure jesse is your man.
Why?
The cable the rl was tied up with
Is used for connecting buildings to cable tv.
(Fin) there were three outages this morning in manhattan.
Somebody cut 15 feet of cable out of a back alley
On 169th street.
Perp probably kied her around there.
(Stabler) so the service went out at 7:54 a.M.
What makes you think she went in theiver in upper harlem?
This tidal flow simulation
Shows the current could have taken a body,
Dropped it at 169th at 8:00
To where she was found at 9:15.
Well, the eco-Volunteers fished her out around 10:00.
Does the tidal flow explain why she didn't float any further
Over the next 45 minutes?
Yeah--High tide and the cross current
Trapped her body with the rest of the trash.
You sure she didn't go in the spot where we found her?
If she did, your friend jesse didn't do it.
He was caught on a surveillance camera
Sleeping outside a nearby bodega until 10:30.
Benson.
Yeah, so he couldn'tave been in two places at once.
That was warner.
She got something.
Your vm was killed with something made of wood.
Take a look at these.
(Stabler) splinters.
From her scalp.
Rough-Hewn oak from whatever she was hit with.
Could be from a construction site?
Or a home remodel.
Oak is pretty popular in flooring.
You said she showed signs of long-Term abuse.
Could our perp be a construction worker?
Actually, i was wrong.
The scarring is from
An improperly healed female circumcision.
She was mutilated.
Along with 150 million other women in africa,
The middle east, and parts of asia.
Because men think cutting a woman to shreds
Will prevent her from being promiscuous.
Done safely,
They lose all sexual sensation.
But...too many die from infection.
So why would any woman agree to it?
Tradition.
In some cultures, men won't court women
Until they've had this procedure.
Any idea when this was done to her?
From the scar tissue, i'd say in the past six months.
Here? It's possible.
Congress banned the practice,
But the cdc estimates 200,000 immigrant girls in the u.S.
Are at risk.
So that's where we have to start.
Hey, are you still friends
With, uh, agent williams from immigration?
Good, mm-Hmm.
(Williams) warner sent the prints over about an hour ago.
Good, mm-Hmm. You didn't have to come
All the way down here in person, elliot.
We're in a bit of a rush.
The body's less than eight hours old.
Afis is almost done with the scan.
I'm surprised i hadn't heard from you.
I got back together with my wife.
Oh, good for you.
Thought that might happen.
Heree go.
Her name is nikkiel kwambe, from niger.
She's 15, here on 90-Daya amily visa...
Which expired six months ago.
Doesn't immigration require that they check in?
It's up to each immigrant
To abide by the terms of their visa.
Do you have an address for her?
Just for a sponsor.
Her aunt. Mira otume.
124th and fredrick douglas.
Yeah. Thanks.
(Benson) excuse me.
We're looking for mira otume.
May i help you with something?
Mira is busy for the next couple of hours.
Police.
Can you make her un-Bus pley,
[Young girl shouting]
Perhaps you can come back later.
She'll help you then. [Girl crying]
Will you turn the music down?
[Music cuts off]
No! Stop! I don't wanna do this!
Aah!
You can't go down there!
(Girl) help me! Stop!
♪< Aah!
Police! Stop what you're doing!
Hey! Move away from her!
Move away from her now! You're gonna be okay.
I'm not finished.
Yeah, you are. Drop that. Drop it.
You're under arrest.
Millions of girls have been circumcised for centuries.
Welcome to the 21st century.
Mutilation is a class e felony and a federal crime.
It is not a crime.
It is a celebration.
That girl will be scarred for life.
I am a trained anam-Mbibi.
I am no different from a jewish mohel.
Except that female circumcision
Has been outlawed in nearly every country
Around the world, including your own.
Now, you're looking at four years per count.
And, clearly, this is not your first time.
Did you perform a circumcision on this girl?
[Scoffs] i have never seen her before.
Well, that's strange...
Since you're listed as nikkiel's aunt
On her immigration visa.
Why are you asking about this girl?
Because she's dead.
We fished her out of the river this morning.
I haven't...seen nikki for months.
When you performed a circumcision on her.
She wanted it!
She said it was time for her to become a woman.
She was a child.
In this country...
15 years old is a spoiled teenager.
But in nigeria, 15-Year-Old has lived a lifetime!
When we find
All of the other girls you've mutilated,
You're gonna spend the rest of your life in jail.
(Stabler) the court might show leniency.
If you help us out.
How?
Give us nikki's address.
[Kno on ck]
Yes?
Detectives benson and stabler.
May we come in, please?
I'd rather not. Our house is a beat-Up mess.
We don't mind.
Does nikkiel kwambe live here?
Yes. Did something happen?
Is she all right?
Do you live here as well?
Yes. What's going on?
Where is nikki, detectives?
We found her around 10:00 a.M. This morning.
She's been killed.
[Door slams]
I'll go around back.
[Grunts]
Stop! Police!
/÷ police, don't move! Don't move!
Let me see your hands! Let me see your hands!
Do as he says! Hands up!
Show me your hands! Show me your hands!
Don't shoot! My arm is broken!
Hands!
No, my arm is broken, please!
Back up to the car! Please d shoot!
Get on the car! Get on the car!
Okay, okay.
Please don't shoot.
Don't move. Okay, okay.
If he moves, shoot him.
[Panting]
Aah! My arm doesn't work!
Please, you must believe me!
Agh!
What's your name?
Chuckwei.
Chuckwei bothame.
What'd you do to her, chuckwei?
[Panting] i didn't do anything to her.
That is my wife.
That's nikki bothame.
Wait...can i touch her?
No, i'm sorry, you can't.
You think i killed her?
Yeah, we do.
Well, you're wrong.
I loved her.
How long were you and nikki married?
Nine months. She was 15.
In new york, it's legal to marry when you're 14.
With consent of a judge.
I had the necessary documentation.
Well, then, how come your name
Wasn't listed on her visa application?
I'm not a citizen. I can't sponsor her.
Are you going to interrogate me
In front of my dead wife?
Your dead wife is a 15-Year-Old girl you mutilated.
The circumcision was her decision.
Hmm.
You didn't force her?
[Scoffs] you don't know nikki.
You can't force her to do anything.
Well, somebody forced her into the river.
Here's what i think.
You brought a 14-Year-Old girl over from nigeria
To be your wife.
After spending a year in america, she decides,
"You know, instead of a circumcision,
I'd rather have an iphone."
So she tries to bolt...
You beat her to death and dump her in the east river.
Uhh! Now, how can i do that?
My left arm is crippled.
Oh, don't underestimate your right arm.
I want an attorney.
Fine.
But sooner or later,
We're gonna find out what happened.
Mr. Bothame, you're free to go.
I'm no longer under arrest?
No, but don't be surprised if you get home
And find us searching the premises.
We have a warrant.
Why'd you let him go?
Chuckwei's got motive and opportunity.
His alibi checked out.
Security cameras picked him up
Entering a shop at 7:00 this morning.
Well, he could have gone out
Through a back door or a window.
Killed nikki, dumped her in the river.
Chuckwei's house is two blocks from where the cable was cut.
He asked for a lawyer.
So we can still hold him.
On what charges?
Sexual abuse, endangering the welfare of a child.
Take your pick.
At the very least, we got him on statutory rape.
He's 35, she's 14.
They're married.
That nullifies the statutory charges.
Chuckwei says that they're married,
But the license is from nigeria.
Run it past their consulate.
In the meantime, fin and lake
Are tossing the home for the murder weapon.
Excuse me, ma'am-- You can't do that
Till our people are done.
I must, to honor nikki.
Her spirit walks the house until she's buried.
Please take off your shoes.
You and nikki were close?
Like sisters.
I'm almani, chuckwei's cousin.
Can we have some pudding?
Not now, sweetie. I'll make some later.
Go keep felix company.
They yours? No.
Kki and i run a daycare to help th the rent.
(Lake) fin, come here.
Chuckwei make all this?
Yes, he's a craftsman.
One-Handed?
They're really beautiful.
Is any of this wood oak?
No, this is all african savannah.
I'll have csu take a sample.
Hey, what are you doing
Wearing that t-Shirt?!
Let's take that off, baby.
"Lie or die." That's a hell of a t-Shirt.
What's your name, little man?
Obie. Hey, obie, where'd you get that t-Shirt?
From a man.
What man? I don't know.
He gave it to me, said it was a present.
What did he look like?
He was big.
Well, did he have a big nose?
Funny face? How 'bout a tattoo?
I don't know.
Can i go outside now?
Only in the back yard, obie.
I need to tend to the children.
Who's telling you lie?To
I need to tend i don't know.En.
You knew the second you saw that shirt.
I'm sorry, i must go.
We're not getting much more out of them.
No, but we will from a guy i know--
An adam clayton powell.
My shirts are a public protest
Against law enforcement's over reliance
On these self-Serving
Criminal informants.
You're high.
No, i am clean, man,
And i am living the american dream.
I got my own business.
Your shirts are a pain in our ass, waxman.
I can't help you with that.
You think it's cool making a living
Off intimidation?
No, you know what i think is cool?
I think it is cool that we live in a country
Where i can express my political views freely.
Now, buy a shirt.
Who bought this shirt in theast couple of hours?
Are you kidding me?
You want me to snitch?
I say two words to you, my credibility, it tanks,
Along with my sales-- Forget it.
How do you think your sales will do
If we just camp out right here?
Now that'd really help your street cred.
What do you think, fin? I have nowhere else to
I like this block. Let's hang out.
No, no, hey, hey. Listen...
I'm just the tip of the iceberg, okay?
Everybody, and i mean everybody,
Is cashing in on this stop snitching movement.
Okay?
Look...
Got dvds, cds, posters.
This is nothing.
The real cash is coming in
Off this website--
That's where the money's being made.
Stinnrat.Com,
The si that rats out the rats.
It comes complete with a photo and address
Of anyone who's been reported to be an informant.
So is nikki on the site?
Chuckwei is.
Identified by stinkinrat
As a key witness in the murder trial
Of one dennis harold king.
How do i know that name?
U know him as d. King,
As in, "he is d' king."
He's a serious harlem drug dealer
With a rap sheet a mile long.
Not to mentionn entrepreneur extraordinaire.
He's thug. A wh?
Damon moore, a 16-Year-Old kid.
King beat him to death
For looking at his girlfriend the wrong way.
Well, when was chuckwei's identity
Posted on the site?
I two days ago.
Any other witnesses?
Police reported 28 other people
Saw king beat damon moore.
The only other guy to come foard besides chuckwei
Was toby torres, an addict
Testifying as part of a plea.
Check out the rat next to his name.
Yeah, that's his rat status.
He was murdered last week, a day after his info
Was posted on this site.
We got the wrong guy.
Chuckwei was on our side.
He wasonna t gtify,
Before king killed nikki chuckweito shut him up.E.
Chuckwei's attorney is in my office.
Uh, sara flynt with west african legal services.
What does she want?
I want you to stop harassing my client.
He's burying his wife today.
Well, running away from us made him look pretty guilty.
He was a political prisonerse in nigeria. Of the police.
Is that what he told you?
I met him there when i was working with human rights watch.
We fought for chuckwei's release.
What was he in prison for?
He protested when the former dictatorship
Started dumping refinery waste on his farm.
They confiscated his land.
The police jailed him and beat him
Until he lost the use of his left arm.
Well, dennis king
Is gonna do a lot woe to him
If he doesn't help us put king away.
Chuckwei's a good pers.
He wanted to do the right thing.
Now he sees why the other witnesses didn't come forward.
How do we get him to cooperate?
Can you give him plastic surgery and move him to scottsdale?
Well, that's a question you'll have to ask the d.A.
We did-- They said intimidation
Is out of control.
And the state's witness protection program is strapped.
They don't have the money or the manpower.
I'm sorry, i don't want to be late for nikki's funeral.
Come on. We'll give you a ride.
[Church bell tolling]
(Stabler) sara, just how did chuckwei and nikki me?
Over the phone. It was an arranged marriage.
That's not very romantic.
It was about survival, not romance.
Nikki was in danger?
Yes, christians in their village have come under attack
After nikki's two sisters were raped and murdered.
Chuckwei agreed to marry nikki so she could come here.
[Singing]
I'm sorry for your loss.
You are not welcome he!
You have put my family through enough.
Chuckwei, they want to help us
Find out who did this to nikki.
So you want evidence against king?
Look over there.
That's him.
Dennis king.
I know you?
You do now.
Since when is it against the law
To visit a cemety, man.
When it's to intimidate a witness.
I'm paying my respects.
You're interrupting a funeral.
Oh, this-- Oh, you kidding me, right?
Oh, he prayin'!
That's police brutality right here, man!
You have the right to an attorney.
If you can't afford one,
One will be provided for you.
(Man) my client was very sorry
To hear about nikki's death,
But there's no evidence linking him to her mur
Not t, but we'll find some.
Yeah, or you'll plant it.
Pretty hard to plant evidence in these murders.
Maybe they had it coming to them.
Is that an admission. No, it's an observation.
Casual conversation, you might say.
Huh.
Look, man, where i'm from,
People don't take kindly to folks who rat
To get their own sentences reduced.
I read in the papers...
These guys took a branding iron,
Burnt the word "snitch" in a woman's face.
That's cold, right there.
How 'bout nikki? What'd she do?
Don't answer that.
What were you doing at her funeral?
Told you.
I was paying respects to a friend.
A friend murdered by the police.
I've got my own pictures.
Reggie tosn, shot by the cops
In the bronx last year.
His death certificate...
And grave stone number...
Where my client was praying.
Christine.
It's always a pleasure to see you.
A.D.A. Danielson, homicide bureau chief.
Oh, so you've hathe pleasure
Of trying mr. King's murder case.
Yes.
Uh, we were just leaving, actually.
Nobody's filing charges against my client today.
Not for intimidation, but he did violate
An order of protection.
You're not allowed any closer to chuckwei than 100 feet.
Nice booty. Oh, yeah?
Watch it kick your ass.
(Danielson) the people charge mr. King
With criminal contempt and violation of bail.
The people request mr. King be remanded
And held in custody until trial.
Your honor, my client
Had no prior knowledge of the funeral.
That's absurd.
It just happened that mr. King
Was grieving at exactly the same time as mr. Bothame?
Well, there are only so many...cemetaries
In the city, your honor,
And, uh, a great deal of death.
Your honormr. King was staring down a witness
In his murder trial.
He was enjoying the singing.
Your client may be a music lover, mr. Braden,
But he violated a court order.
It's a misdemeanor offense, your honor.
Murder isn't.
In addition to hisanor offense, upcoming murder trial,ur honor.
King is under investigation for a second... oh, uh--
And a third homicide. Hasn't been charged in either of those--
Well, then, just the first murder
And his prior conviction should be enough to revoke bail.
I get the idea.
A bail is set at $1/2 million.
(Bailiff) docket number 2876-351,
People versus carter for illegal use
Of a controlled sunce.Bsta
People versus carter nothing ll stop him.
He has more money than god himself
He'll be out on the streets, and i'll be dead.
I'll talk to the detectives.
[Gangsta rap music]
Chuckwei.
Come with us.
You're under protective custody until the trial's er.
What about almani and the children and sara.
Unfortunately, witness protection
Only extends to immediate family.
But they are my family.
In this country, immediate family
Means your wife ddd your children.
Almani, sara, and the children,
They are my immediate family!
Nikki was ur wife.
Yes.
And so are almani and sara.
Chuckwei is a polygamist. He's breaking the law.
Not in nigeria.
If it's legal for a man to have three wives over there,
What's he supposed to do when he moves here?
Well, in france, they make allowances
For pre-Existing multiple marriages
For african immigrants.
We're not in france. That's why we had to arrest him.
Well, you'd better get busy.
There's up to 100,000 west african iigrantmm
In new york.
The policy's been don't ask, don't tell.
Chuckwei told.
Well, good luck convicting him.
He'll use the cultural defense.
Like that laotian student
Who kidnapped and ped a girl
Because his tribe has a lovely tradition
Of marriage by capture?
But he didn't get off completely.
He pled down to false imprisonment.
Maybe he'll take a plea.
Poor guy could get one to three off each count.
Poor guy? I find polygamy degrading.
His third wife was a 15-Year-Old
That he married over the phone.
Yeah, to save her from religious persecution in africa.
Only to mutilate her in america.
I just got off the phone with the d.A.'S office.
Let me guess:
They want us to overlook the polygamy
To get a conviction king.
They wanna know how bad this is.
Are we talking about dozens of wives,
Incest, inbreeding?
I don't think so.
Then you still got some investigating to do.
In the meantime, we've got to provide the protection
That we promised chuckwei.
Get him home, pack up his things,
Take him to a safe house.
We'll secure him first.
The d.A.'S office will keep him in protective custody.
Make sure there are no more surprises.
If this all works out... move the whole family with him.
You must understand, we're a good christian family.
Nowhere in the bible is polygamy banned.
Abraham, jacob, king david--
All had many wives.
We're not really different
From millions of people, detective.
(Stabler) millions of people don't practice polygamy
In this country.
But a third of the world still lives in cultures that do.
We're a global society now.
The u.S. Needs to be more tolerant.
So you didn't have a problem when your husband married nikki?
No...almani and i welcomed her into our home.
Sara's citizenship allowed nikki and i to move here.
Two of ohildur cn are citizens,
And i hope one day we'll all be americans.
Tell me, almani, why is it okay
For a man to have three wives,
And yet we never hear of a woman having three husbands.
In northern mozambique, women can have many husbands.
So shouldn't it be my choice
To decide what kind of marriage i want?
So if you want to marry a cat?
[Sighs]
Don't make fun of me, detective.
Polygamist families are stronger than monogamous ones.
Says who?
How many men in this country have affairs?
Or abandon their wives for younger women?
My dad left six wives,
All legally.
We're a family that sticks together.
We're all ready to go. Come on!
Come on.
Come on, let's go.
There's no evidence that chuckwei
Had more than three wives.
That's comforting.
We've moved them to a motel,
But the families expressed some concern
About being seen coming or going.
Chuckwei can't leave.
The others shouldn't unless they have to.
Well, there's seven people living in one room.
I mean, sara goes to work, the children go to school.
We'd like to station a car
Outside their motel.
If i only had the money.
This office has $1.2 million
To protect thousands of witnesses
For the entire fiscal year.
I thought that convicting king was a top priority.
It is, which is why
We're giving chuckwei a pass on the polygamy.
I'm not a fan, either, but the man
Is putting his and his family's life on the line.
All for a trial that's already cost himis wif
I mean, what guy in his right mind
Would ever become a witness in this system?
I wish i could do more.
But every dollar i spend on chuckwei
I'm taki away from another witness's safety.
Every one of them
Wants more protection.
Okay, so what do we tell them?
Next time, to witness a federal crime.
They know how to treat their witnesses.
This award that you got
From project protect--
We used to give out these alarm pendants
To victims of domestic violence.
Can't we give these huckwei's family?
That's another casualty of budget cuts.
We stopped using those a w months ago.
But they still work.
These are a direct line to svu.
You just give us two: one for sara and one for almani.
I'll pull a couple from storage.
[Knocking]
Chuckwei, it's detective stabler.
Excuse me, miss.
Did you clean that room today?
I did this morning.
You know, there's a whole family living in there.
I need you to open the door.
When was the last time you saw the family?
Ohthey, t maybe an hour ago.
Hope they don't expect me to clean up this mess again.
Liv, looks like they've checked out.
Oh, i know, he just walked in here with his family.
Somebody slipped a ne under their door.
Yeah.
Hey. Hi.
Hi, how are you?
"Tomorrow obie bothame
"Will be beaten to death in front of his mother,
Brothers, and siers."St
"Will be i won't riskath inmy family's safety.R,
We got the d.A. To put security cameras at the motel.
That's not enough to protect us.
King knows where we are.
No, stop! Stop!
No more police.
No more investigating. It's over.
We'll keep you safe.
The d.A.'S office gave us these body alarms.
They're a direct line to us.
And what about after the trial, huh?
What if king is acquitted?
The only way he walks is if you let him.
I know men like king.
In nigeria, they kill thousands.
They think they are above the law.
I came to america because it is a nd of dreams.
I need it to stay that way.
Well, how can it if you don't talk?
Now, you don't wanna
Go back to the motel.
I understand that, fine. Go home.
You would do that i'll sfor us?H you.
Look, i need you safe.
I need your testimony.
(Danielson) mr. Bothame, would you tell us where you were
At approximately 2:00 p.M. On october the 11th, 2005?
I was walking home from work on68th street.
Please tell the court what youitnessed.
I don't remember seeing anything unusual that day.
Mr. Bothame...
Mr. Bothame, i am reminding you
You are under oath.
I'm aware of that fact.
In my hand is your statement to the police
Taken at 4:08 that day.
Would you like to read it back to the court?
Objection, your honor.
The witness just testified to what he saw.
On six different occasions,
He has given consistent statements
Confirming that the defendant, dennis king,
Beat damon moore to de on the corner of 168th
And amsterdam.
Didn't y tell detective stabler
That exact same story yesterday?
Objection!
She's putting words in his mouth.
(Judge) sustained.
Jury is instructed to disregard
Ms. Danielson's remarks.
Your honor, clearly, something has happened
To make him change his mind.
Perhaps it's the fact at the defendant
Is under investigation
For killing another witness and mr. Bothame's--
Objection! Ms. Danielson,
Are you gunning for a mistrial?
No, your honor.
Mr. Bothame,
Take a moment and think about
What you really saw.
Is there a reason you don't recall
The events in question?
Your honor...
I make no excuse for the choices i have made.
But i am sorry for wasting your time.
I wanted to be a hero.
But i am not.
I didn't see anything.
Chuckwei screwed us.
We should lock him up for perjury, contempt,
And polygamy.
Don't you think he's been through enough?
Since when did you become his defender?
Well, you just said that he lied under oath
To protect his family.
Now, i can't imagine that's easy for a devout christian.
Any ruling yet?
Talk to danielson.
Hey, hey, hey.
How do you sleep at night?
Sorry?
You can't win with the truth,
So you let your client intimidate good people
Who stand up to him?
If anyone's intimidating witnesses,
It's the police and your d.A.
You coerce, you plea bargain,
You threaten them withriminal charges
Unless they testify.
You know that's not true. Really?
Could chuckwei be testifying
To avoid prosecution for polygamy?
He came forward on his own.
My dude!
[Laughs]
Nice job, brother.
There's a bottle of cristal with our name on it.
Little early to be celebrating.
I haven'en any evidence
That'll convict my client.
Tell me that the judge did not just dismiss that case.
She continued king's bail
And gave us 24 hours to prove intimidation.
Well, let's start with the death threat.
These are the anomalies from the printer rollers
On the death threat.
And these are test pages from all of king's printers.
Home, office, business,
And every associate we could fine.
The roller marks don't match.
Well, it only means king was smart enough
To use kinko's.
Well, that's what i thought.
So i took the liberty
Analyzing a few other samples
And found a match.
It's chuckwei's deposition.
The note came from his home office.
Chuckwei was in protective custody at the hotel,
So he couldn't have done it.
And the kids aren't old enough
To write a note this sophisticated.
Okay, that leaves us with two possibilities:
Sara and almani.
Why would they stage a death threat to their son?
To get more protection.
That's one way to get our attention. Certainly got chuckwei's.]
O'halloran.
Yeah, i'll tell him.
Almani just triggered her alarm pendant.
Hey.
Paramedics took almani to the hospital.
Where's sara?
Up at riker's with chuckwei.
Almaniwas here alone?
We don't know.
She was unconscious when patrol found her.
She gonna make it?
They're not sure.
What do we know?
Picking up a lot of hair and fibers,
But with seven people living in the house,
It'll take weeks to sort through the forensics.
Well, we have about 18 hours.
Then i better get to work.
Almani may have typed up the note,
But shsure as hell didn't beat herself unconscious.
Any sign of forced entry?
No, all the doors and windows were intact.
Well, maybe...
Is crew kingr one of followed her in here.
Well, if he did, he didn't go far.
Whoa, okay?
Sl down,owetective.
I'm 130 feet away. Measure it.
There's no violation.
Well, how about if i find one?
I mean, after all,
There are no witnesses around here, huh?
Oh, they'll show up for police brutality.
Smile, detective.
[Camera phonclicks]
Who are you, huh? You a big man?
Letting this guy get away with murder?
You're not a man, you're a coward.
If just one of you steps up, king's done.
Anybody got something to say?
[Cell phone ringing] anybody?
Benson.
Please.
Tell these fine detectives.
Yeah, i think they're afraid of you, detective.
That's why you ain't got no witnesses.
(Benson) thanks.
Yeah, we do.
(Almani) tell the doctor i must go.
The children will be home soon from school.
The doctor said
You were unconscious for a ile.
So they wanna make sure you're okay.
I don't have insurance. I can't afford to stay here.
Almani, we can help you.
But you need to talk to us...okay?
Now, the death threat was made from a computer
In your house.
Did you write that note?
No!
Why would i send a death threat to my own son?
Because you were afraid.
And you wanted the police to take your fears
More seriously.
So you wrote the threatening note
And you popped it under the door.
I didn't! I swear!
Did sara?
Sara sponsored my visa. It's about to expire
If she doesn't renew it, i'll be deported.
Because you're a witness, we can get you a "w" visa,
Which means that you can stay.
But you have to cooperate.
Almani, you don't have to live in fear.
[Sniffles]
Sara do this to you?
[Crying] yes.
She kill nikki?
I was in the kitchen,
And i heard nikki and sara fighting.
About what?
The same thing women always fight about: a man.
[Crying]
I heard nikki scream and fall down the stairs.
I went to look.
Nikki was lying at the bottom of the stairs.
Sara said she would take nikki to the hospital,
And i should stay with the baby.
She came back an hour later without nikki.
She told me not to say anything,
Or i would be deported.
After you took chuckwei this morning,
I told sara
I wouldn't let him go to prison
For her crime.
That's why she beat you?
Sara is my family.
I stayed silent as long as i could,
But my children need their father,
And i need my husband.
Almani is lying to save herself.
Sara, stop.
The roller marks on the death threat
Were an exact match to your printer.
Because you wrote it.
I didn't think the cops were doing enough to protect us.
You know how the police lie.
You didn't want protection,
You wanted chuckwei to drop out of king's trial
So we'd stop investigating nikki's murder.
Is this true?
This is ludicrous. King killed her.
You know that.
What have you done to our family?
I didn't do this to us.
You did...
When you let nikki into our home.
What?
I accepted almani as your wife.
You married her before we met.
But there was no need for nikki.
I married nikki to save her life.
You didn't have to fall in love with her.
Guard!
No...no, it was an accident.
She fell down the stairs, chuckwei, i swear.
She fell down the stairs. Guard!
[Sobbing] it was an accident!
Sara flynt... [hysterical]
Sara flynt, you're under arrest
For the murder of nikkiel bothame.
You have the right to remain silent...
King is a thug!
$$ He deserves to gto prison!
Not you! Not me.
[Nikki sobbing]
(Danielson) please tell the jury what happened.
I was walking home from work on68th street
When i saw a man beat a boy with a metal pipe.
This is the victim damon moore.
Is he the boy you saw?
Yes.
And the man who beat him to death,
Is he in this courtroom?
That is the man. There.
He's a liar.
Dennis. Cops are making him lie.
Shut up. (Chuckwei) no! No!
You murdered that boy in front of a crowd of people!
And in front of god!
You're a dead man!
[All shouting]
(Judge) order!
Get the jury out of here!
Court officers!
Get 'em off! Get 'em off me!
Order!
You're dead! Your family's dead!
Everything you love is dead!
Take the deffendent for lockup.
You're dead!
Are you okay?
Yes.
I'm no longer afraid.