"Forward march!" "I'm requesting" "Captain, I'd like to request that it be me who's the attorney" "That it be myself who's assigned." "No." "I'd like to request that it be I who am assigned" ""That it be I who am assigned"?" "That's good." "That's confidence-inspiring." "Good grammar there." "Captain, I'd like to request that I be the attorney assigned." "I'm Lieutenant Commander Galloway here to see Captain West." "Go right in, Commander." "They're expecting you." "Thank you." " Jo, come on in." " Thank you, sir." "Captain West, this is Lieutenant Commander Galloway." " Jo, you know Commander Lawrence?" " Yes, sir." "Captain, I appreciate you seeing me on such short notice." " Would you like to sit down?" " I'm fine, sir." " Have a seat." " Okay." "I understand we had some trouble over the weekend down in Cuba?" "!" "Yes, sir." "This past Friday, two Marines a Lance Corporal Harold Dawson and a Private Louden Downey entered the barracks room of a Pfc. William Santiago and assaulted him." "Santiago died at the base hospital approximately an hour later." "The N.I.S. Agent who took Dawson and Downey's statements maintains they were trying to prevent Santiago from naming Dawson in a fenceline shooting incident." "They're scheduled to have a hearing down in Cuba this afternoon at 1600." " What's the problem?" " Dawson and Downey are both recruiting poster Marines, and Santiago was known to be a screwup." "I was thinking it sounded an awful lot like a Code Red." "Christ!" "Sir, I'd like to have them moved up to Washington and assigned counsel someone who can really look into this someone who possesses not only the legal skill but a familiarity with the inner workings of the military." "In short, Captain, I'd like to suggest that I be the one who that that it be me who is assigned to represent them myself." "Commander Galloway, why don't you get yourself a cup of coffee?" "Thank you, sir." "I'm fine." "Commander, I'd like you to leave the room so we can talk about you behind your back." "Certainly, sir." "I thought this Code Red shit wasn't going on anymore." "With the Marines at Gitmo, who knows what the hell goes on down there?" "We better find out before the rest of the world does." "Damn thing could get messy." "All right, what about this Commander Galloway?" "She's been working a desk in Internal Affairs for a little over a year now." " Before that?" " She disposed of three cases in two years." "Three cases in two years?" "Who's she handling, the Rosenbergs?" " She's not cut out for litigation." " She's a hell of an investigator, Jerry." "In Internal Affairs, sure she can crawl up a lawyer's ass with the best of them." " But when it comes to trial work" " I know." "All passion, no street-smarts." "Bring her back in." "Commander, we're gonna have the defendants moved up here in the morning." " Thank you, sir." " Division will assign them counsel." " But not me." " From what I get from your colleagues you're much too valuable in your present assignment to be wasted in what I'm sure will boil down to a five-minute plea bargain and a week's worth of paperwork." "Sir, I think there might be more involved than that." "Don't worry about it." "I promise you Division will assign the right man for the job." "All right." "Let's go." "Let's get two." " Sorry." " Nothing to be sorry about, Sherby." "You just look the ball into your glove." "Shooting two." " Sorry." " You gotta trust me, Sherby." "Keep your eyes open, your chances of catching the ball increase by a factor of ten." " Kaffee!" " Let's try it again." "Dave you seem distraught." "We were supposed to meet in your office 15 minutes ago talking about the McDermott case." "You're stalling on this thing." "Now we either do it, I mean now no kidding, Kaffee, I'm gonna hang your boy from a fucking yardarm!" "Yardarm?" "Sherby, does the Navy still hang people from yardarms?" "I don't think so." "Dave Sherby doesn't think the Navy hangs people from yardarms anymore." "I'm gonna charge him with possession and being under the influence while on duty." "You plead guilty, I'll recommend 30 days in the brig with loss of rank and pay." "It was oregano, Dave." "It was $10 worth of oregano." "Yeah, well, your client thought it was marijuana." "My client's a moron." "That's not against the law." "Kaffee, I got people to answer to just like you do." "I'm gonna charge him." "With what, possession of a condiment?" " Kaffee." " Dave I tried to help you out of this but if you ask for jail time, I'm gonna file a motion to dismiss." " You won't get it." " I will get it." "And if the M.T.D. is denied, I'll file a motion seeking to obtain an evidentiary ruling in advance." "And after that, I'm gonna file against pretrial confinement." "And you're gonna spend the next three months going blind on paperwork because a signal man second-class bought and smoked a dime bag of oregano." "Let's go!" "Let's get two!" "B misdemeanor, 20 days in the brig." "C misdemeanor, 15 days restricted duty." "I don't know why I'm agreeing to this." "'Cause you have wisdom beyond your years." "Good morning." "Good morning, Captain." "How's the baby, Sam?" "Sir, I think she's getting ready to say her first word any day now." "How can you tell?" "She just looks like she has something to say." "Excuse me." "I'm sorry I'm late." "It's all right, Danny." "I know you don't have a good excuse so I won't force you to come up with a bad one." " Thank you, sir." " This first one's for you." "Seems you're moving up in the world." "Been requested by Division." "Requested to do what?" "Guantanamo Bay, Cuba." "A Marine corporal named Dawson illegally fires a round from his weapon over the fenceline and into Cuban territory." " What's a fenceline?" " Sam." "A big wall separating the good guys from the bad guys." " Teacher's pet." " Pfc. William Santiago threatens to rat on Dawson to Naval Investigative Service." "Dawson and another member of his squad Pfc. Louden Downey, go into Santiago's room tie him up, stuff a rag down his throat and an hour later, Santiago's dead." "Attending physician says the rag was treated with some kind of toxin." "They poisoned the rag?" " Not according to them." " What did they say?" "Not much." "They're being flown up here tomorrow and on Wednesday at 0600, you'll catch a transport down to Cuba for the day to find out what you can." "Meantime, go and see Lieutenant Commander JoAnne Galloway with Internal Affairs." "Any questions?" "Uh, the flight to Cuba- Was that 0600 in the morning, sir?" "Seems important to Division that this one be handled by the book." "So I'm assigning co-counsel." "Any volunteers?" "No." "Sir, I got a stack of papers on my desk about a mile high." " Work with Kaffee on this." " Doing what?" "Kaffee will have this done in about four days." "Doing various administrative things." "Backup, whatever." "In otherwords, I have no responsibilities here whatsoever." "Right." "My kind of case." "Right." "Right." "Okay, but I've got to have that report by Wednesday." " Hi." " Hold on." "Hi." "Daniel Kaffee." "I was told to me with, uh" "Lieutenant Commander Galloway." "About a briefing?" "I'll call you back." "You're the attorney Division assigned?" "I'm lead counsel." "This is Sam Weinberg." "I have no responsibilities here whatsoever." "Come in, please." "Have a seat." "Lieutenant, how long have you been in the Navy?" "Going on nine months now." "And how long have you been out of law school?" "A little over a year." "I see." "Have I done something wrong?" "No." "It's just that when I petition Division to have counsel assigned I was hoping I'd be taken seriously." "No offense taken, in case you were wondering." "Commander, Lieutenant Kaffee is generally considered the best litigator in our office." "He's successfully plea-bargained 44 cases in nine months." "One more, I get a set of steak knives." "Have you ever been in a courtroom?" "I once had my driver's license suspended." "Commander, from what I understand, if this thing goes to court they won't need a lawyer, they'll need a priest." "No, they'll need a lawyer." "Dawson's family's been contacted." "Downey's closest living relative is Ginny Miller, his aunt from his mother side." "She hasn't been contacted yet." "Would you like me to take care of that?" "Sure, if you feel like it." "One of the people you'll be seeing down there is the barracks C.O., Colonel Nathan Jessup." "I assume you've heard of him." "Who hasn't?" "He's been in the papers lately." "He's expected to be appointed director of operations of National Security Council." " Really?" " These are the letters that Santiago wrote in his eight months at Gitmo." " That's Guantanamo Bay." " I knew that one." "He wrote to the fleet commander Hq." "Atlanta to the commandant of the Marine Corps." "Even his senator." "He wanted to be transferred off the base." "No one was listening." "Are you with me?" "Yeah." "Finally, he wrote to the Naval Investigative Service where he offered information about Corporal Dawson's fenceline shooting in exchange for a transfer." "Right." "Is that all?" "Lieutenant, this letter makes it look like your client had a motive to kill Santiago." "Got you!" "And Santiago is...who?" "The victim." "Write that down." "Am I correct to assume these letters don't paint a flattering picture of Marine Corps life at Guantanamo Bay?" " Yes, among" " Am I further right in assuming investigation of this incident might embarrass the Security Council guy?" " Colonel Jessup" " Twelve years." "I'm sorry?" "I'll get them to drop the conspiracy and conduct unbecoming." "Twelve years." "You haven't talked to a witness or looked at a piece of paper." "Pretty impressive huh?" "You're gonna have to go deeper than that." "Commander, do you have some sort of jurisdiction here that I should know about?" "My job is to make sure that you do your job." "I'm special counsel for Internal Affairs so my jurisdiction's pretty much in your face." "Read the letters." "I'll expect your report when you return from Cuba." "Sure." "You're dismissed." "I always forget that part." "He's a little preoccupied." "Team's playing Bethesda Medical next week." "Tell your friend not to get cute down there." "The Marines in Guantanamo are fanatical." "About what?" "About being Marines." "Dear Sir my name is Pfc. William T. Santiago." "I'm a Marine stationed at Marine barracks Rifle Security Company Windward, Second Platoon Bravo." "I'm writing to inform you of my problems with my unit here in Cuba and to ask for your help." "I've fallen out on runs before for several reasons such as feeling dizzy or nauseated." "But on May 18, I'd fallen back about 20 or 30 yards going down a rocky unstable hill." "My sergeant grabbed me and pushed me down the hill." "Then I saw all black, and the last thing I remembered was hitting the deck." "I was brought to the hospital where I was told I just had heat exhaustion." "I ask you to help me." "Please, sir." "I just need to be transferred out of R.S.C." "Sincerely, Pfc. William T. Santiago U.S. Marine Corps." "P.S. In exchange for my transfer off the base I'm willing to provide you with information about "The illegal fenceline shooting that occurred the night of August 2."" "Who the fuck is Pfc. William T. Santiago?" "Private Santiago is a member of Second Platoon Bravo, sir." "Yeah." "Well, apparently he's not very happy down here in Shangri-la because he's written letters to everybody but Santa Claus asking for a transfer." "And now he's telling tales about a fenceline shooting." "I'm appalled, sir." "You're appalled." "This kid broke the chain of command and ratted on a member of his unit to say nothing of the fact that he is a U.S. Marine and it would appear he can't run from here to there without collapsing from heat exhaustion." "What the fuck is going on in Bravo Company, Matthew?" "Colonel, I think it would be better to hold this discussion in private." "That won't be necessary, Colonel." "I can handle the situation, sir." "The same way you handled Curtis Bell?" "Don't interrupt me, Lieutenant!" " I'm still your superior officer." " And I'm yours, Matthew." "I wanna know what we're going to do about this." "I think Santiago should be transferred off the base immediately." "He's that bad, huh?" "Not only that." "But word of this letter is bound to get out." "He's gonna get his ass whipped." "Transfer Santiago." "Yes." "I'm sure you're right." "I'm sure that's the thing to do." "Wait!" "I've got a better idea." "Let's transfer the whole squad off the base." "Let's" " On second thought, Windward" "Let's transfer the whole Windward Division off the base." "John, go on out there and get those boys down off the fence." "They're packing their bags." " Sir." " Get me the president on the phone." "We're surrendering our position in Cuba." " Yes, sir." " Wait a minute, Tom." "Don't get the president just yet." "Maybe we should consider this for a second." " Dismissed, Tom." " Yes, sir." "Maybe- and I'm just spit-balling here" "Maybe we have a responsibility as officers to train Santiago." "Maybe we as officers have a responsibility to this country to see that the men and women charged with its security are trained professionals." "Yes, I'm certain that I read that somewhere once." "And now I'm thinking, Colonel Markinson that your suggestion of transferring Santiago while expeditious and certainly painless might not be, in a manner of speaking the American way." "Santiago stays where he is." "We're gonna train the lad." "John, you're in charge." "Santiago doesn't make 4-6-4-6 on his next proficiency and conduct report and I'm going to blame you." " Then I'm going to kill you." " Yes, sir." "I think that's a mistake, Colonel." "Matthew, I think I will have that word in private with you now." "John, that's all." "Why don't we meet at the "O" club and have lunch and we'll talk about the training of young William?" "I'd be delighted to hear any suggestions that you might have sir." " Dismissed." " Yes, sir." "Matthew, sit down." "Please." "What do you think of Kendrick?" "I don't think my opinion of Kendrick has nothing to do" "I think he's pretty much of a weasel myself but he's an awfully good officer." "And in the end, we see eye-to-eye on the best way to run a Marine Corps unit." "We're in the business of saving lives, Matthew." "That is a responsibility that we have to take pretty seriously." "And I believe that taking a Marine who is not quite up to the job and shipping him off to another assignment puts lives in danger." "Sit down, Matthew." "We go back a while." "We went to the Academy together." "We were commissioned together." "We did our tours in Vietnam together." "But I've been promoted up through the chain with greater speed and success than you have." "Now, if that's a source of tension or embarrassment for you I don't give a shit." "We're in the business of saving lives, Lieutenant Colonel Markinson." "Don't ever question my orders in front of another officer." "All the paperwork's in order." " Step over there." " Yes, sir." "Hal, is this Washington, D.C.?" "All right." "Let's move." "Yes, sir." " Got all of that one." " Excuse me." "I wanted to talk to you about Corporal Dawson and Private Downey." " Say again?" " Dawson and Downey." "Those names sound like they should mean something to me" "Dawson, Downey...your clients." "The Cuba thing." "Yes!" "Dawson and Downey." "Right." "I've done something wrong again, haven't I?" "I was just wondering why two guys have been locked up since this morning while their lawyer's outside hitting a ball." "We need the practice." "That wasn't funny." "It was a little funny." "Lieutenant, would you be very insulted if I recommended to your supervisor that he assign different counsel?" " Why?" " I don't think you're fit to handle a defense." "You don't even know me." "Ordinarily, it takes someone hours to discover I'm not fit to handle a defense." "Oh, come on." "That was damn funny." "You're wrong." "I do know you." "Daniel Alistair Kaffee, born June 8, 1964 at Boston Mercy Hospital." "Your father's Lionel Kaffee former Navy judge advocate and attorney general of the United States." "Died 1985." "You went to Harvard law." "Then you joined the Navy probably because that's what your father wanted you to do." "And now you're just treading water for three years in the JAG Corps." "Just gonna laying low till you can get out and get a real job." "If that's the situation, that's fine." "I won't tell anyone." "But it's my feeling that if this case is handled in the same fast-food, slick-ass, Persian bazaar manner with which you seem to handle everything else then something's gonna get missed." "And I wouldn't be doing my job if I allowed Dawson and Downey to spend any more time in prison than absolutely necessary because their attorney had predetermined the path of least resistance." "I'm sexually aroused, Commander." "I don't think your clients murdered anyone." "What are you basing this on?" "There was no intent." "The doctor's report says Santiago died of a sphyxiation brought on by acute lactic acidosis and that the nature of the acidosis strongly suggests poison." "I don't know what any of that means, but it sounds pretty bad." "Santiago died at 1:00 a.m." "At 3:00, the doctor wasn't able to determine the cause of death." "Two hours later, he said it was a poison." "Oh, now I see what you're saying." "It had to be Professor Plum in the library with a candlestick." " I'm gonna talk to your supervisor." " Okay." "Go straight up Pennsylvania Avenue." "It's the big white house with the pillars in front." " Thank you." " I don't think you'll have much luck though." "I was assigned by Division." "Remember?" "Somebody over there thinks I'm a pretty good lawyer." "So while I appreciate your interest and admire your enthusiasm I think I can handle things myself." "You know what a Code Red is?" "What a pity!" " Morning, sir." " Morning." "Officer on deck!" "Ten-hut!" "Sir, Lance Corporal Harold W. Dawson, sir!" "Rifle Security Company Windward, Second Platoon Bravo." "Someone hasn't been working and playing well with others, Harold." "Sir, yes, sir!" "Sir, Pfc. Louden Downey, sir!" "I'm Daniel Kaffee." "This is Sam Weinberg." "Sit down." " This your signature?" " Yes, sir." "You don't have to call me "Sir." Is this your signature?" "Sir, yes, sir." "You certainly don't need to do it twice in one sentence." " What's a Code Red?" " Sir, Code Red is a disciplinary engagement." "What's that mean exactly?" "A Marine falls out of line, it's up to the men in his unit to get him on track." " What's a garden variety Code Red?" " Sir?" "Harold, you say, "Sir." and I turn around and look for my father." "Danny, Daniel, Kaffee." "Garden variety." "Typical." "What's basic Code Red?" "Sir, a Marine refuses to bathe on a regular basis the men in his squad will give him a G.I. shower." "What's that?" "Scrub brushes, Brillo pads, steel wool." "Beautiful." "Was the attack on Santiago a Code Red?" "Yes, sir." "Does he ever talk?" "Sir, Pfc. Downey will answer any direct questions you ask him." "Swell." "Private Downey, the rag you stuffed in Santiago's mouth" " Was there poison on it?" " No, sir." "Silver polish, turpentine, antifreeze?" "No, sir." "We were just gonna shave his head, sir." "When all of the sudden" "We saw blood dripping down his mouth and we pulled the tape off and there was blood all down his face, sir." "That's when Lance Corporal Dawson called the ambulance." "Did any one see you call the ambulance?" "No, sir." "Were you there when the ambulance got there?" "Yes, sir." "That's when we were taken under arrest." "Lance Corporal, the night of August 2, did you fire a shot across the fenceline into Cuba?" " Yes, sir." " Why?" " My mirror engaged, sir." " His mirror?" "Every American sentry post has a Cuban counterpart, called "mirrors."" "Lance Corporal's claiming that his mirror was about to fire at him." "Santiago's letter to the N.I.S said you fired illegally." "He's saying that the guy, the mirror" "He never made a move." "Oh, Harold!" "You see what I'm getting at?" "If Santiago didn't have anything on you, then why did you give him a Code Red?" "'Cause he broke the chain of command, sir." " He what?" " He went outside of his unit, sir." "If he had a problem, he should have spoken to me, sir." " Then his sergeant, then company commander" " Yeah." "All right." "All right." "Did you assault Santiago with the intent of killing him?" " No, sir." " What was your intent?" " To train him, sir." " Train him to do what?" "Train him to think of his unit before himself- to respect the code." "What's the code?" "Unit, Corps, God, Country." "I beg your pardon?" "Unit, Corps, God, Country, sir." "The government of the United States wants to charge you two with murder and you want me to go to the prosecutor with "Unit, Corps, God, Country"?" "That's our code, sir." "It's your code." "We'll be back." "You guys need anything- books, papers, cigarettes, ham sandwich?" "Sir, no, thank you, sir." "Harold, I think there's a concept you better start warming up to." "Sir?" "I'm the only friend you've got." " Daniel Kaffee." " Smiling Jack Ross." " Welcome to the big time." " You think so?" "Let's hope, for Dawson and Downey, you practice law better than play softball." "Unfortunately for Dawson and Downey, I don't do anything better than play softball." " I'm out of here, Janelle." " Bye." " See you when I get back from Cuba." " Say hi to Castro for me." "Will do." "What are we looking at?" "They plead guilty, we drop the conspiracy and conduct unbecoming." " Twenty years." "They're home in half." " I want twelve." " Can't do it." " They called the ambulance, Jack." "I don't care if they called the Avon lady." "They killed a Marine." "The rag was tested for poison." "The autopsy, lab reports." "They say the same thing:" "maybe, maybe not." "Chief of Internal Medicine at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Hospital says he's sure." "What do you know about Code Reds?" "Oh, man." " We off the record?" " Tell me." "I'm gonna give you the 12 years." "Before you go getting yourself into trouble tomorrow, I think you should know the platoon commander, Lieutenant Jonathan Kendrick held a meeting with the men and specifically told them not to touch Santiago." " We still playing hoops tomorrow?" " Do we have a deal?" "I'll talk to you when I get back." " Hi there." " Any luck getting me replaced?" "Is there anyone in this command you don't either drink or play ball with?" " Commander" " Listen." "I came to make peace." "Got off on the wrong foot." "What do you say?" "Friends?" "By the way, I brought Downey some comic books he was asking for." "The kid, Kaffee, I swear he doesn't know where he is." " Doesn't even know why he's arrested." " Commander." " You can call me JoAnne." " JoAnne." " Or Jo. - Jo." " Yes." "Jo, if you ever speak to a client of mine again without my permission I'll have you disbarred." " Friends?" " I had authorization." " From where?" " Downey's closest living relative." "Ginny Miller." "His aunt on his mother's side." "You got authorization from Aunt Ginny?" "I gave her a call like you asked." "Very nice woman." "We spoke for about an hour." "You got authorization from Aunt Ginny." "Perfectly within my province." "Does Aunt Ginny have a barn?" "We could hold the trial there." "I can sew the costumes." "Maybe his Uncle Goober can be the judge." "I'm going to Cuba with you tomorrow." "And the hits just keep on coming." " How's it going, Luther?" " Another day, another dollar, captain." " You gotta play them as they lay." " What goes around comes around." " Can't beat 'em, join 'em." " At least I got my health." "Well, then you got everything." "See you tomorrow, Luther." "Not if I see you first." "Now don't forget." "When Sally gets back, you're my witness." "The baby spoke." "My daughter said a word." "Your daughter made a sound, Sam." "I'm not sure it was a word." "Come on, now." "It was definitely a word." "Ok." "You heard her." "The girl sat here, pointed and said, "Pa."" "She did." "She said, "Pa."" "She was pointing at a mailbox, Sam." "That's right, pointing as if to say, "Pa, look." "A mailbox."" "Jack Ross came to see me today." "He offered me the 12 years." " Oh, that's what you wanted, right?" " I know, I know." "I mean, I guess I'll take it." "I'll take it." " So" " It took about 45 seconds." "He barely put up a fight." "Danny, take the 12 years." "It's a gift." "You don't believe their story, do you?" "You think they ought to go to jail for the rest of their lives." "I believe every word of their story and I think they ought to go to jail for the rest of their lives." " See you tomorrow." " Okay." "Don't forget to wear the whites." "Very hot down there." "I don't like the whites." "Nobody likes the whites, but we're going to Cuba." " You got Dramamine?" " Dramamine keeps you cool?" "No, Dramamine keeps you from throwing up." "You get sick when you fly." "I get sick when I fly because I'm afraid of crashing into a large mountain." "I don't think Dramamine will help." "I got some oregano." "I hear that works pretty good." "You know, Ross said the strangest thing to me right before I left." "He said the platoon commander Lieutenant Jonathan Kendrick had a meeting with the men and specifically told them not to touch Santiago." "So?" "I never mentioned Kendrick." "I don't even know who he is." "Ah, what the hell." "I'll see you tomorrow." "Lieutenants Kaffee and Weinberg, Commander Galloway." "I'm Corporal Barnes." "I'm to escort you to the windward side of the base." " Thank you." " I got some camouflage jackets in the Jeep." " Sir, I suggest you both put them on." " Camouflage jackets?" "Yes, sir." "We'll be riding pretty close to the fenceline." "The Cubans see an officer wearing white they think it might be someone they want to take a shot at." "Good call, Sam." "We'll just hop on the ferry." "We'll be there in no time." " Wait." "Hold on." "We gotta take a boat?" " Yes, sir." " To get to the other side of the bay." " Nobody said anything about a boat." " Is there a problem, sir?" " No, no problem." "Just not crazy about boats." "That's all." "Jesus Christ, Kaffee, you're in the Navy, for crying out loud." " Nobody likes her very much." " Yes, sir!" "Nathan Jessup." "Come on in." "Thank you, sir." "Daniel Kaffee." "I'm the attorney for Dawson and Downey." "This is Lieutenant Commander JoAnne Galloway." " Pleasure meeting you, Commander." " Observing and evaluating, sir." "Lieutenant Sam Weinberg." "He'll be assisting." " Sir." " This is my X.O., Colonel Markinson and platoon leader Lieutenant Kendrick." "I've asked them to join us." "Sit down, please." " Lieutenant Kaffee." " Colonel Markinson." "I had the pleasure of meeting your father once." "I was a teenager." "He spoke at my high school." "Lionel Kaffee?" " Yes, sir." " Well, what do you know?" "John, this man's dad once made a lot of enemies down in your neck of the woods." "Jefferson vs. Madison County School District." "Folks down there said a black girl couldn't go to an all-white school." "Lionel Kaffee said, "Well, we'll just see about that."" "How the hell is your dad, Danny?" "He passed away seven years ago, sir." "Don't I feel like the fuckin' asshole." "Not at all, sir." "Well, what can we do for you, Danny?" "Uh, not much, sir." "This is really a formality more than anything else." "JAG Corps insists that we interview all the relevant witnesses." "The JAG Corps can be demanding that way." "John will take you out and show you what you want to see." "After that we can all hook up for lunch." " How does that sound?" " Fine, sir." " Thank you." "I understand you had a meeting with your men that afternoon." " Yes, I did." " What did you guys talk about?" "I told the men that we had an informer among us and that despite any desire they might have to seek retribution Private Santiago was not to be harmed in anyway." " What time was that meeting?" " 1600." "That's four o'clock." "Sam, we should make sure somebody gets this to his parents." " We don't need it anymore." " Right." "Lieutenant Kendrick, may I call you John?" "No, you may not." "Have I done something to offend you?" "No, I like all you Navy boys." "Every time we gotta go someplace to fight, you fellas always give us a ride." "Lieutenant Kendrick, do you think Santiago was murdered?" "Commander, I believe in God and His Son Jesus Christ." "And because I do, I can say this:" "Private Santiago is dead, and that is a tragedy." "But he is dead because he had no code." "He is dead because he had no honor, and God was watching." "How do you feel about that theory?" "Sounds good." "Let's move on." "Are you planning on doing any investigating or are you just gonna take the guided tour?" "I'm pacing myself." "They were running around for three hours looking for anything white they could wave in the air." "Some of these people surrendered to a crew from CNN." "Well, walk softly and carry an armored tank division, I always say." " That was delicious." "Thank you." " My pleasure, sir." "Colonel, I do have to ask you a couple of questions about September 6." "Shoot." "On the morning of the sixth, you were contacted by an N.I.S. agent who said that Santiago tipped him off to an illegal fenceline shooting." " Yes." " Santiago is gonna reveal the person..." " ...namely in exchange for a transfer." " Yes." "If you feel there are any details that I'm missing you should feel free to speak up." "Thank you." "Now, at this point you called Lieutenant Colonel Markinson and Lieutenant Kendrick into your office." " Is that right?" " Yes." "What happened then?" "We agreed that, for his own safety, Santiago should be transferred off base." "Santiago was set to be transferred." "On the first available flight to the States 0600 the next morning." "Five hours too late, as it turned out." "Yeah." "All right." "That's all I have." "Thanks very much for your time." "Corporal's waiting with the Jeep for you." "He'll take you back to the flight line." " Thank you, sir." " Wait a minute." "I've got some questions." " No, you don't." " Yes, I do." " No, you don't." " Colonel, on the morning that Santiago died did you meet with Dr. Stone between 3:00 and 5:00?" "Of course I met with the doctor." "One of my men was dead." "See?" "The man was dead." "Let's go." "I'm just wondering if you've ever heard the term "Code Red."" "I've heard the term, yes." "This past February, Colonel, you received a cautionary memo from the commander-in-chief of the Atlantic fleet warning that the practice of enlisted men disciplining their own wasn't to be condoned by officers." "Well, I submit to you that whoever wrote that memo has never faced the working end of a Soviet-made Cuban AK-47 assault rifle." "However, the directive having come from the commander I gave it its due attention." " What is your point, Jo?" " She has no point." "She often has no point." "It's part of her charm." " We're out of here." "Thank you." " My point is I think Code Reds still go on down here." " Do Code Reds still happen here?" " Jo, the Colonel doesn't need to answer that." " Yes, he does." " No, he really doesn't." "Yeah, he really does." "Colonel?" "You know, it just hit me." "She out ranks you, Danny." " Yes, sir." " I wanna tell you something." "And listen up, 'cause I really mean this." "You're the luckiest man in the world." "There is nothing on this earth sexier- believe me, gentlemen than a woman that you have to salute in the morning." "Promote 'em all, I say, 'cause this is true:" "If you haven't gotten a blowjob from a superior officer well, you're just letting the best in life pass you by." "Colonel, the practice of Code Reds is still condoned by officers" "My problem is that I'm a colonel, so I'll go on taking cold showers until they elect some gal president." "I need an answer to my question, sir." "Take caution in your tone, Commander." "I'm a fair guy, but this fucking heat is making me absolutely crazy." "You wanna ask me about Code Reds?" "On the record I tell you I discourage the practice in accordance with the commander's directive." "Off the record, I tell you it is an invaluable part of close-infantry training." "And if it happens to go on without my knowledge, so be it." "I run my unit how I run my unit." "You wanna investigate me, roll the dice and take your chances." "I eat breakfast 300 yards from 4,000 Cubans who are trained to kill me." "So don't think for one second that you can come down here flash a badge and make me nervous." "Let's go." "Colonel, I'll just need a copy of Santiago's transfer order." "What's that?" "Santiago's transfer order." "You guys have paperwork on that kind of thing I just need it for the file." " For the file?" " Yeah." "Of course you can have a copy of the transfer order for the file, Danny." " I'm here to help in anyway I can." " Thank you." "You believe that, don't you, Danny, that I'm here to help you in anyway I can?" "Of course." "Corporal will take you by personnel on your way out to the flight line and you can have all the transfer orders that you want." " Let's go." " But you have to ask me nicely." "I beg your pardon?" "You have to ask me nicely." "You see, Danny, I can deal with the bullets and the bombs and the blood." "I don't want money, and I don't want medals." "What I do want is for you to stand there in that faggoty white uniform and with your Harvard mouth extend me some fucking courtesy." "You gotta ask me nicely." "Colonel Jessup, if it's not too much trouble I'd like a copy of the transfer order, sir." "No problem." "In the seventh." "San Diego leads." "Braves try to come back." "Runners don't go." "Hard drive right field." "We're gonna have a tied ball game." "It's on its way, and it is now 10 to 10." "And I don't believe it." " Who is it?" " It's me." "I really missed you." "I was just saying to mysel fit's been almost three hours" " Markinson's disappeared." " What?" "Colonel Markinson's gone U.A.- Unauthorized Absence." "I know what it means." "When?" "This afternoon." "Sometime after we left." " I'll try to find him in the morning." " I've already tried." "You tried?" "JoAnne, you're coming dangerously close to the textbook definition of interfering with a government investigation." "I'm Louden Downey's attorney." "Aunt Ginny." "She said she feels like she's known me for years." "So I suggested that she might feel more comfortable if I were directly involved with the case." "She had Louden sign the papers about an hour ago." "I suppose it's way too much to hope that you're making this up just to bother me." "Don't worry." "I'm not gonna make a motion for separation." " You're still lead counsel." " Splendid." "I think Kendrick ordered the Code Red, and so do you." "Let's go." "Sir!" "Officer on deck!" "Ten-hut!" " Did Kendrick order the Code Red?" " Sir?" "Don't say "Sir" like I just asked you if you cleaned the latrine." "You heard what I said." "Did Lieutenant Kendrick order you guys to give Santiago a Code Red?" "Yes, sir." " Did he?" " Yes, sir." "You mind telling me why the hell you never mentioned this before?" " You didn't ask us, sir." " That won't win you a place in my heart." "Corporal, I get paid no matter how much time you spend in jail." "Yes, sir." "I know you do, sir." " Fuck you, Harold!" " All right." "At ease." " Let's sort this thing out." " Shit!" "There was a platoon meeting on September 6 at 4:00 in the afternoon." "Lieutenant Kendrick says that he gave strict instructions that nothing was to happen to Santiago." "Now, is this true?" "I want you to speak freely." "Ma'am, that's correct but then he dismissed the platoon and we all went to our rooms." "And what happened then?" "Lieutenant Kendrick came to our room, ma'am." "When?" "About five minutes after the meeting broke, sir." "About 1620." "And what happened then?" "Lieutenant Kendrick ordered us to give Santiago a Code Red." "Hang on." "They were given an order." " Jack, come on." " Be right back." " What are you doin', Jack?" " Be right back." " How long did you know about the order?" " I didn't." "Who's this?" "That's Jo Galloway, Downey's lawyer." "She's very pleased to meet you." " What exactly are you accusing me of, Commander?" " How long did you know about the order?" "Jack didn't know about the order, 'cause if he did and hadn't told us Jack knows he'd be violating about 14 articles of the Code of Ethics." "He has enough to worry about God forbid our clients decide to plead not guilty and testify for the record that they were given an order." "Kendrick specifically told those men not to touch Santiago." "That's right." "And then he went into Dawson and Downey's room and specifically told them to give him a Code Red." " Kendrick said different." "Have proof?" " He's lying." "I have the defendants." "And I have 23 Marines who aren't accused of murder and a lieutenant with four letters of commendation." " Why did Markinson go U.A.?" " We'll never know." " You don't think I could subpoena him?" " You can try, but you won't find him." "You know what Markinson did for the first 17 of his 26 years in the Corps?" "Counter intelligence." "Markinson's gone." "There is no Markinson." "Look, Danny." "Jessup's star is on the rise." "Division will give me a lot of room on this one to spare Jessup and the Corps any embarrassment." "How much?" "I'll knock it down to involuntary manslaughter, two years, they're home in six months." "No deal." "We're going to court." " No, you're not." " Why not?" "'Cause you'll lose, and Danny knows it." "Danny knows if we do go to court, I'm gonna have to go all the way." "They're gonna be charged with a whole truckload- ...murder, conspiracy, conduct unbecoming." "Even though he's got me by the balls out here, Danny knows that in a courtroom, he loses this case." "Danny is an awfully talented lawyer." "He's not about to see his clients go to jail for life when he knows they can be home in six months." "That's the end of this negotiation." "I'll see you tomorrow morning at the arraignment." "All right." "Here's the story." "The government's offering involuntary manslaughter, two years." "Be home in six months." "Kaffee!" "You're the greatest lawyer in the world!" "Ooh, how can we ever thank you?" "Fellas, you hear what I just said?" "You're going home in six months." "I'm afraid we can't do that, sir." " Do what?" " Make a deal, sir." "What are you talking about?" "We did nothing wrong, sir." "We did our job and if that has consequences, then I'll accept them." "But I won't say that I'm guilty, sir." " Did you-Did she put you up to this?" " No." " We have a code, sir." " Oh, well, zip-a-dee-doo-dah!" "You and your code plead not guilty." "You'll be in jail the rest of your life." "Do what I'm telling you, you'll be home in six months." "Do it, Harold." "Six months." "It's nothing." "It's a hockey season." " Permission to" " Speak!" "Jesus!" " What do we do then, sir?" " When?" "After six months, we'll be dishonorably discharged, right, sir?" "Probably." "Well, what do we do then, sir?" "We joined the Marines because we wanted to live our lives by a certain code." "And we found it in the Corps." "Now you're asking us to sign a piece of paper that says we have no honor." "You're asking us to say we're not Marines." "If a court decides that what we did was wrong then I'll accept whatever punishment they give." "But I believe I was right, sir." "I believe I did my job and I will not dishonor myself, my unit or the Corps so that I can go home in six months sir." "Commander, I'd like to talk to Lance Corporal Dawson alone for a minute." "Please." "Sergeant!" "We're gonna go to another room." " We'd like another holding room." " All right, ma'am." " It's gonna be okay." " Sit down." "You don't like me very much, do you?" "Forget it." "Don't answer that." "It doesn't matter." "You know Downey worships you." "He's gonna do whatever you do." "Are you really gonna let this happen to him because of a code, Harold?" " Do you think we were right?" " It doesn't matter" " Do you think we were right?" " I think you'd lose." "You're such a coward." "I can't believe they let you wear a uniform." "I'm not gonna feel responsible for this, Harold." "I did everything I could." "You're going to Leavenworth for the better part of your life." "And you know what?" "I don't give a shit." "What happened to saluting an officer when he leaves the room?" "Open it up." "I don't believe it." "I don't believe it." "Dawson's gonna go to jail just to spite me." "Fine." "If he wants to jump off a cliff, that's his business." "I'm not gonna hold his hand on the way down." "I wanna get him a new lawyer." "How do I do it?" "Just make a motion tomorrow morning at the arraignment." "The judge will ask you if you want to enter a plea and you tell him that you want to have new counsel assigned." "That's that." "One thing, though." "When you ask the judge for new counsel Danny, be sure and ask nicely." " What do you want from me?" " I want you to let them be judged." "I want you to stand up and make an argument." "An argument that didn't work for Calley at My Lai." "An argument that didn't work for the Nazis at Nuremburg." "Oh, for Christ's sake, Sam." "Do you really think that's the same as two teenage Marines executing a routine order they never believed would result in harm?" "These guys aren't the Nazis." "Don't look now, Danny, but you're making an argument." "Yeah, yeah." "Tomorrow morning I get them a new attorney." "Why are you so afraid to be a lawyer?" "Were Daddy's expectations really that high?" "Oh, please." "Spare me the psycho-babble father bullshit!" "Dawson and Downey will have their day in court, but with another lawyer." "Another lawyer won't be good enough." "They need you." "You know how to win." "You know they have a case, and you know how to win." "If you walk away from this now, you've sealed their fate." "Their fate was sealed the moment Santiago died." "Do you believe they have a case?" "You and Dawson." "You both live in the same dream world." "It doesn't matter what I believe." "It only matters what I can prove." "So, please, don't tell me what I know and don't know!" "I know the law!" "You know nothing about the law." "You're a used car salesman, Daniel." "You're an ambulance chaser with a rank." "You're nothing." "Live with that." "So I told Duncan..." ""If you wanna take this to court I'm gonna file nine discovery motions and you're gonna spend a year going blind on paperwork because a 90-year-old man misread the Delaware insurance code."" " So what happened?" " He calls back 15 minutes later." "He says, "Let's make a deal."" "All rise." "Where are we?" "Docket number 411275VR-5." "The United States v. Lance Corporal Harold W. Dawson and Private First Class Louden Downey." "The accused are charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder and conduct unbecoming a United States Marine." "Does the defense wish to enter a plea?" "Yeah." "They're not guilty." "Enter a plea of not guilty for the accused." "We'll adjourn until 1000, three weeks from today at which time this general court-martial will reconvene." "Why does a lieutenant junior grade with ninth months' experience and a track record for plea bargaining get assigned a murder case?" "Would it be so that it never sees the inside of a courtroom?" "We'll work out of my apartment every night, 7:00." "Jo, before you come over night pick up a carton of legal pads, half a dozen boxes of red pens and half a dozen boxes black pens." "Sam, get a couple of desk lamps." "I need a preliminary medical profile." "Jo, we need all proficiency and conduct reports on Dawson, Downey and Santiago." "The only thing I have to eat is Yoo-hoo and Cocoa Puffs so if you want anything else, bring it with you." " Okay?" " Yeah." "So this is what a courtroom looks like." "Were you able to speak to your friend at the N.I.S.?" "Yeah." "She said if Markinson doesn't want to be found we're not gonna find him." "She said I could be Markinson, and you wouldn't know it."