01x07 - Ordinary Death

Episode transcripts for the 2016 TV show "The Night Of". Aired July 10 - August 28, 2016.*
Watch/Buy Amazon


"The Night Of" delves into the intricate story of a fictitious m*rder case in New York City. The series follows the police investigation and legal proceedings, all the while examining the criminal justice system and the purgatory of Rikers Island, where the accused awaits his trial.
Post Reply

01x07 - Ordinary Death

Post by bunniefuu »

(theme music playing)

(distant dogs barking)

(car door closes)

(footsteps approach)

What we have here is the same scenario as Andrea Cornish.

Would you agree?

So where's all the news trucks?

Your basic uptown misdemeanor homicide.

(camera flashes)

What kind of Kn*fe was used in this att*ck?

One with a single-edged non-serrated blade, approximately five inches in length.

Something like... this one?

Yes.

And what about this wound on the defendant's hand?

That cut is the result of his hand slipping from the handle of the Kn*fe onto the blade of the Kn*fe in the act of stabbing her.

Your witness.

Dr. Chester, did you hear Mrs. Weiss ask you the total number of wounds?

No.

Me neither. I wonder why that is?

Perhaps because we can see them.

We can, that's true, and they're hard to look at, but how many of them are there?

Twenty-two.

And what does that tell you?

It tells me she was stabbed 22 times.

That's all? Such a great number of wounds?

Well, some people would say it indicates a crime of passion.

Chandra: That it was personal?

That the k*ller had something against the victim?

Chester: Some would say.

But not me, because I've seen it both ways.

This cut is very important to the State's case.

Any chance you could be mistaken about what caused it?

No.

Have you ever made a mistake that sent an innocent man to prison?

No.

Arthur Metz didn't go to prison because of your testimony at his trial?

You don't remember him?

No, I do.

So you remember that Mr.
Metz was later exonerated based on a reexamination of your findings?

My findings were disputed, not disproven.

I didn't say disputed or disproven, but whatever we want to call it, Mr. Metz is now a free man.

Unless he's back in prison for some other crime.

He's not back in prison for some other crime.

And wasn't in prison for some other crime before your testimony put him there.

It wasn't a mistake.

The appellate court disagreed.

It had a different interpretation, that's all.

That's all we're talking about here, a different interpretation, to avoid you having to come back, like you had to with Mr. Metz.

(door opens)

Everything that goes on in there is important.

How Naz sits, what he wears, what his eyes say, who's there to support him, who isn't.

I know it's not easy to look at those pictures, but the jury has to, and so do you.

You can't get up and leave like that.

An animal did that.

Yeah. You're right.

Did I raise an animal?

What?

(sighs)

He wants to talk to you.

If you get a call with the ID unavailable, it's probably him.

(indistinct chattering)

(wings fluttering)

(Muslim call to prayer plays over speaker)

(woman speaks foreign language)

We talked to our lawyer.

He said we won't get the cab back no matter what.

We're buying a new one.

An old new one.

That's great.

It's ours.

Not yours.

What are you talking about? It's mine too.

No.

The car we can't get back is yours, not this one.

This one is mine too.

A third of the medallion is mine.

You cannot operate any car without me.

So sell us your third.

You don't have the money.

You don't have the money for anything.

We have the money. We can get the money.

It will solve your problems.

You want it?

I want what is right...

Us working together, like always.

No.

Okay.

Okay. Good.

$75,000.

It's worth $250,000.

Why would I do that?

Because that's all we are going to pay.

And it will take us years to work that off.

I'll sell it to someone else.

We are not going to work with some deadbeat.

Someone who pays the full price is a deadbeat and you're not?

We didn't put us here.

You did, your son.

Look what he has done to all of us.

To all of us.

You're thieves.

I don't do business with thieves.

You are the father of a k*ller.

♪ ♪
♪ ♪

(expl*sive shattering)

(shrieks)

(tires skidding)

(engine racing)

(camera flashes)

Weiss: What's that?

It's a photo of the defendant's back taken at the precinct approximately an hour after he was arrested.

Detective, could those scratches simply be the result of, I'll say, "lovemaking," in your opinion?

Well, I don't know, but I can tell you a considerable amount of his skin was found under her fingernails.

Other than that, you should ask Cupid.

♪ ♪

You okay?

Yeah, no problem.

Taylor: You're doing great.

Hey, isn't that the guy on the news?

His daughter was k*lled by that cabbie?

Stepdaughter.

Did you know her?

No.

He must be pretty broken up, huh?

What business is that of yours?

I'm just saying.

(beeping)

Pick up the pace a bit.

(indistinct conversation)

Good.

♪ ♪

Hey.

So, he's got a Visa, Mastercard, and Amex, all maxed.

If he files for bankruptcy, it'll be the third time.

I appreciate this.

Criminal records I can get.

Credit cards, they're tough.

Yeah. I took a look at yours.

I'm kidding.

Oh, I also ran across this.

You may want to talk to her.

My first husband was a deadbeat too.

Guess I've got a type.

Yeah. My wife's got a type.

I'm not it.

(giggles)

Look, I'm not stupid.
I knew what he wanted.

And I knew what I wanted.

He was young, good-looking, I have money.

Guess you could call that some kind of prostitution, but worked for us.

Until the night I had to call 911 with his hands around my throat.

Really?

Cops were quick, thank God.

Did you press charges?

Oh, yeah. They hauled him off.

Next time I saw him was across the conference table with the divorce lawyers, both of whom I was paying for since he didn't have a dime to his name.

Mine said, "Jeannie, do you want to save some money? Give him 200 grand and walk away."

Best legal advice I ever got.

You know why divorce is so expensive?

Because it's worth it.

Because it's worth it.

(chuckling)

Right.

You know what he does?

A personal trainer, apparently.

I mean his real line of work.

He's a trapeze artist.

Swings from one old bag to another.

Don't sell yourself short.

I'm not.

It was a joke.

How you doing?

I'm fine.

Don't say it.

How often did you buy amphetamines from the defendant?

They were just Adderall.

Which we know now from earlier testimony is stronger than your average amphetamine.

How often did you buy it from him?

Just mainly at finals.

Mainly.

So, at other times, too?

No, just then and, you know, maybe midterms, project deadlines, maybe once in a while for a party.

So, a lot.

You were his only customer?

No. There were, you know, some other friends.

What did he charge?

Ten dollars for a 10 milligram.

You know where he got them?

I think he had a prescription.

You know what he paid to have it filled?

No.

Ten-dollar co-pay, insurance paid the rest.

So, at his cost of 25 cents each, the $10 he was charging you comes to a 3,900% profit for him.

What's your major in college, Amir?

Business.

Do you know what Mr. Khan's is?

Business.

Which of you, would you say, is learning the most?

I'm done.

(soft ballad playing)

I'm going to bed.

Night night.

(steam hissing)

(soft wheezing)

(soft wheezing)

f*cking cat.

Hey, Gooden!

Hey, come here. Gooden!

I have no idea who that is.

Hey! Gooden, come over here!

Come here!

Hold on.

I wanted to show you something.

Check it out. No more sandals.

How 'bout that?

That's cool.

I gotta go.

Wait, Gooden.

I wanna come over later and give you something.

What?

A cat.

Dad, I don't want a cat. I want a pit.

You don't want a pit.

Look, I gotta go, all right?

Tell your mom about the cat.

Huh.

(loud chattering)

Woman: Gate!

(alarm buzzes)

Come on.

Let's go.

Woman: How is he?

He's fine.

I'm so worried about him.

He's fine.

(police radio chattering)

Coach: He didn't even look down the stairs to see how Diaz landed.

He just walked off like he was going to class.

Did you talk to him?

Oh, yeah.

I grabbed him straight away, said, "What the hell you do that for?"

What did he say?

Nothing.

He just looked at me.

Looked at you how?

Like nonreactive.

Like he had no idea what he'd done?

In that neighborhood.

Your witness.

This incident took place not long after 9/11.

How would you describe the mood of the student body at that time?

Uh, for want of a better word, I'd say patriotic.

Okay. And in this patriotic atmosphere, how would you say the Muslim students fared?

It was tough on them, I'll be honest.

r*cist comments, taunts, that kind of thing.

Yeah, but Khan was the only one at school who sent two students to the hospital because of it.

Two...

His first week back after the suspension for the stairs thing, he threw a full Coke can at a kid in the cafeteria.

Twelve stitches.

In his face.

Thank you.

Judge: Mrs. Weiss.

The State rests, Your Honor.

(somber Mideastern music playing)

(grunts)

There you go. That's good. Come on.

You okay?

Yeah.

You sure?

No, no, no.

No, just take it. Just take it.

Where you going?

Hey!

Hey. Hey! What...

What the...

Aah!

You think you're invisible?

The invisible man?

(gagging)

You talk to my coworkers, my friends, my ex, and you don't think I'll find out about it?

Seriously, get this off of me.

Maybe I should have a little talk with your ex-wife?

Or your son?

At that artsy-fartsy school of his.

Oh, sh*t.

f*ck.

(grunting)

(phone ringing)

(line beeps)

Man (on TV): They are strong swimmers, able to cross rivers five miles wide.

The river offers this tiger a place to bathe, hunt, or rather, fish...


You talk to her?

No.

Man: Unlike most cats, tigers are comfortable in water.

This tiger clearly is.

The river is...

Box: You see that, right?

That's recording us, and it will be used in court.

How do you think that's gonna come on?

"She was nice, I liked her, but I k*lled her anyway."


Detective, what made you so sure so quickly Nasir Khan was your man?

The mountain of evidence.

So why bother questioning him?

Sometimes a suspect wants nothing more than to confess.

Did he?

No.

So, that's when you charged him, when you left the interview room?

No.

Why not?

Sometimes the suspect needs time to think things through.

So, you gave him some time, and he's sitting in the squad room pen, awaiting transfer downtown.

That's when he confessed?

If he had, we wouldn't be here.

So, after the arrest, you gave him the opportunity to confess and he didn't.

Then 12 hours later, after you gave him the opportunity to think about it, he didn't confess.

Then when the DA gave him the opportunity to accept just 15 years instead of a possible life sentence, he didn't confess.

I don't know, 15 years sounds like a pretty good deal to me, what with a mountain of evidence, don't you?

I'll take evidence over a confession any day of the week.

Thank you, Detective.

(door closes)

(muffled voices chattering)

(soft ballad playing)

Hey.

How you doing?

Huh?

(purring)

Yeah.

(snoring softly)

(purring)

(Stone grunts softly)

(cat purring)

(traffic honking)

(Stone wheezing)

(purring)

(wheezing)

Oh, f*ck.

Come on, let's go. Come on.

Oh!

All right, okay.

(panting)

(hoarsely) You stay in there.

All right.

(wheezing)

♪ ♪

(wheezes)

You know, I was thinking, Since you were so right on the money with my eczema, maybe you have something for my asthma?

Get rid of your cat.

Maybe some kind of root or fish oil, or something I could try?

Get rid of your cat.

I don't want to get rid of my cat.

♪ ♪
Chandra: Mr. Cutler, what do you do for a living?

I'm a waiter.

Any other sources of income?

Occasionally I, uh... acquire things for friends.

Would these occasional acquisitions include pharmaceuticals?

Occasionally.

Is the defendant one of your friends?

No.

What about Andrea?

Yes.

Did she visit you on October 24th wanting to acquire something?

A quarter-gram of K and six Mollies.

K, ketamine? Mollies, ecstasy?

Yeah.

And did you... I won't say, "sell"...

Provide them to her?

Yeah.

Something like this for the ketamine?

Could have been.

Thank you.

I sit there every day. I watch you fight for me.

I think, "Why is she doing this?"

I mean, it's not for the money 'cause you're not getting paid, I'm sure, at least not much.

It's my job.

And it's your right.

Is that all?

Yeah.

My dad's the only person in the world who believes me.

Your mother does too.

No.

Well... I do.

♪ ♪

(panting)

(mutters) f*ck.

Officer.

Thank you.

(lamp clicks)

(lamp clicks)

This for "Law & Order"?

What?

Is this for "Law & Order"?

I do a lot of props like this for them.

Yeah, yeah, "Law & Order."

(phone ringing)

Yeah?

I'm at the copy place.

Living the vida loca of a high-priced attorney.

I'm waiting for them.

I'm doing them. He's doing them.

Okay? All right.

All right. Bye.

I don't know. Production assistants are usually younger than you.

Can you tell us, Dr. Katz, what this photograph is?

That's one of the drawers of the bar cabinet on the parlor level of the brownstone.

And we can see that its contents are a corkscrew, a nutcracker, some cocktail napkins, some swizzle sticks, and two knives.

They look similar to this one.

They're more than similar. They're identical.

They're all part of the same set.

As is the missing one.

The... Excuse me. The what?

These knives are sold in sets of four.

You can't buy them any other way.

One is missing.

Couldn't it be somewhere else in the house?

No, I checked everywhere.
It's not there.

If this missing Kn*fe was there, presumably, it could cause the same wounds to the victim as this one?

Oh, of course.

Dr. Katz, would you agree with the medical examiner this was a defensive wound?

No, because it isn't.

That wound was made before the att*ck when the defendant and the victim were playing a game.

A game?

You know, like, uh...

Please.

Mumblety-peg?

I don't know. Is that what it's called?

Uh, okay.

Okay, but I mean, I don't play that game.

I mean, who does? But if you did, wouldn't you put your hand this way?

Palm down.

Not necessarily.

It seems more natural, if you ask me, if anything about this game could be natural.

It was natural for her this way.

And she had played that game before.

You can see the scars in Dr.
Chester's own photographs, on her hands and elsewhere on her body.

Self-inflicted wounds.

Why would anyone do that?

Everyone knows it's not uncommon among troubled people.

Okay, but still, how can you be certain this particular wound happened somewhere other than the bedroom?

Because of her skin cells in one of the gouges of the coffee table.

(grunts)

Really? You saw that in the crime scene unit's report?

No. They didn't notice, or at least they didn't note these skin cells, but they're in the table.

So, if this is how this wound occurred during this game, that could explain how the victim's blood came to be on this Kn*fe?

Yes.

This is the basement level.

Correct.

What's this?

The front gate.

I notice it's ajar.

It's ajar because it doesn't close. It hasn't for years.

The rust on the latch shows that.

And this?

The front basement door, which does close, but the crime scene detectives noted that it was unlocked, as was a second-story window on the garden side.

Would it be possible for someone...

Say, an intruder... To get to that window, though, being a level up from the garden?

Yes, there's a tree right there.

This tree?

Mm-hmm.

Okay.

But how do you know it's scalable?

Because I scaled it, easily, and I'm pushing 70.

You don't look it.

I feel it sometimes.

While you were scaling this tree to the second-floor window, could you see the basement-level kitchen?

No.

What if you came through the gate that won't close and door that was unlocked and went up the staircase?

You could see someone in the kitchen then, I imagine, since they're on the same level.

No. I took a picture of this.

That shows what you see of the kitchen from the staircase.

What kitchen?

Exactly. What kitchen?

Thank you, Dr. Katz.

Judge: Your witness, Mrs. Weiss.

(clears throat)

Dr. Katz, it's a pleasure to meet you.

And you.

Me? Okay, thank you.

But I'm not famous like you are.

I'm not famous. No pathologist is famous.

Maybe I'm known in certain professional circles, but that's about it.

No one recognizes you on the street?

If they do, maybe they saw my picture on the back of one of my books.

Or on TV?

Since you've testified in a lot of high-profile, sometimes televised trials.

But in pathology, fame plays no part, does it?

Whether you're a New York City medical examiner like Dr. Chester, who no one recognizes on the street, or an expert witness for O.J. Simpson.

Chandra: Objection.

To what?

It's a compliment.

Judge: Overruled.

Is Dr. Chester, unknown as he may be to the public, a good pathologist?

Since I'm under oath, I'd have to say, not in my opinion.

You disagree with him?

Not only about the victim's hand wound, but also... what he said about this Kn*fe wound on the defendant's hand?

I do. Because it's not a Kn*fe wound caused by his hand slipping from the handle onto the blade.

It was cut on a piece of glass from the broken door pane.

So, he doesn't know what he's talking about?

I'd like to find a nicer way to put it.

How about like this.

"Dr. Chester is a modern day giant in the field of forensic pathology.

We'd all be well-advised to try to emulate his wisdom and scientific exactitude."

You know who said that?

Me.

Where?

A testimonial dinner.

Your praise sounds so sincere.

Are you saying it wasn't?

You're asked to speak about someone, do you embarrass them by saying what you really think?

You could decline to speak.

But that would have embarrassed him just as much.

So, what were you really thinking up there in front of all those people saying things you didn't believe to be true in such a convincing manner?

Honestly? Dessert.

(spectators laughing)

The Kn*fe you described as missing from its set, do you know when it was bought?

No, but I know it couldn't have been later than 2008 since that's when that model was discontinued.

I bought my husband an electric drill with an array of two dozen drill bits in 2008.

Admittedly, not the most romantic birthday gift, but he's a happy putterer.

Well, so am I. I'd find it romantic.

My point is...

I think we already know.

Dr. Katz... we've both been doing what we do for a long time, and it's put us in courtrooms for too many days.

But as a result, we know the rules of the court, and one of them is you answer the questions I ask, not ones I don't.

Sure. Okay.

After six years, how many of those 24 drill bits do you think are still in their case?

None of them.

None of them.

My husband has lost them all.

Then I know what you should get him for Christmas.

He doesn't deserve it.

Okay.

Now you can answer the question I haven't asked 'cause you know what it is.

The missing fourth Kn*fe, it could have been lost or chewed up in the garbage disposal, or thrown out at some point in time.

And this.

This wound on the victim's hand, which occurred, you say, during a game none of us would want to play.

But if we did, if you did, do you really think, as the blood is running down your arm and pooling on the table, you'd feel like having sex?

Or would you rather want to be rushed to the emergency room?

Personally, the emergency room, but I understand there were a lot of dr*gs involved.

Okay.

Thank you, Dr. Katz.

It really has been a pleasure meeting you.

I'm confused.

Is this yours?

Yeah.

Because it's gone now. It's not in evidence.

Well, I don't have it anymore.

I know you don't have it anymore.

You left it there, but they should have it.

Well, I had it. They took it to the tombs.

How could you have had it then if it's here?

Oh, because he gave it back to me that night, in the squad room.

Stone: Who did?

Nasir: The detective.

Box?

♪ ♪

Excited about the big night?

Thrilled.

Can I help you with that?

You can move, that'd help.

Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

Yes.

Detective, welcome back.

I heard you're about to retire.

I heard that too.

Congratulations.

Thank you.

How long has it been?

Thirty-three years.

Well, you'll be sorely missed by your colleagues, I'm sure, and by us, the public, too.

We thank you for your service.

Can you tell us in the course of your investigation how many suspects you interviewed?

One, the defendant.

Not Trevor Williams?

Yeah.

This towelhead.


He was a witness, so, yes, of course, I spoke to him.

As a result of that interview, you didn't do any follow-ups?

Nothing to follow up.

You didn't interview Duane Reade?

Someone at Duane Reade?

An individual named Duane Reade.

Is that a joke?

No, but I'm sure he gets that a lot.

He was with Mr. Williams when he had words with the defendant and Ms. Cornish outsider her home that night.

But you didn't interview him?

Mr. Williams said he was alone, so, no, I didn't interview anyone he wasn't with.

So you're unaware of Mr.
Reade's numerous convictions for aggravated as*ault?

What about Royal Day?

Who's he? A friend of Duane Reade's?

The other eyewitness.

Mr. Caval, who lives across the street who called in the break-in was the other eyewitness.

Chandra: No, he's another eyewitness, but, like Mr. Reade, not the only other one.

You didn't interview Mr. Day?

Again, I don't interview people I don't know about.

You know about him. You've seen him.

In the security tapes at the Shell station.

He too had an unpleasant encounter with the victim and defendant that night.

Are you sure you didn't interview him?

Asked and answered.

In your 19 years in homicide, how many crime scenes have you worked?

I don't know. Three hundred, give or take.

And at these 300, give or take, crime scenes, at any crime scene, it's important, isn't it, that evidence is examined, photographed, cataloged, and carefully stored?

Obviously.

What's that?

An asthma inhaler.

Any idea where it is?

You'd have to ask him.

Who?

The defendant. I gave it to him.

What he did with it, I wouldn't know.

I'm sorry, you gave it...

Yeah. Should I say it again?

I'm trying to understand this.

You're saying you took it from the crime scene, and gave it to him?

That's right.

Why?

Because he needed it.

He was distressed. He was having trouble breathing.

So, instead of taking him to the hospital, which is how it's supposed to work when something like that happens, you removed evidence from the crime scene?

Yes, I did.

Because it had been photographed and logged, so there was no reason not to.

Other than it runs counter to standard police rules and practices regarding chain of evidence and is grossly unprofessional?

Which, with 33 years experience, you would certainly know.

He was suffering.

My apologies for trying to lessen his suffering.

That's why you did it?

Not because it didn't fit?

I really don't know what that means.

"If the glove don't fit, you must acquit."

An inhaler doesn't fit how we picture a crazed k*ller trying to s*ab someone 22 times between hits off his Ventolin.

No. That's not why.

I told you why.

I'm not saying you consciously thought about it.

I'm wondering if maybe it was subconscious, if you were having doubts about his guilt from the beginning.

Subconscious?

Mm-hmm.

Well, if one could describe what goes on in their sub-conscious mind, it wouldn't be sub-conscious, would it?

So, I guess there's no way for us to know.

Unless you got Freud out there waiting to be called.

Judge: Mrs. Weiss.

I have no questions.

♪ ♪

(loud chattering)

(door alarm buzzes)

(muffled disco music playing)

♪ And you see me ♪
♪ Somebody new ♪
♪ I'm not that chained-up little person ♪
♪ Still in love with you ♪
♪ And so you felt like dropping in ♪
♪ And just expect me to be free ♪
♪ But now I'm saving... ♪

Hey! Here he is!

(cheering)

♪ Go on now go ♪
♪ Walk out the door ♪
♪ Just turn around now ♪
♪ 'Cause you're not welcome anymore ♪
♪ Weren't you the one who tried to break me... ♪

What I'm gonna do now?

sh*t is all f*cked up now.

sh*t was going good, too.

What the f*ck he do that for? He ain't had to do nothing but sit there?

You and his moms did everything.

I didn't know him any better than you. I don't know.

(sighs)

Freddie: There goes the party train.

♪ Go on now go ♪
♪ Walk out the door ♪
♪ Just turn around now ♪

"Off-duty." Like you are most of the time.

Ah!

That's it. Ah, just kidding!

Hey, we got you... We got you something else.

Here we go!

(cheering)

♪ I've got all my life to live ♪
♪ And I got all my love to give ♪
♪ I will survive... ♪

You got something you wanna tell me?

About Petey?

Yeah.

(applause)

All: Yeah!

♪ ♪

(woman on TV) The only pleasure I have is knowing how much of a pound of flesh both of you clowns have had to pay for your decisions...

(TV continues indistinctly)

♪ ♪

Yo, I need a new one.

♪ ♪

(TV playing indistinctly)

(shouting)

f*ck!

(alarm blaring)

Send a squad to the annex! Squad to the annex!

(TV blaring indistinctly)

(alarm blaring)

Officer: Send a squad now!

♪ ♪

Officer: What's taking you so long?!

♪ ♪

(distant sirens blaring)
Post Reply