"?" "Oh." "Hello?" "Uh, what time is it?" "Wait... wait." "Where are you?" "All right, all right." "Calm down." "I'll be right there." "Stark." "Let's go." "Thanks, Debbie." "I owe you one." "You can take her home, but I can't make a DUI go away." "You all right?" "Aside from the worst headache in the history of the world?" "Yeah." "Thanks for coming." "Where's your dad?" "I was too scared to call him." "He's going to kill me." "Well, can you blame him?" "Yeah, I know." "I messed up." "Yeah, you did." "But lucky for you, I have friends here." "You're released without bail." "What about my car?" "It's impounded." "Cost you two grand to get it back." "Oh, man." "Look, Julie, trust me." "The money's the least of it." "And this isn't something you can hide from your father." "Yeah, I know." "I just, um... need to figure out the right time to tell him." "Yeah." "Well..." "Good luck with that." "I'm usually sneaking out of hotels in the middle of the night." "Man, am I glad to see you." "Wish I could say the same." "It's 4:30 in the morning, Chris." "I know." "I know." "I'm sorry." "A little bit of a cliché, isn't it?" "Huh?" "Must've been a hell of a party." "Thanks for the invite." "I've got a problem." "Oh..." "God." "Her name's Heather Spaulding." "She's an intern at the firm." "She just..." "I-I think she OD'd." "Did you know her... personally?" "No, I wasn't sleeping with her." "It was a company party to celebrate the merger of Tessler and Brock." "I was headed home when I realized that I forgot my coat." "When I came back, I found her like that." "What are you doing?" "What the hell do you think I'm doing," "Chris?" "I'm calling the cops." "No, you can't." "The scandal will kill us." "I run a business management firm." "The biggest stars in Hollywood expect me to be watching their money." "Not throwing wild parties where young girls die." "(sighs):" "Look, Sebastian, everything that I have worked for is on the line." "You and I go back a long way." "I'm Julie's godfather." "And I'm a DA now, Chris." "Every second I stand in this room and I don't report this crime," "I'm committing a crime." "You swore that if I ever needed anything you'd be there for me." "Oh, Chris." "I need you now." ""On Julie's life." Remember?" "Take the stairwell." "Avoid the cameras and anybody who can ID you." "Keep your face hidden." "Go home." "Do not change your routine." "And you never came back for your coat." "Remember?" "Okay." "Yeah." "What about her?" "Housekeeping will find the body." "You need a lawyer." "You need an alibi." "Look, Sebastian, I'm..." "I'm sorry I dragged you into this." "You're the only person I could trust." "Chris?" "I was never here." "Capture:" "FRM@FadeOut Sync:" "FRM@LePetitPrince shake 116" "I'm talking about a cash advance on my credit card." "I'm 16." "Yeah, no, I understand." "Thank you very much." "Okay." "Bye." "Who's that?" "Uh, cell phone company." "I need more minutes." "I don't think it's humanly possible to talk on the phone more thayou already do." "(chuckles)" "So you went out late last night." "Everything okay?" "I certainly hope so." "Hey, Dad, can I... borrow the SUV?" "I left my car at Megan's." "Aren't you afraid you'll explode the ozone layer if you drive that thing?" "I'll risk it." "?" "The car stopped here." "Cops say the body was tossed over the edge." "Do we have an ID?" "Not yet." "But apparently her grandfather's some guy named Bonyadi." "Arthur Bonyadi?" "Yeah." "Arthur Bonyadi's a big mob enforcer from the east." "He started in Jersey and came out here." "You think he's going to want revenge?" "Nah, he mellowed out about ten years ago." "Of course, five bullets to the brain will do that to you." "So with a name like Bonyadi," "I'm surprised the vultures aren't circling, you know?" "Oh, maybe that's because she doesn't go by Bonyadi." "She goes by her mother's name, Spaulding." "Heather Spaulding." "Let me see this." "WOMAN (on phone):" "Good morning, La Marsien Hotel." "Yes, I'd like to, um..." "I'd like to have a late checkout on the penthouse please, and a "do not disturb" on it until then." "Certainly, sir." "Thank you." "Hey." "What's up?" "I need a favor off the books." "All right, talk to me." "I need you to get invisible." "I need you to find somebody you trust, work up the La Marsien penthouse, full forensics." "I take it this is "need to know"?" "More like "I wish I didn't know."" "Hey, why didn't we ever get together, Fran?" "I was married to your best friend, remember?" "I guess that could've been embarrassing." "But I'm divorced now." "And I know all the reasons why." "Hey!" "Sebastian, what'd you bring us?" "Oh, man, I'm busted, guys." "I'm sorry." "I thought you'd be in school." "It's travel day." "We never go to school on travel day." "Yeah." "Travel day?" "Yeah." "We're going to Italy." "Want to come?" "Uh, could you guys, uh, give us a minute?" "Hey." "I'll see at the Piazza Narvona." "(chuckling) Ciao." "?" "Travel day, huh?" "(sighs):" "Sebastian, I'm glad to see you." "It's all over the news." "So what, you figure this a great time to check out Tuscany?" "I'm doing what you said." "I'm sticking to my routine." "This trip has been planned for months." "Cancel it." "Yeah, okay." "If you think that's best." "Who moved the body?" "Honestly, I don't know." "Whoever killed Heather, must've come back for her." "This is the real thing, Chris." "I need you to level with me." "I swear on the lives of my children." "I never touched her." "Don't you believe me?" "Of course I do." "But you're a murder suspect." "And I'm an accessory after the fact." "And if we're not careful, we're gonna be sharing a prison cell for the next 30 years." "All right, I'll go to the police." "I'll tell them what I know." "I'll keep your name out of it." "No." "Hopefully we'll catch whoever did this, and I'll be able to keep your name out of it." "Hey." "Thanks, man." "Yeah." "Don't thank me yet." "What have we got?" "Heather Spaulding, aka Heather Bonyadi, 25," "UCLA business school, intern for Kilpatrick Chambers, money managers to the stars." "Last seen around 1:00 a.m. at a firm party at La Marsien." "Her body was spotted by joggers in the LA ravine around 7:00 a.m." "Anything off the autopsy?" "ME puts time of death between 3:00 and 3:30 a.m." "They found fresh semen, traces of Ecstasy and enough ketamine to get an elephant in the mood." "Ecstasy and ketaT2ne." "This is a date rape." "Cause of death?" "Asphyxiation due to overdose or suffocation." "Damage is nearly identical." "Same affect." "Should we reinterview witnesses at the party?" "Let the cops handle that." "Focus on the semen and the ketamine." "Even money-- they're from the same guy, and that guy is our killer." "Mr. Stafford, you were" "Heather Spaulding's immediate supervisor?" "I didn't really get a chance to know h." "But, uh... she seemed bright." "She worked hard." "Can you tell us anything about her personal life?" "I don't think she had a regular boyfriend." "At least, it didn't seem like that at the party." "What do you mean?" "Heather was getting pretty friendly with one of our clients." "We have strict rules about that sort of thing, but, uh..." "B is not the kind of guy who takes no for an answer." "Does B have a last name?" "Only if it didn't come from me." "Ladies." "Ben Melvin?" "I'm in the middle of a session." "We're from the DA's office." "We have a few questions about Heather Spaulding." "I already talked to the cops." "It'll just take a second." "Or longer if we have to go downtown." "Look..." "I barely even knew the girl." "So..." "You two weren't dating?" "Dating?" "We met at a party." "She dug the music." "You know how it goes." "So you don't mind submitting a DNA sample?" "Talk to my lawyer." "That's okay." "I got it." "Whoa, you can't do that." "Oh, I doubt a judge will have a problem with it." "Especially if your DNA matches the semen found inside of Heather." "Fine." "Yes." "Me and Heather, we went out a couple of times." "Yes... we hooked up." "But I never hurt her." "Did you hurt Rebecca Knight?" "How about, uh, Jill Stampler?" "Carrie Hall?" "Seems they all filed police reports against you for being a little rough." "Yeah?" "Well... those records are sealed." "You don't really like when women say "no" to you, do you, Ben?" "That's why you slipped Heather a shot of ketamine." "I'm done talking." "We'll see about that." "Let's go." "Whoa." "Ryan Stafford places Melvin with Heather at the party around 1:45, making him the last person to see her alive." "Yeah, Melvin does have a history of violence against women." "Exactly." "He pumps her full of Special "K," rapes her." "she's traumatized and ODs." "That's perfect for the cover of People Magazine, but with no other evidence of rape?" "The defense can argue she took Special "K" voluntarily to enhance sex." "Thank you." "This might help." "I checked into sexual assault complaints against our boy in the last three cities he's toured." "A young woman from San Jose, Evelyn Brown, says" "Melvin slipped her a roofie and raped her." "Jackpot." "Matching MO gets us a warrant for Ben Melvin's condo." "Mm-hmm." "Got the results from the hotel sweep." "And?" "Nothing unusual." "Hair fibers, loose items, bunch of mismatched prints." "Hmm." "We got something." "Definitely ketamine." "Still want me to run those prints?" "no ?" "Thank you so much for helping me, Megan." "No problem." "Gave me an excuse to blow of calculus." "Oh." "Probably the last time we're going to hang out for a long time because when my dad finds out I got arrested, he's going to ground me till college." "So don't tell him." "I have to go to court, Megan." "My dad knows every lawyer and judge in Los Angeles." "Which one of you is Sebastian Stark?" "Uh, that's my dad." "I can only release the car to the registered owner." "But it's my car." "Not according to the state of California." "Okay, look, here's the check for $2,000." "Can I..." "I..." "I please?" "I just need my car back." "Sorry." "Rules are rules." "Sir." "Um, we really need the car, so what if you take this $200, and we take the keys?" "It'll be just like my friend's dad was here the whole time." "Sorry." "I can't do it." "Chuck..." "Think you can." "Drive safe." "You have to let me pay you ck." "Forget it." "My mom keeps tons of cash in her dresser drawer." "(laughs):" "Oh, you steal from your mom?" "Well, it's not like she doesn't know." "I mean, our relationship is based on denial." "She doesn't know what I'm doing, then she doesn't have to deal with it." "You should give it a try." "Dr. Alvarez, can you compare the grade of ketamine in the defendant's home with the drug found in Heather Spaulding's bloodstream?" "Yes, the chemical makeup is identical." "Both samples came from the same batch." "Thank you, Doctor." "Doctor, your report stated there's a strong chance ketamine didn't kill Miss Spaulding." "Well, ketamine overdose often resembles suffocation." "Which may have been caused by something other than ketamine?" "Yes, but there's no evidence that..." "Thank you, Doctor." "Your Honor, we move for immediate dismissal." "On what grounds?" "Either the defendant smothered the victim, or he poisoned her." "Either way, she's just as dead." "Look, the search warrant was based solely on ketamine poisoning." "If the victim was suffocated, then there's a..." "Nice try, Mr. Harriston." "Ovruled." "Permission to call a witness." "Your Honor, this is a preliminary hearing." "I'll be happy to destroy your witnesses as soon as we get to trial." "Your pushing it, Mr. Harriston." "She has information directly relevant to this proceeding, Your Honor." "Ma'am, please rise." "State your name." "Oh, um, Brittany Forrest." "Your Honor..." "Your objection is noted, Mr. Stark." "Do you have anything pertinent to add to these proceedings?" "I dance at For Play Gentlemen's Club." "Ben was with me at the club the morning that girl got killed." "Do you have any proof of this?" "Yeah." "Around 1,200 bucks." "In singles." "I was with him from 3:00 to 6:00 a.m." "Your Honor, while I'm sure Brittany here is worth every penny, her credibility is clearly a matter for the jury to assess." "Agreed." "This case is held over for trial." "We're adjourned." "Did Harriston really think that he could get this dumped at prelim?" "Ha!" "It was worth a shot." "Melvin's got concert dates pending." "His label needs him out of jail." "Fortunately for us, Harriston kept his strategy." "They're going to try to put Ben somewhere else at the time of the murder." "Which means you get to hear the words you've always dreamed of" "I'm sending you to the strip club... and you." "You really have to admire the athleticism." "Please." "You know, you could never bring Madeleine to a place like this." "You kidding?" "I'd never get her out of here." "Hey, tell me-- how do you guys have a relationship and still work together?" "Easy." "We don't have a relationship." "We just have sex." "CASEY:" "Brittany!" "My lawyer told me not to talk to anyone." "Did your lawyer explain the penalty for perjury?" "Trust me, I'm familiar with the legal system, okay?" "We know you deposited $5,000 in your bank account this morning." "So either Ben Melvin is paying you off, or you had a really good night." "Now might be a good time to rethink your stement." "You know what?" "I got a table dance waiting." "I bet you do." "Ah!" "If it is one thing I hate, it's a stubborn stripper." "Hey, does our ticket have a time code?" "Yeah." "CASEY:" "The stamped ticket proves that Melvin didn't valet his car until 4:12 a.m., an hour later than Brittany the stripper stated." "He left the club at 5:47, his doorman puts him at home at 6:00 a.m., so he couldn't have dumped the body after the strip club." "But that also means that he had more than enough time between 3:00 and 4:00 to dump the body before he went to the club." "Okay." "You're welcome." "You want to tell me what's going on?" "I can't." "Are you jammed up?" "I need you to look into something." "Not till I get answers." "Are you involved in Heather Spaulding's death?" "No." "No?" "No." "Then why did I find your prints in the penthouse?" "Oh, man." "You're in the system off multiple contempt citations." "It's not what you think, Isaac." "Yeah, well, you know what I think?" "I think something went down at that party, which means you're withholding evidence in a murder case." "Or worse." "Get everybody over to my place." "I'm only going to tell this story once." "STARK:" "Ben Melvin couldn't have dumped Heather's body between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. because I was with Heather's body in the hotel suite at 4:30 a.m." "I'm sorry." "I was trying to help a friend." "RAINA:" "That's your explanation?" "You committed a felony to help a friend?" "Yeah, a friend who might have killed this girl?" "I know that Chris did not do this." "That's what trials are for." "Look, I admitted it." "I screwed up." "But I owe this guy in ways you can't imagine." "So why are you telling us now?" "Because I think you have a right to know." "If we don't turn you in, we're all accessories." "I understand that." "RAINA:" "If one of us had pulled this, you would fire us on the spot." "Instead you're asking us to break the law to keep you out of jail." "No, I'm not." "Matter of fact, as of this moment, you are all officially recused from the Spaulding case." "If I go down," "I go down alone." "Being recused does not let us off the hook." "We're still ethically obligated to report Stark." "CASEY:" "Whoa." "Let's think about this." "What is there to think about?" "Are you willing to throw away your career for him?" "Raina's right, Casey." "He's putting us in an impossible position." "Oh, he went on the line for a friend." "When I did that for my partner, Stark had my back." "He broke the damn law!" "CASEY:" "You're right." "But every one of us has messed up, and Stark's bailed us out." "No, I would never put him in this position." "None of us would." "He needs our help, and I say we give it to him." "I'm out." "Hold on." "Um..." "I don't know if I trust Stark." "But I respect what he does, and I don't think he'd let a killer walk." "Either we're all in this, or we're all out." "I'm in." "I could always go to med school." "It's up to you." "So the body was moved some time after 4:30." "Checked with hotel maintenance." "Elevators were down between 5:50 and 6:45." "You guys don't have to do this." "MADELEINE:" "You're right." "So appreciate it, and let's win." "Whoever moved Heather's body did so between 4:30 and 5:50 a.m." "Which brings us back to your pal Chris Chambers." "Yeah, maybe we missed a link between Chris and the victim." "Um, an affair, drugs?" "No." "No, if Chris is involved, there's only one reason-- money." "We've got to take a look at the firm's financial records." "We're never going to get a warrant." "We don't need a warrant." "I just need a computer." "RAINA:" "Are we in?" "I'm using Heather's previous searches as cover to access the database, but their spy ware's really good." "We're in." "I never doubted you." "Prepare to love me." "Hey, girl wants a little sweet talk first." "I know who moved the body." "Okay, that's pretty sweet." "After we ruled out Melvin," "I ran the credit cards of everybody at the party." "4:43 a.m., a large suitcase was purchased from a 24-hour store one block from the hotel." "It was charged on a credit card belonging to Ryan Stafford." "Heather's boss?" "You guys aren't going to believe this." "What's up?" "We got access to Heather Spaulding's computer." "Oh, okay, just make sure that our..." "You cut the crap!" "Heather found out that Stafford was embezzling millions from your company." "That's why she was killed." "Okay, I had no idea..." "Enough!" "You are protecting Stafford, and you're using me to do it!" "Listen to me." "I had no idea what Ryan was up to." "When I found out, I was..." "I was furious." "I confronted him." "He promised to pay back the money." "So you kept it quiet." "To keep up appearances?" "Embezzlement isn't exactly a big confidence-builder for big-money clients." "I thought everything would work out until" "Heather stumbled over Ryan's private account." "I didn't think he'd kill her." "You sold me out, Chris." "I'm sorry.I was desperate;" "I didn't know what else to do." "Here's a novel idea:" "tell the truth." "I wanted to, but I poured my life into that firm." "I couldn't watch it crumble because of one greedy punk." "So you lied to me?" "You put my entire career in jeopardy?" "Threw away 30 years of our friendship?" "Try to understand." "If this merger falls apart, the whole company goes down." "I've got nothing." "Franny, the kids." "You should have thought of that before you put a scumbag before your best friend." "You want to talk about friendship?" "Maybe you've forgotten how it felt hitting rock bottom." "It wasn't that long ago, pal." "Messy divorce." "Day-trading like you were in Vegas." "I could have gone to jail for backdating those stock certificates, but I did it anyway." "What'd you clear, three, four million?" "Just like that, you were square." "Your partners, your family." "No one ever knew how close you came." "You're here today because of me." "We scammed the system." "We played the angles." "But it stopped right at the water's edge." "You broke the cardinal rule, the only one that matters:" "never... cross your friends." "When this is over, we're even." "Then we're done." "Moments ago, the Heather Spalding murder case took a shocking turn." "Charges were dropped against singer Ben Melvin and filed against Ryan Stafford, a junior partner at Kilpatrick and Chambers." "A bad week turned worse for the firm when its big-money merger went belly-up as senior partner Christian Chambers agreed to testify." "Julie, Megan's here." "Thanks." "You got a package today, so I put it on your desk with the mail." "Hi." "In by 10:00?" "a.m. or p.m.?" "Cute." "CB They were taken on Ryan Stafford's cell phone." "Must have been hiding in the closet when I showed up." "W-We matched the CD to his computer." "He... he burned it the day of the murder." "I guess now would be the appropriate time to throw my ass out of the building." "If I fired you, would Stafford still release these photos?" "Probably." "(scoffs)" "You know, I always knew you'd bury this office and me along with it, but I figured it'd be jury tampering, maybe falsifying evidence." "I'm sorry, Jess." "I really am." "So why are you here?" "To warn you, in case the whole thing blows up..." "No, Sebastian, why are you here?" "I mean, God knows you don't need the money or the publicity." "I needed a fresh start." "Oh, please, you haven't changed." "You're still the guy cutting corners, playing fast and loose with the law." "That's not true." "Really?" "You didn't come to me until you were being blackmailed, till you had no other choice." "You just left this off-- lef- left me twisting in the wind." "So now I want an answer." "What the hell are you doing here?" "I used to get off on being the best lawyer in town." "I still do." "But it's different now." "Instead of it being about me, it's about the work." "When I come home in the evening and, uh," "I see my daughter, I talk about my day for the first time in my life I am proud of what I do." "All right, you want this job?" "You do whatever it takes to make this go away." "Want to give us a minute?" "Sebastian Stark." "Chris never stops talking about you." "Why did you do it, Ryan?" "I don't know what you mean." "I'm innocent." "So the blackmail is just for kicks?" "Should I talk into the microphone?" "I'm not wearing a microphone." "Pat me down if you want." "Well, I take it you got my little gift." "Sorry I didn't get your best side." "What do you want?" "Drop the charges." "I walk away with my freedom, my money, and my pictures." "Why not call a press conference and announce I'm on the take?" "Might attract less attention." "I'm open to suggestions." "If I do this... it's got to look like you outsmarted us and won." "Fine, as long as Chris never takes the stand." "In The People v. Ryan Stafford, defense motion to exclude evidence obtained from the victim's computer is denied." "Anything else, Ms. Preston?" "Yes, Your Honor." "It is our contention that Ben Melvin, not Mr. Stafford, is responsible for the death of Heather Spalding." "We therefore move to admit all of Mr. Melvin's prior bad acts that pertain to drug-related attacks on women." "Objection." "Prior bad acts are not admissible." "Prosecution has no objection, Your Honor." "You've got to be kidding me." "Is there an objection on the table?" "Yes." "No." "I'm sorry, Your Honor." "Ms. Troy has obviously forgotten the hierarchy." "The objection is withdrawn." "JUDGE:" "Very well." "Motion to admit Ben Melvin's prior bad acts is granted." "Thank you." "CASEY:" "Bringing Ben Melvin in is Stafford's only shot and Stark left the door wide open!" "He's throwing the case after we went to bat for him." "We need to turn Stark in before it's too late... for all of us." "CASEY:" "Oh, so this is funny?" "You are the man." "You know, that's true, but your performance:" "sheer brilliance." "I laughed, I cried." "Nah, I just got it like that." "Your fight in court was a scam?" "Well, there's no way we could keep Melvin's prior acts out..." "So you stage a fight so that Stafford would think you're throwing the case." "Not bad." "So how close were you guys to selling me out?" "Never doubted you once." "Uh-huh." "Where's Isaac?" "He's, uh, checking all the major courier services in LA." "Stafford used a messenger to deliver the photos to your house, so he'll probably use one to make them public." "Well, either way, Chris Chambers will be coming to my house tonight at 7:00 for prep." "If you put Chris Chambers on the stand before we locate those photos..." "We'll nail Ryan Stafford, but we'll all be looking for a different line of work." "Did anyone else know that Stafford was stealing from the company?" "No." "No, I wanted to keep it quiet." "I didn't want the scandal." "RAINA:" "But Heather Spalding found out?" "Yes." "Ryan tried to buy her silence, but the night of the party, she threatened to turn him in." "He killed her." "He had a bruise... here, when she grabbed his collar fighting back." "Yeah, thanks." "And when I got there, he was standing over Heather." "She was dead." "And that's when he asked me for my help." "No more questions." "So?" "How'd I do?" "Fine." "Pretty persuasive witness." "At least we'll go out with a win." "Ryan Stafford's going down." "Maybe not." "Just talked to Isaac." "He found the photos... but the guy at the courier service says it wasn't Ryan Stafford who dropped them off." "Sebastian." "I, uh came bearing gifts." "I took the liberty of taking the CD of me at the crime scene out." "How'd you figure it out?" "Courier service ID'd your photo." "You weren't supposed to keep digging." "(laughing):" "Actually," "I was digging out." "It's a natural reaction when someone's trying to bury you." "Come on, Sebastian, you know me." "Yeah, I thought I did, Chris." "I thought I knew you." "Ryan didn't struggle with Heather Spalding." "It was you, my friend." "Heather noticed something hinky with our cash flow." "Came to Ryan trying to score points, so we shined her on, thinking she'd go away." "But she kept digging." "And the night of the party," "Heather approached Ryan." "She was done with Ben Melvin, but she was still high as a kite, and it seemed she'd decided to "do the right thing" and blow the whistle." "By the time I got to the suite, Ryan was freaking out." "Heather was talking about notifying the SCC, the AG's office." "I couldn't let that happen." "So you killed her." "I don't suppose you'd look the other way for old times' sake?" "I'll tell you what." "If you confess, Chris," "I'll take the death penalty off the table." "For old times' sake." "That's tempting..." "but I think I'll pass." "In the 30 years that we've been friends," "I have never met anyone who loves what they do more than you." "Release those photos, you'll never practice law again." "You are a piece of work, pal." "Put me on the stand as your star witness all this goes away." "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "?" "...get Chambers later." "That's not right." "No." "It's as close as we're going to get." "JUDGE:" "Mr. Stark." "You're next witness." "The State calls Christian Chambers." "In the interest of full disclosure, what is the nature of our relationship?" "We've been friends for 30 years." "I'm godfather to your daughter, you were my best man." "Twice." "As senior partner at Kilpatrick Chambers, the defendant reports directly to you, is that correct?" "Yes." "Ryan was a protégé of mine." "Until I discovered that he was embezzling funds." "And did anyone else know about that?" "Yes." "Heather Spalding." "She found out about it, and she threatened to turn Ryan in." "Mr. Chambers, who killed Heather Spalding?" "Ryan Stafford." "He suffocated her with a pillow." "And how do you know this?" "Because I walked into the room moments after he killed her." "And he confessed what he'd done." "Objection!" "Hearsay." "Overruled." "Your Honor, we request a recess to confer with the prosecution." "The prosecution has no interest in talking with the defense counsel at this time." "Proceed." "Mr. Chambers, after Ryan Stafford confessed to you," "what did you do?" "I told him that I couldn't be involved." "And then-then I left." "I'll ask you again." "After you found Heather Spalding lying dead in that hotel room, what did you do?" "Like I said, I left." "Then how do you explain this?" "Your Honor, these photos were taken of me at the crime scene the night of the murder." "Photos that this witness is using in an attempt to blackmail the prosecutor's office." "I request they be entered as Exhibit "J."" "Quiet!" "Mr. Stark, can you authenticate these photos?" "No, sir, I cannot, but the defendant can." "(whispering):" "Yeah, I-I took those." "My client can provide proof of authenticity, Your Honor." "Very well." "Proceed, Mr. Stark." "After you found Heather Spalding dead in that hotel room, what did you do?" "I called you." "And for the record, when I arrived, the victim was dead at that time, correct?" "Yes, she was, but I..." "And you made an attempt to solicit my help to cover your tracks, did you not?" "Yes." "And is it or is it not true that you killed Heather Spalding not Mr. Stafford?" "JUDGE:" "Mr. Chambers, do not answer that question." "The witness has a right to avoid self-incrimination." "Then with all due respect, Your Honor, let him assert that right." "And I want you to think long and hard before you answer." "Because Ryan Stafford will accept a plea agreement on embezzlement." "And in return, he will testify against you on murder charges." "So I will ask you again, Mr. Chambers, did you kill Heather Spalding?" "I want to talk to my lawyer." "We're done." "Your Honor, the people move that murder charges against Ryan Stafford be dismissed, and in light of the material evidence, that Mr. Chambers be remanded in custody." "So ordered." "One last order of business." "Mr. Stark," "I hereby suspend your right to practice law pending an internal investigation of your actions." "This court stands adjourned." "(spectators exclaiming)" "I can't believe you did that." "I always wanted to commit career suicide in open court." "Hey, uh, you guys really stood by me when the chips were down." "I'm not going to forget about it." "Failure to report a felony is grounds for immediate disbarment and criminal investigation." "I understand." "I was prepared to pursue this course until Ms. Devlin informed me about the ongoing federal fraud investigation." "The investigation?" "I explained how the Treasury Department was unwilling to risk our investigation by allowing you to come forward unless it was absolutely necessary." "Well, you know how those treasury guys can be." "As I said earlier, because of his involvement in the federal probe," "Mr. Stark was unable to disclose his presence at the crime scene." "It was only when faced with a possible miscarriage of justice that he felt compelled to come forward." "It was the right thing to do." "It doesn't excuse your behavior." "But having worked on undercover narcotics operations as a prosecutor," "I understand your predicament." "I appreciate that." "You are hereby... reinstated." "Thank you, Your Honor." "I'm sorry." "Have we met?" "Luckily for you, there is an ongoing federal probe." "I have a friend at treasury, called in a favor." "I just can't believe you put yourself on the line like that." "You like me." "You really like me." "(laughing):" "Don't flatter yourself." "I did it to preserve the reputation of this office." "Yeah." "And as an added bonus, now I have something to hold over your head." "Well, I know I sound like a broken record, but I really am sorry." "I never meant to put you in the crosshairs, Jess." "I'm sorry." "Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to make it up to me." "I like the sound of that." "Hey, hell of a job running down Stafford's pictures." "Thanks." "Uh, look, a reporter's been asking about Julie's arrest." "I handled it, I just thought you should know." "Julie who?" "Uh..." "She didn't..." "she didn't tell you." "Tell me what?" "Uh, maybe you should talk to her." "Isaac." "Julie was arrested for DUI." "What?" "!" "She called me." "I got her out, but she promised she was going to tell you." "What were you thinking?" "!" "This is my daughter!" "I was just trying to help." "Help?" "What, by going behind my back?" "Wait a minute." "Hold on!" "Julie called me." "Yeah." "Yeah, that's exactly the problem." "Hi." "I saw Uncle Chris on the news." "Why would he do something like that?" "Sometimes people disappoint you." "I'm going to go to bed." "Thing is... if Uncle Chris had just leveled with me..." "I could have helped him." "But he didn't have the guts to admit he screwed up." "I love you." "I love you, too."