1 00:00:01,214 --> 00:00:03,164 In the criminal justice system, 2 00:00:03,220 --> 00:00:07,199 the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups, 3 00:00:07,266 --> 00:00:09,147 the police, who investigate crime, 4 00:00:09,205 --> 00:00:11,588 and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders. 5 00:00:11,646 --> 00:00:13,596 These are their stories. 6 00:00:14,622 --> 00:00:18,578 The gowns and the jewels and the food and the music... 7 00:00:18,634 --> 00:00:20,743 Patrika. 8 00:00:20,807 --> 00:00:22,813 I'll take my father up a cup of tea. 9 00:00:23,816 --> 00:00:27,100 An ice sculpture? Who could imagine horse and carriage? 10 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:29,703 A swan, eh? But horse? 11 00:00:29,768 --> 00:00:33,656 Ah! Please, also coaster. Of course. 12 00:00:33,714 --> 00:00:36,461 It was beautiful So beautiful. So beautiful. 13 00:00:36,522 --> 00:00:38,939 And... And gifts enough to fill a gymnasium. 14 00:00:39,966 --> 00:00:43,580 Ohhh. More candlesticks from her uncle. 15 00:00:43,643 --> 00:00:45,091 Bijan. 16 00:00:45,148 --> 00:00:47,258 Roya? Asher? 17 00:00:48,392 --> 00:00:51,003 He's not breathing! Hurry! Come up here! Come on! 18 00:00:52,972 --> 00:00:56,358 Name's Manoush Soleimani. Big cheese in the caviar racket. 19 00:00:56,416 --> 00:01:00,430 Soleimani. Sounds Italian. Caviar. It's probably Iranian. 20 00:01:00,495 --> 00:01:02,810 Persian. Whatever, he must have sold a lot of it. 21 00:01:02,869 --> 00:01:05,650 All those flowers, looks like somebody was expecting a funeral. 22 00:01:05,711 --> 00:01:08,664 They're from a wedding last night. We got a time of death? 23 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:12,004 Guy was so fresh, I half expected him to get up and have breakfast. 24 00:01:12,064 --> 00:01:14,675 No rigor, body temp same as you and me. 25 00:01:14,738 --> 00:01:16,744 He's dead, tops, an hour. 26 00:01:18,082 --> 00:01:20,533 There's no muss in there. What makes you think it's not natural causes? 27 00:01:20,590 --> 00:01:24,706 Can't say. Started my exam, the lady of the house threw a fit, told me to stop. 28 00:01:24,769 --> 00:01:29,193 That's when I sent for you. She wants me to release the body to the funeral home. 29 00:01:29,250 --> 00:01:32,898 - Is the D.O.A. the father of the bride? - The D.O.A. was the groom. 30 00:01:32,961 --> 00:01:36,917 Young bride, old groom, wedding night... maybe he died of a heart attack. 31 00:01:36,973 --> 00:01:39,254 Like my mother used to say, “Play with kids your own age." 32 00:01:39,314 --> 00:01:42,095 if the wife doesn't want us here, why are we here? The son does. 33 00:01:42,156 --> 00:01:44,664 He's sure there's been foul play, wants an autopsy. 34 00:01:44,730 --> 00:01:46,680 I forbid it! Who are you to forbid? 35 00:01:46,736 --> 00:01:50,384 Who are you to forbid? Family feud. My favorite. 36 00:01:50,448 --> 00:01:54,803 My husband was a private man in life. I will not let you disrespect him in death. 37 00:01:54,861 --> 00:01:56,811 Disrespect? There will be no autopsy. 38 00:01:56,867 --> 00:01:59,147 From someone who parades around like a Paris Hilton? 39 00:01:59,208 --> 00:02:01,249 Your father was a widower for many years, with many companions. 40 00:02:01,314 --> 00:02:04,632 I was the one he chose to take to the altar. I made him happy. 41 00:02:04,691 --> 00:02:07,576 You exploited him. Ben and Yasmin, stop arguing, please. 42 00:02:07,634 --> 00:02:11,214 - I do not have to answer to you. - You will have to answer about my father's death. Not just to me. 43 00:02:11,277 --> 00:02:15,393 - All right! Everybody calm down, all right? - We're gonna need to talk to all of you. 44 00:02:15,457 --> 00:02:17,600 Yeah, in neutral corners. 45 00:03:11,127 --> 00:03:14,582 It wasn't a heart attack. My father just had a perfect checkup. 46 00:03:14,638 --> 00:03:17,591 Pre-honeymoon. They were about to go on a Mediterranean cruise. 47 00:03:17,647 --> 00:03:20,258 Who called 911? I did. 48 00:03:20,322 --> 00:03:22,603 I took him a cup of tea. 49 00:03:22,662 --> 00:03:26,173 He wasn't, uh... He wasn't breathing. I called for help. 50 00:03:26,241 --> 00:03:31,793 Who else was in the house? Uh, Roya and Asher were in the dining room with Patrika. 51 00:03:31,857 --> 00:03:33,966 And Roya is? My sister. 52 00:03:34,031 --> 00:03:36,140 Asher is her husband, my brother-in-law. 53 00:03:36,204 --> 00:03:38,849 Patrika is the housekeeper. She's been with us forever. 54 00:03:38,913 --> 00:03:42,926 So where was his new wife? Not by his side. 55 00:03:42,991 --> 00:03:45,944 I went to look for her. She was nowhere in the house. 56 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:50,013 The ambulance was here by the time she strolled in. 57 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:53,625 You said she'd have to answer for your father's death. 58 00:03:53,691 --> 00:03:55,800 Detective, she's 25. 59 00:03:55,863 --> 00:04:00,014 My father was 68, and a very, very wealthy man. 60 00:04:01,816 --> 00:04:06,171 Ben knows better. A traditional Jewish funeral has to take place within 24 hours. 61 00:04:06,229 --> 00:04:09,444 Mrs. Soleimani, don't you want to know what happened to your husband? 62 00:04:09,506 --> 00:04:12,516 I know what happened. He died peacefully in his sleep. 63 00:04:12,582 --> 00:04:15,193 No one killed him. We don't need an autopsy. 64 00:04:15,256 --> 00:04:19,543 We can ask the M.E. to rush his exam, try to make that 24-hour deadline. 65 00:04:19,603 --> 00:04:23,559 Manny was a religious man. Our traditions meant everything to him. 66 00:04:23,616 --> 00:04:28,301 He would not have wanted to be handled, touched by outsiders... secular people. 67 00:04:28,363 --> 00:04:30,404 You called for the ambulance. The E.M.S. handled him. 68 00:04:30,470 --> 00:04:33,753 I did not call 911. I was not even here when they found him. 69 00:04:33,814 --> 00:04:37,598 Where were you? I went riding. What does it look like? 70 00:04:37,658 --> 00:04:40,669 A lot of women in this zip code run errands in those. 71 00:04:40,734 --> 00:04:42,877 I don't do errands. 72 00:04:42,941 --> 00:04:46,293 But you do go horseback riding the morning after you tie the knot? 73 00:04:46,351 --> 00:04:49,897 I did not know how much riding I would get to do on my honeymoon. 74 00:04:49,963 --> 00:04:52,608 What? You don't believe me? Mrs. Soleimani, 75 00:04:52,670 --> 00:04:57,094 your husband was found dead in his own bed the morning after he got married. 76 00:04:57,151 --> 00:05:00,139 “To a much younger woman," is what you're thinking. 77 00:05:00,194 --> 00:05:02,611 I wouldn't be doing my job if I wasn't. 78 00:05:05,009 --> 00:05:08,691 I can assure you he was quite alive before I left for the stables. 79 00:05:10,759 --> 00:05:12,801 The bride's a piece of work. Cool as a cucumber. 80 00:05:12,866 --> 00:05:15,716 If it was up to her, she'd have him buried by sundown... bye-bye evidence. 81 00:05:15,775 --> 00:05:19,663 Meanwhile, we're stuck. We can't get a warrant till you say that the death was a homicide. 82 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:22,171 Which I can't do, with the wife saying “No” to an autopsy. 83 00:05:22,228 --> 00:05:25,580 But you are an M.E. You don't need a warrant to investigate. 84 00:05:25,638 --> 00:05:29,594 You can freeze the scene and have your forensics guys process whatever you find. 85 00:05:29,650 --> 00:05:33,196 Yeah, I could. But it's not really my job, and she's gonna raise holy hell. 86 00:05:33,262 --> 00:05:36,043 Believe me, we'd rather do it ourselves, but we're in a bind here. 87 00:05:36,104 --> 00:05:38,281 - Can you help us out? - What about the autopsy? 88 00:05:38,343 --> 00:05:41,353 Just sit on the body and make sure it doesn't go anywhere... 89 00:05:41,420 --> 00:05:45,239 until the D.A.'s have a chance to ruin some judge's lovely spring Sunday. 90 00:05:49,411 --> 00:05:51,520 A Persian Jewish family, Your Honor. 91 00:05:51,583 --> 00:05:55,038 Yasmin Soleimani is asserting a religious objection to an autopsy. 92 00:05:55,095 --> 00:05:57,045 The medical examiner has the right, under the law, 93 00:05:57,101 --> 00:06:00,783 to perform an autopsy over a religious objection if there's a threat to public health. 94 00:06:00,845 --> 00:06:03,262 Which I presume this is not. Or in the face of a homicide. 95 00:06:03,320 --> 00:06:07,606 In the face of an apparent homicide. There's no apparent homicide here. 96 00:06:07,666 --> 00:06:09,742 No signs whatsoever of foul play or violence. 97 00:06:09,806 --> 00:06:12,816 We can't know that until an autopsy's performed 98 00:06:12,882 --> 00:06:16,599 Ben Soleimani doesn't think that his father died of natural causes. 99 00:06:16,660 --> 00:06:18,610 He wants a full investigation. 100 00:06:18,666 --> 00:06:22,451 The decision to perform an autopsy is Mrs. Soleimani's, as next of kin. 101 00:06:22,512 --> 00:06:24,518 Ms. Southerlyn, unless you bring me some evidence, 102 00:06:24,584 --> 00:06:27,001 I'm unwilling to overrule Mrs. Soleimani's objection. 103 00:06:27,059 --> 00:06:31,518 Your Honor, how can I provide you with evidence of foul play without an autopsy? 104 00:06:31,573 --> 00:06:34,024 I'm sorry, Ms. Southerlyn. I can't accommodate you. 105 00:06:37,223 --> 00:06:39,937 What if Mrs. Soleimani is not the next of kin? 106 00:06:39,998 --> 00:06:43,110 Judge, there were more than 400 people at the wedding... all witnesses. 107 00:06:43,175 --> 00:06:45,717 The wedding took place last night... Saturday. 108 00:06:45,783 --> 00:06:47,733 After Sabbath, around 10:00. 109 00:06:47,789 --> 00:06:49,966 Manny Soleimani died this morning... Sunday 110 00:06:50,029 --> 00:06:52,309 The county clerk's office doesn't open till tomorrow. 111 00:06:52,369 --> 00:06:55,151 They couldn't have possibly filed their marriage certificate yet. 112 00:06:55,211 --> 00:06:57,719 It's a hyper-technicality, Ms. Southerlyn... 113 00:06:57,786 --> 00:07:00,294 but a legitimate one. 114 00:07:00,361 --> 00:07:02,778 It is enough to dismiss the autopsy objection. 115 00:07:04,841 --> 00:07:07,851 Don't know if the marriage was a marriage, but his death was definitely a homicide. 116 00:07:07,917 --> 00:07:11,269 He was smothered. ls a butterfly gonna jump out at us? 117 00:07:11,327 --> 00:07:13,539 No, but there is lamb involved. 118 00:07:13,601 --> 00:07:17,055 First, look at this section of gum. The frenulum was ripped. 119 00:07:17,111 --> 00:07:21,067 When you're smothered, the reflex is to move your head from side to side, like this... 120 00:07:21,124 --> 00:07:23,905 What, the killer was too strong for him? Not necessarily. 121 00:07:23,966 --> 00:07:26,076 His last meal was lamb and lentils. 122 00:07:26,139 --> 00:07:29,593 Tox screen was positive for a benzodiazepine... Xanax. 123 00:07:29,650 --> 00:07:33,104 So what's up with the lamb? When you eat a fatty meat like lamb, 124 00:07:33,160 --> 00:07:36,775 the triglycerides potentiate the effects of the tranquilizer to make it much stronger. 125 00:07:36,839 --> 00:07:39,552 So, in English, he was weak as a kitten? 126 00:07:39,614 --> 00:07:43,228 Throw in a lot of alcohol at the wedding... It would have been child's play to smother him. 127 00:07:43,292 --> 00:07:46,746 We also found a hair on his torso. Oh, you saved the best for last? 128 00:07:46,802 --> 00:07:49,253 I don't want to get your hopes up. Until it's analyzed, 129 00:07:49,310 --> 00:07:51,590 all we know for sure is that it wasn't his. 130 00:07:51,650 --> 00:07:54,158 Looks like it's time to start checking alibis. 131 00:07:58,337 --> 00:08:01,119 Shame about Manny. He spent a lot of time here over the years. 132 00:08:01,180 --> 00:08:03,791 His daughter used to ride here as a teenager. 133 00:08:03,854 --> 00:08:05,804 When was the last time you saw him? 134 00:08:05,861 --> 00:08:07,811 He started coming back around last summer. 135 00:08:07,867 --> 00:08:10,820 Bought his fiancée an Arabian. Horses and girls. 136 00:08:10,876 --> 00:08:13,988 She was here yesterday. Saddled up around 9:30,10:00. 137 00:08:14,052 --> 00:08:17,438 How often does she ride? She goes riding most mornings. 138 00:08:17,496 --> 00:08:21,681 Weekends too? Don't really see her on the weekends, come to think of it. 139 00:08:21,742 --> 00:08:25,128 Excuse me. I've got a customer. 140 00:08:26,189 --> 00:08:29,940 All right, so if she doesn't usually ride on the weekends, the alibi could've been preplanned. 141 00:08:30,001 --> 00:08:32,886 Let's find out if her husband left her more than the horse. 142 00:08:34,214 --> 00:08:37,064 They got engaged. Manny opened an account for her. 143 00:08:37,123 --> 00:08:40,407 A million bucks, free and clear, after taxes. 144 00:08:40,466 --> 00:08:42,416 Pretty nice nest egg. 145 00:08:42,472 --> 00:08:45,014 The rest of his estate he left to his children: 146 00:08:45,080 --> 00:08:48,534 Two-thirds to his son, Ben, one-third to his daughter, Roya. 147 00:08:48,591 --> 00:08:51,203 What, did he love his son twice as much as he loved his daughter? 148 00:08:51,266 --> 00:08:55,451 That's their custom... the old Persian way. 149 00:08:55,513 --> 00:08:58,466 Besides, Roya's married. Her husband takes care of her. 150 00:08:58,521 --> 00:09:01,063 So he gave Yasmin a million bucks up front? 151 00:09:01,129 --> 00:09:03,079 Not that she needs Manny's money. 152 00:09:03,135 --> 00:09:05,085 Why? Because she's so gorgeous? 153 00:09:05,141 --> 00:09:07,923 Because she's so smart and because she has some of her own. 154 00:09:07,983 --> 00:09:11,096 Yasmin grew up in the caviar business too. 155 00:09:11,160 --> 00:09:13,543 Her Uncle Bijan... Manny's biggest competitor. 156 00:09:13,601 --> 00:09:16,554 Must've made for interesting pillow talk. 157 00:09:16,610 --> 00:09:20,030 So how close were Yasmin and this uncle? Close. 158 00:09:20,087 --> 00:09:24,134 Bijan brought Yasmin's family over from Iran after the ayatollahs took over. 159 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:27,312 The nice life she's led in America, she owes to him. 160 00:09:28,547 --> 00:09:30,827 Mr. Bijan is not here, not home. 161 00:09:30,886 --> 00:09:33,167 Where is he? We need to talk to him. 162 00:09:33,227 --> 00:09:35,177 Telephone call come. He go. 163 00:09:35,233 --> 00:09:38,346 Where did he go? J.F.K. 164 00:09:38,410 --> 00:09:40,017 J.F.K.? 165 00:09:40,081 --> 00:09:43,535 His business rival gets killed, he hops a plane? 166 00:09:43,593 --> 00:09:45,599 Thank you. 167 00:09:48,106 --> 00:09:51,891 We called Mr. Bylaw to come in and talk to us on a pre-text to take him into custody. 168 00:09:51,951 --> 00:09:53,901 For what? Smuggling caviar. 169 00:09:53,957 --> 00:09:56,739 Straight from the Caspian Sea. Black market caviar. 170 00:09:56,800 --> 00:09:59,912 Shipment we seized today... 400 kilos. 171 00:09:59,975 --> 00:10:01,925 1.4 million. 172 00:10:01,981 --> 00:10:05,596 Wow. So, Jimmy here can sniff out tins of caviar? 173 00:10:05,660 --> 00:10:08,944 There's no way to pack the eggs without breaking some, which leaves an oil residue. 174 00:10:09,003 --> 00:10:11,614 So what exactly was illegal about Bijan's caviar? 175 00:10:11,678 --> 00:10:15,293 Could be a number of things, like passing off cheap stuff as high-end product. 176 00:10:15,356 --> 00:10:20,145 In this case, we got a tip that Bijan's shipment came from sturgeon on the U.N.'s endangered species list. 177 00:10:20,204 --> 00:10:24,491 - So what happens to the caviar now? - We test the D.N.A. And if it's legit, he gets it back. 178 00:10:24,551 --> 00:10:28,473 And if it isn't? He goes to jail and the caviar down the drain. 179 00:10:28,530 --> 00:10:32,509 So where is this fish egg felon? We need to talk to him. 180 00:10:32,575 --> 00:10:35,528 - Sorry, he's already in the system. - You mean, your system? 181 00:10:35,584 --> 00:10:38,001 Afraid so. 182 00:10:38,059 --> 00:10:40,806 I expected you to come in with him. There's a flag on the play. 183 00:10:40,867 --> 00:10:44,983 We're waiting for the feds to analyze some caviar D.N.A. You gotta be kidding. 184 00:10:45,047 --> 00:10:49,870 Bijan's lawyer got a judge to order an independent test to prove that his caviar was legal. 185 00:10:49,928 --> 00:10:53,178 And meanwhile we can't talk to a homicide suspect? 186 00:10:53,239 --> 00:10:56,192 I don't think so. Find out where they're holding this guy. 187 00:10:56,248 --> 00:10:58,425 I'll get you in to see him. 188 00:11:02,266 --> 00:11:06,382 I went by the house to drop off silver candlesticks... a traditional gift. 189 00:11:06,445 --> 00:11:09,261 Which you just happened to bring over the morning Manny was murdered? 190 00:11:09,321 --> 00:11:11,271 I forgot to bring them to the wedding. 191 00:11:11,327 --> 00:11:14,075 So you dropped them off at the house personally? Why not send them? 192 00:11:14,136 --> 00:11:19,255 Why shouldn't I deliver them in person? Besides, I wanted to pay my respects. 193 00:11:19,318 --> 00:11:21,268 And did you? 194 00:11:21,324 --> 00:11:24,278 Manny was still asleep, and Yasmin had gone out. 195 00:11:24,334 --> 00:11:26,945 I said hello to Roya and Asher and left. 196 00:11:27,008 --> 00:11:29,323 We hear that you weren't on good terms with the Soleimanis. 197 00:11:29,382 --> 00:11:32,836 Yasmin may have married Manny, but I was still her uncle. 198 00:11:32,892 --> 00:11:34,807 And what's that supposed to mean? 199 00:11:34,865 --> 00:11:40,327 Manny and I carried on a fancy food fight, but it was not a bloodfeud. 200 00:11:40,383 --> 00:11:45,365 We both left Tehran in the late '50s as young men. We had much in common. 201 00:11:45,431 --> 00:11:48,418 We were in the same business. And how was business? 202 00:11:48,473 --> 00:11:51,255 Mine was good. His wasn't. 203 00:11:51,315 --> 00:11:53,891 So why not kill the competition? You corner the market. 204 00:11:53,957 --> 00:11:55,907 I was not destroying Manny's business. 205 00:11:55,963 --> 00:11:57,913 His big-shot son was... 206 00:11:57,969 --> 00:12:00,614 trying so hard to do things the modern way. 207 00:12:00,677 --> 00:12:02,627 He never had Manny's brains. 208 00:12:02,684 --> 00:12:06,366 You saying that Ben Soleimani was trying to put you out of business? 209 00:12:06,428 --> 00:12:08,674 Let me tell you something. 210 00:12:08,735 --> 00:12:13,250 If anyone was trying to kill the competition, it was Ben. 211 00:12:17,729 --> 00:12:20,215 Ben and Bijan were friendly competitors, 212 00:12:20,271 --> 00:12:24,557 until he had the gall to open a caviar store just a block from here. 213 00:12:24,618 --> 00:12:26,727 They became very bitter enemies. 214 00:12:26,790 --> 00:12:29,401 But he was invited to the wedding? Of course he was. 215 00:12:29,466 --> 00:12:31,575 Yasmin makes him family. 216 00:12:31,639 --> 00:12:35,595 But Bijan would have been invited no matter who Manny married. 217 00:12:37,155 --> 00:12:42,012 Even an enemy who is one of us is more a friend than any stranger. 218 00:12:43,006 --> 00:12:44,956 At this year's Iranian harvest 219 00:12:45,013 --> 00:12:50,633 we came across an excellent grade of caviar from the Persian sturgeon. 220 00:12:53,037 --> 00:12:54,987 Mmm. 221 00:12:55,043 --> 00:12:58,156 Crunchy, salty... I like it. 222 00:12:58,220 --> 00:13:02,335 You have good taste, Detective. It sells for $170 an ounce. 223 00:13:02,399 --> 00:13:04,349 I don't like it that much. 224 00:13:04,405 --> 00:13:06,982 So was the caviar keeping the company in the black? 225 00:13:07,047 --> 00:13:10,297 The company went from a profit of 20 million in '98... 226 00:13:10,357 --> 00:13:12,808 to a loss of 2 million last year. 227 00:13:12,865 --> 00:13:15,076 Somebody stealing? Never. 228 00:13:15,139 --> 00:13:17,419 Well, then somebody was spending it. 229 00:13:17,478 --> 00:13:20,158 The café, catalog, were all doing well, 230 00:13:20,220 --> 00:13:25,476 but we opened stores in places where people haven't developed a palate for our product. 231 00:13:25,537 --> 00:13:28,319 Whose idea was the expansion? 232 00:13:31,288 --> 00:13:33,705 If Ben was wrecking his father's business, he might have been worried... 233 00:13:33,762 --> 00:13:36,715 that the old man would take it away from him and leave it to the new wife. 234 00:13:36,771 --> 00:13:41,662 That actually takes the wife off the hook. She's got a million dollars, there's a pre-nup, and she's not even in the will. 235 00:13:41,719 --> 00:13:43,669 So she has no reason to kill him. 236 00:13:43,725 --> 00:13:45,675 The son made the call to 911? 237 00:13:45,731 --> 00:13:47,681 Yeah, but that could've been a smoke screen. 238 00:13:47,738 --> 00:13:50,691 Ben could have killed his father to keep control of the business. 239 00:13:50,747 --> 00:13:52,753 And throw the blame on Yasmin? 240 00:13:54,391 --> 00:13:57,037 I could have a lawyer here faster than you could pour a cup of coffee. 241 00:13:57,100 --> 00:13:59,050 Go ahead. Call him. I'll start pouring. 242 00:13:59,106 --> 00:14:02,560 I was the one who found my father. I tried to save him! 243 00:14:02,616 --> 00:14:06,732 Man, please. You called 911 to make us believe you were trying to save your father. 244 00:14:09,805 --> 00:14:11,811 All right. 245 00:14:16,325 --> 00:14:20,714 I went into his bedroom to say hello, like always. 246 00:14:20,771 --> 00:14:22,721 Yeah? 247 00:14:22,778 --> 00:14:27,395 He didn't respond. And he wasn't breathing. 248 00:14:27,459 --> 00:14:31,678 Well, unfortunately for you, you were there by yourself... no witnesses. 249 00:14:31,739 --> 00:14:35,159 It was already too late. He'd been murdered. Yasmin's got an alibi. You don't. 250 00:14:35,216 --> 00:14:40,735 Why would I kill my father? To keep control of the family business, which was failing, thanks to you. 251 00:14:40,800 --> 00:14:42,681 You were scared that Yasmin was gonna get the company. 252 00:14:42,739 --> 00:14:46,125 My father would never have done that. I am his son! 253 00:14:49,192 --> 00:14:54,311 Yo, Lennie, what you got? Oh, yeah? Fantastic. 254 00:14:56,548 --> 00:14:59,592 - We got the murder weapon. - Good. 255 00:14:59,657 --> 00:15:01,607 Maybe now you'll find whoever killed my father. 256 00:15:02,900 --> 00:15:05,750 Maybe we already have. 257 00:15:10,156 --> 00:15:15,549 Here's your murder weapon. Pillow contains goose down and D.N.A. from the victim... saliva. 258 00:15:15,606 --> 00:15:19,060 He was a drooler? Apparently only when being smothered. 259 00:15:19,116 --> 00:15:21,397 It's the only pillow in the house with traces of his saliva. 260 00:15:21,457 --> 00:15:23,908 You found that in his bedroom? His daughter's. 261 00:15:23,964 --> 00:15:26,245 Any trace evidence? Got a hair. 262 00:15:26,305 --> 00:15:28,917 It's a woman's... dyed, with a gray root. 263 00:15:28,980 --> 00:15:32,594 If it's got a root, we can get D.N.A., see if it matches the one we found on the body. 264 00:15:32,658 --> 00:15:35,270 I'm gonna call the lieu, see if she wants to handle this herself. 265 00:15:39,345 --> 00:15:42,457 It Is disrespectful She is sitting shivah. 266 00:15:42,522 --> 00:15:46,410 Sir, it's important to our investigation. 267 00:15:46,467 --> 00:15:49,420 Can't it wait? She's been through a lot We both have. 268 00:15:49,476 --> 00:15:51,757 Asher, it's all right. I'll talk to her. Come. 269 00:15:51,817 --> 00:15:53,892 Please sit down. 270 00:16:03,887 --> 00:16:07,307 Mrs. Koutal, when was the last time you were with your father? 271 00:16:08,534 --> 00:16:12,650 At the wedding. And were you with him at all the next morning? 272 00:16:12,714 --> 00:16:16,670 No. By the time I saw him, he was... 273 00:16:16,726 --> 00:16:18,174 already dead. 274 00:16:18,231 --> 00:16:20,237 Did you touch him? 275 00:16:21,741 --> 00:16:25,025 I could hardly look at him, 276 00:16:25,085 --> 00:16:27,297 let alone touch him. 277 00:16:27,359 --> 00:16:29,309 Now I wish I had. 278 00:16:30,769 --> 00:16:33,881 Did your father have a routine before he went to bed? 279 00:16:33,945 --> 00:16:37,901 He had a, uh, cigar and a brandy, 280 00:16:37,958 --> 00:16:39,908 and then a shower. 281 00:16:40,967 --> 00:16:45,983 A woman's hair was found on him Would you be willing to supply a D.N.A. sample? 282 00:16:47,319 --> 00:16:49,269 Of course. 283 00:16:49,326 --> 00:16:52,542 Do you know how his pillow got into your bedroom? 284 00:16:54,508 --> 00:16:57,586 No. No, I don't. 285 00:16:57,651 --> 00:17:00,935 His D.N.A. was on the pillow from his saliva. 286 00:17:02,131 --> 00:17:04,480 I don't understand. 287 00:17:05,541 --> 00:17:08,722 It was the pillow that was used to smother him. 288 00:17:13,332 --> 00:17:15,338 Oh, my God. 289 00:17:17,378 --> 00:17:20,331 - Oh, my God. - Roya, is everything alright? 290 00:17:20,387 --> 00:17:22,371 They think I killed him. 291 00:17:22,427 --> 00:17:24,673 Mrs. Koutal, please. That is not what I said. 292 00:17:24,734 --> 00:17:27,584 We are looking into your father's death. 293 00:17:27,643 --> 00:17:31,359 You're wrong. She was devoted to him. 294 00:17:31,420 --> 00:17:33,803 She loved him best of all. 295 00:17:39,913 --> 00:17:43,458 She seemed genuinely distressed and horrified. 296 00:17:43,524 --> 00:17:46,808 If I killed my father, I'd be distressed and horrified too. 297 00:17:46,868 --> 00:17:48,818 She kept talking about staying in the house. 298 00:17:48,874 --> 00:17:51,827 Is she entitled to? Well, that's a whole other question. 299 00:17:51,884 --> 00:17:54,164 Well, usually it goes to the wife. 300 00:17:54,223 --> 00:17:56,640 I'll find out if the townhouse is Yasmin's to keep. 301 00:17:56,697 --> 00:17:58,647 Okay. 302 00:17:58,704 --> 00:18:02,181 I gave the detectives the financials. 303 00:18:02,248 --> 00:18:06,204 What I need to know is who inherits the townhouse? Roya. 304 00:18:06,260 --> 00:18:09,373 What about the two-thirds custom? The son doesn't get a piece of the house? 305 00:18:09,437 --> 00:18:14,556 When Ben had his first child, Manny bought him an apartment of his own. 306 00:18:15,622 --> 00:18:18,575 And he didn't buy his daughter a place because she doesn't have a child? 307 00:18:18,632 --> 00:18:20,582 And because she always lived at home. 308 00:18:20,638 --> 00:18:23,089 Even after she got married? 309 00:18:23,145 --> 00:18:26,930 Manny was a widower, so Asher moved in. 310 00:18:26,991 --> 00:18:30,206 Manny was thrilled that Roya married a boy like that. 311 00:18:30,268 --> 00:18:32,218 Like what? 312 00:18:32,273 --> 00:18:36,127 Asher was raised in Iran. 313 00:18:36,185 --> 00:18:39,969 Came here in his 20s, just like Manny. 314 00:18:40,031 --> 00:18:44,249 Old school, traditional. Hard worker too. 315 00:18:44,310 --> 00:18:46,260 Manny took Asher into the family business? 316 00:18:46,317 --> 00:18:49,270 Asher was loyal, devoted, grateful for the job. 317 00:18:49,326 --> 00:18:52,940 He and Manny... cut from the same cloth. Manny loved him like a son. 318 00:18:53,003 --> 00:18:55,181 And Ben? Ben's a good son, 319 00:18:55,243 --> 00:18:58,960 but it's hard not to take for granted that which you have always known would be yours. 320 00:18:59,022 --> 00:19:02,476 We ran a title search and found out that Manny just closed on an apartment. 321 00:19:02,532 --> 00:19:04,516 Do you know why he bought it? No. 322 00:19:04,572 --> 00:19:07,252 But I do know where. On Park. 323 00:19:09,119 --> 00:19:13,007 The real estate agent offer anything? Just that the market's still strong. 324 00:19:13,065 --> 00:19:17,180 Did she know if Soleimani bought it for an investment or for some personal use? 325 00:19:17,244 --> 00:19:21,029 All she knows is that she's gonna get her commission either way. D.N.A. results come back? 326 00:19:21,089 --> 00:19:25,547 Yeah. The hair on the victim's body and the hair on the pillow both belong to Roya. 327 00:19:25,602 --> 00:19:28,053 I got something else. We ran her fingerprints. 328 00:19:28,110 --> 00:19:31,064 They're on file with Immigration. Because of the caviar business? 329 00:19:31,120 --> 00:19:33,070 No, the kid business. 330 00:19:33,126 --> 00:19:37,241 Over a year ago, she and her husband filed for foreign adoption... China. 331 00:19:37,305 --> 00:19:39,917 That was a long time ago, and they still don't have a kid. 332 00:19:41,016 --> 00:19:43,022 Let's look into it. 333 00:19:45,831 --> 00:19:49,946 I met with them in person several times... once at their house to do the home study 334 00:19:50,010 --> 00:19:52,462 Between the phone and e-mails, we were in touch every week. 335 00:19:52,518 --> 00:19:55,471 And they went through the entire process? Start to finish. 336 00:19:55,528 --> 00:19:57,478 And the paperwork is daunting. 337 00:19:57,534 --> 00:20:01,079 You try dealing with the city of New York, the state of New York, the federal government, 338 00:20:01,144 --> 00:20:04,827 Homeland Security and the People's Republic of China. 339 00:20:04,889 --> 00:20:06,998 You've really got to want it. And then what? 340 00:20:07,063 --> 00:20:09,514 I'm just a social worker, not a shrink. 341 00:20:09,571 --> 00:20:12,683 I called to say they'd been matched with a baby. 342 00:20:12,746 --> 00:20:15,231 I sent them a picture... an adorable little girl. 343 00:20:15,287 --> 00:20:19,403 You always carry your files with you? Just the active cases, 344 00:20:19,467 --> 00:20:21,884 so I can return calls after my boys go to bed. 345 00:20:21,941 --> 00:20:24,222 Parents waiting for a child call 24/7. 346 00:20:24,282 --> 00:20:26,459 Oh, wow. 347 00:20:26,522 --> 00:20:30,067 I couldn't resist this face, and I'm not even looking for another kid. 348 00:20:30,133 --> 00:20:33,747 They could. After looking at that picture for weeks, 349 00:20:33,811 --> 00:20:36,456 one day Roya calls and says, “I'm sorry.“ 350 00:20:36,519 --> 00:20:39,666 And her explanation? She was vague. 351 00:20:39,729 --> 00:20:44,118 It didn't add up... especially since they already had a travel date to get the baby. 352 00:20:46,583 --> 00:20:51,508 I live here more than 20 years. Only know how much Roya wanted child. 353 00:20:52,803 --> 00:20:54,912 How did Roya and Yasmin get along? 354 00:20:55,978 --> 00:20:59,661 You know, older daughter, younger wife. 355 00:21:00,827 --> 00:21:02,777 Before Yasmin, 356 00:21:02,833 --> 00:21:07,953 Roya and Asher would be with Mr. Soleimani hours and hours. 357 00:21:08,015 --> 00:21:10,296 Talk and laugh. Play cards. 358 00:21:10,356 --> 00:21:13,434 And after Yasmin came into his life? 359 00:21:14,870 --> 00:21:18,381 Not so much. He only have time for new woman. 360 00:21:18,447 --> 00:21:20,830 And Roya never had any children? 361 00:21:20,888 --> 00:21:25,141 That is why she want this little China girl so much. 362 00:21:26,137 --> 00:21:28,349 So when it didn't happen? 363 00:21:28,411 --> 00:21:30,760 She upset... a lot. 364 00:21:32,590 --> 00:21:34,802 Very moody all the time. Can't sleep. 365 00:21:34,864 --> 00:21:38,182 We know that she was taking tranquilizers. 366 00:21:38,241 --> 00:21:40,247 Was she seeking help anywhere? 367 00:21:44,393 --> 00:21:46,673 I saw Roya several times a week. 368 00:21:46,733 --> 00:21:49,082 Then you knew she wanted to adopt. Sure. 369 00:21:50,144 --> 00:21:52,185 What happened? Why didn't she go through with it? 370 00:21:52,251 --> 00:21:54,532 Out of respect for her father. 371 00:21:54,591 --> 00:21:56,871 Respect? How so? 372 00:21:56,931 --> 00:22:02,051 Manny emigrated here four decades ago, yet carried values from the past. 373 00:22:03,285 --> 00:22:07,241 He did not approve of adoption. That's old-fashioned, to put it mildly. 374 00:22:07,297 --> 00:22:11,412 It's hard for you to understand, because these are not your ways. 375 00:22:11,475 --> 00:22:15,090 If Roya disobeyed her father, she would have been ostracized. 376 00:22:15,154 --> 00:22:18,768 By the family? By the entire community. 377 00:22:18,831 --> 00:22:20,975 How was Asher with the adoption? 378 00:22:21,038 --> 00:22:24,288 Roya is first generation American, born here. 379 00:22:24,349 --> 00:22:29,468 Asher was born in Iran. He would never disrespect Manny's wishes. 380 00:22:29,530 --> 00:22:33,145 Probably, on some level, he even agreed with him about the adoption. 381 00:22:33,209 --> 00:22:37,689 When was the last time you saw Roya? Saturday, at services, then that night at the wedding. 382 00:22:37,756 --> 00:22:40,470 Was she still upset about giving up the baby? 383 00:22:40,531 --> 00:22:43,781 And how her relationship with her father would change. 384 00:22:43,841 --> 00:22:45,791 She didn't want a new stepmother? 385 00:22:45,847 --> 00:22:49,461 One who was even younger than she? Would you? 386 00:22:49,526 --> 00:22:52,273 She didn't want to relinquish her place with her father. 387 00:22:52,333 --> 00:22:54,283 And she certainly didn't want to leave the home. 388 00:22:54,340 --> 00:22:58,056 She was moving out of the townhouse? At her father's request. 389 00:22:58,118 --> 00:23:02,507 I tried to persuade her to see it as a positive change for herself and Asher. 390 00:23:02,565 --> 00:23:04,515 But she didn't? 391 00:23:04,572 --> 00:23:07,421 She was devastated. 392 00:23:07,481 --> 00:23:10,194 She didn't support her brother's request for an autopsy. 393 00:23:10,255 --> 00:23:13,037 She's the only one with a scrip for the tranquilizer. 394 00:23:13,097 --> 00:23:16,712 The murder weapon, the pillow he was smothered with, was found in her bed, 395 00:23:16,775 --> 00:23:19,226 and her hair was found on his body. 396 00:23:19,283 --> 00:23:21,392 Suggestive, but not definitive. 397 00:23:21,456 --> 00:23:24,068 She'd just given up a child she wanted desperately, 398 00:23:24,131 --> 00:23:26,582 only to have her father marry a younger woman... 399 00:23:26,639 --> 00:23:29,250 and kick her out of the house she'd lived in all of her life... 400 00:23:29,313 --> 00:23:32,563 after she took care of it and him since her mother's death. 401 00:23:32,623 --> 00:23:34,938 Jack, everything points to her. 402 00:23:34,997 --> 00:23:37,072 Why'd he want her out of the house now? 403 00:23:37,138 --> 00:23:40,991 To be alone with his new young wife... her rabbi said as much. 404 00:23:41,050 --> 00:23:43,592 Have the cops pick her up. 405 00:23:43,657 --> 00:23:46,576 Then work on getting a subpoena for the rabbi... 406 00:23:46,633 --> 00:23:48,674 to testify as a hostile witness. 407 00:23:49,675 --> 00:23:52,925 Roya Soleimani Koutal, you're under arrest for the murder of Manny Soleimani. 408 00:23:52,986 --> 00:23:55,095 My father? What are you saying? You cannot do this. 409 00:23:55,159 --> 00:23:57,439 You must stop. You're making a terrible mistake. She did not kill her father! 410 00:23:57,499 --> 00:23:59,950 Take it easy. I did not kill him! Let me go! 411 00:24:00,008 --> 00:24:02,117 Asher, please! I'll call Rothenberg. Don't worry. 412 00:24:02,180 --> 00:24:05,292 I'm not a monster! It'd be easier for us if you were. 413 00:24:05,357 --> 00:24:09,541 You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you in a court of law. 414 00:24:13,883 --> 00:24:16,164 Docket number 21118. 415 00:24:16,223 --> 00:24:18,834 People v. Roya Soleimani Koutal. 416 00:24:18,898 --> 00:24:21,179 Murder in the second degree. 417 00:24:21,238 --> 00:24:24,225 How does your client plead, Mr. Rothenberg? Not guilty, Your Honor. 418 00:24:24,281 --> 00:24:26,231 People on bail, Ms. Southerlyn? 419 00:24:26,288 --> 00:24:28,636 We ask for bail set at $2 million. 420 00:24:28,695 --> 00:24:30,371 No remand? No, Your Honor. 421 00:24:30,433 --> 00:24:33,386 Given her particularly strong ties to family and community, 422 00:24:33,442 --> 00:24:35,985 we don't see the defendant as a flight risk. 423 00:24:36,051 --> 00:24:38,798 Done. Bail is set at 2 million, cash or bond. 424 00:24:40,296 --> 00:24:43,181 We've known each other a long time, Jack. 425 00:24:43,239 --> 00:24:46,854 What do you want, Norman? Drop the charges. 426 00:24:46,917 --> 00:24:49,232 I talked to her doctors. 427 00:24:49,291 --> 00:24:52,369 She's more likely to harm herself than someone else. 428 00:24:52,434 --> 00:24:54,885 I'd like to hear that from the state's doctor. 429 00:24:56,279 --> 00:24:58,764 Let Skoda see her if you're that sure. 430 00:25:00,459 --> 00:25:02,740 Make the arrangements. 431 00:25:02,799 --> 00:25:08,591 Oh, there's also this... motion to dismiss the rabbi from testifying. 432 00:25:08,650 --> 00:25:12,127 His conversations with my client are privileged. 433 00:25:18,680 --> 00:25:21,462 Two people taking a stroll in the garden doesn't 't meet the standard 434 00:25:21,522 --> 00:25:26,140 Show us the confessional. Only practicing Catholics have expectation of privacy? 435 00:25:26,204 --> 00:25:30,319 In the absence of one, the congregant has no claim to an expectation of privacy. 436 00:25:30,383 --> 00:25:35,172 You don't need a physical structure for a conversation to be sacrosanct. 437 00:25:35,231 --> 00:25:38,846 Forget the physical structure, I'd settle for an intellectual concept. 438 00:25:38,909 --> 00:25:42,626 You just said it yourself. The rabbi and the defendant had a conversation, 439 00:25:42,688 --> 00:25:46,472 which is inherently devoid of any standing as privileged. 440 00:25:46,533 --> 00:25:49,486 You cannot compel a rabbi to testify... 441 00:25:49,542 --> 00:25:52,996 or he will be in violation of rabbinic doctrine. 442 00:25:53,052 --> 00:25:55,333 It's considered stealing... 443 00:25:55,393 --> 00:25:58,004 taking a sacred trust... 444 00:25:58,067 --> 00:26:00,679 and giving away that which is not the rabbi's to give. 445 00:26:00,743 --> 00:26:04,197 I'm a staunch advocate of the separation between church and state, 446 00:26:04,253 --> 00:26:07,936 and I've always taken the term “church” to include any house of worship. 447 00:26:10,940 --> 00:26:12,946 We lost the rabbi. 448 00:26:14,284 --> 00:26:17,396 How are we going to prove Roya knew her father wanted her out of the house? 449 00:26:18,463 --> 00:26:22,248 There must be someone he confided in outside the hothouse of his family. 450 00:26:22,308 --> 00:26:25,592 Could be the barber, his tailor, the massage therapist. 451 00:26:25,652 --> 00:26:28,502 I'll see if the cops came across anyone who fits the bill. 452 00:26:29,597 --> 00:26:34,112 Last summer, Manny started coming around to watch his fiancée ride. 453 00:26:34,178 --> 00:26:36,629 She'd ride, we'd talk. 454 00:26:36,686 --> 00:26:39,194 About his family? And mine. 455 00:26:40,531 --> 00:26:44,419 Did Manny ever talk to you about Roya and how she got along with Yasmin? 456 00:26:44,476 --> 00:26:49,299 Oh, yeah. He was worried about how the two of them would get on once they were under the same roof. 457 00:26:49,358 --> 00:26:53,941 Did you offer a point of view? just that two women in one house is one too many. 458 00:26:54,005 --> 00:26:57,961 My advice didn't matter though. Manny had already put a plan in action. 459 00:26:58,018 --> 00:27:02,977 What was that? Divide the territory. Put his daughter in a new house. 460 00:27:03,033 --> 00:27:06,317 He thought it was the right decision, but that didn't make it easy. 461 00:27:06,376 --> 00:27:09,157 Why not? 462 00:27:09,219 --> 00:27:13,334 Manny couldn't shake the guilt about what happened to Roya when she was still a teen. 463 00:27:13,397 --> 00:27:17,513 He pressured her to jump in the Hamptons competition. 464 00:27:17,577 --> 00:27:19,857 What happened? She took a fall, 465 00:27:19,918 --> 00:27:22,027 broke some bones. 466 00:27:22,091 --> 00:27:25,545 Manny said the worst of it only came out years later. 467 00:27:25,601 --> 00:27:27,551 Roya couldn't have kids. 468 00:27:31,787 --> 00:27:33,965 My mother had died. It was a bad time. 469 00:27:35,131 --> 00:27:38,848 It made me feel better to be of help to my father. 470 00:27:38,909 --> 00:27:40,893 How did you manage that? 471 00:27:40,949 --> 00:27:46,239 I ran the house. I hosted parties. I sat by his side. 472 00:27:46,298 --> 00:27:50,915 There must have been times when your needs didn't fit with his. 473 00:27:50,978 --> 00:27:55,835 Not really No. His needs were my needs. 474 00:27:55,894 --> 00:27:59,006 What about when you wanted to have a child? 475 00:27:59,070 --> 00:28:02,354 As Asher always says, “God gives with one hand." 476 00:28:02,414 --> 00:28:04,763 A child wasn't meant to be. 477 00:28:06,092 --> 00:28:08,098 Besides, I cared for my father. 478 00:28:08,165 --> 00:28:10,115 I was loved by my husband. 479 00:28:10,171 --> 00:28:15,655 I was an aunt to my brother's children. I had a good life. 480 00:28:15,721 --> 00:28:20,646 But you gave up your own chance to be a mother, to adopt. 481 00:28:24,381 --> 00:28:27,391 When did you tell your father about the adoption? 482 00:28:30,567 --> 00:28:35,287 I didn't want to tell him until the papers were ready to be signed. 483 00:28:36,384 --> 00:28:39,530 But he found out? 484 00:28:39,594 --> 00:28:43,379 He accused me of keeping a secret, when... 485 00:28:44,943 --> 00:28:49,298 I... I wanted to make him a surprise. 486 00:28:49,358 --> 00:28:51,638 Were you shocked by his reaction? 487 00:28:51,697 --> 00:28:53,909 He knew how important it was to me, 488 00:28:56,512 --> 00:28:58,518 but he said, 489 00:28:58,586 --> 00:29:03,374 he would never let someone else's bastard become his grandchild... 490 00:29:03,433 --> 00:29:05,942 that it would tarnish his image. 491 00:29:08,749 --> 00:29:10,733 You had choices. 492 00:29:10,790 --> 00:29:13,001 You could have left his home. You're not a child. 493 00:29:13,063 --> 00:29:15,571 I had no choice. 494 00:29:15,638 --> 00:29:19,422 If I had adopted that baby, I would have been out of our home and his life. 495 00:29:19,482 --> 00:29:21,592 My father would have seen to it. 496 00:29:24,398 --> 00:29:28,787 She thought she'd have his blessing. Instead, her father spit on the idea of adoption. 497 00:29:28,845 --> 00:29:31,524 She must have been aware of his feelings on that subject. 498 00:29:32,522 --> 00:29:34,528 She'd let herself believe that he'd swallow his pride... 499 00:29:34,596 --> 00:29:37,480 and allow her to be happy with a baby. 500 00:29:37,538 --> 00:29:39,544 Where was the husband in this mix? 501 00:29:40,547 --> 00:29:44,469 Mostly on the father's side. Seems they were both more “Old World." 502 00:29:44,526 --> 00:29:47,638 Do you think she was capable of killing her father? 503 00:29:47,702 --> 00:29:50,347 They had an unspoken covenant... 504 00:29:50,410 --> 00:29:52,485 functioned like a married couple. 505 00:29:52,550 --> 00:29:56,701 Hard as it may have been to give up the child, she chose her father. 506 00:29:56,763 --> 00:29:58,804 And when he told her to leave anyway? 507 00:29:58,869 --> 00:30:04,193 She was as angry as any wife being replaced- especially by a younger woman. 508 00:30:08,967 --> 00:30:12,011 Each room was searched with a high-intensity light source... 509 00:30:12,077 --> 00:30:15,257 blood, semen, saliva. 510 00:30:15,319 --> 00:30:17,269 How did you identify the murder weapon? 511 00:30:17,326 --> 00:30:22,115 We knew from the autopsy report that the decedent was smothered... most likely a soft object. 512 00:30:22,174 --> 00:30:25,127 We identified the pillow used by his D.N.A. on saliva. 513 00:30:25,184 --> 00:30:27,429 Could you tell us where the pillow was hidden? 514 00:30:27,490 --> 00:30:29,440 - Objection. - Sustained 515 00:30:29,496 --> 00:30:33,213 Rephrase. Where did you find the pillow? 516 00:30:33,274 --> 00:30:36,284 It was recovered from the defendant's bed. 517 00:30:38,557 --> 00:30:42,776 When the pillow was recovered from the defendant's bedroom, 518 00:30:42,837 --> 00:30:44,787 was it inside a drawer? 519 00:30:44,843 --> 00:30:46,291 No, sir. 520 00:30:46,348 --> 00:30:47,830 Was it inside a closet? Jo. 521 00:30:47,886 --> 00:30:49,836 - Was it under the bed? - No. 522 00:30:49,892 --> 00:30:52,811 In fact, wasn't it on top of the bed? Yes. 523 00:30:52,868 --> 00:30:55,216 So the pillow wasn't hidden. It was in plain sight. 524 00:30:55,275 --> 00:30:57,225 Hidden in plain sight. 525 00:30:57,282 --> 00:30:59,232 Except for a tiny scalloped edge, 526 00:30:59,288 --> 00:31:03,176 the victim's and the defendant's pillows look exactly the same. 527 00:31:03,233 --> 00:31:05,239 Thank you. 528 00:31:09,218 --> 00:31:11,932 For 20 years, she functioned as his surrogate wife. 529 00:31:12,929 --> 00:31:16,885 Until her father replaced her with a real wife... 530 00:31:17,878 --> 00:31:19,884 a younger woman. 531 00:31:19,950 --> 00:31:22,960 And after sacrificing her chance to become a mother, 532 00:31:23,027 --> 00:31:26,983 he hit her with the psychological equivalent of a one-two punch. 533 00:31:27,039 --> 00:31:30,083 Why did she stop the adoption and give up the baby? 534 00:31:30,148 --> 00:31:34,766 She was under the rule of a patriarchal culture and a controlling father. 535 00:31:34,829 --> 00:31:39,116 In your opinion, was she capable of taking her father's life? 536 00:31:39,176 --> 00:31:41,285 She was full of rage for her father. 537 00:31:41,349 --> 00:31:46,810 That state of mind is psychologically dispositive toward an act of violence. 538 00:31:50,242 --> 00:31:54,256 You conclude this based on your snapshot? 539 00:31:54,322 --> 00:31:58,939 What did you spend with her? Two, maybe three hours? 540 00:31:59,003 --> 00:32:01,887 A psychological snapshot. 541 00:32:01,946 --> 00:32:06,061 - And your specialty is Persian women? - No, but my back... 542 00:32:06,125 --> 00:32:08,406 Well, how about... how about just Persians? 543 00:32:08,465 --> 00:32:11,076 Their cultural norms? No. 544 00:32:11,140 --> 00:32:14,492 But you would agree that culture... 545 00:32:14,550 --> 00:32:18,507 and the father that you talk about... 546 00:32:18,563 --> 00:32:23,750 did instill in Mrs. Koutal a strict code of conduct? 547 00:32:23,812 --> 00:32:26,457 Yes. 548 00:32:26,520 --> 00:32:29,701 With prescribed behaviors for everything, 549 00:32:29,764 --> 00:32:35,350 from dietary laws to appropriate dinner attire. 550 00:32:35,414 --> 00:32:37,398 Yes. 551 00:32:37,454 --> 00:32:42,003 And she would have learned these values, traditions, behaviors. 552 00:32:42,068 --> 00:32:44,349 when she was very young? 553 00:32:44,408 --> 00:32:46,723 I would assume so. 554 00:32:46,782 --> 00:32:52,243 Now, if she was so devoted to her father and to the traditional ways, 555 00:32:52,299 --> 00:32:56,883 how could she possibly have tossed that all aside to commit an act of murder? 556 00:32:56,947 --> 00:33:02,567 She believed he'd pushed her too far, caused her to suffer too many losses, 557 00:33:02,630 --> 00:33:04,580 left her no choices. 558 00:33:04,636 --> 00:33:09,926 If she ever were to behave in a violent manner, 559 00:33:09,986 --> 00:33:13,771 isn't it more likely, given her background, 560 00:33:13,831 --> 00:33:18,255 that she would have committed suicide, not homicide? 561 00:33:18,312 --> 00:33:20,262 It's possible, but... 562 00:33:20,318 --> 00:33:23,464 she suffers from anxiety, not depression. 563 00:33:23,527 --> 00:33:26,640 She doesn't blame herself for any loss. 564 00:33:26,704 --> 00:33:28,710 She blames her father. 565 00:33:32,990 --> 00:33:37,345 So you befriended your father's then fiancée, Yasmin? 566 00:33:37,404 --> 00:33:39,719 Of course. I knew her well. 567 00:33:39,778 --> 00:33:42,559 Were you upset that he was marrying her? 568 00:33:42,620 --> 00:33:45,128 Change is always hard, 569 00:33:45,194 --> 00:33:49,173 but I wanted to see my father content. 570 00:33:49,239 --> 00:33:53,161 So there was no problem contemplating living under one roof with his new wife? 571 00:33:53,218 --> 00:33:55,761 It is a large roof, 572 00:33:55,827 --> 00:34:00,342 and we were to be one family, she and I, living like sisters. 573 00:34:00,407 --> 00:34:03,087 I planned her bridal shower. 574 00:34:03,149 --> 00:34:06,193 I helped with her registry. 575 00:34:06,258 --> 00:34:08,264 Thank you. 576 00:34:10,371 --> 00:34:14,019 Living like two sisters vying for their father's attention. 577 00:34:14,082 --> 00:34:16,728 Not at all. 578 00:34:17,960 --> 00:34:21,575 People's exhibit eight, Your Honor. Proceed Mr. McCoy 579 00:34:21,639 --> 00:34:26,655 Mrs. Koutal, could you tell the court what document you're holding? 580 00:34:28,158 --> 00:34:30,770 It is a plane ticket. 581 00:34:30,833 --> 00:34:33,284 Where were you traveling? China. 582 00:34:33,341 --> 00:34:36,123 To pick up the child you were planning to adopt? 583 00:34:37,520 --> 00:34:39,664 Yes. 584 00:34:39,727 --> 00:34:42,714 Exhibit nine, Your Honor. Go ahead Mr. McCoy 585 00:34:46,648 --> 00:34:48,654 Is this the child? 586 00:34:53,001 --> 00:34:56,455 Yes. Who you were planning to name after your mother, Dora? 587 00:35:00,858 --> 00:35:02,808 Yes. 588 00:35:02,865 --> 00:35:05,818 Were you angry at your father when he forced you to choose... 589 00:35:05,874 --> 00:35:09,624 between being a mother to this child and a daughter to him? 590 00:35:09,686 --> 00:35:13,402 I gave up the baby willingly. I wanted to keep my father happy. 591 00:35:13,463 --> 00:35:15,469 You had tickets for China, 592 00:35:16,473 --> 00:35:20,828 chose a name for the baby, chose a pediatrician, 593 00:35:20,886 --> 00:35:22,870 ordered baby furniture, 594 00:35:24,497 --> 00:35:28,510 and then gave all that up to make him happy. 595 00:35:28,576 --> 00:35:31,894 It was my choice to abide by his wishes. 596 00:35:31,953 --> 00:35:37,506 Isn't it a fact, that your father was evicting you and your husband from the family home? 597 00:35:37,570 --> 00:35:40,249 Don't you say that he was evicting me. 598 00:35:40,313 --> 00:35:45,602 But it is the truth not some fiction like you and Yasmin being friends. 599 00:35:45,662 --> 00:35:49,013 He cared more about her wishes than he did about yours. 600 00:35:49,073 --> 00:35:54,693 Didn't he want you out of his house before he returned from his honeymoon? 601 00:35:54,756 --> 00:35:58,233 I did everything my father asked of me. 602 00:35:58,301 --> 00:36:03,260 Yes, I wanted a baby, but he said I should be content to be an aunt. 603 00:36:03,316 --> 00:36:06,600 He said that he was planning on having more children with Yasmin. 604 00:36:06,660 --> 00:36:09,441 That was the reason he wanted me to leave the house... 605 00:36:09,502 --> 00:36:14,187 a home that I had made for him since I was a young woman. 606 00:36:15,586 --> 00:36:17,661 Nothing further. 607 00:36:20,702 --> 00:36:22,686 Putting her on the stand didn't help the defense. 608 00:36:22,742 --> 00:36:26,094 What the jury saw was an angry, damaged woman. 609 00:36:26,152 --> 00:36:29,504 Guess Rothenberg bet wrong. We just heard from him. 610 00:36:29,563 --> 00:36:31,844 Trying to cut a deal, cut his losses? 611 00:36:31,903 --> 00:36:34,354 Asher Koutal is going to testify. 612 00:36:34,411 --> 00:36:38,196 Last-ditch effort... rehabilitate his wife's testimony, offer an alibi. 613 00:36:38,256 --> 00:36:41,676 The jury will see that for what it is... a husband lying for his wife. 614 00:36:43,606 --> 00:36:48,030 Where was Roya between 9:00 and 11:00 on the morning of Mr. Soleimani's death? 615 00:36:48,086 --> 00:36:53,479 Like every Sunday morning, she was at home in our bedroom with me. 616 00:36:53,535 --> 00:36:55,576 How can you be quite so certain? 617 00:36:55,642 --> 00:36:57,718 It is our routine. 618 00:36:57,782 --> 00:37:01,863 We watch the news, read the paper, have bagels in bed 619 00:37:03,265 --> 00:37:05,945 And Roya never left your side? 620 00:37:14,232 --> 00:37:16,717 Mr. Koutal? 621 00:37:18,478 --> 00:37:20,656 I left hers. 622 00:37:25,835 --> 00:37:29,255 Roya, I am so sorry. 623 00:37:33,625 --> 00:37:37,170 I left her side... to kill Manny. 624 00:37:38,406 --> 00:37:44,061 - Mr. Koutal, what are you... - I put two tranquilizers in his drink at the wedding. 625 00:37:44,123 --> 00:37:47,202 And then I slipped into his bedroom that morning, 626 00:37:48,336 --> 00:37:50,445 and I smothered him with a pillow. 627 00:37:51,947 --> 00:37:54,695 Why? 628 00:37:57,197 --> 00:38:01,382 - I was devoted to Manny as if he were my father. - No. 629 00:38:01,443 --> 00:38:05,399 But in the end, he betrayed the convictions he claimed to live by. 630 00:38:07,394 --> 00:38:10,005 It was he who broke the covenant... 631 00:38:10,070 --> 00:38:12,681 by bringing Yasmin into our home... 632 00:38:12,744 --> 00:38:17,703 and then banishing Roya, his obedient daughter, 633 00:38:17,759 --> 00:38:20,609 who sacrificed ever knowing the love of a child. 634 00:38:25,449 --> 00:38:30,933 His was the act of a hypocritical tyrant, not one of a loving father. 635 00:38:33,574 --> 00:38:36,082 Thank you, Mr. Koutal. 636 00:38:38,991 --> 00:38:41,773 How many years have you been married, Mr. Koutal? Fifteen. 637 00:38:41,833 --> 00:38:43,817 - You love your wife? - Very much. 638 00:38:43,872 --> 00:38:45,878 Do anything for her? Yes. 639 00:38:45,945 --> 00:38:48,089 Including sacrifice yourself so she won't have to go to jail? 640 00:38:48,152 --> 00:38:50,102 - Objection. - Sustained 641 00:38:50,158 --> 00:38:52,267 I killed Manny Soleimani. 642 00:38:54,137 --> 00:38:56,783 Do you have any proof to corroborate this story? 643 00:38:56,846 --> 00:39:01,828 No proof. I was alone. I did it because I love her. I had no choice. 644 00:39:01,894 --> 00:39:05,645 You know, Mr. Koutal, lying under oath is a serious offense! 645 00:39:05,706 --> 00:39:08,385 Objection! 646 00:39:11,557 --> 00:39:13,563 No more questions. 647 00:39:27,238 --> 00:39:31,924 Family is a haven in a heartless world. 648 00:39:32,922 --> 00:39:36,878 But it is also the place where emotions run deep, 649 00:39:36,934 --> 00:39:40,047 tensions run high. 650 00:39:40,111 --> 00:39:44,968 The nature of family dynamics can be more complicated than quantum physics. 651 00:39:46,464 --> 00:39:50,078 But what is not so complicated... 652 00:39:50,141 --> 00:39:54,759 is the decision that you, as jurors have to make. 653 00:39:54,823 --> 00:39:59,942 Asher Koutal told you that he killed his father-in-law. 654 00:40:00,005 --> 00:40:02,547 That in and of itself... 655 00:40:02,613 --> 00:40:06,193 is enough to create reasonable doubt. 656 00:40:08,029 --> 00:40:11,039 The only way that you can serve justice... 657 00:40:11,105 --> 00:40:14,993 is to find Roya Koutal... 658 00:40:15,051 --> 00:40:17,467 not guilty. 659 00:40:20,333 --> 00:40:22,409 Thank you. 660 00:40:27,087 --> 00:40:31,203 I agree with Mr. Rothenberg about one thing, at least. 661 00:40:31,267 --> 00:40:33,775 The choice before you is simple. 662 00:40:34,945 --> 00:40:38,400 The defense has offered no rebuttal... 663 00:40:38,456 --> 00:40:40,406 to the evidence against the defendant, 664 00:40:40,462 --> 00:40:43,916 only the transparent “confession”... 665 00:40:43,973 --> 00:40:46,926 of a husband desperate to save his wife. 666 00:40:48,152 --> 00:40:53,373 But all the evidence... the hair, the pillow, the tranquilizer, 667 00:40:53,434 --> 00:40:55,885 the depth of her rage... 668 00:40:55,943 --> 00:41:01,404 against the overpowering, omnipresent figure in her life... 669 00:41:01,459 --> 00:41:03,465 all point in one direction: 670 00:41:05,471 --> 00:41:09,986 Roya Soleimani Koutal murdered her father. 671 00:41:15,937 --> 00:41:19,950 Statistically, jurors are loathe to convict women, especially for violent crimes. 672 00:41:20,016 --> 00:41:22,969 Especially if they have the option to convict a man instead. 673 00:41:23,025 --> 00:41:25,135 You think the jury has reasonable doubt? 674 00:41:26,368 --> 00:41:28,478 I do. 675 00:41:28,542 --> 00:41:30,492 And if they acquit her? 676 00:41:30,548 --> 00:41:34,402 If that happens, I want Asher Koutal taken into custody faster than spit flies. 677 00:41:39,074 --> 00:41:41,080 You may read the verdict. 678 00:41:43,420 --> 00:41:47,468 We find the defendant, Roya Soleimani Koutal, 679 00:41:47,534 --> 00:41:50,042 not guilty. 680 00:41:50,108 --> 00:41:52,787 Roya. 681 00:41:57,397 --> 00:41:59,678 Roya. 682 00:41:59,738 --> 00:42:02,018 Let's go. Roya. 683 00:42:02,078 --> 00:42:04,323 Asher. 684 00:42:04,384 --> 00:42:07,497 Asher. Roya. Roya. 685 00:42:07,561 --> 00:42:10,673 - Roya! Roya! - Asher! 686 00:42:21,638 --> 00:42:24,420 The covenant the father broke was with both of them. 687 00:42:24,480 --> 00:42:28,094 Even after everything he did to her, she forgave him. Asher didn't. 688 00:42:28,157 --> 00:42:30,107 He felt more betrayed than she did. 689 00:42:30,163 --> 00:42:33,174 He may have married into the family, but he'd never be blood.