In the criminal justice system,
sexually based offenses are considered especially heinous.
In New York City, the dedicated detectives
who investigate these vicious felonies
are members of an elite squad
known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Hit it!
I'm just saying, it's not real convenient
for me to pay a mil for an alcove studio.
Got a doorman, though, right?
Doorman can kiss my ass.
Keep the damn door shut,
unless you are paying the electric bill.
Something break?
Uh, just ice off the trunk.
We good.
Look!
Look at this.
Is that blood?
It's coming from the trunk.
Center, this is tow truck one-one-four,
requesting police assistance.
Caucasian female, no I.D. or clothing.
Car's been sitting here since at least 6:00 a.m.,
when Parking Enforcement ticketed it.
Thanks.
Notice how Warner always sends out the assistants
when it drops below 20?
Cardillo, where is she?
Probably drinking coffee
and having a Danish in her office.
She doesn't like the cold.
Yeah, who does? What do we got?
She's between 15 and 21.
It's hard to say with the cold,
but I'd say she's been dead at least five hours.
Stabbed and slashed with a six-inch,
very dull straight blade.
I'm not sure what caused the smaller cuts.
There's at least a hundred of them.
These are cigarette burns,
plus multiple contusions and head trauma.
Everything inflicted before she died?
Probably. Her hands and feet were duct taped,
so that she couldn't fight back.
From the amount of blood, she was inside the trunk
for most of the attack.
Heat from the car kept the trunk warm enough
so that she bled to death before she froze to death.
How long did it take for her to die?
Three or four hours. Maybe more.
Detectives?
Missing persons report just came in
from a Greg Sullivan in Westchester.
His 16-year-old daughter never showed up for school.
Think she's our victim?
This car's registered to a Gregory Sullivan.
Daughter had it last.
Looks like we found her.
Captioning sponsored by UNIVERSAL NETWORK TELEVISION
and NBC
My wife's out of town on business.
She's trying to get a flight back.
Why didn't you call the police
when Emily didn't come home last night?
I let her spend the night at a friend's.
They have a history project due next week.
I just don't understand
why she would've gone into the city last night.
She doesn't even have her night license.
Maybe this is a mistake.
Do you have
that friend's name? Andrea Kent. I've been calling
the Kents all morning, but there's no answer.
And you're sure that she was
at their house?
I assume so. I left a message
on their answering machine last night around 9:00,
to say good night to Emily.
And she called me back 15 minutes later.
Oh, God.
She was never at the Kents', was she?
Mr. Sullivan, could we have that number you called?
Elliot?
It's her, isn't it?
Greg Sullivan said
Emily slept over on a school night?
Not a chance.
But Emily told her father that she was
spending the night over at your house.
Well, then she's lying.
Did something happen to her?
Mrs. Kent, Emily was murdered last night.
Oh, my God. How awful.
Andrea's going to be so upset.
Can you tell us where your daughter was last night?
Home. All evening.
Did her homework and went to bed early.
You didn't, by any chance, happen to get any messages
from the Sullivans today, did you?
No.
Can you take a look at that number?
You recognize that one?
Doesn't even look familiar.
I'm sorry, I'm terribly late. I wish I could help.
You know, we'd love to talk to Andrea
about Emily's whereabouts last night.
Please do.
She's at school.
And I hope you scare the hell out of her.
This is what happens when kids lie to their parents.
The whole school's in mourning.
Emily was well liked?
She was one of those kids who was friends with everybody.
You know, student body treasurer,
half a dozen clubs, Homecoming Court.
She was a real shining star.
Were you able to locate Andrea Kent?
Ah, I was able to pull her and a few
of Emily's other close friends from their classes.
You have the school's full cooperation.
Paige Summerbee, Brittany O'Malley, Andrea Kent.
These are Detectives Benson and Stabler.
Andrea, when's the last time you saw Emily?
Yesterday, at school.
Do you know why she told her parents
that she was sleeping over at your house last night?
No.
We didn't plan that.
Do any of you girls recognize this number?
It's the number Emily's dad called last night.
Can I use your phone?
Of course.
You know what? Why don't we let that go to voicemail?
- Hi, you've reached the Kents. - Please leave a message.
I'm so sorry.
She asked me to do it.
Just tell us what happened.
Emily was afraid she'd get caught if she tried to sneak out.
So, when Emily's parents called your cell phone,
you call Emily and she calls home?
It's all my fault.
What was so important
that Emily had to get out of the house?
She was supposed to have some big romantic date.
You know the date's name?
Just that he was, like, 23.
Now, Brittany, you must've talked
to Emily last night, when her parents called you.
For like a second.
But I don't know where she was.
And I shouldn't have done it.
Okay, maybe she'd be alive.
I'm so...
Oh, my God!
Is there anything else you need?
The combination to Emily's locker.
This girl was living the perfect high school life.
Gotta throw it all away
by dating some 20-something skeve.
It's her day-planner. Let's see...
Nothing for yesterday.
Got plenty of numbers, though.
You know, Brittany called Emily on her cell phone last night.
But CSU never found it in the car.
Well, killer could've taken it.
Let's hope he's dumb enough to use it.
Hey, look! She's got a bunch of photos on this digital camera.
I think I just found our 20-something skeve.
So did I.
That's him. Lukas Ian Croft.
What is he, an actor?
For God's sake!
It's an energy drink!
Banana, apple, you're happy, you're peppy.
Come on!
We're shooting here, folks.
You're gonna have to walk around.
We need to talk to the grapes.
Copy that. Lukas? Visitors.
Police. Come on down.
We need you to answer a few questions for us.
Uh, what's this about?
Emily Sullivan. Your underaged girlfriend.
Look, we had a couple of dates.
I didn't know she was only 16.
As soon as I found out, I broke it off.
I bet all the young girls love that you're a... an actor.
I don't date girls, usually.
I mean, on purpose.
Come on, have you seen Emily?
She looks like... 20.
Now she looks dead.
Know anything about that?
No... God. What happened?
She came into the city last night to meet you.
She got murdered.
No, I swear, we broke up.
I was on a movie set last night.
You're in a movie?
I'm an extra.
I was there till 4:00 in the morning.
Little fruit's alibi checks out.
I want to know where the hell this girl was last night.
There's no activity on her ATM
or her credit card.
Nobody saw her, and if she wasn't
meeting Lukas, then why sneak out?
TARU's checking out her computer now.
Maybe she met someone online.
Look at the neck wounds.
Too shallow to kill her outright, but she bleeds enough
to make her too weak to fight back.
He wanted to watch her suffer.
I'll check with VICAP to see if any other murders match this M.O.
Emily Sullivan's cellular company just reported
an outgoing call on her phone to a 900 sex line.
GPS tracked it to within a hundred yards.
Closest possibility is a comic book shop.
Psychos...
they always love comics.
So, you look like Kathleen Turner, huh?
Like, when she was skinny? Oh, yeah, that's so hot.
So, uh, what do you...?
This is a nice pink cell phone.
You're under arrest there, Emily.
For what?
For the murder of Emily Sullivan.
No, wait, wait, wait. I found that phone.
I was out of town till this morning.
Yeah? Where?
Uh, Cosmicon, Grand Rapids.
Plane ticket stub's in my back pocket.
Please, I'll pay for the calls, but I didn't kill anybody.
Where did you pick up the cell phone?
In the street, couple blocks away.
Oh, hey, this is a murder case!
You tell me what's going down?
No.
That's cool. Police business. I dig.
This is not far from where the body was found.
Text message from yesterday--
"C U later, Brit."
You know, my daughter text messages
her friends 20 times a day.
I wonder how long the phone company keeps those records.
You're in luck.
They archive text messages 14 days.
There's gotta be thousands of them here.
How did she have time to do anything else?
Hmm. Trick is to memorize the keypad,
so you can text message during class
without looking at your phone.
My niece is 14.
Right. This stuff is very deep.
"Danny is sooooo--" ten o's-- "ooooo cute."
Listen to this.
"Keep your fat mouth shut."
And then later that day--
"We're all just waiting for you to kill yourself."
There's pages of this.
Who sent them?
Emily. To somebody else.
Is there any way to find out
who she sent these messages to?
Yeah.
Help you?
Mr. Linsky, I'm Detective Benson.
This is Detective Stabler.
Do you have a daughter named Agnes?
Yeah.
Is she friends with an Emily Sullivan?
You guys know damn well
that bitch is not my daughter's friend.
Go bother her parents. They deserve it.
Uh, Mr. Linsky, just hold on a second.
We're from Manhattan Special Victims.
Emily Sullivan was murdered.
Now, why don't you explain to us
what you're talking about?
Troy, get lost.
We've been trying to get a restraining order
against that girl for over a year.
And nobody cared.
Now someone kills her,
and you're acting like it's some kind of tragedy?
She made my daughter's life miserable.
And God help me, I'm not sorry she's dead.
Why didn't you tell us that Agnes Linsky's father
tried to get a restraining order
against Emily two months ago?
I'm sorry, I didn't think it was relevant.
Allegations of phone harassment,
persistent verbal abuse-- that's not relevant?
The judge didn't find any merits to the claims; neither did I.
And now that Emily's dead, you think there might be some merit?
You think we might've wanted to hear about it? No.
No? This was just an overprotective father
getting involved in a misunderstanding
between two teenagers-- not murder.
Did you bother to investigate the allegations?
We set up a mediation
between Emily and Agnes.
Both girls agreed to try harder to understand each other
Detectives, Agnes Linsky may be delayed, academically
and socially, but she couldn't kill anyone.
We're gonna need to talk to her.
We'll get her father down here.
That's not necessary. Agnes is 18.
I'll pull her out of class.
No use in both of us tag-teaming her.
Just take it.
Hey, Agnes.
I'm Detective Benson.
I know. You were at my house last night.
Mm-hmm. I don't know what happened to Emily-- we're not friends.
Well, your principal said that you two don't get along.
Yeah. Well, he spends
most of his time kissing Emily and her friends' asses.
I know you don't believe me. Nobody does.
You know, Agnes, I want to help you.
Right.
You're gonna be my friend.
And if you and I were in school together,
you'd be just as much of a bitch as the rest of them.
Well, actually, when I was in school,
I pretty much kept to myself.
I didn't want anybody to find out about my mom.
She, uh, used to drink a lot.
It's easier not having friends,
but it doesn't make it any less lonely.
My mom died... when I was nine.
When I was 12, Emily started the rumor
that my mom left us because she couldn't stand how ugly I was.
Funny, right?
People still believe that.
So you've known Emily a long time.
When we were little, we were all friends.
I don't really know why it changed.
In seventh grade, Emily got a fake screen name
and pretended to be a boy I liked, e-mailed me.
The next day I talked to him,
and he didn't know what the hell I was saying.
He pushed me into the mud.
Emily and her friends thought it was hilarious.
So her friends were in on it, too?
Brittany and the rest of them are pretty terrible,
but I was Emily's special project.
She used to pretend to be my friend for a week,
and then use it against me.
I gave her my cell phone number,
and she started sending all these awful messages to me--
how fat I was,
how I should just kill myself because nobody liked me.
My dad saved up to buy me that phone,
and I hardly use it anymore.
It's not worth it.
Your dad seems pretty angry about this.
It's like
I'm disappointing him.
That's the worst part, you know?
It sounds stupid.
My brother says I should ignore it...
but it just builds up.
Every day it's something else.
And you start to feel like you don't even want
to get out of bed in the morning.
I know it sounds awful, but... I'm happy.
I'm happy she's dead.
Yep.
Pat Linsky was bartending from 8:00 until 4:00
the night of Emily's murder.
Agnes says that she was home alone.
We really think she's capable of something like that?
If pushed hard enough.
The sadistic nature of the attack
could also be explained by the fury
of someone who doesn't know how to kill.
Look, the school knew exactly what was happening to that girl.
They didn't do anything about it.
Victims of bullying are often social outcasts.
It's human nature for the school authorities
to identify with the "normal" kids.
Meaning the teachers believe the bully's story
and think the victims are being a little too sensitive.
I don't know. Agnes had every reason
to hate Emily and want her dead.
I just don't think she killed her.
We're sure the father's in the clear?
Well, we'll check the bar.
Maybe he took a long lunch break.
We'll be right there.
Brittany O'Malley was just attacked at Tanner Day.
She's on her way to the E.R.
Security's holding the guy who did it.
Olivia, hit the hospital.
Get to the school.
Here's the tough guy.
Ah... you're Agnes Linsky's brother.
Troy Linsky. Expelled three years ago
for bringing a knife into school.
Also likes to beat up little girls.
I didn't beat her up. Shut up.
I'll let you two get acquainted.
I pushed her, that's it.
Hard enough to send her to the hospital.
She hit her head against the locker.
It was an accident. I was mad.
You've got some anger management problems there, pal.
Yeah, do you know what they did to my sister?
Yeah, Emily Sullivan tortured your sister-- I know that.
And someone taught that bitch a lesson, right?
It wasn't me. I didn't touch Emily.
I'm not saying you did, but...
why are you beating up Brittany?
Look, I want Brittany to admit what she did.
What's that?
She took pictures...
while Agnes was changing in the locker room.
She sent them to anyone with a camera phone.
Look for yourself.
On my cell, in the bag on the desk.
You know, those girls...
they've got everybody snowed.
They're evil.
How do you know Brittany did this?
She's in the same class with Agnes.
You know, Brittany sent that
to, like, 20 different people.
My buddy's sister got it. He sent it to me.
And you think this is enough to hurt someone, huh?
Hey, look, nobody's protecting my sister.
Okay? Not the school and not the cops.
I'm trying to help your sister.
Okay? I'm trying to help Agnes.
Well, taking naked pictures
of someone, well, that's illegal, right?
So when are you gonna do something about that?
I'll wait for it.
That was my partner.
He's with Troy Linsky now.
I want him arrested-- assault and battery.
No, forget it. Brit...
Shut up! Find the plastic surgeon--
I want to get out of here.
Of course, sweetheart.
They were never anything but nice to that Agnes girl,
and this is what they get.
Is your head feeling all right?
No, it kills.
I just don't want a scar.
I think it's gonna be just fine.
Oh, well, thank you, Doctor.
You can leave now.
You know what, honey, I will.
But not before I ask you a couple of questions.
Why do you think Troy Linsky attacked you?
Because he's psycho.
'Cause his whole family is crazy.
Did you see Agnes today?
She's kind of hard to miss.
Did you talk to her? Why would I?
Well, you know what, Brittany?
I'm starting to wonder why it is
you girls do any of the things that you do.
Did you take this picture of Agnes
and send it around to your friends?
Keep in mind that we can trace it back to the sender--
in case you're thinking about lying to me again.
Look at it.
I'm sorry I did it.
Why would you do that, Brittany?
To get back at Agnes!
To back at her for what?
Everybody knows that you spoke to her today.
Because she did it, didn't she?
She did it. She killed Emily.
She killed my best friend!
Why the rush, Detectives?
We've got a bunch of teenagers trying to kill each other.
I'd like to, uh, arrest one of them.
It would help if we could at least
narrow down the killer's gender.
Well, the small wounds on the body
were wider at the deepest point, narrower at the entry point.
Best guess is they came from manicure scissors like these,
shoved in and then opened up.
Combine that with this,
found inside some of the scratch wounds.
It's nail polish
in Boy Crush Blush, also known as
light pink.
I'd say your killer's a female.
Or metrosexual.
Once you've got a suspect, I'm gonna make you really happy.
We've got hair-- couple strands stuck in the duct tape.
It's been color-treated.
Know any bottle blondes?
Three.
Question for you, Doc.
Under what circumstances would Miss Teen USA
commit a violent murder with sexual undertones?
Well, that depends.
She might have been sexually abused herself, or psychotic.
That also explain why she'd kill one of her best friends?
It could.
Boys tend to get into conflicts with acquaintances or strangers.
Girls typically attack within tightly knit friendships.
Well, that's definitely been my experience.
The people that have made me feel the worst
were always my best friends.
It's called relational aggression.
Boys are socialized to express their anger.
Girls are socialized to be nice--
and it's not nice to start a fight.
Feelings got to come out sometime.
Often as rumor-spreading, ostracizing,
or secret-telling.
In other words, don't tell your friend
you're mad at her,
just get everybody else to hate her.
And in the extreme,
I can see how a betrayal within the inner circle
could incite violence.
Question is, what was the betrayal?
And which one did the deed?
Maybe it was all of them.
Obviously none of these girls have any qualms
about lying to the police.
We've got the hair on the duct tape.
It's got to belong to one of them.
We bring in all three now,
they'll just keep up the lie
or start pointing fingers.
We need ammo to shoot their story down.
I love these little cliques.
They're like the Mafia... nobody knows nothing.
Peer counselors might.
Those kids usually know everybody.
Does the school have a peer counseling program?
Yeah, I think I saw a sign for something like that.
Good. Doc, why don't you tag along,
see if you can't get in these kids' heads.
Oh, yeah, I totally know Brittany and all those girls.
Everybody does.
Has anyone had any trouble with them?
Um... except this is like therapy,
so I can't really break a confidence.
Okay.
So what do you think of them?
Actually, they're really nice.
I can totally see how somebody with, you know,
low self-esteem would have a problem with them.
I don't.
But you know people who do.
Well, yeah.
But what I say to them is,
hey, we're all insecure.
Brittany and Paige and Andrea are just like you.
It's their defense mechanism.
Right. What's their defense mechanism?
You know... being mean.
There's a lot of pressure being popular.
Everyone always watching you, waiting for you to screw up.
It was really hard on Emily.
Do you think that's an excuse for bad behavior?
No.
I guess I just understood Emily
better than most people.
So you were friends?
Well, we lived next door to each other since nursery school.
We used to play together all the time.
She got in with the popular crowd in middle school
and I didn't see her as much.
I guess we were home friends.
Sounds kind of lame.
Not at all, Terri.
Friendships are always changing.
What's sad is,
she was really starting to pull away from those girls.
She was thinking about college.
Meeting new people.
She didn't really like Brittany.
How do you know that?
She could see how nasty Brittany was,
how manipulative.
And... Emily sort of hooked up with Brittany's boyfriend.
Do you remember the boy's name?
Lukas, I think.
Brittany was so pissed off.
She likes people to be afraid of her, but...
Emily wasn't afraid anymore.
Lukas Croft. Police, open up.
What do you want?
You know something?
You gave us such a great performance
last time we talked, we're looking for an encore.
Sit down.
Brittany O'Malley-- that ring a bell?
She's 16. That's statutory rape.
Hey, can you act like a prison inmate?
We didn't have sex.
Brittany wouldn't do it.
You've got about two seconds
to tell us everything,
or I make sure you don't date again.
Brittany and I started going out
last fall, and by the way, she pursued me.
Then a couple months ago,
Brittany tells me to hit on Emily.
Right. She wanted you to cheat.
She said it was some kind of friendship test.
So I did, and Emily was into it.
What was I supposed to do, say no?
You're too much of a stud for that. Bye-bye.
Look, I'm sorry I even did it.
Brittany freaked out on me.
She like psycho freaked out. She's nuts.
Okay, so why lie for her?
I think she poisoned Buttons.
My cat.
I can't prove it, but I don't want to cross that girl.
She's crazy.
I hadn't heard from her in weeks,
until that night.
Said she was coming by the set
and I better have a case of beer for her.
Was Emily with her?
They were in Emily's car, but Emily wasn't there.
When I tried to put the beer in the trunk, they freaked.
You think that's where they put Emily?
Who are "they"?
You know-- her two best friends,
Andrea and Paige.
They do whatever Brittany says.
Come on you can do it.
Paige Summerbee, you're under arrest
for the murder of Emily Sullivan.
Brittany O'Malley and Andrea Kent,
step down please.
Why?
We can drag you out if you want.
Brittany O'Malley, Andrea Kent,
you're under arrest for the murder of Emily Sullivan.
You have the right to remain silent.
If you give up that right, anything you say
can and will be used against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney.
If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed.
Do you understand these rights...?
Where are the parents?
Napa Valley.
Mr. and Mrs. Kent are on a plane as we speak.
They've agreed to allow Andrea to answer questions
in my presence as a gesture of cooperation.
I hope you want to cooperate too, Andrea.
It will make things a whole lot easier.
I didn't kill Emily.
Who did?
I don't know. I'm telling the truth.
You told the detectives you didn't see Emily
the night she of her murder,
but Lukas Croft saw you in her car.
So that was a lie, wasn't it?
I did go out with Emily that night...
but she wanted us to drop her off at some bar,
and then take her car home.
The car where her body was found?
Yeah.
We'd all been drinking,
so we parked the car
and took the train.
I called Emily and told her where she could pick it up.
Great. Then we can check your cell
to make sure that's true.
I called from a pay phone.
Okay. Then we can check Emily's cell
for the incoming call.
Unless that's not the truth either.
Why are you being so mean to me?
Because you're lying to me, Paige,
and you've been lying about this all along.
Quit hounding her.
We're through if you don't stop trying to upset my client.
Where was Brittany this whole time?
With us.
If Brittany did something wrong,
you're not responsible for that.
You understand that?
You can't control what other people do.
Go on, honey,
tell him the truth.
She didn't do anything.
Right, and you know this because you were with her
the whole time, right?
She's answered the question, Detective.
Well, maybe she can answer this question now.
We found a blonde hair in the duct tape used
to bind Emily's arms and legs.
DNA says that hair belongs to Brittany.
Now, if you were with her the whole night,
you must have been during that, too, right, Paige?
It was a joke.
Tying somebody up and throwing them
into the back of the trunk
and then beating them to death is a joke?
We didn't hurt her.
I mean, we just had her in the trunk, that's it.
I don't know how all the other stuff happened.
Do you expect me to believe that you taped her up,
but somebody else killed her?
Yes.
This is a dangerous city, Detective.
Look, all we were trying to do is teach her a lesson.
What lesson?
That you can't just do whatever you want.
There are rules.
What rules?
You can't steal somebody's boyfriend.
So you guys just drove around with Emily in the trunk all night,
and then what, left her there, alive, perfectly fine?
Ms. Novak, I think we're through
answering questions for a while.
I just want to make sure
your client understands the situation she's in.
No one is going
to believe that, Andrea.
This lie, you and your little friends cooked up, it's a bad one.
So if you've got anything you want to say to me
before I walk out that door, you better say it now.
Brittany went crazy!
She just lost it.
It was awful, she started punching Emily,
and then she lit some cigarettes
and she started burning her her with them.
She had these little scissors...
And Brittany was cutting her...
and then she took out a knife and started stabbing her,
and there was so much blood.
I didn't know what to do, and...
I never wanted to hurt Emily.
What were you doing during all of this?
Me and Paige were just standing there.
We couldn't believe it.
And you didn't help Brittany?
You didn't hold Emily down, maybe take a few shots yourself?
No. I swear. Brittany did everything.
No, they didn't do anything.
I'm glad you're saying that Brittany.
Because it's consistent with your friends' stories,
that they're innocent and you killed Emily all by yourself.
They're not saying that.
You better believe they are, little girl.
Okay, I think that wraps it up for today.
No. What are they saying?
That you killed Emily because she stole your boyfriend.
Oh, and that you're nuts.
They're clearly lying.
Shut up!
You're not helping!
Brittany, sit down.
No. Where are they?
I want them to say this to my face.
Huh?! Bitches! Say it to my face!
That's enough.
Buy you lunch, counselor?
I'll even let you talk me
into a plea deal.
In exchange, you get my client's testimony.
The sworn statement of a murderer.
That's tempting.
No jury's going to convict
Andrea and Paige without direct evidence.
You'll need Brittany to testify against them.
Look, you've got
two so-called normal girls who sat back
and allowed Emily Sullivan to be murdered.
My client's off her nut.
What's their excuse?
That's why they're being charged for their crimes.
You've got a weak case at best.
One sympathetic juror will tank it.
They're us, Casey--
our sisters, our daughters, our high school girlfriends.
No one wants to believe.
No. They're monsters.
They're mean, vicious little girls
who think they can do whatever they want.
And up until now they've gotten away with it.
But not anymore. No deal.
Well, maybe these two will change your mind.
I'll be at my regular table.
Motion to sever, I assume.
We're happy with one trial for both our clients.
And since you can't prove intent, it'll be a short trial.
Andrea and Paige were part of a group
that was under the spell
of Brittany O'Malley.
They didn't have the mental state to form intent.
I've seen this movie.
It's the one about the zombies, right?
Actually, Ms. Novak, you're not far off.
If you're going with an affirmative defense,
Mr. Kressler, I've yet to receive notification.
We're not arguing diminished capacity.
This is about free will,
and the People can't prove that our clients had it.
Well, what exactly did these girls intend
when they held Emily Sullivan in a trunk of a car all night?
They had no intent.
They were under the control of Brittany O'Malley,
a charismatic, anti-social leader.
Your Honor, the mob-mentality defense was used
in the Reginald Denny trial after the L.A. riots,
the civil rights trial after the Crown Heights riots.
Where is the mob?
These were three teenaged girls.
We have expert
testimony that will amply illustrate
the profound effect
that small groups have on the individual.
A defense like this is dangerous because if the jury buys it,
personal responsibility goes out the window.
That's a matter of opinion.
This is a matter of fact for the jury to decide.
I'll allow it.
Drop kidnapping,
my client pleads guilty to man one
and testifies against Barbie and Skipper.
See? Reasonable.
I don't know why I even bother.
The jury's gonna take one look at Andrea and Paige
and jump on any excuse
not to throw them in jail.
That's certainly a possibility.
It's also possible a jury will send your client
to prison for the rest of her life.
Murder two,
kidnapping one,
sentences to be served concurrently
with the possibility of parole.
This is your client's only chance at a future.
She should take it and thank me.
So, I testify against Andrea and Paige.
You tell the truth to the jury,
or the deal's gone and I add perjury.
Oh, I'll tell them everything.
I really don't care.
Andrea told Emily that we were going out all night.
She made up the sleepover so that
Emily's parents wouldn't be looking for her.
Because Andrea didn't want you guys getting caught.
Objection. Calls for speculation.
Sustained.
Emily's arms and legs
were bound with duct tape.
She ever get loose?
Oh, yeah, a couple times.
She kicked me in the face once.
What did the defendants do when she freed herself?
The first time,
Paige grabbed her by the hair
so I could fix the tape.
And then when she kicked me,
she almost got out of the trunk,
and then Andrea pushed her back in.
Were the defendants ever left alone with the victim?
Oh, yeah, for five or ten minutes
when I went to go buy cigarettes.
When it was over when Emily was dead,
what did you guys do?
Paige was hungry,
so we went to go get waffles.
And then we just took the train home.
Did Andrea or Paige, at any point
during that night, ask you to stop?
No. They were having fun.
Nothing further.
Your witness.
So you say Andrea and Paige never asked you to stop.
Let me ask you this-- did Emily?
I guess.
You guess?
Didn't she beg you to stop.
Didn't she offer you money, her diamond earrings,
anything you wanted?
Yes.
Didn't she cry out for her mother?
And you thought that was funny.
Yes.
Who was it that cut Emily skin with scissors
over a hundred times?
I did.
And who brought a knife,
then later used it to cut Emily's throat?
Me.
And the cigarettes you went out to buy,
you used those to burn Emily's skin, right?
Right.
So the truth is,
you didn't want Andrea and Paige to help you torture
and kill Emily.
You just wanted an audience.
Objection.
Withdrawn.
Nothing further.
Dr. Sopher, in your study
of neurology of behavior, you also studied
how environment influences behavior, right?
Of course.
And when an environment consists
of a small group
influencing an individual, what is that called?
Small group dynamics:
an individual's identity fuses with the group.
You see it with soldiers or cult members.
How does it happen?
Intense situations create intense solidarity.
Adolescents are arguably under years of stress--
physiologically, emotionally, hormonally.
Solidarity makes the urge to conform irresistible.
And you think this explains two girls
watching and even participating in the murder of another?
The urge to conform explains far more heinous acts.
Look at Nazi Germany, Rwanda.
Thank you, Dr. Sopher.
Your witness.
Wow. To hear you talk,
we'd expect to see packs of teenaged girls
roaming the streets killing people.
No. The group was under the influence of one girl
intent on murder.
So you're saying it's impossible
for a teenager to have free will in a group?
If she has a strong will,
she can withstand the desire to conform.
Then the defendants are just weak.
That's perhaps a simple explanation.
Well, last time I checked,
being weak isn't an excuse for murder.
It's just pathetic.
Objection. Argumentative.
Sustained.
Nothing further.
I feel so bad about everything.
I haven't been able to sleep.
Brittany said you planned a lot of it, Andrea.
You got Emily to leave her house that night.
I thought that we were just going to talk to her
about how she wasn't being a good friend.
The only reason I set it up was because it was my birthday.
I told her we were going out to celebrate.
So you never suspected
that Brittany wanted to kill Emily?
No way.
I wouldn't have gone.
Why didn't you stop her?
I couldn't.
You don't say no to Brittany.
You have to go along with her.
I'm so sorry.
You feel bad now
for everything that happened to Emily.
Yes.
When I got home that morning, I threw up.
But I was afraid.
Of getting caught?
Of Brittany?
No.
I was afraid if I told, Brittany wouldn't be my friend.
You said your
cover story was going out
to celebrate your birthday.
January.
That makes you a Capricorn, right?
Yeah.
What's your birthstone?
Objection. Relevance?
I'm getting to it, Your Honor.
Hurry it up, Ms. Novak.
The witness will answer the question.
My birthstone's garnet.
That's what I thought.
I see you're wearing your class ring.
That's my birthstone-- sapphire.
September birthday.
You know who else who had a September birthday, Andrea?
Objection!
Relevance?
Overruled.
Didn't Emily have a September birthday?
I don't know.
Emily had a class ring.
It was engraved with her name.
It was never found with her body.
Your Honor, would you instruct the defendant
to remove her ring?
Hand it to me, Ms. Kent.
Paige gave it to me.
She took it off of Emily after she was dead!
You're a liar! You took her Prada purse!
Sidebar, Your Honor. She's got Emily's clothes, too.
The ones with all the blood on them.
If you felt so bad about what happened,
then why are you wearing a dead girl's ring?
Your Honor!
Enough! Counsel, approach.
Move for a mistrial, Your Honor.
The defendant perjured herself.
Prove it.
May we have time to confer?
You may not,
and your motion's denied, Ms. Riff.
You'll have an opportunity
to impeach her statements in redirect.
Please continue, Ms. Novak.
No further questions.
Guilty on all counts.
It's a 15-minute jury verdict.
That's very impressive, Counselor. Yeah.
Remind me to give you the names of all the girls I hated in high school.
Takes you back, doesn't it?
I hated it the first time around.
Olivia, Westchester PD.
Shots fired at Tanner Day.
The school wouldn't remove it until they documented it.
It's been up all day.
Who is she?
I don't know.
She's a senior, real popular.
Eh, it's a shame.
You have the right to have an attorney
present now and in the future.
If you cannot afford an attorney,
one will be appointed to you by the court.
Do you understand these rights as I've read them to you?
Agnes, what happened?
They went to jail
and it didn't even make any difference.
It was never gonna stop.
No matter what anybody did, it was never gonna stop.
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