- In the criminal justice system,
the people are represented
by two separate, yet equally important groups:
the police, who investigate crime,
and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders.
These are their stories.
[turnstile beeps]
[train screeches distantly]
- [grunts] - [gasps]
[suspenseful music]
♪ ♪
Hey. [train chimes]
Where you headed tonight, beautiful?
Can I come? - [whistling]
Come on. Where you going?
Come back. [indistinct chatter]
♪ ♪
Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to--
[wheezing] [wheels screeching]
[screams]
Station's locked down.
MTA is rerouting trains in both directions,
but they're eager to get things moving again.
Where's that level of urgency when there isn't a dead body
to deal with?
[sighs]
[whistles]
Cause of death?
Can't say for sure.
But given the petechial hemorrhaging,
my guess is asphyxia.
So he was strangled to death.
How long ago did this happen? - Less than an hour.
- Any witnesses? - None so far.
The MTA worker who found the body said
he walked the car 15 minutes before,
but he didn't see anything unusual.
So the call came in at 12:34, so the murder had to happen
sometime between 12:15 and 12:30.
We need the security footage from every station
the train passed through in that window, okay?
Okay.
All right, young man, let's see.
No phone.
Oh, vic's still got his wallet.
Ellis Joyner, just turned 24.
Yeah, I thought he looked familiar.
You know him?
Not personally, he's a stand-up comic.
Came from down South,
loved to talk about how much he liked New York.
Great place to live...
not such a great place to die.
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
We found bleeding in the anterior neck strap muscles,
as well as fractures in the hyoid bone
and thyroid cartilage horns.
And that means?
He died of cerebral ischemia
due to a lack of blood flow to the brain.
I'd say his carotid arteries
and jugular vein were compressed bilaterally,
like this.
So the killer had him in a sleeper hold?
Exactly, a carotid sleeper hold.
So you're saying our vic was choked to death.
Yes, and it's not like
he had an easy time breathing on his own.
What do you mean?
ME pulled Joyner's medical records.
Turns out he had severe asthma.
She said his lungs were hyperinflated,
which means he was likely having an attack when he died.
- Was that the cause of death? - No.
That would be strangulation,
probably from a lethal choke hold.
What else do we know about the vic?
He was single, lived alone.
Both parents were deceased.
His latest comedy special on YouTube
had over a million views-- the guy was pretty popular.
Yeah, well, not with everyone.
What about his phone? Did we ping it?
No signal.
Bright side is, the MLI found fresh blood
on Joyner's jacket that didn't match his blood type,
so the lab's going through that right now.
All right, so where are we with the video footage?
Our train passed through 6 stations
within the 15-minute window.
Of the 6, 4 of them had cameras that were broken.
Footage from the 2 stations that had working cameras
caught a few dozen people getting on and off the trains.
Yeah, except none of 'em go into
or out of the car where Joyner was found.
Hey, so Joyner's MetroCard was swiped
at 14th Street Station, where he got on.
There were no working cameras there either.
But I pulled street-cam footage from outside the station.
The closest I could get was a few blocks away,
but I found this.
♪ ♪
Well, that dude does not look happy.
- Yeah. - Can you zoom in on his face?
♪ ♪
Wait, is that--
- Malcolm Paige? - The comedian?
He used to open for Chappelle back in the day.
Track him down.
An audience member at your show last night
posted this to their social media.
- It'd be a massive disappointment
if he was even remotely relevant anymore.
But you know what they say.
You either die a hero or live long enough
to become Malcolm Paige.
[laughter]
Is that why you attacked him after the show?
He attacked me.
Got his panties all in a twist because he didn't like
some of the jokes I was tellin'.
Hit too close to home for fancy boy.
Is this you trying to imply that Joyner was gay?
I ain't implying nothing.
The point is, he embarrassed you
in front of what was supposed to be your audience.
I mean, it must've really pissed you off, huh?
Whatever.
You know, we have video of you taking a swing at Joyner.
So what happened?
You follow him down the subway, try to finish the fight?
My car service picked me up
right after Joyner ran off like a little bitch,
followed by his b--
Boyfriend in tow.
You're saying he was with somebody?
He was with a dude,
and they weren't getting along either.
Paige's car service confirms his alibi.
I went through Joyner's texts and emails in the cloud.
There's no evidence he had a boyfriend.
Well, I think that's 'cause he was still in the closet.
I contacted the Travlr app.
They gave me access to his account here.
It looks like he was dating somebody he met on the site.
A lot of messages between him and a guy named Michael Zane.
He's in the system.
Zane was arrested for aggravated assault last year.
Hmm.
Yeah, these two were definitely
in some kind of fight.
I mean, "Keep on like this, you'll end up dead."
Either the Zane guy can see the future or--
...
I didn't kill Ellis.
I cared about him very much.
"Keep on like this, and you're gonna end up dead."
You didn't send that message? - No, not like that.
I was talking about his... self-hatred.
We have an eyewitness
that puts the two of you together night before last.
Said you guys were in some kind of fight.
We were.
I thought things would be better for him
if he allowed himself to live openly,
but he refused.
He was convinced his fan base would turn on him.
This fight ever turn physical?
No, of course not.
We are aware of your prior for aggravated assault.
I was in a bar when two dudes got into a fight.
I tried to break things up, but...
I'm Black, so when the cops showed up--
So you were on the train with Ellis that night?
Yeah.
Malcolm Paige had just attacked him,
and he said he wanted time to be alone.
So I got off after a few stops, went home.
Did you notice anything suspicious
while you were on the subway?
Yeah.
Uh, there was a guy on the subway with us,
white guy.
He kept staring at us.
And when I got up to get off, he stepped in my way.
- On purpose? - Yeah.
I wasn't in the mood, so I just brushed past him.
Did he say anything to you?
"Watch yourself."
- Can you describe him? - Brown hair.
He was wearing bright-yellow sneakers,
like, neon,
and a hoodie
with some kind of symbol on the back.
[low ominous music]
- What station is that? - 86th Street,
one stop before the one where Joyner's body was found.
Okay, but we can't see his face, though.
Can you find another angle? - This is all we've got.
Can you zoom in on that?
Wait a second. I've seen that logo before.
♪ ♪
[rock music playing]
This place opened up about a year ago.
Been peppering my neighborhood with flyers.
Mixed martial arts is the future, huh?
Yeah, maybe this is where our killer
learned to strangle people. - 'Sup? How you doing?
Uh, yeah, we'd like to talk to the owner.
Is he here? - Dom?
Um, you just missed him.
He left, like, two minutes ago. - Is that him?
♪ ♪
Yep.
I see it.
You know when he's gonna be back?
He was getting a cab to the airport.
Did he say where he was going?
I want to say Toronto.
Which way did he go?
[tense music]
♪ ♪
Vince.
♪ ♪
[whistles]
Hey!
Hey, NYPD. Mr. Kovac, NYPD.
- Hey. - Hey!
- Do not move! - NYPD!
- Do you hear me? Do not move! - NYPD!
I didn't know you guys were cops.
Yeah, you just treat everybody that way?
- Treat Ellis Joyner that way? - I don't know who that is.
He was choked to death two nights ago in the subway.
That ringing a bell?
Okay, tough guy, you're coming with us.
Get up.
I've never seen this guy before in my life.
You know, Domhnall, we are aware
of your four previous convictions for assault,
all against Black victims, two charged as hate crimes.
Clocked that tattoo on you--
the combat boots with the "88."
That's a white nationalist symbol.
So what happened?
You see a Black guy on the train,
decided to take him out?
I didn't do anything to anyone.
[bangs on table] Hey.
I'm the one talking to you.
Fine.
I'll tell you, then.
I had nothing to do with what happened to that guy.
Where were you around midnight night before last?
- Chelsea, working out. - You work out at that hour?
I run an intensive training program
for some guys at the gym.
I call it the Combat Academy.
I base it on the Navy SEALs training course.
So, once a week, we do a late-night endurance run.
And when did this endurance run end?
Around midnight.
Okay, so you go on your little fun run.
Then you get on the subway, and you kill Ellis Joyner.
I was never on the subway.
We have you on video.
You can make out this sweatshirt
and those sneakers clear as day.
These are part of the Combat Academy uniform.
Every member has them.
Look, fellas, I'm trying to tell you--
after the run was over, I went to my girlfriend's apartment.
She lives a few blocks away.
You can check with her doorman.
All right, and would you be willing to submit
to a DNA swab?
Fine.
We're also gonna need the names
of every member of your Combat Academy
that was there that night.
♪ ♪
[school bell rings] - All right. See you guys.
- Brandon Arnou? - Yes?
NYPD, we need to talk to you for a minute.
Uh, yeah, of course. Is something wrong?
- We're investigating a murder. - A murder?
Are you a member
of Domhnall Kovac's Combat Academy?
Uh, yes. Why?
Did you attend his midnight training session
three nights ago?
Um, I-I did.
I did, yeah.
Yeah, I'm trying to get back into shape.
My wife left me last year, and I--
You--you don't need to know all that. [chuckles]
You ride the subway home after that?
Uh, no.
- Really? - Mm-mm.
'Cause we noticed that your apartment's a straight shot
on the C train from Chelsea.
Yeah, well, I-I-I ran home,
trying to push myself, you know?
How did you get that lip?
Oh, uh, grappling training.
Took an elbow to the face. [chuckles]
Would you be willing to submit to a DNA swab,
just to eliminate you as a suspect?
Uh...
[sighs]
Look, it was an accident. - What was an accident?
That man was attacking a woman on the subway.
I-I was just trying to protect her.
I know I should have told someone, but I panicked.
Are you admitting to killing Ellis Joyner?
[dramatic music]
Look, I didn't mean to.
- Okay. - I-I was just trying to help.
Hands behind your back.
We're gonna walk out of here nice and slow.
Here we go.
Detectives, what is the holdup here?
My client has explained to you what happened several times.
Yeah, we really appreciate your cooperation, too.
He has nothing to hide.
Arnou, so that woman that you say Ellis Joyner attacked,
the one you claim to have rescued,
she was dressed like a dancer, yeah?
Yeah, she was wearing tights,
and her hair was in a, uh, ball, you know?
Thing is, we checked the surveillance footage
from the train platforms,
and we didn't find anybody meeting that description.
I'm telling you, she was there.
Were the cameras working at every station?
We also executed a search warrant in your home.
Didn't find anything.
Yeah, well, of course not. What would you find?
Mm. Yeah, but, see, then we got a search warrant
for your gym locker.
That's where we found something really interesting.
Ellis Joyner's cell phone, but you knew that...
because you stole it from him right after you killed him,
and we know why.
Because right after you attacked him,
he started recording you, didn't he?
And, see, what you don't know about Black people is,
we can never be too careful 'cause we don't know
who's gonna try to paint us out to be the bad guy.
So we watched that video,
and we listened to it, and we did not see any woman.
But what we did see is that--
Don't say another word.
This interview's over.
♪ ♪
What do you think?
It's a tough call.
He admits to killing Joyner,
but I'm not sure we have enough to charge.
So we have two choices.
We can either cut him loose, or we can arrest him.
♪ ♪
Arrest him.
♪ ♪
Brandon Arnou's really captured
the public's attention. - Sure has.
Half the city buys Arnou's story--
that he killed Joyner in self-defense--
and the other half sees white man
killing an unarmed Black man.
It's a litmus test for what people think
or what they want to believe.
Well, here's what I believe.
Arnou held Joyner in a choke hold
for a long time after he was unconscious.
Even if he was acting in self-defense
at the start of all this,
it eventually turned into a homicide.
And we have video that supports that?
Uh, sort of.
Seconds after Joyner pulled out his phone
to record the incident,
Arnou knocked it out of his hands.
Then the phone landed on the ground lens down.
Visually, it's just black.
But it kept recording, so there's audio.
You can hear Arnou get Joyner into the choke hold.
Joyner repeatedly says he can't breathe.
And after that, the tape goes silent.
- Because Joyner passed out. - That's what it seems like.
After he goes quiet,
there's three minutes of total silence
before Arnou gets off him.
You're saying that he kept Joyner
in a choke hold for three full minutes
after he seemed to have passed out?
Mm-hmm, and Arnou picks up the phone,
realizes it's been recording, and then stops it.
But the phone must've locked. - Which is why Arnou took it.
He realized it would upload to the cloud,
so he wanted to delete it.
Search history on Arnou's laptop
shows that he was trying to figure out
how to access a phone without a passcode.
Obviously knew the video was damning.
So what's the next move? What are you thinking?
We have a solid case for manslaughter.
Whether you believe Arnou's account or not,
there--there's no question he used excessive force.
Manslaughter?
You just told me he choked him out
for three minutes after he was already unconscious.
Correct, but Arnou claims he was trying to help someone.
He was trying to protect a young woman.
That woman we haven't been able to identify.
This isn't manslaughter, Nolan.
This is depraved indifference to human life.
You want to charge him with murder?
Absolutely. We need to make a statement.
The facts are tricky.
Arnou claims he was trying to save a woman's life,
not to mention he has no history of violence.
I understand.
But this is George Floyd all over again.
And I'm sure as hell not gonna end up
on the wrong side of it.
Charge him with murder two.
- [grunting] - [gasping]
I can't breathe.
- [grunting] - I can't breathe.
[gasps]
[train rattling]
[object clatters]
[breathing heavily]
Oh, my God.
Dr. Infante, could you explain what we just heard?
Once the air supply has been cut off,
it takes about five minutes for brain death to occur--
half that time for an asthmatic.
The body goes through severe seizure-like activity
with convulsions.
And once enough pressure was applied to the carotid artery,
the victim would have lost consciousness.
Which accounts for the last three minutes
when there were no sounds of a struggle?
Yes.
Meaning after those first few minutes,
Ellis Joyner no longer posed
a lethal threat to the defendant?
In my professional opinion, no.
And--and yet, for three full minutes,
the defendant just continued to choke him.
Thank you, Doctor. No further questions.
[chair scrapes]
Dr. Infante, isn't it true
that the surge of adrenaline caused
by a life-or-death confrontation
can distort not only one's sense of time
but also an awareness of one's surroundings?
It's possible.
Would you characterize such a response as reasonable?
I would say it's not uncommon.
So you're saying it is both possible and reasonable
that in the confusion and panic of the moment,
Brandon Arnou did not realize
that the man he believed was trying to kill him
had lost consciousness?
Yes.
Thank you. Nothing further.
How long had you and Ellis Joyner
been seeing each other?
About six months.
It wasn't a storybook romance, but...
it was the best six months of my life.
You were on the train that night with Ellis, correct?
Yes, I got off at 50th Street to go home.
Did you interact with the defendant at all
while you were on the train?
Yes, I caught him staring at us a couple of times.
It was weird.
And when I got up to get off, he...
stepped in my way.
Intentionally?
Yeah, aggressively.
When I accidentally bumped into him,
he said, "Watch yourself," with this tone.
- What kind of tone? - A racist tone.
Like, he might as well have said, "Watch yourself, boy."
Objection, Your Honor, calls for speculation.
The witness can't testify to things my client didn't say.
Sustained.
The jury will disregard.
No further questions.
You claim that Mr. Arnou was aggressive
towards you, confrontational.
He was.
But Mr. Arnou has no history of violent behavior, none.
So?
But you do, right?
You were charged with aggravated assault.
Yeah, but that has nothing to do
with what happened that night.
He was the aggressor. - I see.
And to be clear, you were not a witness to the altercation
between Ellis Joyner and Mr. Arnou?
- Correct. - So you have no idea
if Joyner attacked that woman or not,
and you have no idea if Mr. Arnou was,
in fact, trying to help her.
I wasn't there, but I know he didn't attack that woman.
But you weren't there.
No further questions.
The witness may step down.
Call your next witness, Mr. Price.
The prosecution rests.
Mr. Kagan, you're up.
The defense calls Rebecca Lasky.
Objection, Your Honor, unfair surprise.
This is the first we are hearing
of any witness by that name.
That's because this witness only just came forward.
♪ ♪
Ms. Lasky, were you on the C subway train
the night Ellis Joyner was killed?
Yes, I was there.
Did you witness the altercation?
Yes, I did.
Can you tell us what happened?
I entered the subway car
and accidentally bumped into Mr. Joyner,
and...
he appeared to be mentally disturbed in some way.
He kept making these aggressive grunting noises.
And then he lunged at me.
And then what happened?
He reached into his pocket.
I was scared he had a knife or something, so I screamed.
I screamed for help...
and that man saved me.
My client, Mr. Arnou?
Yes, he grabbed Mr. Joyner,
and he pulled him away from me.
And then Joyner attacked him, and they started fighting.
I was terrified.
If he hadn't been there...
That man is a hero.
♪ ♪
[knock at door] - Yep.
Turns out there really was a female witness.
- So I've heard. - She was credible, too.
Her testimony was compelling.
Meaning what?
We should offer a manslaughter plea.
[scoffs] I'd be surprised if they accepted it,
but it's worth a shot.
But the audio-video clip hasn't changed, correct?
- Excuse me? - The clip where we hear
Mr. Joyner begging for his life,
where we hear Mr. Arnou choking out
an unconscious man for a full three minutes.
That is correct. That clip still exists.
But there is now more context for it--
context that is not in our favor.
But just because a white woman saw Joyner
as a threat doesn't make it true.
Like I said, her testimony was credible.
The jury seemed to respond quite favorably.
But the witness wasn't actually there
when the murder took place.
She left before the fight ended, right?
That's why she didn't show up in the video.
- Mm-hmm. - So make that clear, Nolan.
Remind them that Ms. Lasky wasn't present
when the defendant choked the life out of Mr. Joyner.
Ms. Lasky, you weren't actually present
when the defendant strangled Ellis Joyner to death, correct?
No, the train stopped while they were still fighting,
and I got off.
But I saw the start of the fight.
I saw Mr. Arnou grab Joyner by the arm
and pull him away from me.
And then I saw Joyner elbow him in the face.
Right, because Mr. Joyner was terrified.
From his perspective, he was the one fighting for his life.
I don't know.
It all happened really fast.
And they were yelling at each other.
And Mr. Arnou kept yelling at him to stop, to surrender,
and that he was bleeding,
and he was dirty--
or fighting dirty.
I don't really remember the exact words.
But Joyner didn't listen.
He reached into his pocket.
It looked like he was trying to grab a knife.
So Mr. Arnou tackled him,
and they started wrestling.
That's when the train stopped, and I got off.
Just got off?
You didn't tell anyone what was happening?
I wasn't thinking straight.
Everything was happening at once.
[sighs] When the doors opened, I ran out to look
for someone to tell, like a cop or something.
But the subway station was empty.
Then the doors closed, and the train took off.
So that means you weren't there during the three minutes
that Ellis Joyner was unconscious
and the defendant continued
to choke the life out of his body?
No, but, like I said, I thought he had a knife.
I'm sure Mr. Arnou did, too.
Did you actually see a knife?
No, but--
Did you see a weapon of any kind?
- No. - And you had no idea
that Ellis Joyner was severely asthmatic?
I didn't at the time.
Mr. Joyner had been in an altercation
with a fellow comic that night,
then a fraught, verbal argument with his boyfriend.
High-stress situations can trigger an asthma attack.
Ellis Joyner was having an asthma attack.
He wasn't acting aggressively, nor was he mentally ill.
He was simply having an asthma attack,
and you misinterpreted his behavior.
You saw a scary Black man making a noise--
- Objection. - Sustained.
[soft tense music]
[sighs]
♪ ♪
Mr. Joyner's behavior that night was consistent
with someone suffering from an asthma attack, correct?
Yes, I suppose.
And if that's what it was...
I feel terrible.
Then...
this whole thing i-is...
it's all my fault.
But either way,
Mr. Arnou came to my defense.
♪ ♪
He tried to help me,
and he shouldn't be held responsible.
♪ ♪
She made a strong case that Arnou is not the one to blame.
Yeah.
What do you think about what Lasky said in there,
that, uh, bit about Arnou saying something
about blood and dirt?
Oh, I-I don't know what to make of it. Why?
Do you think it's possible he was saying something
about "blood and soil"?
- That's a Nazi slogan. - Exactly.
It's the new battle cry of white nationalist groups.
You think Arnou is a white supremacist?
Yeah, I-I don't know.
I'm--I'm just trying to understand
why he was saying "blood and dirt."
We interviewed his neighbors, his coworkers.
None of them reported anything that would suggest--
What about where he trains, the, uh, Kovac Academy?
What about it?
Detectives interviewed the owner.
He has ties to a few white nationalist organizations.
Check it out.
I already told you. I don't know Arnou too well.
I just have a few questions. It won't take long, promise.
[grunts] Fine, what do you want to know?
Have you ever heard him say something
that might be interpreted as racist?
I'm sorry, but I can't help you.
You can't, or you don't want to?
I'm closing up, so...
You're aware that Arnou is on trial for murder?
I am.
♪ ♪
Hold up.
♪ ♪
Look, I can't get into the details, but...
let's just say you're heading down the right path.
"Right path"? What the hell is that supposed to mean?
Like I said, I can't help you.
Why not?
Because it would blow my cover.
♪ ♪
You're a cop?
Nick, good to see you.
How you doing, Robin?
- Thanks for coming down. - Of course.
Um, this is Carol Oberlin.
She's our Deputy Commissioner of Counterterrorism.
- Glad to meet you. - Likewise.
I understand you stumbled on to our undercover operation.
We did.
And, fortunately, a detective of yours has information
pertinent to a murder we're prosecuting.
Uh, that's great.
But, uh, let us get you up to speed
on what it is we're actually investigating,
give you a sense
of the scope of what we're dealing with here.
Please. - Okay.
We've actually had our eye on Kovac for a while now.
His gym is an "active club,"
part of an international network
of white supremacist sleeper cells,
all fronting as small MMA-style gyms.
How big a network are we talking about?
So far, we've identified over 30 active clubs
across 9 different states
and several provinces of Canada.
So how do they work?
The clubs operate as recruitment centers.
They lure in young white men under the guise of getting fit,
while indoctrinating them in racist ideology
and training them in military combat.
- They're building an army. - They're trying to.
It's the new face of hate.
No more white sheets or burning crosses.
They've adapted and created a façade
to mask their racist beliefs.
But we need your undercover's testimony
to secure a conviction against one of their members.
Detective Fields has spent nine months
embedding himself in this community.
All that goes out the window if he testifies.
I get that, but we're talking about murder here.
We're not trying to step on your toes here, Nick,
but we poured a lot of resources
and manpower into this operation.
The stakes are pretty high.
We've recently received credible intel
that Kovac is now stockpiling firearms
and explosive materials.
These men are terrorists.
They're capable of significant violence.
Are you asking me for a favor?
I'm suggesting you take a big-picture view
of the situation.
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
We'd greatly appreciate it.
♪ ♪
- They're planning an attack? - Against who?
It appears to be some sort of coordinated effort
along the lines of the January 6th insurrection,
only more violent and without advanced warning this time.
This only underscores how dangerous Arnou is.
Uh, the jury needs to know he's part of this organization.
But exposing the undercover
would blow up the whole investigation.
He's the only asset they have on the inside.
But Ellis Joyner was murdered
most likely because he was Black.
He deserves justice. - I couldn't agree more.
All I'm saying is, we can't call the undercover
as a witness.
It's for the greater good.
Oh, the greater good, right.
Thank God for that phrase.
Excuse me? [Nolan sighs]
Helps justify a lot
of otherwise unjustifiable positions.
You're a terrific prosecutor, Nolan.
You're just gonna have to find another way
to make clear to the jury that Arnou is racist.
Mr. Kovac,
you were Brandon Arnou's personal trainer, correct?
Yes.
You two spend a lot of time together?
About five hours a week.
Would you say you were friendly?
Not really. We worked out together.
- Five hours a week? - Yes.
You and the defendant ever discuss racial ideology?
I don't know what that means.
Did you ever discuss racial purity,
uh, interracial marriage,
the role that Black people should
or shouldn't play in society?
I don't know what you're talking about.
Permission to treat the witness as hostile, Your Honor?
Permission granted.
You have a tattoo on your arm, the number 88.
It's a neo-Nazi symbol, isn't it?
I don't know. I just like the number 88.
So you don't have a problem with Black people?
- No. - Even though you have
four prior battery convictions,
all for assaulting Black men,
two that were charged as hate crimes, correct?
It was a long time ago.
Even though your bio
in your various social-media accounts
contains the phrase "blood and soil"?
Objection, relevance.
Rebecca Lasky testified she overheard
the defendant utter something about blood and dirt.
She was likely referring to the defendant's use
of the phrase "blood and soil," a racial dog whist--
Objection, Ms. Lasky never mentioned the word "soil."
Her recollection was vague.
We have a right to raise the possibility.
I agree. Overruled.
You may proceed, Mr. Price.
Isn't it true that "blood and soil"
is a Nazi reference
to a racially uniform society?
It means you're proud of who you are
and where you come from.
And for you, that means being white.
♪ ♪
Yes.
♪ ♪
You taught the defendant how to fight, correct?
- Yes. - Teach him how to put someone
in a choke hold? - Yes.
Did you teach the defendant to hate Black people?
Objection!
Withdrawn.
Nothing further.
Mr. Kovac, did you ever discuss race with Mr. Arnou?
No.
Have you ever heard Mr. Arnou say
"blood and soil"? - No.
Ellis Joyner was 6'2" and weighed 210 pounds,
50 pounds more than Mr. Arnou.
As a self-defense expert, do you think it was reasonable
for Mr. Arnou
to believe Joyner posed a lethal threat?
Absolutely.
Thank you.
No further questions.
♪ ♪
Brandon Arnou is an elementary-school teacher,
who's never gotten so much as a speeding ticket.
He did not wake up that morning
thinking about taking another person's life.
He did not get on that train looking for a fight.
But when he saw a fellow citizen being attacked,
he stepped up.
He did something.
I live in Park Slope.
I take the subway every day to this courthouse,
and I take it home every night.
And I pray...
that if something were ever to happen,
someone like Brandon Arnou...
is on that train with me.
Rebecca Lasky heard the defendant
screaming something about blood and dirt.
Most likely
what he was screaming was "blood and soil,"
as a phrase that speaks to a declaration of hatred
for all people of color.
Ask yourself why.
People like Mr. Arnou keep their bigotry buttoned up.
They only discuss it
with people they know share their hateful worldview.
They rely on plausible deniability,
because if the racism isn't overt,
many people,
many good people are all too happy
to assume it isn't there.
Except that, every once in a while,
in moments of panic or--or anger...
their mask will slip,
and their true nature is exposed.
♪ ♪
Ellis Joyner was an innocent, unarmed Black man,
suffering a medical emergency.
And the two white people on that train with him
assumed he was a violent threat,
and they attacked him.
The defendant may not have entered the fight
with the intention to kill,
but at some point, his focus shifted,
and his racial hate began to manifest.
That moment
was when the victim, Ellis Joyner, passed out,
when he was no longer a threat to Mr. Arnou.
And rather than release Mr. Joyner,
Arnou continued to choke him
for three minutes.
That is when his true colors emerged.
That...
is when he murdered Ellis Joyner.
♪ ♪
Mr. Foreperson, has the jury reached a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
In the charge of murder in the second degree,
we find the defendant, Brandon Arnou,
not guilty.
[crowd gasps, groans, cheers] - What the--
Yeah, baby.
Members of the jury, we thank you for your service.
♪ ♪
Tough case, but you did a hell of a job.
Thanks. [sighs]
It might have gone differently if I--
if I didn't have one hand tied behind my back.
We did the best that we could.
No, we could have done better.
We just chose not to, for the greater good.
I stand by my decision.
Hey! There he is.
And one day soon,
when we take these bastards down
and roll up their whole damn racist organization,
you're gonna realize it was the right decision as well.
[indistinct chatter, laughter]
♪ ♪
Ellis Joyner deserved better.
♪ ♪
- All right, man. - All right, man, come on.
♪ ♪
[wolf howls]