05x08 - The Night Ripper

[bunniefuu]

("T.J. Hooker
Theme" by Mark Snow)

(funky jazz music)

(loud clattering sound)

(suspenseful music)

- Mary, what was that?

- I don't know.

- I'm gonna call the police.

(menacing music)
- Ann?

(knocking on door)
Ann, are you in there?

(foreboding music)

Annie, where are you?

Annie?

(menacing music)

(Mary screams)

(tense music)

(police radio beeps)

- [Dispatcher] 4-Adam-30,
unknown trouble,

714 West 71st
Street, see the woman.

- 4-Adam-30, roger.

- 4-Adam-16, show
us backing up 30.

(exciting music)

(ominous music)

(car tires screeching)

- That's him! (rousing music)

That's him, he
k*lled, he k*lled her.

Please, somebody stop him.

He k*lled her, stop him!

Please, somebody stop him!

(car tires screeching)

(siren wailing)

In there.

- [Jim] What?

- She's dead.
- Stay with her.

- [Mary] She's dead!

(siren wailing)

(exciting music)

(car tires squealing)

(loud crashing sound)

(expl*si*n booms)

(multiple explosions boom)

- Hooker to control.

I have a car burning at the
corner of Wingate and 12th,

send fire equipment
and a unit to pick me up.

- [Jim] Girl named Ann
Banning is dead in there.

Bad scene.

- Who's crying?

- Girl who found the body,
name's Mary Stockman,

Stacy's taking care of her.

- Slaughterhouse.

- Yeah.

I called the lab
and the coroner.

- Put out an APB on
the guy I was chasing.

Young by the way he ran,

wearing jeans and cowboy boots.

- Right, it's not much.

- How did Stacy take all this?

- She had a couple
of bad minutes.

- What about you?

- Nothing bothers me anymore.

- Let's talk to the
girls who lived here.

See if we can ID
the guy who ran out.

Let's find out everything.

Who lives here,
boyfriends, the works.

(suspenseful music)

- She was just a kid.

- Yeah.

(mysterious music)

Cowboy boots.

Guy I chased was
wearing cowboy boots.

(sinister music)

Miss Stockman, what about
the guy that ran past you?

- It was dark, and
it happened so fast

I didn't see him.

- What about Miss Banning's
boyfriends, anybody special?

- There was one, Sonny.

She met him maybe a week ago,

I don't know his last name.

- Were those his
boots in the closet?

- Look, she was a
nice girl, you know.

But I go home for the weekend,

so maybe he stays with her.

- Can you describe him?

- Tall, light brown
hair, early 20's I think.

He's nice looking.

I only saw him once,
he seems to like her.

- Hooker.

This list of names,
the writing's the same

as some school papers
signed by Ann Banning.

- Larry Dunn, Tom Williams.

- And here's a letter
addressed to Ann Banning.

- Return address (mumbles)
Miss Louise Banning.

It's her mother.

- She was really into these,
she had stacks of them.

- Clothes look like they could

come right off the
pages of the magazine.

Make sure the lab does a number

on those cowboy boots
in the closet, will you.

- Right.

- I'm getting a feeling
of deja-vu about this.

- An old case?

- Four years, and the
M.O. is exactly the same

if she was sexually assaulted.

Six girls, just like this one,

and they were
stabbed and mutilated

with an ordinary butcher Kn*fe.

And then the m*rder*r
suddenly stopped.

- Maybe everybody got
lucky and the k*ller d*ed.

- Well, it's more likely
is he was doing time

somewhere on some other charge.

- You're right, and it
looks like he's out now.

- What about the other
girls you were talking to?

- Whoever ran out of that
room, no one saw his face.

- Yeah, he'd make sure of that.

(police recruits chanting)

- Homework?

- Ah, homework.

Ted, do you remember
the Night Ripper case?

- Yeah.

- I've been going over
the file page by page,

and the M.O. fits every detail

we know about the
m*rder last night.

- Just what do we know?

- Young girl going to
college, long dark hair,

probable sexual as*ault,

disfigurement of the
body with a butcher Kn*fe,

everything fits.

- This Night Ripper,
that was how long ago?

- Four years ago.

I know what your question is.

Why did he stop, and why
has he started to k*ll again now?

My guess is he was
in jail or an institution.

Maybe he didn't stop,
maybe he moved away,

did his dirty work
somewhere else.

I want him.

- Okay, say I agree
it's the same k*ller

How do I justify putting
you back on the case?

- 'Cause the case is still open.

'Cause I missed
him first time around.

'Cause six girls are
dead, and I owe them.

Now I owe another one.

- The captain already
has Marino and Schilling

lined up to investigate.

- To hell with
Marino and Schilling!

- Okay, see what I can do.

But you'll need a team.

- Corrigan and Sheridan.

- Alright, you got it.

One thing Hooker,
I'll back you all the way

but our butts are
gonna be on the line.

- My analysis is good.

(pensive music)

(upbeat music)

- 4-X-Ray-16 to 30,
pick me up on tac two.

- Morning, go ahead 16.

- We've got a
couple of addresses

from the phone company
on Ann Banning's list.

- Anything on a Sonny?

- We've got the
department artist

talking to Mary Stockman
now, he's doing a sketch.

- Okay, hit the first
name on the list.

I'm gonna talk to
Ann Banning's mother.

- Roger and out.

- Mrs. Banning?
- Yes.

- Sergeant Hooker, LCPD.

- Police have already been here,

told me all about what happened.

- Mrs. Louise Banning?

- That's right.

Never could do
anything with Ann.

She always done what she wanted,

she never cared
what I thought about it.

- I was hoping that
you might tell me

something about
your daughter's habits.

Something that might help
me find whoever k*lled her.

- What could I tell you I
haven't already told the others?

Ann never gave me
nothin' but trouble.

When her daddy d*ed he left her

some money in trust for college,

and she left home
as soon as she could.

- You must have met
some of her friends.

- She never brought any home.

Or answered any
of my calls or letters

asking for a little help
now and then, either.

- Mrs. Banning, I need your help

to find your daughter's k*ller.

- She wasn't my daughter,

her mother d*ed
givin' birth to her.

I brought her up like my own

and what thanks did I get?

Not one dollar,
it all went to her.

She was never no good.

I always said she'd
come to a bad end.

- Isn't there something you
can tell me that might help us?

- That's all there is.

My TV show's comin'
on soon, you finished?

- Yes, I'm finished.

If you care to see her
I'll make arrangements.

(troubling music)

- Hey, Larry Dunn?

- Yeah.

- Like to talk to you about a
friend of yours, Ann Banning?

- What'd she do?

- [Stacy] You know her well?

- Nothin' special.

We met at parties on campus
a couple of times, that's all.

- She wrote your name on
a piece of paper in her room,

any idea why?

- Hey wait a minute, I don't
know what's going down

but if she's in
some kinda trouble,

I don't know anything about it.

- She's in the worst
trouble anyone can get into.

She's dead, m*rder*d.

- Ann, m*rder*d?

Are you kidding me?

- Where were you last
night, say about 8 o'clock?

- Hey wait a minute, I
was right here at home,

I don't know anything about it.

It's horrible, she
was a nice kid.

- What about that piece of
paper with your name on it?

We need an answer to that.

- She was looking
for part-time work,

maybe I said I would
try and help her out.

- What kind of work?

- She said she modeled,
nude stuff, you know?

She said she had an
interview with somebody,

I don't remember who.

I said if the deal fell through

that maybe I would
try and help her out.

- You have contacts in
the modeling business?

- Well no, it's just that if she

wanted to pose for some
pictures for some extra money

maybe I could help,
she was so eager.

Look, I felt sorry for the girl.

I was just trying to cheer her
up, do you know what I mean?

- Yeah we know
exactly what you mean.

Do you know a friend
of hers named Sonny?

She ever mention him?

- Sonny?

No, look, I'm sorry.

I would really like
to help if I could.

- Yeah, I can see you're
a helpful kinda guy.

(police radio beeps)

- [Dispatcher] 4-X-Ray-16,
meet 4-X-Ray-30 on tac two.

- [Jim] Hey this is 16, go.

- Got anything?

- I don't think so, but
we'll check on Ann's story.

- Okay Jim, I want you
to get the composite

of this Sonny into distribution.

- I'll try a computer
match-up too.

- Do that, and then check out

the other name on
Ann Banning's list.

Have Stacy meet me
at the coroner's office

with a copy of the composite.

- Okay, that's a roger.

(car engine roars)

- Death was probably about 8:15.

She was strangled first.

The Kn*fe wounds
are post-mortem.

- Sexually assaulted?

- Definitely.

This guy's artistic
with a blade,

a real cut-up, look at this.

See what I mean?

- I've seen dead bodies before.

I don't need protection.

- Not like this you haven't.

- It's just being so
damn callous about it.

- Well, these
people have to deal

with this kind of
thing every day.

They see it time after time

until they become immune.

They can't personalize it,

otherwise they go over the edge.

- Last night she
was alive and pretty.

Today she's some
kinda sick joke.

- The jokes and the
wisecracks are just

their way of blocking
off the real horror.

What we've gotta
do is find this guy,

before he kills again.

(suspenseful music)

(upbeat music)

(knocking sound)

- Who is it?

- Would you help me please?

I'm looking for someone.

- Just a sec.

- Who is it you want?

- You.

- What? I don't know you.

- You will.

(funky electronic music)

- This Coed Fashions
magazine, is it legit?

- Mostly young girls fashion,

exercises, stuff like that.

Nothing offbeat, no soft p*rn.

- Thank you, Melissa.

I don't know exactly
what you're looking for,

but this is our
current personnel list.

I run the business side.

I leave the hiring, f*ring,

sh**ting sessions
up to my assistant.

- Does he keep a separate list

of the models he
uses or might use?

- Why don't we ask him?

I don't interfere in
the creative side,

but anytime you wanna model here

I'll make an exception,
Miss Sheridan.

I find it very difficult

to call anyone as
pretty as you "Officer."

This way, please.

(camera shutter clicking)

Excuse me.

(upbeat music)

- Yes sir, you were
inquiring about freelancers?

Actually what we do here

is we get our models
from the agencies

and we hardly ever
go with freelancers.

- But you do on some occasions.

- Oh, one or two maybe.

You can take a look through
the girls files if you like,

but there's definitely
no Ann Banning

that's worked for us, since
I've been here anyway.

- How long is
that, Mr. Richards?

- Doug, please.

Several months now.

- Well, she may not
have worked here,

but she might have come
in here looking for a job.

This is her picture.

- I don't really
recognize her, I'm sorry.

I wish I could've been
of some help to you folks.

- Well, it was a long sh*t.

- Excuse me, please.

- Lovely girl isn't she?

Tina's one of our best
and most popular models.

Young, of course, but
she knows her way around

if you know what I
mean, very cooperative.

- I'm sure she is, just
like you Mr. Beaman.

- Yes, well I do have
to get back to work.

- Thanks for your help.

- I guess he means well.

- So do street pimps.

(police radio beeps)

- [Dispatcher]
Four-X-Ray-30 come in.

- 30, go ahead.

- [Dispatcher]
Four-X-Ray-16 has requested

you meet him at
1027 Kester code two.

- Roger.

(exciting music)

(car tires squeal)

- If Sonny's our boy
he's been at it again.

- Another girl.

- Who is she?

- Heidi Davis, 19, a
freshman at the college.

Home is in Oregon, Salem.

Landlady found
her late this morning.

- Same M.O.?

- Right down to the last detail.

Physical characteristics
mutilated, sexual as*ault.

- Help them finish up here.

- How long is this gonna
go on before we stop it?

- An animal kills like this,

I wanna put him in a cage.

Forever.

(tense music)

- The lab came up with
some interesting things

on those boots you found
in Ann Banning's closet,

real horse hair,
straw, and manure.

- So Sonny's a real cowboy, huh?

- It looks like.

Put out a couple of
interview teams with a sketch

to cover riding
stables and ranches

on the south side of the valley,

but that's a lot of territory.

- Stacy, you join the
stable detail tomorrow.

- Whatever it takes.

Why don't I get us
all some sandwiches?

- And make mine ham and cheese.

- Tea for me.

How does the lady like homicide?

- She's learning.

What about you, you still
getting pressure from downtown?

- They may take this
one away from us,

you gotta give me
somethin' to feed 'em.

- Handing them
Sonny wouldn't hurt.

- We have a serial
k*ller on our hands.

You don't catch
him by getting lucky.

You do it by running
down your clues,

finding witnesses,
pounding the pavement.

- That takes time.

- This is the
psychological profile

we worked up four years ago.

Suspect is probably young,

possibly had a traumatic
youthful experience

with a girl resembling
the victims.

Kills her over and over again.

- We know that part.

- He's intelligent,
probably attractive,

and able to ingratiate
himself with his victims.

Kills them ritualistically

under an irresistible
compulsion.

- Bottom line?

- He'll do it again.

(mysterious music)

- [Jim] This is the last
name on the Banning list.

I stopped by yesterday,
but nobody was home.

- Maybe we'll get
lucky this time.

(doorbell chimes)

Mr. Williams?

- That's right.

Oh.

I suppose it's about that
girl who got herself k*lled.

- Ann Banning, yes.

Did you know her?

- She went to
school with my son.

Not that that means anything,

there was no hanky
panky between 'em.

I kept a close eye on that.

- I'm afraid you're jumping

too ahead of us, Mr. Williams.

- My son hasn't seen
that girl in over a year.

I put a stop to it.

Heard she had round heels,
if you know what I mean.

- We'd like to talk
to him if we might.

- Just routine, we have
to check everything.

- Well you're wasting
your time, but I'll get him.

- Think papa's boss
man around here?

- I think papa thinks he is.

- Tom.

- Sergeant Hooker,
Officer Corrigan.

We're investigating
Ann Banning's m*rder,

we're hoping you can help us.

- I don't know anything about it

except what I saw on the TV.

- We're making a
list of her friends,

people who knew her.

- I already told you
Tom hasn't seen her.

How long's it been, son?

- A year or so, a long time.

- You went to school together

and you haven't
seen her in a year?

- It's a big campus,
and we don't

have any classes together.

- So you don't know who
she was running around with,

boyfriends, anything like that?

- No, sorry.

- Sorry officers,
like to help you,

but, way it is.

- We understand.

It's just that, we never know

the one thing that
might be important.

Ann Banning d*ed
a horrible death.

Whoever did it, we want.

I mean, he's gotta be caught.

Thank you.

(quiet music)

- What gives, that kid
was ready to fall apart?

- Not with his father
holding onto his arm like that.

I got a hunch,
let's stick around.

(car engine roars)

(suspicious music)

- I had to talk to you,
only my father can't know.

- [Hooker] Whatever
you say to us

doesn't get back to him, okay?

- Okay.

Look, I never really
stopped seeing Ann.

I mean, we were
just good friends

and I couldn't see
anything wrong

with just gettin' together
to talk or watch TV.

- When did you last see her?

- Day before yesterday,
I lied about the classes.

We have a 3 o'clock together.

- She ever mention
anyone named Sonny?

- Yeah, when we got out of
class he was waitin' for her,

that's what I
wanted to tell you.

He's a new guy and
they went off together.

- Is this him?

- Yes sir, I'll swear to it.

I talked to him some.

- What'd you talk about?

- Mostly him, he's a
cowboy or somethin'.

Ann was all hung-up on him.

She's had a thing for horses

and they were gonna go riding.

He was gonna
pick her up later on.

After what happened I
thought you oughta know.

- Did they say where they
were gonna get the horses?

- Yeah, where he works.

A riding place called Easy
Trails in the West Valley.

She was my friend, and if
he did it, I want him caught.

- We'll take it from here.

Thanks for telling us the truth.

(car engine roars)
(suspenseful music)

(horses whinny)

(rousing music)

(men grunting)

- Hey man, take it easy,
you're gonna break my arm.

- We've been wanting to
meet you for a long time, Sonny.

(Sonny grunts)

I want the truth, Sonny.

Tell me again about
going to Ann's room.

- [Sonny] You mean
when I walked in?

- You knocked.

- Sure.

We had a date, but
she didn't answer,

so I tried the door,
it was unlocked,

so I walked in, I've told
you a hundred times.

- And you saw her, where?

- On the floor by the bed.

It was horrible, all that blood.

I tried to help her,
but she was dead.

- Where'd you get
the Kn*fe, Sonny?

- On the floor beside her,
I didn't get it anywhere,

I never saw it before.

- Why didn't you take
your boots with you?

- [Sonny] Boots?

What, the ones in the closet?

You gotta be kidding.

- Then they were your boots.

- I didn't think about
them at a time like that,

I left them there before.

I stayed all night
a couple of times.

But I swear I never
did nothin' to her!

But you're gonna pin
this on me, aren't you,

because you
can't find who did it,

so it's me, right?

- Did you do it?
- No!

- You sure?

- I walked in there,
I saw her all cut up,

it was a nightmare.

I heard someone outside,
I turned out the lights,

and when they came in I
pushed them out of the way

and I ran, I didn't do it.

I didn't do it.

- Alright, you get
him out of here,

take him to holding.

- But we had a date, I
didn't do anything to her!

I didn't do it.

- You think he did it?

- We have no prints,

we got no hard
evidence of any kind,

nothing that ties him in,
except the fact that he was there.

If he k*lled that girl

we're gonna need a confession.

- What about the
original murders?

He would've been
only 16 years old then.

- He says he was in Oklahoma

at the time of those murders.

If he can prove where he was

on the dates those
girls were k*lled,

we gotta let him go.

- What have we got left?

- Coed Fashions magazine.

- Are you saying we
missed something?

- I'm saying we didn't
dig deep enough.

That little model, Tina?

She didn't miss a b*at
about what was going on,

I'd like to talk to her,

but away from
Beaman and Richards.

Come on.

Stacy, you find
where she hangs out.

(upbeat rock music)

Sure this is the place?

- Mr. Beaman lie to me?

- It's the kinda place

that sticks to the
soles of your shoes.

(upbeat rock music)

Sweet little Miss
America hangs out here?

- I remember you, and you.

You know, I saw you
watch me yesterday,

and I thought maybe
you were gonna hit on me

but you just walked out.

- Well you know, I don't
mix business with pleasure.

- Wrong, I don't
know, but I'd like to.

- What we want right now

is some answers
to some questions,

do you think you can handle it?

- Sure, you wanna
know about that girl,

um, what was her name?

- Ann Banning.

- Right, right.

Well she came in one
day last week, cute,

but she did not know
anything about being a model.

- Was she looking for work?

- Oh yeah, she wanted a job.

- Why do you think Richards
said she hadn't been there?

- Oh I don't know.

- How many times
has she been there?

- Far as I know,
just that one time.

You know, I've never
had a thing with a cop.

- Well I don't think
you're going to.

Unless you want an
appointment with a man from vice.

- That's not what I had in mind.

- Well thank you, Tina,

you've been a great help.

- Any time.

I mean any time at all.

(upbeat rock music)

- Beaman and company
have a lot of explaining to do.

Let's get out of here.

Did you see a woman,
blonde, wearing dark glasses?

- No.
- Who was she?

- I don't know, something
about her, I don't know.

- We just got a call.

They found a body,
looks like another Ripper.

- Where?
- Six blocks from here.

- Let's go.

(car engine roars)

Couple next door
heard a lot of screaming.

They called the police.

Husband banged on the wall,

probably scared the k*ller off

so he didn't get much
work with his Kn*fe.

- He left it behind.

- Well, we can
forget about Sonny,

he didn't do this one.

(sinister music)

- What is it?

- It's hairs from a wig.

The woman who got away.

Now I know why she
seemed so familiar.

(suspenseful music)

(menacing music)

(menacing music grows louder)

(Stacy gasps)

- Put the Kn*fe down, Richards.

Let her go.

- You stay away.

You stay back!

Or she dies.

- [Stacy] Come on, let me go.

- Shh, shhh, you were gonna be

next anyway,
baby, you know that.

- No she wasn't.

What are you, kidding?

She's blonde, you
don't k*ll blondes,

only girls with dark hair.

- You can't prove that.

- That Kn*fe you're holding,
that'll prove it for me.

- Nobody is gonna believe you.

- The jury'll believe me

when they see how that
Kn*fe matches the other knives.

And they're gonna
wanna know who it is

you keep k*lling,
over and over again.

(Richards yells)

- Now you take one
more step and she dies.

You, go over there.

- You're not listening
to me, that's not the girl.

Look at her. Look at her!

Now put the Kn*fe down.

- No, you locked me up.

I couldn't stand that again.

- Is that where you've been
the past four years, Richards.

- Well that's for you to
figure out now, isn't it?

- Richards we wanna help you.

Let her go.

- You're trying to trick me.

Just like she did!

It's not gonna work.

You see I told her
how much I loved her

and she laughed at me,

but I made her stop laughing.

- Nobody's laughing
at you now, believe me.

- Take her!

(dramatic, rousing music)

(car horn honks)

(tires squeal)

- [Hooker] Stay right there!

- I kept k*lling her
again and again,

but she wouldn't stay dead.

(sinister notes play)

- Whoever she was,
she'll stay dead this time.

(police recruits chanting)

- How'd you put it together?

- Simple.

When Richards bumped
into me at the club

I just didn't have the
urge to dance with him.

- Even though he
looked good in heels?

- Not my type.

And the blonde hair with
the gum at the end of it,

that tied in with the
modeling and the magazine.

- Ann Banning and
the other victims

weren't afraid of another woman.

- That's right.

- Richards did
close to four years

in a New jersey psycho ward

for a Kn*fe att*ck
on a young woman.

- Well that ties
it up, doesn't it.

- All but one little thing,

now McSweeney over at
the motor pool is wondering

if you can be put
back on foot patrol.

- Me, why?

- That was the
third black and white

you've totaled in
the last 10 months!

- I know, but doesn't it
count that I got out alive?

- Not to McSweeney.

- Tell him I'll be more
careful next time.

- If you believe that I've
got some swamp land

in Arizona for sale. (laughs)

(guitar music)

("T.J. Hooker
Theme" by Mark Snow)