03x16 - Forfeiture

[bunniefuu]

Smooth as silk.

Ooh. Feels nice.

Yeah, you-you like that?
You know, that's, uh,

my shaving butter right there.

- Oh, yeah?
- Yeah, man. I make it myself.

It's $ a jar, two for $ .

No, just the cut
and the shave today, man.

All right.

Maybe next time.

- Yo, Grandpa?
- Hmm?

Go home, man.
Get out of here. I'll close up.

Uh, uh, it's okay. I-I got this.

You've been staying late
a lot lately, son.

I... I-I can... No, no, look.

I got it, all right?

I'll close up, and I'll see you tomorrow.

- You sure?
- Positive.

All right, show me this.

- Boom.
- Boom.

- See you, son.
- All right.

Who you looking for?

Darius?

I'm Darius.

Ray told me you got watches?

All right, I got, uh, Movado, Cartier,

and a couple of Rolexes.

Darius, it's Raymond.

What up, Darius?

I see you met Smitty.

What you got?

Ooh, you're gonna love these.

Just got a new shipment.

Sneakers, football jerseys,

wallets.

Looking for Darius, I heard

he got sneakers.

FBI! Nobody move. I'm Agent Mike Blair.

Hands where I can see 'em.

Officer, Officer, um,
I know what this looks like,

but it's-it's not what
you think, all right?

We have receipts for all of this.

Hands behind your back.

Yo, yo, I can vouch for him, man.

It's-it's all legit.
None of this stuff is stolen.

Who are you? You guys partners?

Cuff him as well.

Mr. Lambert.

You're being charged with
violation of trademark laws.

Selling counterfeit goods.

My name is Chunk Palmer and
I'll be your public defender.

I should also inform you
that while I'm not yet

a fully-licensed criminal attorney,

and I've yet to pass the bar,

I'm participating in a law school clinic

supervised by a professor
and a licensed attorney

in a program sanctioned
by the New York City courts.

So, wait... you're-you're
not a real lawyer?

Well, the city thinks I'm real enough.

Look, Mister...

Lambert, I assure you,

you will not find an attorney
who will work harder for you.

You'll be my only client,
my sole concern.

Do I have a choice?

Well, you can hire
your own counsel if you'd like.

But that costs money, right?

Well, what can I say?

Look, everybody starts somewhere.

Everyone has their first case.

Your first case?

So, according to this,

you were arrested

with someone named Raymond Hill?

Yeah. Raymond... he's...
he's like a friend of a friend.

A guy from the neighborhood.

He's the one that got me into it.

He brings the goods, I do the selling,

but it's not stolen or nothing.

Come on, man.

Someone shows up with designer
goods in cardboard boxes,

and you don't smell something's up?

Look...

my grandfather owns a barbershop.

We've been having money
problems... taxes were due,

bills were piling up.

I was just wanting to help out.

Raymond... he kept coming by the-the shop

when we were closing, and-and saying

that he had a way
I could make some fast cash...

- Selling counterfeit handbags.
- Yeah.

And watches and-and sneakers.

And I said no,
but he kept coming by the shop

with this merchandise.

Fancy-ass names, fancy-ass designs.

- And, finally, I said yes.
- Come on, man.

You had to know they were knock-offs.

I knew, but so do my customers.

I figured it couldn't be a crime
if everyone was in on it.

All right.

Look, I'm-I'm gonna go find a marshal,

and we're gonna get you arraigned.

Your Honor, counterfeiting
is a trillion dollar industry.

It's the largest criminal
enterprise in the world.

And it's not a victimless crime.

It involves the theft
of intellectual property.

The goods are often made
in factories that rely on

child labor and human trafficking, and

frequently, the profits are used
to fund t*rror1st organizations.

Your Honor, my client is not a t*rror1st.

That's not what I'm implying.

You'll get your turn, sir.

I understand the severity of the charges.

Is there a request for bail?

$ , cash.

I'll hear arguments.

This is not Mr. Lambert's
first brush with the law.

He was convicted

four years ago for stealing a car.

I'll hear you on bail.

Thank you, Your Honor.

My name is Chunk Palmer,
student defender,

and I represent Mr. Lambert.

And just to provide a little
context for the larceny charge,

he was a juvenile
and it was his sister's car.

Nonetheless, he's still on
probation for that case.

So, if he's convicted in this case,

he'd be violating that probation,

which could mean an additional sentence.

The purpose of the bail statute
is to assure

the defendant's return
to court for trial.

My client will most certainly
return, as he is eager

to litigate the allegations against him.

He is the furthest thing
from a flight risk.

He has deep roots in the community.

In fact, he's lived in the same
neighborhood his entire life.

Give me a dollar amount.

Actually, I'm requesting
that he be released

on his own personal recognizance.

Okay.

Excuse me?

I find your request to be reasonable.

Personal recognizance.

Next case.

Hi, Diana's voice mail.

You probably don't remember me.
My name's Jason Bull.

I... know you're angry with me.

I know I invited you to New York

and then I uninvited you to New York,

but I've been trying
to apologize for a while now.

I keep calling,
but I only get your voice mail?

And I keep leaving these messages,

but I never get a message back?

Did you block me?

He just left town with nothing
but the clothes on his back!

That wasn't for you. That was...

It doesn't matter.

Diana...

could you call me, please, or text me

or send me an e-mail or something?

I miss you.

Come in!

You in the middle of something?

No. Yes.

You ever been blocked?

What... in football?

Oh. Let's start over.

- What can I do for you, sir?
- Well,

I kind of wanted to tell you

that I won my first bail argument today,

- my first anything argument in court.
- Hey!

If I were still drinking,
I'd say, "Let's drink to that."

- Feel free to persuade me.
- Yeah.

- Congratulations.
- Thank you.

Unfortunately, I have a hunch
the feeling is fleeting.

Case I've been assigned is a
slam dunk... for the other side.

- Mm. Welcome to the jungle.
- Yeah.

Poor kid was in the middle
of selling some $ sneakers

in the back of his
grandfather's barbershop

when the FBI burst in and told him

he's under arrest for
copyright infringement.

Hmm. You mean like those guys
selling knock-off scarves

and bags on every street corner
of Manhattan?

Yeah, but at least
my guy had the good sense

to do it behind closed doors.

If I don't win this case,

he's looking at ten years in prison.

Oh. I'm sorry.

Darius.

No, slow down. They what?

Well, are there agents there now?

All right, look, hold tight.

I'll be there as soon as I can.

I'm sorry. I got to head
back out to Brooklyn.

This lawyer thing is a
full-time job, isn't it?

If you do it right.
Let me give you a lift.

There he is.

It's my lawyer.

Darius, what the hell's going on?

They locked us out of our own store,

- changed the locks.
- Man from the government

comes into my shop,
hands me these papers,

tells me I got to leave.

They're trying to
take my grandpa's business.

I'm Sasha, by the way.
Darius is my brother.

It's nice to meet you, Sasha.

Your sister's right.

It's a notice of forfeiture.

The government is taking
ownership of the barbershop.

Oh, by the way, this is my boss,
Dr. Jason Bull.

The government's alleging
your barbershop's an instrument

of crime because it's where

Darius was selling
counterfeit merchandise?

My grandfather didn't even know
what I was doing.

I-I thought maybe he was selling
his homemade shaving butter.

I was. Oh, this is... this is crazy, man.

This is crazy. If...
My grandpa didn't do nothing.

They can't just come
and-and-and take his business

if he didn't do anything.

Can they?

Unfortunately, the asset
forfeiture law allows

the government to seize property
that furthers criminal activity.

Why would they want my place?

We're barely getting by.

You own the building.

You own the land it sits on.
The neighborhood's changing.

In a few years,
it's gonna be worth a lot more

than it's worth now, and then
the government can sell it.

So what are we gonna do?

Maybe you can be his lawyer, too?

Unfortunately, I can't.
I'm only allowed one case.

Maybe we could find
a new public defender?

No. Fighting the forfeiture
is a civil matter.

You're only entitled to a public
defender in criminal cases.

Hell, I can't afford a lawyer.

Hey, you guys can't just stand here.

Disperse, or I'll put you under arrest.

Hey.

I think you need to talk to me.

And who are you?

My name is Dr. Jason Bull,

and my firms represents the man
who actually owns

this shop, Mister...

Lambert.

William Lambert, owner and proprietor.

Not the grandson you busted for selling

knock-offs out the back door,

and not this gentleman,
who's representing him.

Me, who you're gonna face in court

if you don't vacate this man's
private property now.

You want to go to court with the FBI?

Question is does the FBI
want to go to court with me?

I have no idea who you are, sir,

but my answer would be an emphatic yes.

I'll see you in court.

Knock, knock, knock.

Hey, Dr. Bull wanted me
to see if you needed any help.

- Any investigative assistance?
- Oh...

We're running a one-time only
special for rookie lawyers.

Nice. Yeah. I need you to investigate

how I can get this case dismissed.

Oh, that's the attitude.
Surrender before the att*ck.

No, I'm serious.

They caught this kid dead to rights.

I have no idea how I'm gonna defend him.

Who knew selling knock-offs
was such a heinous crime?

Yeah. It's funny. When I was at Vogue,

I saw all kinds
of counterfeit everything.

I mean, some of the stuff, you
could barely tell the difference

between the fake and the real thing.

You know...

maybe if I could prove that this kid

was selling really bad replicas,
I really could get the court

to dismiss the whole case.

I don't follow. On what grounds?

Well, I might be able to argue

that Darius's knockoffs
were so poorly made

that there's no way
that anyone could confuse them

with the real thing.

Mm.

Is there any chance I could convince you

to go downtown to the FBI evidence room

and... check out
the merchandise first-hand?

All part of the rookie lawyer special.

Yeah. Well, let me discuss it
with Bull and Benny.

Yeah.

See you tonight.

That was Danny.

She said all the merchandise she
saw looked pretty convincing.

Apparently I'm not gonna be able
to get this case dismissed

because the goods don't look good enough.

- Mm.
- Here come our clients.

She also told me
that some of the handbags

that they confiscated from Darius

have other older
evidence tags inside of them.

Almost like they've been used
as evidence before

in other cases.

That doesn't make any sense.

She's photographing everything,

so we'll be able
to compare notes tonight.

Your Honor, the asset forfeiture laws

were intended to stop
drug dealers who use...

cars and planes and boats
to transport contraband.

My client doesn't sell dr*gs.

He cuts hair.

Clearly, this is
a gross misuse of this law.

Your Honor, this hearing
is supposed to be

about an injunction.

We are not here to argue
the legality of the seizure.

But we should be.

Taking Mr. Lambert's barbershop
without a fair hearing is

a violation of his fundamental
right to due process.

I've read your brief,

and I'm afraid I agree
with the plaintiff.

Your Honor, respectfully...

the government took my client's
only source of income.

How is he supposed to survive?

Even if he wins this case, he
will be so behind on his bills

that he will still lose his business.

Be that as it may, I'm going
to deny the defendant's motion.

But, given your concerns

about due process,
I can fast-track this case.

Trial begins tomorrow.

We're adjourned.

I only see one way to go on this.

The "innocent owner" defense.
We argue that the government

had no right to take Willie's property

because, A, he didn't do anything wrong

and, B, he didn't know anything
criminal was taking place

- on his property.
- Eh. Problem is

we have to prove a negative.

How do you mean?

Well, we have to convince a jury

that Willie didn't know
what Darius was doing.

Right? That's a negative.

It's really hard to prove
what someone didn't know.

If you come bearing food, enter.

No food. Not yet.

But I do come bearing
an interesting factoid.

- We'll be the judge of that.
- So, Raymond...

the guy Darius was arrested with,

the guy who was supplying
him the merchandise...

he was never arraigned.

Well, how is that possible?

He's an FBI agent.

Wait, so what are you saying...

that he put that young man up to it?

Well, that explains those

earlier evidence tags
you found in the merchandise.

He obviously gets his goods
out of the evidence locker.

Thank you, Raymond.

Finally. I've got a defense.

Entrapment.

Ha! I may actually graduate with honors.

Look, according to Darius,

this Raymond was all over him

trying to get him to sell
his merchandise.

Now, think about it... without Raymond,

Darius never would have
committed this crime.

I can't wait to cross-examine this dude.

Hold on a second, Chunk.

You don't want to go
barking up that tree.

This FBI guy didn't turn
Darius into a criminal.

Didn't you tell me
he already had a record?

Oh, please. He was

years old,
and it was his sister's car.

Yes, but the prosecutor

is gonna use it to demonstrate he had

- a criminal past.
- I thought you weren't allowed

to bring up a person's past.

They can if you
accuse them of entrapment.

I promise you they will read into record

every bad thing he's ever done.

If he stole a candy bar when he was ten,

they'll tell the jury about it.

Plus, if you go with entrapment,
you'll have to admit that Darius

was actually selling
the counterfeit goods.

There'll be no wiggle room
to argue his innocence.

It's too risky. Tell him.

You just told him.

You get it, don't you?

It's -D chess.

Whatever you do, we inherit.

So you have to be really careful.

I get it.

I do.

And understand, if you do anything

to jeopardize Willie's case...
our client's case...

we will be duty bound to protect
Willie and his business,

even if it means rolling over
you and your client.

I get that, too.

Wai...

W-Wait a second. Wait a second.

Bull, wait a second.

I... Okay, fine.

No entrapment.

See you in court, Counselor.

My client is a -year-old man
doing all he can

to make enough money to keep himself

and his family afloat.

All of us remember , right? Big year.

Big year for my client.

He opened his first checking account.

Rented his first apartment,
got his first credit card,

his first cell phone account.

Lots of important firsts.

Now, the government will tell you

that this same young man
who lives in a single room

with a hot plate
and a bathtub in his kitchen

is actually threatening the copyrights

of some famous designers
and huge apparel companies.

How? By selling cheap copies

out of the back of his
grandfather's barber shop.

You know the ones I mean.

You see them on the street corners,

where thousands of people walk by

and hundreds of people
stop to buy things.

But those vendors

aren't here in court.

My -year-old client, who's done maybe

$ , worth of sales
in the past month...

he's here.

It's a bit of a head-scratcher, isn't it?

Oh, these jurors are

lovin' them some Chunk.
It's like he's been

doing it all his life.

- Shh. I don't want to miss anything.
- But it gets crazier.

What if I told you that the
merchandise that he was selling

came from the same people
who arrested him?

That's right... they supplied the goods.

And not only that. When he told them,

"No, I don't want to sell

"your cheap copies of expensive purses

and watches and sneakers,"

they kept coming back and badgering him.

Oh, gee.

It looks like he's doing the very thing

Benny and Bull asked him not to do.

- Yeah.
- There's a name for that, folks.

But didn't you say
the jury was loving it?

It's called entrapment.

And if you look the word up

in the dictionary, it literally means

tricking someone into

committing a crime.

Is that what our government
should be doing...

tricking its citizens
into breaking the law?

I don't think so.

And I'm reasonably sure
that once you have heard

all of the evidence,

you won't think so either.

What the hell's the matter with you?

It's nice to see you, too.

I warned you against entrapment.

You just couldn't resist, could you?

Look, that FBI guy...

he approached Darius five separate times.

That's textbook entrapment.

How am I supposed to ignore that?

You just do it!

You listen to the people
who know more than you,

who are trying to help you.

Hell, nobody's talking about textbooks.

This is a courtroom, not a classroom.

Don't you see, Chunk...

Y-You told the jury

that your client did it.

And that means that your whole defense

is now gonna be based on why he did it.

And that's a tough fight.

Even for a guy who knows what he's doing.

Well, thanks for the vote of confidence.

Not that you care, but I'm more than able

and willing to fight that fight.

Oh.

Well, that just makes it
ten times harder for me.

Because now I have to convince a jury

that Willie knew nothing about it.

And that would have been
a hell of a lot easier

if I could have argued
that we weren't sure

that was even a crime.

But you blew that
to smithereens, hotshot.

And now you're gonna lose your
case and I'm gonna lose mine.

- Speak for yourself, Counselor.
- You know what your problem is?

You are arrogant and ignorant,

and that is a deadly
combination, my friend.

I'm not arrogant. I'm confident.

Because I am in the right.

And that's always the best defense.

That's that I'm talking about.

This isn't Sunday school.

Being in the right doesn't mean squat.

Getting a jury to see
that you're in the right...

that's the game we're playing.

And that you don't understand that

proves to me you're not ready
to play with the adults.

Okay...

Do I need to call both your parents?

Tomorrow's witness list.

AUSA is calling your favorite
FBI agent, Raymond,

to the stand.

So, now that you've committed to this

unfortunate choice of defense,
I need you to go all-in.

I need you to hammer this
son of a bitch like a bent nail.

Entrapment, entrapment, entrapment.

Makes sense.

And wouldn't you know it,
after a short break for lunch,

our pal Raymond will also
be appearing in your courtroom.

And I need you to pound him, too.

You ever met Willie?
You ever talk to Willie?

You ever even laid eyes on Willie?

I need to convince that jury
that no matter what happened

in that shop after hours,

Willie knew nothing about it.

Got it.

Now shake hands, share your toys

and stop yelling.

Or there'll be no TV for a week.

Or don't. I don't care.

You approached my client on five
separate occasions, didn't you?

You pounded him

until he finally agreed
to cooperate with you.

Nobody pounded anybody.

We chatted.

No one forced him to do anything.

I don't know.

You're a pretty intimidating guy.

Objection. Counsel is testifying,

badgering the witness.

Sustained. Ask a question,

Mr. Palmer.

You approached my client
at the bus stop, didn't you?

I did.

You approached my client at the bodega

when he was buying food, didn't you?

None of that is against the law.

Answer the question. Yes or no?

Yes.

You approached my client while waiting

in line at the movies, didn't you?

A happy coincidence.

I was going to the movies, too.

You were relentless, weren't you?

I take my job seriously.

You a part of a team,

Agent Hill?

Yes.

And your team profits
from forfeiture proceedings.

Everyone profits

when you take criminals off the street.

Except my client wasn't a criminal

until you came into his life.

Objection. Again, argumentative.

Sustained. Watch it,

- Mr. Palmer.
- Your client

sold counterfeit goods. Your client

stole a car.

He didn't need my help
to become a criminal.

The counterfeit goods that my
client is accused of selling...

you supplied him those goods, didn't you?

- Objection.
- Overruled.

Answer the question.

Yes, I supplied the merchandise.

- Brought in customers?
- Some.

That's a pretty great system.

You dream up a crime,

bully someone into committing it,

and then you bust them for it.

All the while, you and the members

of your team are commended for it.

Isn't that how it works?

You got promotions and raises,

didn't you?

The witness will answer the question.

Yes.

We got promotions and raises.

No further questions.

Isn't it true

that you communicated exclusively

with my client's grandson,
Darius Lambert?

True.

In fact,

you've never even spoken to
Mr. Willie Lambert, have you?

No, I have not.

And when you did find occasion
to go to the barbershop,

it was always
after closing time, wasn't it?

I believe so.

In truth,

you actually went out of your way

to avoid my client, didn't you?

Where is this going?

Get to it, Mr. Colón.

You figured if Willie knew
what was going on in his shop,

he'd put a stop to it immediately,

and that isn't what you wanted.

Objection.

'Cause if he put a stop to it,

you and your colleagues
wouldn't have anything

to show for all of your hard work.

I'm sorry, um...

what was the question?

Actually, I don't think
there is a question.

I think it's all perfectly clear.

No more questions for
this witness, Your Honor.

Ah.

There's a familiar face.

Dr. Bull. It's been a while.

What can I do for you?

Well, Chunk Palmer,

the opposing counsel...

when he's not going to
school, he's working for me.

- Aha.
- Mm.

You want me to go easy on him?

I was kind of hoping we could
go easy on each other.

How do you mean?

I was hoping we could bring this case

to a mutually beneficial resolution.

I am never averse to a plea.

What are you proposing?

How do you feel about six months?

If you can get him to plead guilty,

I'll recommend months.

Come on. He's a kid.

He doesn't deserve that much time.

Let's make it a year.

I may be able to sell that.

And no admission of guilt.

No. I can't sentence him
without a guilty plea.

Sure you can.

We could do an Alford plea.

An Alford plea means Darius doesn't

actually admit he's guilty.

The only thing he admits is

that the government has enough evidence

to prove he did what he's accused of.

So he says he isn't guilty...

and gets sentenced anyway.

What's he get?

In this case, it's a year

instead of the ten he was staring at.

Chunk, it's a win-win.

It's a great deal for Darius,

and there's no admission
of guilt to use against Willie.

An Alford plea. It's the same

as if he plead no contest.

I know what an Alford plea is.

Great. Then tomorrow morning,
I need you to go talk

to your client, and tell him to take it.

Look, I know I'm the reason
you got involved with this case.

And I appreciate everything
that you've done.

Then there's nothing else to talk about.

But an Alford plea... I'm not sure

that's how I want to play it.

I don't think you get
what's happening here.

No, I get it.

It's good for you
and good for your client.

And your client, too.

Unless I win,
which is good for everybody.

But you're not gonna win.

You already admitted he did it.

You didn't leave the jury any
room to find for your client,

which is exactly what we told
you was gonna happen.

Now take your ego out of the equation,

go and talk to your client,

tell him to take the deal.

You just... you got to keep in mind

that you're looking
at ten years in prison.

You're pretty sure they're gonna
find me guilty, huh?

The thing is,
I can't guarantee they won't.

This is good for my grandpa?

Yeah.

You'll absolutely
be helping your grandpa.

And just so you understand,
you'll be sentenced today.

You'll serve a year in prison,

and you'll be a convicted felon
when you get out.

And what would you do?

I mean, if...

if you were me? Would you do it?

Would you serve a year in prison
for selling some stuff

that no one in their right mind
would think

is anything but what it is:

pretend fancy?

The defendant has indicated he would like

to offer a change of plea.

Is that true, Mr. Palmer?

Darius...

I need you to tell me
that this is your choice.

I got to think about my grandfather.

Mr. Palmer?

You know what?

I'm starting to think
that m-maybe we got that wrong.

Maybe you just got to think about you.

Look, don't say that.

- You're confusing me.
- Look,

I think it's great

that you're tying
to protect someone else,

but that man has lived his life.

He made his choices.

And it seems to me that most of those

have been about making sure
that you had a better life

than he had, I don't think he'd
want you to give up on that.

And besides...

he is surrounded by great people...

terrific legal minds.

He will have his day in court.

But today is yours.

So...

do you want to take this deal

or do we fight on?

Mr. Palmer...

what's your pleasure?

Mr. Palmer, do we swear in your client

and commence with the allocution?

I apologize, Your Honor,

but after careful consideration,

my client has decided he does
not wish to change his plea.

He wishes to continue with the trial.

He in there?

He sure is.

You got a minute?

Come on in.

I know you're angry.

You don't know anything.

That's the part I can't seem
to get you to understand.

Uh, look, I-I didn't take the plea be...

he didn't take the plea be...

because damn it, a year in prison

is a year too long for something that

he never would have done
had law enforcement

not trapped him into it.

And yeah, I understand
the -D chess of it all,

but we got to...

I... I got to take things as they come.

And Darius comes first.

I know that was your thinking,

I respect that that was your thinking,

I just don't agree with your thinking.

And here we are.

Here we are.

And just so you know,

I've subpoenaed Willie to testify.

In Darius's case.

Seriously?

Willie is my client,
and he is not gonna testify.

He's my first witness tomorrow morning.

No, he's not. I won't allow it.

That would not be in his best interest.

It's too late. He's already agreed to it.

You understand if he takes
the stand for Darius,

if he inadvertently admits to something

that hurts his own case...

I understand,

he understands, and we all think

it's a risk worth taking.

You talked to him without my permission.

I did.

Well, then, I hope you know
what you're doing.

I'm just doing what you always taught me:

believing in myself.

I'll see you in court.

Mr. Lambert, how did you
feel when your grandson

stole your granddaughter's brand-new car?

Angry. Mad.

Sad.

Uh, disappointed.

But I knew that wasn't who he was.

The good Lord wasn't through
cooking him yet.

Boys do all kind of silly, stupid stuff

when they're-when they're .

I did a lot of s...

stupid stuff when I was .

So I held my tongue,

bided my time.

And were you right?

How did he do with his probation?

Four years. Never slipped up. Not once.

And his probation officer was strict.

He'd give him these random, uh,

uh, drug and alcohol tests.

Put him on curfew.

That guy was serious. Very serious.

And did he ever stop by?

Come by the house or the shop?

Give you an idea
as to how Darius was doing?

Objection. Hearsay.

Objection sustained.

Let's try another way.

You met Darius's probation officer?

Sure have. Came by the shop.

Wanted to see where Darius was working.

I told him, "Look around."

Showed him Darius's chair,
his barber's license,

the album with pictures
of haircuts that he likes

and wants to try.

Showed him his equipment...
his-his scissors,

his combs and razors.

Took him to the back room and showed him

where Darius kept his shaving butter.

Opened the closet, showed him the boxes.

Even gave him a sample.

Was he impressed?

Your Honor.

I withdraw the question.

Do you regret hiring your grandson?

He seems to have gotten himself

into quite a bit of trouble here.

I don't regret it for a second.

I honestly don't feel that he did

get himself into trouble.

I feel like...

he was led into trouble.

Here's something that, uh,

maybe you don't know.

He did it for me.

He knew I was

barely hanging on.

Utilities, taxes.

Every few days, he'd come up
and say, "Grandpa,

I sold another case
of my shaving butter."

Give me $ . $ !

I said, "Damn,
that shaving butter's flying

out that back room."

I also thought

that grandson of mine...

God's done cooking.

And he's done a damn good job.

Hell of a job.

Mr. Lambert, thank you.

I have no further questions.

Mr. Lambert...

...if I told you to steal something...

that woman's purse... would you do it?

Objection. Relevance.

Overruled.

The witness will answer the question.

Of course not.

How about if I asked you twice?

- No.
- Ten times?

You could ask me a million times.

I wouldn't steal someone's stuff.

Good for you.

And what do you call someone who does?

Someone like your grandson.

Your Honor, objection!

She's badgering the witness.

Never mind. I withdraw the question.

I have nothing further.

Counselor.

Tell me again how you're
just doing what I taught you.

Willie did you proud.

Nah. You were right.

It's not gonna be enough.

I took an unnecessary risk.

Yeah, but at the end of the day,

I don't think he did
any damage to our case.

And, who knows, he may have helped yours.

The jury loved him.

Don't quote me, but I'm starting to think

you may win this thing

with the right closing argument.

Plus, you gave him an idea.

He wants to subpoena
Darius's probation officer

to testify.

Really?

How's he gonna help?

Well, he's not talking about your case.

He's talking about our case.

Watch and learn.

Good morning, Mr. Chilton. Now,

I understand that
you are Darius Lambert...

Willie Lambert's grandson's
probation officer.

Are you aware that he started a business

making homemade shaving butter?

Objection. What does this have
to do with Mr. Willie Lambert?

What's the relevance, Mr. Colón?

I'll rephrase, Your Honor.

Did my client ever have occasion

to show you around his barber shop?

Yes, he did.

I stopped in to see where Darius worked,

and he gave me a little
tour of the place.

Did he happen to lead you
over to where his grandson

kept his shaving butter?

- He did.
- And where was that?

I believe it was in the back closet.

- And he left you all alone back there?
- Yes.

Told you to open up any box you wanted?

I didn't open any boxes.

But you could have. You wanted to.

I mean, he invited you to.

Yeah.

As a matter of fact, he did.

Now, take a look at this photo.

It's a police photo
from the night of the seizure.

Is that the closet you're talking about?

- Appears to be.
- Huh.

It's where Darius
kept his shaving butter.

But did you know it's also where

Darius stashed
his counterfeit merchandise,

to be sold at the behest of Agent Hill?

Again, this jury is not here

to decide the Darius Lambert case.

Mr. Colón, can you
connect the dots for me?

Of course, Your Honor.

We are alleging that

Mr. Lambert didn't know

that counterfeit merchandise
was being sold from his shop.

But I submit that
this is definitive proof.

Because if Mr. Lambert would have known

that there was contraband back there,

he never would have offered

his grandson's probation officer to have

unfettered access in that area.

Marissa, tell me what you see.

Green. Nothing but green.

Green as a gooseberry.

Chunk still at it?

Still working on his closing argument?

Yep.

No sound?

You don't want to hear what he's saying?

I want to be surprised tomorrow in court.

Hmm.

I was so angry at him yesterday.

The way he defied me.

How dare he believe in himself
more than he believes in me?

- Kids today.
- Hmm.

My client did it.

We've...

never denied that.

What we have tried to impress upon you

is that this crime never had to happen.

If Agent Hill had never pleaded

with my client
to sell his counterfeit goods,

none of us would be sitting here.

My client wasn't looking
for something to sell

out of his grandfather's shop.

He just wanted to cut hair
and sell his shaving butter.

But here we are.

And here you are.

And if you think that
selling cheap copies

of expensive purses
and wallets and sneakers

is worth ten years behind bars...

worth taking away somebody's s...

will make your neighborhood,

your city, your world

a safer place...

then I encourage you to find him guilty.

But if you're like me,

and you think that your block,

your city, your world
would be better served

by having a young man

who cares so deeply for his family...

...for his grandfather,

that he's willing to put in

the extra work, and try to add money

to his family's business,

then I urge you to remember

what I said a moment ago.

This crime never had to happen.

This prison sentence never has to happen.

This miscarriage of justice,

this destruction of a young man's life

never has to happen.

And I would implore you...

to find my client innocent.

Thank you for your time.

Great job.

Thank you. Congratulations.

Ah.

Come here, now.

Come here, son. Come here, son.

Come on, girl. Come on, now.

Nice work, Counselor.

Thank you for your help.

Thanks for getting involved.

No, thank you for pushing back.

Thank you for letting me.

Uh...

why don't we all get something to eat.

You must be hungry.

- Yeah!
- Yeah?

Yeah? Let's go. Come on.

Oh. Thank you, again.