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[soft piano chords playing]
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[Chucky] I took my responsibility.
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Nothing I can say or do
could bring him back.
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I messed up, you know, and
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gotta man up
and, you know, own up to your… actions.
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[Eduardo] I've been in prison
over a decade already.
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It's wrong. That's messed up.
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I was a victim myself in this, you know?
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And I can't-- I can't do nothing about it.
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I can't defend myself.
I cannot say nothing.
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[music fades]
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[theme music playing]
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[reel whirring]
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[reel clicking]
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[Ted] As far as investigations go,
it was what we call a cluster.
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We had three defendants whose stories
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continually changed.
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All three of them initially claimed
no knowledge of the incident,
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no knowledge of a taxicab ride.
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We had three guys
who were downright allergic to the truth.
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[intriguing music playing]
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My name is Chucky Phillips,
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and I've been sentenced to 20 to life
for murder in the second.
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I was born in Syracuse, New York.
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Grew up playing sports.
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I was definitely a jock in high school.
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I was always the captain of the team,
you know, whatever sport I played.
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I had dreams of going to the NFL or MLB,
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you know.
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They were my dreams in those--
Be a professional athlete one day.
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It wasn't till, well, high school
I started getting in trouble.
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About freshman year,
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I started hanging out with the wrong guys,
you know.
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After school, you know,
running the streets.
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You know, chasing after girls.
There was a period I was in selling drugs,
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at one point, uh…
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Teenage boy stuff, you know?
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I met Eduardo…
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I would say maybe 2007.
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He dated my sister.
That's how we got cool.
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[interviewer] All right.
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[Eduardo] My name is Eduardo Trinidad,
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and I was convicted for murder,
40 years to life.
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I was born in Puerto Rico,
and I was also raised over there.
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I grew up in a foster home
'cause my mom had passed.
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My father wasn't never there for me.
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I was really quiet, uh…
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Always timid.
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Um, but…
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I mean, I wasn't a bad person at all.
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[poignant music playing]
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[Eduardo] I came out here
to the United States for a better life.
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I had, like,
work in construction, um, mechanic.
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I know plumbing, I know electricity.
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Um, they called me a little MacGyver.
[chuckles]
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I did a little bit of everything around.
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My main purpose that same night
was because my son was born that night.
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Um, I made it to Syracuse around,
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I'd say eleven o'clock, around there,
almost midnight.
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So, the visiting hours in the hospitals
are closed. I can't go there.
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So, I went to Chu--
I went with Chucky to the party.
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Um, and like that, that's how I met
the other guy, DeJesus.
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-[dance music playing]
-[indistinct party chatter]
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[Eduardo] I think the party was
about ten to twelve people.
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Wasn't no more than that.
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In my part, I wanted to enjoy it
'cause, you know, I'm happy.
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I was gonna have my newborn son,
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and I wanted to celebrate that.
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We did a lot of drinking,
uh, mixing liquor,
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beer, you know, various types of pills,
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ecstasy, Xanax. There was marijuana there.
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We was all pretty wasted.
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One of the guys had a gun,
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you know.
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Even at the party,
it was passed around the party.
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The guys at the party wanted to hold it.
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Everybody wanted to look at it
and touch it.
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-[menacing music playing]
-[party chatter fades]
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[Eduardo] The gun…
Who brung it, I don't know.
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I touched it, yeah.
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I went outside,
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trying to use it, but it didn't work.
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Um, after that,
I don't know who… who got it.
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The owner of the apartment got mad
and started kicking everybody out.
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[menacing music continues]
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[motor slows]
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[Eduardo] I was sitting
behind the passenger.
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DeJesus was in the middle,
and Chucky Phillips was behind the driver.
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Nobody was talking.
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The only one that was doing the talking
was me 'cause I was on the phone,
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talking to, um, my kid's mom
that's in the hospital.
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[Chucky] When we get in the city,
someone says, "Make a right, right here."
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So we turn off the main road.
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And I notice that's not my street.
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That's when I said, "Okay,
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we must be running
because this is not my street."
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You know, just… It was gonna be like
not pay for a taxi ride, just run.
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You know, young stupid kids' stuff,
you know?
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[Eduardo]
All I heard was the car going slow.
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I didn't even know that the gun
was in the cab when we left.
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I see Denny take the gun,
and he pulls it on the driver.
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So I think maybe he's going to rob him.
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The driver grabs the gun from him,
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and there's a struggle.
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So, I don't know why, I just--
I grabbed it, and I yanked it from him.
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And…
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-I shot him.
-[music builds]
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[gunshot]
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[Eduardo] I was opening the door
when I heard a boom.
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I ran out of the car
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and ran between some houses.
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I came back down
to see where was the guys,
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and I didn't see the… the cab driver.
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The car wasn't there anymore.
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So, I thought that everything was cool
and I went back to the house.
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I went up the hill, went to the house,
and they was already there.
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In the morning was
when they came and arrested us.
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We all got arrested
and got taken down to the prison.
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[intriguing music playing]
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My name is Ted Kiefer.
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I was one of the investigators
involved in the Timothy Gordon homicide.
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I believe that this went
from jumping the fare,
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to a robbery,
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ultimately to a murder.
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After being shot,
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Mr. Gordon traveled
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about one mile.
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And I believe he was in some sort
of severe shock
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with the trauma to his head,
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being shot at close range.
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Where he ended up was where,
ultimately, we got involved initially.
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The scene of his motor vehicle accident.
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Mr. Gordon was traveling
in this direction, towards us.
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When he got to the intersection,
he failed to stop at the stop sign,
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or turn right or left.
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As such, at a high rate of speed,
he traveled across this street,
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entered into this driveway here,
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colliding with a parked vehicle.
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It was a horrible, horrible crash.
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And it was all the result
of a senseless crime.
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[soft melancholic music playing]
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[Ted] Timmy Gordon was just
out trying to earn a living.
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The fare he picked up couldn't have been
more than a twenty dollar bill.
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I guess the emotion
is just the true senselessness of it.
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The fact that for… for a ride home
on a bitter cold night,
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it cost this man who's out working,
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not sleeping like
the rest of civilization,
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it cost him his life
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for less than a 20 dollar bill.
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It generates a lot of emotion.
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[music fades]
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[somber music playing]
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When I first laid eyes
on these defendants, all three of them,
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I thought to myself,
"These are little boys."
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"They're young men at best."
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I couldn't believe
how young they appeared.
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[somber music continues]
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[Ted] Mr. Trinidad was known
to our gang violence task force.
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They had a file on him.
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They knew him by his nickname: Ba La.
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Trinidad volunteers
that Chucky Phillips and himself
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are active members
of the Latin Kings street gang.
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Eduardo Trinidad placed all the blame
on Denny DeJesus.
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Chucky Phillips, he did the same.
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So we had two people
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placing all the blame on Denny DeJesus.
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What shocked most of us
investigating the case
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00:16:35,963 --> 00:16:38,523
was that these three so-called friends,
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two of these friends were willing
to throw the third friend under the bus
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for something he didn't do.
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Cop or no cop, in my opinion,
that's pretty grimy.
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Willing to throw
somebody else's life away.
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[dark music playing]
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00:17:04,043 --> 00:17:07,203
According to Trinidad,
he was merely going to jump the fare,
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but at some point during jumping the fare,
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he was alerted by Chucky
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to come back to the scene.
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He could've kept on running.
He got out of the cab and left.
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He could have kept running. He didn't.
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He turns, he goes back to the cab,
and according to him,
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he was going to help
run the cabbie's pockets.
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00:17:28,163 --> 00:17:32,723
However, there was too much blood
on the cabbie, and at the scene.
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00:17:35,643 --> 00:17:37,283
So any claims…
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00:17:38,683 --> 00:17:42,323
that Mr. Trinidad might have
about being a passive observer,
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00:17:42,403 --> 00:17:45,603
according to his own statement, he wasn't.
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00:18:12,723 --> 00:18:14,723
[haunting music playing]
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[woman] Felony murder, a classic example
would be the bank robbery.
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00:18:44,643 --> 00:18:48,203
Let's say multiple individuals
decide to rob a bank.
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One individual stays outside
to actively be the lookout.
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Other individuals go inside.
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The gun is discharged,
and an innocent security guard is killed.
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00:19:01,603 --> 00:19:03,923
All three people could be liable,
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00:19:04,003 --> 00:19:07,003
because they had the shared intent
to rob the bank.
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00:19:07,083 --> 00:19:11,243
So, it is a way
to hold all participants liable
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00:19:11,323 --> 00:19:14,043
for the death of another
during the course of a felony.
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My name is Kerry Buske. I was one
of the assistant district attorneys
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00:19:20,843 --> 00:19:24,963
assigned to prosecute the case
of the People of the State of New York
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00:19:25,043 --> 00:19:28,523
versus Chucky Phillips, Denny DeJesus,
and Eduardo Trinidad.
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00:19:38,203 --> 00:19:41,283
Plea bargaining gets cases resolved.
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00:19:41,883 --> 00:19:43,923
From the prosecution standpoint,
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00:19:44,003 --> 00:19:48,523
they won't have to put their victim,
their victim's family, their witnesses
202
00:19:48,603 --> 00:19:50,403
through every single case,
203
00:19:51,003 --> 00:19:53,083
and they can save resources.
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00:19:54,283 --> 00:19:57,443
In exchange for that guilty plea,
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00:19:57,523 --> 00:20:04,003
the People will often offer
a reduced sentence, or a reduced charge.
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00:20:13,123 --> 00:20:15,483
Chucky Phillips did apologize.
207
00:20:15,563 --> 00:20:20,443
He did show a degree of remorse and regret
for this horrific action.
208
00:20:21,603 --> 00:20:25,323
And that, I think,
is reflective in his 20 to life sentence.
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00:20:27,763 --> 00:20:30,523
[music intensifies]
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00:20:40,723 --> 00:20:46,363
I was really surprised that Eduardo
didn't want to try to negotiate something.
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00:20:46,443 --> 00:20:48,723
Maybe he didn't want to take exactly
what we were offering,
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00:20:48,803 --> 00:20:52,443
but that he wasn't coming,
trying to negotiate us down.
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00:20:52,523 --> 00:20:54,123
Even up to the morning of the trial,
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00:20:54,203 --> 00:20:56,843
I remember going in
for jury selection thinking,
215
00:20:56,923 --> 00:20:58,403
"I think he's probably gonna plea,
216
00:20:58,483 --> 00:21:00,963
'cause the blood of the victim
is on his coat,"
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00:21:01,043 --> 00:21:03,523
and he said he ran the pockets of the guy.
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00:21:03,603 --> 00:21:07,443
He was clearly notified
of the potential ramifications
219
00:21:07,523 --> 00:21:11,163
of what could happen
after a conviction by jury.
220
00:21:12,643 --> 00:21:16,643
He chose to not take that plea,
to reject it,
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00:21:17,243 --> 00:21:20,123
and to take the case to trial.
He's allowed to do that.
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00:21:20,203 --> 00:21:23,443
It is the People's burden to prove
their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
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00:21:23,523 --> 00:21:26,363
It was called upon us to do it.
And we did it.
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00:21:26,443 --> 00:21:28,483
He was convicted of all three counts,
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00:21:28,563 --> 00:21:31,003
and he was sentenced
by a county court judge.
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00:21:37,603 --> 00:21:40,083
[eerie music builds]
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00:21:41,923 --> 00:21:44,643
[Eduardo, on recording] Why I plead
not guilty instead of plea bargain?
228
00:21:45,163 --> 00:21:46,843
Because I wasn't gonna allow them
229
00:21:46,923 --> 00:21:52,203
to try to have me say I'm guilty
for something I didn't do.
230
00:21:56,003 --> 00:21:59,123
We didn't participate together on it,
you know what I'm saying?
231
00:21:59,883 --> 00:22:03,843
Nobody pointed me
as the guy who pulled the trigger.
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00:22:04,443 --> 00:22:05,443
Nobody.
233
00:22:09,163 --> 00:22:13,923
I wasn't shocked, um,
when I heard them say guilty, or whatever.
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00:22:15,923 --> 00:22:18,563
At first, I was-- I didn't believe it.
235
00:22:19,523 --> 00:22:22,003
I… I didn't have the feeling
of believing it.
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00:22:26,203 --> 00:22:29,803
Hell… It's a decade lost already
with my kids.
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00:22:29,883 --> 00:22:32,243
They're already grown-ups, um…
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00:22:33,123 --> 00:22:35,043
I lost all that part, um…
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00:22:38,123 --> 00:22:41,163
Um, that's pretty something like
messed up, you know?
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00:22:50,803 --> 00:22:57,403
I feel very sorry
for Timothy Gordon's family and friends.
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00:22:58,083 --> 00:23:04,083
I did not, at one point
during this recording…
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00:23:06,003 --> 00:23:09,683
hear one mention… [skeptical laugh]
…of a man's life that was innocently…
243
00:23:09,763 --> 00:23:13,363
Um, an innocent man's life
that was brutally taken from him.
244
00:23:14,283 --> 00:23:17,643
He doesn't like the concept
of felony murder.
245
00:23:17,723 --> 00:23:21,043
He doesn't like the fact
that he was held responsible,
246
00:23:21,123 --> 00:23:22,963
even though he wasn't the shooter.
247
00:23:23,043 --> 00:23:27,123
And he is angry at the law
he was prosecuted under.
248
00:23:28,763 --> 00:23:31,003
He mentions his own children.
249
00:23:31,083 --> 00:23:34,723
You know, Timothy Gordon is never
gonna get to have his children,
250
00:23:34,803 --> 00:23:37,043
he's never gonna get
to call home to them.
251
00:23:37,843 --> 00:23:42,243
So this is essentially, in my opinion,
252
00:23:42,323 --> 00:23:46,123
the same Ba La that stood up at sentencing
253
00:23:46,203 --> 00:23:49,883
after a… jury found him guilty,
254
00:23:51,403 --> 00:23:53,443
and said, "This is an injustice,
255
00:23:53,523 --> 00:23:55,763
and I'm gonna fight it
till the bitter end."
256
00:23:55,843 --> 00:23:58,163
That's what he's doing. Um…
257
00:23:58,243 --> 00:24:03,843
it's just a complete disregard for
the evidence that was presented at trial,
258
00:24:03,923 --> 00:24:08,083
and a complete disregard
for a man's life that was lost.
259
00:24:10,563 --> 00:24:13,523
[poignant music playing]
260
00:24:33,683 --> 00:24:36,043
[Chucky] I'm still trying
to figure out to this day, like…
261
00:24:37,603 --> 00:24:38,483
Why?
262
00:24:41,443 --> 00:24:43,923
I can't even tell you the answer, like…
263
00:24:44,003 --> 00:24:46,483
I wasn't in my right state of mind. Um…
264
00:24:47,323 --> 00:24:49,723
It's hard to explain, because
265
00:24:49,803 --> 00:24:55,203
I think it was a combination
of alcohol and pills mixing, you know?
266
00:24:57,843 --> 00:25:01,243
Worst mistake of my life.
You know, I think about it every day.
267
00:25:01,323 --> 00:25:04,563
You know, not only that I took a life,
but I ruined my life.
268
00:25:06,523 --> 00:25:09,203
The gun was Trinidad's.
He brought it from Utica.
269
00:25:10,443 --> 00:25:13,283
Just the lifestyle,
the lifestyle he lived, you know.
270
00:25:13,963 --> 00:25:16,723
I don't know if he needed it
for protection or he just need--
271
00:25:16,803 --> 00:25:19,163
He wanted it,
just the lifestyle he lived.
272
00:25:22,123 --> 00:25:24,323
You know, I… I took my responsibility.
273
00:25:25,403 --> 00:25:29,483
My part's played. I pled guilty.
People don't usually plead guilty.
274
00:25:31,443 --> 00:25:34,403
I felt that it was the right thing to do,
you know?
275
00:25:37,323 --> 00:25:41,283
I feel bad for the parties involved,
you know, like the deceased…
276
00:25:43,323 --> 00:25:44,323
co-defendants.
277
00:25:47,763 --> 00:25:49,403
Trinidad, his sentence blew my mind
278
00:25:49,483 --> 00:25:52,403
'cause he got 40 to life
for going to trial.
279
00:25:53,883 --> 00:25:57,483
It's just… It don't make sense how…
280
00:25:58,563 --> 00:25:59,883
if I pled guilty
281
00:26:00,803 --> 00:26:01,923
and he went to trial,
282
00:26:02,003 --> 00:26:04,363
he gets more time than me
for the same crime.
283
00:26:05,843 --> 00:26:07,883
It makes me believe that,
284
00:26:08,843 --> 00:26:11,083
okay, I did the right thing
with taking a plea deal,
285
00:26:11,163 --> 00:26:15,123
because I would have had 40 to life.
There's no question about that.
286
00:26:27,523 --> 00:26:30,563
[soft country guitar music playing]
287
00:27:06,563 --> 00:27:09,283
[Christine]
Denny has always been consistent
288
00:27:10,443 --> 00:27:13,963
that he did not know
there was going to be any shooting.
289
00:27:15,523 --> 00:27:19,523
He had no concept
that they were going to use the gun
290
00:27:19,603 --> 00:27:22,603
that had been played with at the party.
291
00:27:29,723 --> 00:27:34,763
I believe that Denny DeJesus did pay
292
00:27:34,843 --> 00:27:38,203
for what Chucky Phillips
and Eduardo Trinidad did.
293
00:27:40,843 --> 00:27:46,283
However, the fact that Eduardo Trinidad
is serving 40 years to life
294
00:27:47,203 --> 00:27:50,003
and the shooter is serving
20 years to life,
295
00:27:50,643 --> 00:27:55,883
this is one of the big injustices
of the criminal justice system.
296
00:27:57,723 --> 00:28:00,443
I'm not saying that Trinidad is innocent.
297
00:28:00,523 --> 00:28:04,843
I'm saying that his sentence
is hugely disproportionate.
298
00:28:06,003 --> 00:28:09,843
The fact that he was guilty
did not warrant
299
00:28:11,683 --> 00:28:13,643
double the sentence of the shooter.
300
00:28:17,723 --> 00:28:23,043
People are being penalized for
exercising their right to a jury trial.
301
00:28:25,003 --> 00:28:31,123
I do have a deeply ingrained sense
of justice and fairness,
302
00:28:31,203 --> 00:28:37,403
and plea bargaining
goes against some of that grain.
303
00:28:40,323 --> 00:28:44,123
Everybody accused of a crime
in the United States
304
00:28:44,203 --> 00:28:48,083
has the right to a fair trial by a jury.
305
00:28:48,603 --> 00:28:53,243
And, if they are coerced
into pleading guilty
306
00:28:53,323 --> 00:28:57,763
by the fact that if they go to trial
and they get found guilty,
307
00:28:57,843 --> 00:29:00,763
they are going to get
a much harsher sentence
308
00:29:00,843 --> 00:29:03,763
than what they would get
if they plead guilty,
309
00:29:03,843 --> 00:29:06,683
it's… it's violating the Constitution.
310
00:29:12,003 --> 00:29:17,883
I believe that equal sentences
for Trinidad and Chucky Phillips
311
00:29:17,963 --> 00:29:20,283
would have been completely appropriate.
312
00:29:20,923 --> 00:29:27,523
Obviously, with plea bargaining
there is going to be some disparity,
313
00:29:27,603 --> 00:29:30,843
but… two times as much?
314
00:29:31,923 --> 00:29:33,443
This case is just…
315
00:29:34,363 --> 00:29:35,363
shouting…
316
00:29:35,443 --> 00:29:38,283
[chuckling]
317
00:29:38,363 --> 00:29:41,203
…"Injust-- Unjust result."
318
00:29:41,723 --> 00:29:43,283
[birdsong]
319
00:29:44,243 --> 00:29:46,963
[soft country guitar music continues]
320
00:30:06,963 --> 00:30:08,483
[Bill] The name is Bill Walsh.
321
00:30:09,243 --> 00:30:12,763
I was a county court judge
in Onondaga County for 11 years.
322
00:30:30,683 --> 00:30:35,883
My recollection of Eduardo Trinidad was
that he was fairly aloof during the trial.
323
00:30:38,003 --> 00:30:42,083
I can't remember how much
he participated with his lawyer,
324
00:30:42,163 --> 00:30:47,043
but I had the distinct feeling that
he's what the Irish would call a hard man.
325
00:30:47,683 --> 00:30:48,563
Uh…
326
00:30:49,523 --> 00:30:52,243
What I heard during the trial
327
00:30:52,323 --> 00:30:56,483
was just how cold and senseless
the crime itself was.
328
00:30:56,563 --> 00:30:58,443
It just didn't need to happen.
329
00:30:58,523 --> 00:31:02,723
They could have taken the money
and they could have left. But they didn't.
330
00:31:02,803 --> 00:31:05,043
Mr. Gordon picked them up,
331
00:31:06,323 --> 00:31:09,883
took them where they wanted,
did everything that he was supposed to do,
332
00:31:09,963 --> 00:31:12,443
and was rewarded with a bullet
in the back of the head.
333
00:31:12,523 --> 00:31:14,363
And that was just senseless.
334
00:31:17,523 --> 00:31:19,523
[somber music playing]
335
00:31:21,003 --> 00:31:23,523
[Bill] Had Mr. Trinidad elected
to plead guilty,
336
00:31:23,603 --> 00:31:26,763
in all likelihood,
his sentence would've been less,
337
00:31:26,843 --> 00:31:30,603
because if he waives his right to appeal,
that ends it.
338
00:31:30,683 --> 00:31:33,363
Two co-defendants
have already pled guilty,
339
00:31:33,443 --> 00:31:37,563
uh, and that would've been the third,
and it would've ended for the family.
340
00:31:37,643 --> 00:31:40,923
They wouldn't have to
have relived it a second time.
341
00:31:41,003 --> 00:31:44,123
And I think that was very damaging
to the family.
342
00:31:44,203 --> 00:31:47,963
[hesitates] The anguish you could see
on their faces was heartbreaking.
343
00:31:48,043 --> 00:31:52,723
And I felt that he could have
spared them that, and he did not.
344
00:31:53,643 --> 00:31:54,963
And he was punished appropriately
345
00:31:55,043 --> 00:31:57,403
with the maximum sentence
permissible under the law.
346
00:31:59,643 --> 00:32:02,643
He was sentenced to the maximum,
347
00:32:02,723 --> 00:32:04,803
under the murder conviction,
348
00:32:04,883 --> 00:32:08,723
of a minimum of 25 years
and a maximum of life in prison,
349
00:32:08,803 --> 00:32:14,283
and he received 15 years on the
criminal possession of a weapons charge.
350
00:32:14,843 --> 00:32:17,803
He could be sentenced consecutively,
which I did.
351
00:32:17,883 --> 00:32:21,003
So, uh… that was, uh…
352
00:32:22,363 --> 00:32:24,243
It was a pretty sizable sentence.
353
00:32:28,323 --> 00:32:31,523
[Bill] I base my decision
as to an appropriate sentence
354
00:32:31,603 --> 00:32:33,523
on what I hear during the trial.
355
00:32:36,643 --> 00:32:39,963
If you roll the dice, doesn't pay off,
356
00:32:40,043 --> 00:32:42,243
there's a price to be paid for that.
357
00:32:50,683 --> 00:32:53,363
[somber music playing]
358
00:33:10,243 --> 00:33:15,003
[Eduardo on recording]
Chucky with 20, and me with 40 to life.
359
00:33:16,443 --> 00:33:17,963
I don't think that's fair.
360
00:33:19,763 --> 00:33:21,523
My life's been destroyed.
361
00:33:23,443 --> 00:33:26,683
I would have been going with my kids,
trying to enjoy life.
362
00:33:27,243 --> 00:33:29,763
Trying to give my kids things I never had…
363
00:33:30,323 --> 00:33:31,723
[shaky breaths] Uh, parents.
364
00:33:33,443 --> 00:33:37,203
I would have tried to give that to them,
tried to break the cycle,
365
00:33:37,283 --> 00:33:40,163
try to bring a better-- My life with…
366
00:33:40,923 --> 00:33:42,043
with our family, as well.
367
00:33:45,843 --> 00:33:51,443
[continues on recording] My earliest
release for parole will be in 2047.
368
00:33:52,883 --> 00:33:55,403
I think I'll be around 70
around that time.
369
00:33:58,203 --> 00:34:00,323
It will be a whole wasted lifetime.
370
00:34:05,403 --> 00:34:08,763
At that time, you won't be able
to manage nothing. What can you do?
371
00:34:17,243 --> 00:34:18,323
[soft click]
372
00:34:26,203 --> 00:34:29,163
Well, it was interesting hearing from him.
373
00:34:29,243 --> 00:34:32,563
I think that was the first time
that I've really heard from him,
374
00:34:32,643 --> 00:34:33,763
but, uh…
375
00:34:35,763 --> 00:34:37,643
I would probably expect
376
00:34:38,283 --> 00:34:39,803
that same, uh,
377
00:34:40,643 --> 00:34:45,243
same type of speech from virtually
any defendant that I sentenced
378
00:34:45,323 --> 00:34:49,523
that wound up in jail after being
convicted of a crime by a jury. Uh…
379
00:34:49,603 --> 00:34:50,843
He maintains his innocence
380
00:34:50,923 --> 00:34:54,763
and that doesn't come
as much of a surprise, but, uh,
381
00:34:54,843 --> 00:34:57,523
Mr. Trinidad elected to go to trial,
382
00:34:57,603 --> 00:35:00,083
he was found guilty
by a jury of his peers,
383
00:35:00,163 --> 00:35:01,643
and he was sentenced accordingly.
384
00:35:01,723 --> 00:35:04,763
And he absolutely deserves
to be where he is today.
385
00:35:07,323 --> 00:35:09,203
The shooting would not have happened
386
00:35:09,283 --> 00:35:12,123
had not Mr. Trinidad
given Mr. Phillips the gun.
387
00:35:12,763 --> 00:35:15,683
Without that assistance,
there would be no murder.
388
00:35:15,763 --> 00:35:19,163
There would be no murder charge
against either one of them.
389
00:35:19,243 --> 00:35:21,323
It would've simply been a robbery.
390
00:35:21,403 --> 00:35:22,643
But he chose
391
00:35:23,843 --> 00:35:27,763
to assist Mr. Phillips
in the taking of a human life,
392
00:35:28,723 --> 00:35:31,843
and he is just as guilty
as the fellow who pulled the trigger.
393
00:35:31,923 --> 00:35:34,683
And I'm very comfortable
with what I sentenced him to.
394
00:35:39,163 --> 00:35:41,603
[music fades]
395
00:36:08,723 --> 00:36:11,203
[Eduardo] I chose to fight for my rights.
396
00:36:12,483 --> 00:36:15,723
And I think everybody has the right
to do that.
397
00:36:17,363 --> 00:36:18,603
The system is broken.
398
00:36:19,203 --> 00:36:22,563
And they're doing to people just like me,
all the time.
399
00:36:22,643 --> 00:36:23,883
All the time. Always.
400
00:36:24,643 --> 00:36:26,283
We got to be real about that.
401
00:36:32,443 --> 00:36:35,163
[Ted, on recording] He goes back
to the cab, and according to him,
402
00:36:35,243 --> 00:36:39,243
he was going to help
run the cabbie's pockets.
403
00:36:39,323 --> 00:36:44,083
However, there was too much blood
on the cabbie and at the scene.
404
00:36:44,163 --> 00:36:48,083
No, it was not about running pockets
or nothing, you know what I'm saying?
405
00:36:48,163 --> 00:36:51,123
I was really worrying about what happened,
you know what I'm saying?
406
00:36:51,203 --> 00:36:53,003
I came running back down.
407
00:36:53,083 --> 00:36:55,323
Yeah, and my intention was,
408
00:36:55,403 --> 00:36:58,603
if there's nobody around
who could help him, I'm gonna help him.
409
00:36:58,683 --> 00:36:59,883
But he was gone.
410
00:36:59,963 --> 00:37:01,363
So I thought it was all right.
411
00:37:01,443 --> 00:37:05,283
I thought nothing really bad happened,
you know what I'm saying?
412
00:37:05,363 --> 00:37:07,003
Until I seen it on the news.
413
00:37:08,043 --> 00:37:10,163
That's when my heart broke for real.
414
00:37:12,243 --> 00:37:14,163
[somber music playing]
415
00:37:14,243 --> 00:37:17,123
The gun was Trinidad's.
He brought it from Utica.
416
00:37:18,203 --> 00:37:20,803
[continues on recording] Just the
lifestyle, the lifestyle he lived,
417
00:37:20,883 --> 00:37:21,763
you know.
418
00:37:21,843 --> 00:37:24,483
I don't know if he needed it
for protection or he just need--
419
00:37:24,563 --> 00:37:27,083
He wanted it,
just the lifestyle he lived.
420
00:37:29,243 --> 00:37:32,563
No, um, I did come from Utica.
421
00:37:32,643 --> 00:37:36,003
But not with a weapon.
That weapon was already there.
422
00:37:36,083 --> 00:37:37,723
That got nothing to do with me.
423
00:37:40,443 --> 00:37:45,043
Trinidad's sentence blew my mind 'cause
he got 40 to life for going to trial.
424
00:37:47,043 --> 00:37:50,403
[continues on recording] It just shows
the justice system is unfair.
425
00:37:52,723 --> 00:37:54,443
No, it wasn't fair at all.
426
00:37:56,803 --> 00:38:00,243
I just came for my newborn son.
427
00:38:00,763 --> 00:38:02,843
I came for my newborn son.
428
00:38:04,443 --> 00:38:07,203
And didn't made it. Didn't made it, um…
429
00:38:10,283 --> 00:38:11,683
I mean… [sighs]
430
00:38:11,763 --> 00:38:15,803
I know a lot of people--
They're gonna look at it, like,
431
00:38:15,883 --> 00:38:20,003
lied, or whatever the position is, but…
432
00:38:20,683 --> 00:38:23,523
um, I just came
to celebrate my son, to see him,
433
00:38:23,603 --> 00:38:25,403
to hold him in my hand, you know?
434
00:38:25,483 --> 00:38:27,963
At least to accomplish something
that my dad didn't do.
435
00:38:28,683 --> 00:38:29,563
And, um…
436
00:38:30,523 --> 00:38:32,603
I guess I got a… [wry laugh]
437
00:38:32,683 --> 00:38:36,723
I didn't have the opportunity.
I wasn't having enough luck for that.
438
00:38:40,883 --> 00:38:43,603
[voice breaks] I destroyed ten years
of my life already on this.
439
00:38:48,163 --> 00:38:49,523
Is this really justice?
440
00:38:54,443 --> 00:38:56,923
[poignant music playing]
441
00:39:10,163 --> 00:39:12,563
[closing theme music playing]