"The cop said we had to get off the bus." ""Officer."" "Yeah, yeah." "Laurel, all we have is you." "Slump in the chair... guilty." "Roll your eyes... guilty." ""Cop"... guilty." "So it's about acting, not evidence." "Each side tells a story." "The jury believes one version over the other." "That's gonna be ours." "I was sitting in the back, so I was one of the last off." "There was luggage already out on the platform, and people were starting to load their bags under the bus again." "The defendant took possession of the suitcase that the dog had identified, and I asked her to accompany me to the security office at the terminal." "It was the only black roll- aboard still on the platform." "I didn't even look at it." "Where was your bag?" "Must have been back on the bus, after the real guy saw that he was in trouble and switched bags." "In my experience with couriers, they typically try to say it's the wrong bag." ""Smugglers" is the stronger word." "Smugglers will pack inappropriate clothing to help their cover." "I didn't care if he opened the bag." "It wasn't mine." " It was full of men's clothes." " Plus the kilo of coke." " She was hyperventilating." " Mm-hmm." "Her hands were shaking." "She was scared." "She was belligerent." "These are characteristic behaviors typically associated with drug smugglers." "Is the D.A. gonna ask about my record?" "The judge won't let her." "Your prior's completely unrelated." "If I hadn't been such a flake..." "If I'd just been paying attention..." "Um, Laurel, you know, I'm gonna bring you a dress for court." "What size are you?" "Like 2." "And, um, here." "See how this fits." "I feel like Cinderella." "You just need that happy ending." "Eh, well, we can stuff the toe." "Okay." ""Making Up Is Hard to Do"" "I'm out of options for Troy Gattis." " And this is the..." " Repeat business." "Yeah." "A rob 2." "On the last pass, I got him into a program, and he swears he stayed clean, not that that matters." " Except to him." " Yeah, of course." "But on this case, he won't plead, and I've got no defense." "So the trial's just gonna be a slow guilty." "He was collared with the lady's purse a block away from the atm." "She ID'd him in the photo array." "She ID'd him in the lineup." " How bad was the injury?" " Oh, it was barely a sprained wrist." "It was just a push-and-grab." " But with the prior." " Yeah, it brings him up to 5 to 15." " Marcus offered him 3 back when." " That's decent." "You'd think, except that Troy keeps saying it wasn't him, and he's not gonna lie to the court by pleading guilty." " Can't figure it out." " Maybe he's not guilty." "Like that's gonna help him?" "His only hope is a plea, Roz." "Will you talk to him?" "I..." "I can't get anywhere." "Okay." "'Cause, uh, he's waiting in lockup." "What, you mean now?" "Please?" "I like Jerry." "He's been a real friend to me, you know?" "But you don't want to take his advice." " I told him I didn't do it." " He showed you the evidence against you, Troy." "You take that in front of a jury, your case doesn't look good." "You got to understand, I wasn't trying to hurt no lady." "I didn't know she was gonna fall down." "So that's why you don't want to plead." "That's not why." "Okay." "Then why?" "I told Jerry I didn't do it." "You just told me that you did." "Right." "What am I not getting here, Troy?" "He always believed in me, right?" "Which is much more I can say for anybody else in my whole damn life." " I let him down." "That's what I do." "I let him down." " No, not at all." "He thought finding me this rehab was gonna turn me around." "That's what he said." "The man worked hard." "But that pipe... it's got a loud voice, man, and... and once you hear it..." "I..." "I need the cash." "That's what I'm gonna tell him when I see his face?" "Nah." "I'd rather do the time." "You'd rather do 15 years instead of 3?" "You think that that's what Jerry would want?" " No." " No." "So let me explain it to him." " He's gonna be mad at me." " No, he won't." "Using, stealing, hurting somebody, lying to him all this time." "I'm mad at my own damn self." "Will you let me talk to him about it?" "Troy." "Tell him I'm sorry." "I'm so sorry." "Okay." " Too late, my man." "Too late." " Please don't say that." "The offer expired a year and a half ago." "You know how it works." "Early dispo equals shorter sentence." " You save me time, I save you time." " Marcus, I screwed up!" " He screwed up." " I wasn't listening hard enough." "When he lied to you and told you he was innocent, like the rest of your clients?" "I'm not negotiating." "I'm begging." "The guy knocked down a citizen and stole her purse to buy crack." "Three years was too good when I offered it, but at least it would have moved the case off my desk." "Now, a year and a half later, after all the motions, all the prep, right before trial?" "No." "But Troy would have taken the offer if it weren't for me." " You know the policy." " He thinks he let me down." " I let him down." " No sale after the sell-by date." "Marcus, as a personal favor, please?" "Can't you ask Balco for an exception?" "Thank you." "Yeah, yeah." "Were you early?" "Uh, no." "Did you order for me?" "Ta-da!" "Just right." "Ugh." "What a day." "It's about to get worse." "You are not gonna like what I have to tell you." " You're married." " You know better." "Okay." "I'm ready." "Lay it on me." "Okay." "I, um... went over to property to pick up the evidence in people v. Redson." "It's not all available yet." " They lost my evidence?" " They didn't lose anything." "They..." "They misplaced the dope." "I can't try the case without the evidence!" "Calm down." "Look, I have already..." "Rattled the cage for you." " What does that even mean?" " It means" "I applied pressure from the inside." "They'll find it." "Don't worry." "By tomorrow, when we go to trial?" " You still have to pick a jury." " Okay, without the evidence," " I've got to drop the charges." " Honey, you're overreacting." "All right?" "Evidence goes missing all the time." "It's not like the property office is computerized." "It's all manual." "Now, with 400,000 evidence vouchers a year, that's a lot of paper." "Things go missing." "Am I supposed to feel better?" "I'll have the exhibit in time for trial." "Trust me." "I thought we agreed you were never gonna use that line on me." "Man, you are cranky when you're hungry." " You know, don't talk down to me." " Trust me." "Do I have a choice?" "Tim  I'm sorry." "Make me stay." "As promised, one kilo of cocaine." " Thank god!" " You ready?" "Let's go." " This was way too close." " You like the adrenaline." "Not really." "Hey, Nick." "You got a minute?" "No." "It's never a minute with you, Marcus." "What?" "If I wanted to reinstate an offer..." "One bite of the apple is all we give, unless your case fell apart." " Is that what you're working up the nerve to tell me?" " No, but" "I said I'd ask for an exception, so I'm asking." "Who's on the other side?" "Kellerman." "Shocked." "You're letting him work you." " It's not like that, Nick." " Because you're friends, sure." "Does he ever fold because you ask him?" "If you needed to show me how tough you are, would Kellerman take a longer sentence for one of his clients to help you out?" "And by the way, as long as we're having this conversation, you do need to show me what you're made of." "I'm just trying not to waste our resources, Nick." " Oh, here I thought you were asking for a favor." " Little bit of both." "You know, if this case had another lawyer across the aisle who wasn't one of your buddies, you wouldn't be wearing out my carpet right now." "But maybe you don't actually believe in the plea policy." " It works." " What a resounding endorsement." "Are you sure you're playing for the right team?" "Not even funny, Nick." "Tell Kellerman you asked." "I said no." "And make yourself some new friends." "Go for a better caliber." "I mean that in the nicest way." "Sergeant?" "Sergeant is the black lab on the k-9 team that was working the port authority the day of the arrest." "Top in his class in all categories when he graduated from the academy." "And how did sergeant react when the cargo hold of the bus was opened?" "He aggressively alerted to a black roll-aboard." " Can you describe his behavior?" " He immediately started sniffing the seams and scratching and biting at the bag, which indicated that he smelled narcotics." "What did you do next, detective?" "I had sergeant's handler remove him from sight so nobody would get suspicious." "Then my partner had the porters remove all the bags and line them up on the platform while I boarded the bus and told the passengers they needed to reclaim their luggage" " as a safety precaution." " Was Ms. Redson one of the passengers?" " Yes, she was." " Which suitcase did she claim?" "She walked straight for the black roll-aboard, which sergeant had identified, and started wheeling it back to the bus, at which point we intercepted and escorted her to the security office." "When you reached the security office, did Ms. Redson give you permission" " to search her bag?" " Yes, she did." "And did you find narcotics in it?" "At the bottom of the bag, there was a hard rectangular package wrapped in paper with a scorpion stenciled on it." "The scorpion is a street term for cocaine, and the crime lab confirmed that the package contained a shrink-wrapped block of cocaine weighing 1 kilo, or 2.2 pounds." "Can you estimate the street value of that much cocaine, detective?" "Approximately $150,000 after it's been packaged for resale." "I'd like to show you people's exhibit one for identification." " Do you recognize it?" " Yeah, that's the brick of cocaine I vouchered after the arrest." " How can you be sure?" " It's in the heat-sealed evidence bag from the crime lab, and I see my signature on the bottom of the invoice, which shows the correct case name and number." "Your Honor, I move to admit people's exhibit one for identification into evidence." "Excuse me." "Your Honor, can I take a look at the exhibit first? May I challenge the admissibility, Your Honor?" "Understanding that I have a limited supply of patience?" "Noted, judge." "Start your engine." "Detective, evidence vouchers come with six copies, correct?" "Two white, one blue, one yellow, one green, one pink." " That's right." " And the top white copy, the original, is stapled to the evidence bag?" "You know the system." "But this is not the original voucher." "This is a photocopy, isn't it?" "The top copy tore when I was separating the pages after I'd already filled out the whole form, so I made a copy off the second white." " Why didn't you just attach the damaged page?" " It wasn't legible enough." "Then why didn't you start over with another invoice?" "Vouchers come preprinted in packs of 25, so they're already numbered." "I'd have disrupted the chronology, and, additionally, the copy matches all the other copies, including yours, counselor." "I object to admitting the exhibit into evidence." "Your Honor, since the people can't establish chain of custody without the original voucher," " if this evidence has been tampered with..." " Stop, please." "Other judges in this courthouse may let you get away with speaking objections in front of the jury," " but we're in my courtroom now." " I'd like a curative instruction," " Your Honor." "This was act..." " Did you just interrupt me?" "I thought you'd finished, judge." "We'll finish in chambers." "These are absolutely identical, right down to the smudge mark." "Are you satisfied, Ms. Gilardi?" " No, your Honor." " Well, I am, and I'm who counts, so I'm going to overrule your objection." "Admit people's exhibit one for identification into evidence as people's exhibit one." "Don't gloat, Ms. Ernhardt." "It's not becoming." "No, your Honor." "Ms. Gilardi, I don't like conspiracy theories." "I don't think Princess Diana was murdered by the royal family," "I don't think they dissected aliens in Roswell, and I'm pretty damn sure that the grassy knoll in Dallas just a grassy knoll." "Are we clear, Ms. Gilardi?" "No conspiracy theories." "Got it." "After you, ladies." "Laurel, why were you going to Albany?" "I wanted to visit Stony Point College." "I thought I might apply to their culinary-arts program before all this happened." "How long were you planning to stay?" "Four nights." "I had to be back to work on Monday." "What did you pack for your trip?" "Couple changes of clothes, a t-shirt to sleep in, makeup and stuff..." "A toothbrush." "Did you pack a dirty pair of men's size 36 work pants?" "No." "Or a dirty pair of men's extra-large boxers?" "No." "Or 2.2 pounds of cocaine?" "No." "Laurel, is this your black roll-aboard?" "No." "Mine was a little bit bigger and newer." "Why did you walk away with this one?" "It was the only black roll- aboard still on the platform." "I assumed it was mine." "Laurel, did you tell the detective that you had made an innocent mistake?" "Yes, over and over." "All he had to do was stop the bus and inspect the luggage again, and he would have found my bag with my clothes in it with my college application with my name on the envelope." "But they didn't stop the bus, did they?" "No." "They just let it drive off, and I burst out crying." "You started crying because you knew you'd just been caught with $150,000 worth of cocaine in your bag." " It wasn't my bag." " It was the bag you claimed and pulled toward the bus." "I should have looked closer." "You're right." "Did you have a job at the time, Ms. Redson?" " Three nights a week." " Nights." " What did you do?" " I tend bar." " Did you graduate from high school?" " Yes." "Where?" "I have my GED." "A general equivalency degree." "That's not a diploma, right?" "Getting your GED is like graduating, but it's harder." "You have to be motivated." " And you're a motivated woman." " Yes." "Motivated enough to get on a bus to Albany to apply to college with a kilo of cocaine." "There was no coke in my bag." "2.2 pounds of solid cocaine found in the bag that you identified as yours." " I made a mistake." " The bag you wheeled away, the bag you packed with men's clothes to give you a cover story in case you got caught." "Isn't that what happened?" " That's not what happened." " Do you, uh, recognize this photo?" " Yeah." "It's my mug shot." " Would you say that this is a fair and accurate representation of how you appeared on your way to Albany?" "No, it's how I looked after I was arrested and searched and handcuffed and booked on this bogus charge and after I'd been crying for hours." "It's not how I looked when I got on the bus." "But this photo shows your usual hairstyle, your usual makeup, your usual face jewelry when you're not cleaned up for court." "Objection, Your Honor." "Ms. Redson's styling choices are irrelevant to why she mistakenly claimed the wrong roll-aboard." "You've already been given a tutorial about these speaking objections, Ms. Gilardi." "No more." "Overruled." "Continue." "I move to admit people's exhibit for identification six into evidence as people's exhibit six, Your Honor, and I ask that it be published to the jury." "Granted." "I hate this kind of case." "I mean there's nothing to hang a defense on." ""Wasn't me." "And we know this because?" "Wasn't me."" " Does the client's story make sense?" " Totally." " Is she pretty?" " Not to get sexist..." "Just being pragmatic." "Even in k-to-6, cuter kids get the higher grades." "Does the jury want to believe her?" "On account of her telling the truth?" "There's telling, and then there's selling." " I did repackage her a little." " Smart." "Which Michelle actually used against us." "She introduced the mug shot." " Ouch." " It's so upside-down." "How do you prove you didn't do something?" "When the other side's supposed to prove that you did." "Well, at least the client's pretty." " Oh, my god!" " It's just me." " Oh, you freaked me out." " Well, you're a little tense." "The jury likes her." "What?" "I thought they liked me." "You're perfect." "But Redson tells a good story." "Well, the jury didn't see what I saw." "I was scanning the passengers, you know, like, "who's it gonna be?" "Hard or easy?"" "as soon as I spotted that chick," "I knew she'd be the one to grab the bag." " You get her mug shot into evidence?" " Yes, I did." "Then they know she's lying." "I couldn't believe it was the same person in court." "The PD has some skills." "You mean like how she caught your voucher copy?" "Well, the judge was never gonna kick the evidence over a clerical error." "With six copies floating around, there's no way to cheat the voucher." "Talk about a desperation move." "You got to relax." " Do I?" " Mmm." "I am crazy." "That's two of us." " Did you talk to Balco about a plea for Troy?" " No go, like I told you." " How hard did you try?" " I shouldn't have asked at all." " Meaning what?" "Why?" " I don't have a problem with the policy" "Oh, you mean extorting guilty pleas to lighten the caseload and slamming the people who don't fold fast enough for you?" "That policy?" "Call it the incentive plan." "The only way to keep the production line rolling is to penalize slowdowns." " We're not making cars, Marcus!" " You wanted me to ask." "I asked." ""No" is my second favorite word!" "All you had to do was say it!" "How many ways did I try to tell you, huh?" " You weren't listening to me." " You let me get my hopes up." " I let you take advantage of me." " Like you're some girl on a couch." " Come on." "Don't dramatize." " I can't help you, Jerry." "What do you accomplish by hitting a guy with 5 or 10 or 15 years?" "Punishment!" " That's disproportionate." " Yeah?" "Well, that's your fault." "Your guy's right." "You let him down." "Come in." "Oh, a verdict already." "People know how to do their civic duty." "Well, not exactly yet, Your Honor." "One of the jurors asked me to bring you a note." "Tell the jury to suspend deliberation." "Yes, sir." "I was waiting for the elevator after lunch, and I saw the detective who testified yesterday." "He was talking to another man with a badge, and I couldn't help hearing." "You were eavesdropping." "They were right next to me." "We got on the same elevator." "And he's an attractive man." " What did you hear?" " He was saying how it was wrong that the defendant's record couldn't be introduced and how the jury wasn't getting the whole story." "Is this a direct quote, Ms. Goodman?" "Pretty much." "And I was surprised she had a record, because it makes a difference, doesn't it, that she's already a criminal?" "I can't act like I don't know." "Did you mention any of this in the jury room?" "No." "But Bill was on the elevator, too." "Bill?" "Juror number three." "In the elevator?" "After the lunch break." "No." "You didn't recognize anyone in the elevator?" "Just Ellen." "I..." "I think she's number seven." "Did you talk to her?" "What would I say?" "Did you overhear a conversation about the case, sir?" "In the elevator?" "Yes." "N... no." "Oh." "I'd taken out my hearing aid." "I'm still vain." "So am I, sir." "So am I." "Thank you." "Could you wait outside for just a moment, please?" "I move for a mistrial." "Why am I not surprised?" " Denied." " The detective tainted the jury." "One juror." "Don't exaggerate the problem, counselor." "I'll replace juror seven with an alternate." "That's it?" " That's it." " A deliberate attempt to..." " Deliberate,Ms. Gilardi?" " To talk about the case in the presence of a..." "Indiscreet." "It's not catastrophic." "It could be construed as jury tampering." "Don't you think you should lose this case before you formulate your appeal?" "Alternate one becomes juror seven." "Deliberations will recommence." "Here she comes." "Michelle, you haven't met Joe." "This is Joe Tierney." "Michelle Ernhardt." "I'm Tim's partner in crime." "Really?" "Just a cop joke." "You wanted to talk to me?" " Later, man." " All right." "Later, Joe." "Good to meet you, counselor." " What?" "You couldn't be nice?" " How much does he know?" " Honey, I would never do that to you." " I wasn't referring to us." " What is the matter with you?" " Not out here." "Like I'd be stupid enough to talk about a case in front of jurors?" "Or smart enough." "Farnsworth didn't declare a mistrial." "He just dumped one juror and kept the other." " Which ones?" " Number seven's out." "What?" "The nail biter?" " So you knew who she was." " From the courthouse, Michelle, not from the elevator." "I was busy talking to Joe." " About the case!" " Not your case." " What?" " Not your defendant, not in front of your jurors." "We were on our way to testify in part 12." "People v. Tucker." "You can verify it." "You mentioned an inadmissible prior." "Do you really think I tried to influence the jury?" "'cause if you have any evidence, you need to indict me." "No." "I just..." "It almost blew my case." "Honey, this is my case, too." "I am sorry." "Hey, I..." "I didn't know there were jurors on the elevator." "Who was the other one?" "Number three." "What?" "You only rember the women?" "What?" "Now you're jealous?" "No." "Hey." "Are we done?" "Are we okay?" "Will the defendant please rise." "In the matter of the people of the state of New York v. Laurel Redson, on the count of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the first degree, how does the jury find?" "We find the defendant guilty, Your Honor." "There's no way you didn't hear those cops talking." "Big men, big voices, small spaces." "You're all hearing me, right?" "Your fly's open." "Where's your hearing aid, sir?" "You can't harass me like this." "Laurel's prior wasn't even drug related." "She threw bleach on a mink coat as a protest to animal cruelty." "You heard every word the detective said in the elevator, didn't you?" " I don't have to talk to you." " And you believed him." "I understand." "Look, I've been thanked for my service and sent back to my life." "I'm done here." "You can still tell the judge." "Please, Bill!" "If you don't leave me alone, I'll go to the judge about you." "Thanks." " Hey, Marcus." " Hey." "Congrats." "Thanks." "Kurt in property?" "It's ADA Michelle Ernhardt calling back." "What?" "You found the evidence that I requested, the narcotics?" "Indictment 2654, people v. Redson?" "So it..." "It was misplaced." "No, actually." "I don't need it anymore." "Thank you." "Whoa." "What happened?" "I'm about to go find out." "You will not give up!" "The man has lost his mind." "Counselor, you should have told me you were coming." "I'd have sharpened the knives." "The advantages of stealth, Nick." " I need to talk to you." " Why?" " I need a better plea for my client." " Oh, you think small, Jerry." "Me, I need a house in the Hamptons with a private beach and a helipad, which is equally unrealistic, I know." "But the one thing we have in common is our optimism." "So...make your pitch." " Here?" " I believe in transparency." " All right." "My client, Troy Gattis..." " McGrath's trial." "The rob 2." " But it doesn't have to go to trial." " What's on the table, Marcus?" "Top count." "There's your answer." "Thanks for stopping by." " Nick, I understand the office policy." " How white of you." " No offense intended, Marcus." " None taken." "But this guy, my guy... 'caused such a devastating wrist injury, the victim was forced to withdraw from her annual mah-jongg tournament." "Talk about pain and suffering." "That was a year ago." "How'd she do this year, huh, while Troy was in jail waiting for his turn on the calendar?" "Mercifully, the lady made a full recovery, which doesn't lessen the crime." "I shouldn't have let him turn down the plea." "That was my fault." "I appreciate your candor." "Could I hear it again? Well, thank him for us, but no." "If one of my ADAs tells you it's top count or trial," " there's no going around, up, or over." " I understand that, but this will be going back." " So you want me to make an exception." " Yes." "You know me better, don't you?" " Worth a shot." " Waste of time." "Good play, McGrath." "You held the line." " He knows I'm here, right?" " Yes, ma'am." " I'm sure he's on his way down." " Can you call him again?" "Please?" "Ms. Ernhardt." "What's up?" "I need to talk to you." "Come on." "I'll buy you a soda." "Diet?" "Explain how the property office found the evidence I'd already introduced." "I told you it'd turn up." "Twice?" " I need to know." " Well... it wasn't easy." " You fabricated my evidence." " No." "I replicated it." "The voucher wasn't a problem." "I had the copy." " And the story to support it." " Yeah." "Thinking ahead, right?" "Though I got to say..." "That was a bad moment on the stand, but I knew I'd sold it." " How about the kilo of coke?" " It wasn't coke." "No." "I wrapped up a couple of paperbacks." "Nobody's gonna retest the contents." "Because that would have been hard to explain." "You remember what I told you?" "No guts, no glory." "Where did you find the scorpion print?" "Copied it off the internet." "Are you impressed yet?" "Occupied!" "You made sure the jurors heard you in the elevator, didn't you?" "I wasn't gonna let you lose this case." "So you manufactured evidence and you tampered with the jury?" "Honey, Laurel Redson's a drug mule." "Oh, not now there isn't!" "I thought you said you couldn't break her down." "That wasn't a request for obstruction of justice!" "Hey, I guaranteed justice." "You just want to keep your tight little skirt clean." "Get real." "You know how often our team helps your team out one way or the other?" "I never know." "Oh." "Deniability, yeah." "If you're so righteous, Michelle, how come you didn't withdraw from the case" " since you're sleeping with your witness?" " Not anymore." "Fine." "Walk out the door, babe." "We got to roll, Tim." "All good?" "No worries." "So that's that then, huh?" "I'm sorry." "I'm..." "I'm so sorry." "Hey, hey, hey." "It's all on me, man." "I didn't have to be here." "But shoulda... coulda don't matter, you know what I mean?" "Hey, you ain't this brother's keeper." "So what happens now?" " If we go to trial..." " Bam." "Guilty." "There's just a lot of evidence against you, Troy." " And the judge decides how many years I get." " Yeah." "Or you can plead guilty to the indictment." "And the judge decides how many years I get." "He might go lighter if you don't ask for a trial." "All right." "All right." "Let's get it over with." "Okay." "I didn't mean to hurt nobody... but I did." "You're not mad at me?" "No." "Now you're gonna make me cry." " I am the world's worst idiot!" " Don't flatter yourself." "There's a lot of competion for that title." "I'm sorry, Nick." "Okay, okay." " Is it over with this prick?" " So over." "Always a silver lining." "What am I gonna do?" "Let it ride." "Nothing you've told me indicates factual innocence." "So what?" "I'm still exposed on appeal." "Jury tampering, phony evidence, sex with the cop?" "That would be bad, agreed." "But who's gonna know?" "What if Gilardi turns on the charm at the property clerk's office or investigates the jury or a juror needs to make amends or this particular cop brags in the wrong bar?" " You need to stop worrying so much." " An appeal could bury me, Nick!" "I'd lose my license!" "I..." "I'd be unemployable!" "You're never gonna rest easy, are you?" "I'd be so ashamed." "Go fix your war paint, and I'll make the calls." " What are you gonna say?" " As little as I have to." "Go." "Your Honor, given the possible perception of jury taint..." "It's not my perception, Mr. Balco." "Understood, your Honor." "But to avoid any risk of reversal, the people will not oppose a defense motion to set aside the verdict." " Are you making such a motion, Ms. Gilardi?" " Absolutely, your Honor." "In fact, given the conduct of the arresting officer in the elevator," "I'd ask the court to dismiss the indictment with prejudice." "Well, weigh in, Mr. Balco." "Whatever did or did not happen with the jury is irrelevant to the validity" " of the charge against the defendant, your Honor." " I agree." "So, a do-over, counselors." "Is that what we're looking at?" "Yes, your Honor." "You don't look happy, Ms. Gilardi." "I'm not, your Honor." "My client's still remanded." "She's already spent a year and a half in custody." " You want to make me happy?" " When did I say that?" "Cut her loose pending retrial, your Honor." "As a lagniappe, Mr. Balco?" "Just a little something extra to sweeten the deal?" "A gesture of goodwill, judge." "Well, in that spirit of generosity," "I will grant the defense motion to set aside the verdict, and I'll release Ms. Redson on her own recognizance." "You're welcome, Ms. Gilardi." "Lagniappe?" "Cajun word for "baker's dozen." You hear it all over New Orleans." " Farnsworth's not from the south." " Neither am I, but I know that it means Gilardi won't squawk about a trial date." " I'm out, though?" " Oh, yes." "Oh, I can breathe again." "So, my good deeds for the day..." "Let me count the ways..." "Covering your shapely ass, facilitating a fair trial based on genuine evidence, heard by an untainted jury, argued by a prosecutor free of any carnal conflict, while simultaneously preserving our relationship with New York's finest." " And not so fine." " I told you you were slumming." "I thought you were gonna fire me." "I should." "But I'd miss your gratitude." "Thank you, Nick." "And your respect." "Your admiration." "Your blouses." "Was that just an assault 3?" "I'll, uh, buy us a round." "No need." "We're gonna talk to each other again at some point." "Might as well get started." "You start." "Okay." "This is hard." "I'm sorry." "I took a cheap shot at you." "Don't take this as precedent, but you got your point across about Troy Gattis." "You'll reinstate your offer?" "Three years?" "No, but I will support your request for the minimum." " Five." " Five." " For a sprained wrist and a hundred bucks." " He's an addict." "He's a mugger." "He's a menace." "It's better than he deserves." " You don't know him." " But I know Ruth." "The victim." "The mah-jongg queen." "Who put three kids through college working double shifts as a waitress." "Troy would be halfway through his sentence if it weren't for me." "We do the best we can." "That's all there is." "Transcripted by chamallow35"