02x03 - Aria

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
In the criminal justice system,
the people are represented

by two separate yet
equally important groups...

the police
who investigate crime,

and the district attorneys
who prosecute the offenders.

These are their stories.

So, I testify
on a couple of RDOs.

What's the difference to him?
It's not out of their pocket.

Everybody gets one, Jack.
You'll get yours.

Hey, I need 'em.
She's dropping cash
like it's on fire.

Every card is jacked full.

(yelling)
"A horse is a horse,
of course, of course."

"My kingdom for a horse!"

Look at this...
the next De Niro.

En garde.

Woman: Hey!

Hey, you guys want to give
that stuff back to Costume, please?

(snaps fingers)

Youth:
Jason, give me a hand here.

Hey, Graham.

I think this is it.

Sorry, I didn't know
you were waiting for them.

Priscilla, you decent?

(dial tone beeping)

"No need praying, Prissy."

Reviews can't hurt us now.

Hey, what if David Merrick's
trying to call?

- (croaking)
- Oh God.

- Cop #1:
Where are the damn paramedics?
- I radioed... they're coming.

Hold on, honey.

(weakly)
I didn't... want to do it.

I didn't want to...

(door opens)

All right,
let them through.

All right, we got her.

Nurse on PA:
Dr. Kipper, report
to the solarium.

Dr. Kipper
to the solarium, please.

- This your run?
- We got there first.

19. Her name
was Priscilla Blaine.

You got a cause
of death?

Narcon's response
was positive. She OD'd.

- Who found her?
- Classmates at the Academy
of Dramatic Arts.

Closing night party.

"No business
like show business."

Am I hearing this wrong
or something?

If she OD'd,
what do you need us for?

When she died...
over and over...

"I didn't want to do it,
I didn't want to do it."

She didn't want
to do what?

Hey, you're wearing
the suits.

(door bangs)

Nurse on P. A:
Security, please report
to the cafeteria.

Security, please report
to the cafeteria.

(theme music plays)

Amitriptyline.

Amitriptyline?
Never heard of it.

Psychiatrist "scrip"...
anti-depressant.

How much did she
take of them?

About 200 milligrams.
Probably do a small elephant.

Was there any physical trauma?
Any bruises? Anything suspicious?

She did have an Ace bandage
on her right ankle.

Nothing wrong with it.

No visible bruising or contusion
about the ligament.

- Is it an old injury?
- No blood in the joint space.

Fashion statement?

Priscilla wasn't on dr*gs.

I would have known
if she was on dr*gs.

Mrs. Blaine, would you
happen to know

if Priscilla was seeing
a psychiatrist?

See, the reason
I'm asking is,

the drug in her system
was an anti-depressant.

She wasn't depressed.

You mind if we take this?

We were going to have
new headshots taken next week.

Patti, did your sister
happen to mention

anything about seeing
new people lately?

I wouldn't really know.

I remember the first day
she got into the Academy.

They took 50
out of 1,500.

Ever since she could talk,
she wanted to be a performer.

She didn't do dr*gs.
She was too focused.

They just would have
slowed her down.

You think she was happy?

Yeah, she was.

I guess.

Woman:
Anything for anyone.

It's just not her.

What do you mean?
The dr*gs?

Mm-hmm.
She didn't believe in them.

I thought she'd be hit
by lightning

before she would
die like that.

The officer who was here last night
said she kept on repeating,

"I didn't want to do it,
I didn't want to do it."

- Do you know
what that was about?
- No.

Is it possible that somebody
could've pressed her into
taking the pills?

No one's really
into that around here.

Yeah, there was a lot of drinking
because it was closing night.

I don't know.

Did she have a boyfriend?

We broke up a few months ago.
It was getting weird.

Yeah?

Was she depressed
by the break?

Not quite...
she dumped me.

Roger, when you
and Pricilla were together,

did she like to party
a lot? You know...

No, Pricilla
didn't do dr*gs.

The only pills she took
were birth control.

God only knows why.

You mean the intimacy
level was a little...?

It was great at first,
but then, I don't know,

five, six months ago
she weirded out.

Holding hands
became a big deal.

Did you ever
talk about it?

She said she was
seeing someone about it.

Shrink?
She started seeing one
before we broke up.

- A lot of good it did.
- Do you know who he was?

Uh... Seliger, up at P & S.

Unfortunately, it falls under
the category of privilege.

(Logan scoffs)
Whose? I mean, the girl's dead.

Privilege does survive
the death of a patient.

Does that include
prescription history, Doctor?

Priscilla asked me
for something a few weeks ago.

I told her I didn't think
that it was necessary.

Yeah, because her friends
are telling us she didn't even
like painkillers.

I'd say that was
an accurate assessment.

Really...

I wish I could help.

Doctor, we understand that.
Now, bottom line,

we just want to know
who can waive that privilege.

If the court appoints
a personal representative,

they'd have the authority to sign
a waiver on Priscilla's behalf.

Ah.

It would probably be...
her mother.

Mrs. Blaine:
I just don't understand.

If Priscilla had problems,

she knew she could
come to me.

Mrs. Blaine, as parents
we all want to feel that way.

But I've got five,
and I've learned my lesson.

They all have things
they don't want to tell us.

I used to brush her hair
every night.

She'd tell me about her day.

All the little details.

A hundred strokes.

She had hair
like Rita Hayworth.

Did she cut it recently?

Sometimes children don't
appreciate what they have.

Mrs. Blaine...

Dr. Seliger may be
the only person

who can tell us if Priscilla's
death was accidental or not.

But he can't tell us anything

unless the administrator
of Priscilla's estate

waives the patient/doctor
confidentiality.

Maybe it's not anybody's business
what they talked about.

She didn't want me to know
when she was alive,

I don't see any reason
to change that now.

My mother got pregnant
with me when she was 17.

I kind of put the brakes
on her career.

She was an actress?

She was a pretty woman
with a fair voice,

whose main claim to fame
was "Eliza Doolittle"

at the Bloomfield
Community Playhouse.

We haven't spoken
in two years.

Until this.

Why the rift?

Well, 12 years of dance class
three times a week

and acting class twice a week
is a bit wearing.

My mother couldn't decide
if I was Martha Graham or Helen Hayes.

And which were you?

I was Patti Blaine,

so I got out
before I wasn't.

And Priscilla?

Since she was three.

Lessons, agents...

kind of like a last hope.

She never even knew
she had a choice.

Your mother's a sales clerk,
isn't that right?

- Mm-hmm.
- This Academy must be
pretty expensive.

Well, Priscilla helped
with the tuition.

Oh?

Our father died
when we were young
and he left us some money.

Ah.
You and your sister
stay pretty close?

We talked a couple times
a month.

Just, "Hi, how are you?"
Nothing big.

When was the last time?

About a week ago.

It never sounded
like anything was wrong.

I'm not much
of a big sister.

Who did she talk to?

Probably Jasmine.
They grew up together.

Maybe none of us
really knew her.

Some of the stuff she pulled
was pretty confusing.

Like what?

Like she faked
hurting her ankle to get
out of some big show.

Why? Didn't she want
to dance anymore?

I don't know. I mean...

she always thought everyone
was better than she was.

- Logan: Were they?
- Priscilla was good.

She had to work
at everything she got.

And her sister was the natural.

She did everything better
than Priscilla with half the effort.

She just shined it on.

She didn't want it.

Maybe in a weird way,
she had more guts
than Priscilla.

Did Priscilla give you
any indication that
she was unhappy?

I don't think Priscilla
knew whether or not
she was unhappy.

She was probably happiest
when she was pleasing
her mother.

- And lately?
- Lately she just
wasn't herself.

Pressured, absent-minded...

she even left her backpack here
a couple of times,

and that's certainly
not like her.

This one?

Logan:
She spends her whole life
trying to replace her sister.

She couldn't take the pressure,
downs a handful, checks out.

Okay, then why is she found
kneeling by an unhooked phone

moaning, "I didn't want
to do it" over and over?

She changed her mind or she's
talking about that show biz stuff.

But not about the dr*gs?
You have the same notes I do.

She'd do anything
to please other people.

Are you saying
she got talked into partying?
She's much too anti-dr*gs.

- She would have drawn a line.
- Maybe, maybe not.

How anxious
was she to please?

A kid when I was growing up,
in Little League, his old man every game

was behind the backstop, yelling,
screaming orders at him.

- So?
- Game before the playoff,

the kid hits a dink to shortstop,
pulls a "Ron Hunt"...

dives head first right into first base...
dislocated his shoulder.

And you're saying a 10-year-old
intentionally hurt himself?

I'm saying it's subconscious.
The point is, he couldn't take
the pressure.

When I was a kid,
my mother hounded me
to practice the piano.

To this day, I wish
I had learned.

Are you gonna make your kids
do things they don't want to?

From the moment
they're on the planet.

"Brush your teeth,
do your homework,
you're grounded..."

- Come on, Phil, that's different.
- It's just a matter of degree.

- What the hell is that?
- Unlabeled.

Yeah.

- Right here.
- (moaning)

Logan:
That's her.

Your girl
had a shadow life.

Good bet on where
the dr*gs came from, huh?

- Cragen: Who knows about it?
- Logan: Jasmine? The boyfriend?
Maybe none of them.

See what you can find out
about this company...

"Candlelight Productions."

No one knows
anybody anymore.

We may know one thing...

what "I didn't
want to do it" means.

Candlelight Productions
went out of business six weeks ago.

What?

She's been meeting someone
named "JZ" two or three times a week.

It could be a nickname
for "Jasmine."

I don't think so.
It only shows up six months ago.

Before that, nothing.

I never heard
of anyone named "JZ"

Logan:
She never mentioned anything?

Six months,
two, three times a week

and you didn't know
anything?

Jasmine, Priscilla is dead.

Any secrets she had
are no longer worth keeping.

He owns a club in Chelsea...

"Flashdancers."

The strip joint?
It's not a "dirt palace."

Just businessmen,
yuppies out for a good time,

that kind of thing.

Look, I was the only one
who knew.

Knew what?
That she worked there?

It was good money.
Really good money.

She was trying
to earn enough to move out.

JZ:
Whatever she did,
I don't want to know about it.

- Trucker: Thanks, bud.
- Cerreta: She give you
a lot of trouble?

They all do.
Some weeks it's like babysitting.

Come on, girls!
Come on, come on.

This one, though,
she could really shake it.

When did she stop working?

I haven't seen her in
about three or four months.

She was getting some
film interest. I don't know.

The good ones,
they're tough to hang on to. Suddenly,
they don't show up.

Yeah, and when they do,
they're lit, right?

I mean, you gotta figure,
there are a lot of dr*gs
in and out of here.

Like I said,
whatever the girls do...

What kind of film interest
was Priscilla getting?
Do you know the people?

Well, we're not talking
Cecil B. DeMille.

They're around all the time.
I don't associate with them.

It's not my trade.

JZ, help us out here.

You must know somebody
we can talk to who might
know these people.

Yeah, there's a guy...

his name is Ed Zakaris.
He's a pig.

Candlelight Productions?
Never heard of them.

Maybe it went
by a different name.

Hey, if I didn't
hear of them...

Look, we saw the tape,
all right?

Yeah?
Wouldn't be surprised.

How did it
get past you, Ed?

These businesses
are fly-by-night.

They grab some jerk,
he invests in their flick,

they make it, they close,

they open up next week,
new name.

"Candlelight,"
"Flashlight," whatever.

What about this director,
Franklin Frome?

He used to be one
of the great ones.

Yeah, he won the "Best Actor
award in a group scene"...1975.

That's terrific.
"Mr. Olivier's" address.

Did she work in
one of your films?

Yeah, sure,
the one with the mother.

You know her mother?

Elizabeth.

Are you saying Mrs. Blaine knew
Priscilla was working for you?

She set it up.

Wait a minute.
I thought you found
Priscilla at "Flashdancers."

Yeah, I gave her my card.
Next thing, her mom
gives me a call.

Did she know what kind
of films you make?

Dropped her off every day.
Occasionally watched a sh**t.

Must have had a cooling
effect on the set, huh?

No, she kept her distance.

Didn't even want her kid
talking to the other actresses.

What about when Mom
wasn't around?

It's just so hard
to believe.

I mean, I was the one
that was supposed to die.

I tested positive
last month.

It's the cost of business.
I made a thousand bucks a day.

Did Priscilla make
that kind of cash?

No.

No, she was just foreplay.
She never went all the way.

Her mom wouldn't let her.

Girl's in a prestigious school
like that, why did she do porno?

It wasn't her, it was her mom.
Can you believe that?

I mean, just pushing
and pushing, you know?

Priscilla was shy.

It was hard for her.

I mean, a few times
she got so nervous, she cried.

Some of the actresses
when they got nervous like that,

would they drop something?

Well, I did
when I was working.

It made me forget
what I was doing.

- What was it? Amitrip...
- Amitriptyline.

"Trips."
I couldn't go on without it.

Did Priscilla use this?

- I told her it would help her relax.
- You gave her the dr*gs?

Well, I said never
to take more than one.

She took eight.

Well, she must have
been freaked... I mean...

it was this new flick
she was going to be starring in.

"Starring," huh?
You mean no more "foreplay"?

Her mother knew
what she was gonna have to do?

She had been on set,
so she knew people didn't pay

to see the stars hold hands.

Angel admitted to giving
Priscilla the dr*gs?

- You want to hit her
with a drug charge?
- Let's cut her a deal.

She'll testify
that "Mommy Dearest"

forced her daughter
into pornography.

Wait a minute, do I follow here?
You want to charge the mother
with m*rder?

- It was a su1c1de.
- That was brought on
by the pressure

of doing porno,
which the mother forced her into.

"I didn't want to do it,"
over and over again.

Come on, Mike.
"I didn't want to do it"
can mean a lot of things.

The most probable being
she was freaked out by the porno.

It was her dying utterance.

It's admissible, but only
for what it's worth.

So, what do you think?

We could take a run
at "depraved indifference
to human life"...

su1c1de was the inevitable
consequence.

You don't believe
she's guilty, do you?

Of being a rotten mother? Yes.
Yes, I do. But there has to be a line.

A kid goes out and robs a bank,
you put the parents in jail?

Maybe, if there
was cause and effect.

She was 19,
she could have left home.
She did not have to k*ll herself.

Maybe she did.

(bolts click)

Mrs. Blaine, you are under arrest
for the m*rder of Priscilla Blaine.

What?

The charges are m*rder
in the second degree,

manslaughter in the first
and second degree,

and criminally negligent
homicide.

How does
the defendant plea?

Not guilty.

Your Honor, The People
are asking $500,000.

Judge, my client is mourning
the loss of her child.

Judge:
Violins, Mr. Pollard.

Bail is set at $250,000.

(gavel bangs)

Bailiff:
Next case, docket number 66273.
The People versus Johnson.

Solicitation for purposes
of prostitution...

Adam:
Even if you could prove

that the mother forced the girl
to make the films against her will...

you'll still have a hell
of a time proving

that that was the proximate
cause of the girl's death.

Stone:
Case in Indiana...

a girl is kidnapped,
sodomized, sexually abused.

A year later,
she took poison and died.

The court ruled
that the conduct of her assailant

was the proximate cause
of her death.

Yeah, this isn't Indiana.

In New York, su1c1de
is an independent intervening act.

Therefore, the mother's actions,
no matter how despicable,

are not the cause-in-fact
of the girl's death.

Unless we can prove
that Ms. Blaine knew

the films were making
Priscilla suicidal.

Mr. Robinette,
I'm sure you know
that I can't possibly...

I know the difference
between real patients
and hypothetical ones.

All right.

One could argue

that such a hypothetical patient
might be an exhibitionist

and there was nothing
anyone could have done
to prevent her death.

But if she were
forced by someone...

a loved one,
husband, parent...

Being forced into the sordid life
by someone she loved

could be so deleterious
to her mental health

that it had to be a substantial
and contributory cause of her su1c1de.

And you've dealt
with patients or a patient

who's had pressures
similar to this?

Yes, I have.

He's got a lot to say...
only he can't say it.

Privilege can be waived.

By the administrator
of the decedent's estate.

Mrs. Blaine already applied
for letters.

Priscilla had money
her father left her.

The bank won't release it
without tax waivers signed
by the administrator.

Return date's next week.

Mrs. Blaine is charged
with k*lling her daughter.

I'd say her interests are adverse
to that of the estate.

There's a sister, isn't there?

You know any good
probate lawyers?

Do you mean I would have
to go to court?

No. Not in the way you think.
You see, surrogate court

merely appoints the administrator
of an estate when there's no will.

And that would give you
the authority

to waive the doctor
and patient privilege.

Robinette:
If Dr. Seliger takes the stand,

it'll be the closest thing
to Priscilla being there herself.

Stone:
This is not easy
what we're asking, I know.

You want me to testify
against my mother.

It's not a criminal proceeding.
It's a civil hearing.

One thing I learned
growing up,

and that's... you don't
cross my mother.

Priscilla knew that, too.

I can't help but wonder,
if I hadn't have left,

you know,
if I didn't quit, then...

Patti, your leaving is not
the cause of Priscilla's death.

I believe you know
what caused your sister's death.

I'm just asking for the legal
right to get to the truth.

Petition of letters
of administration

in the estate of Priscilla Blaine
filed by Elizabeth Blaine.

Objections have been filed
by Patricia Blaine.

The objection has been
filed, Your Honor,

on the grounds that
the applicant's appointment

would not be in the best
interest of the estate.

Your Honor, the D.A.
Is using the proceedings

- to mount a witch hunt
against my client.
- Please, Mr. Pollard.

I am here to represent
Ms. Blaine, Your Honor,
not the District Attorney.

Are the parties prepared
for a hearing?

- Ready, Your Honor.
- Pollard: Ready.

Mr. Robinette,
does the District Attorney's Office

have charges pending against
the petitioner, Elizabeth Blaine?

Yes, we do.

And could you tell me,
what are those charges?

She's been indicted for the m*rder
of her daughter, Priscilla Blaine.

An indictment is not
a conviction, Your Honor,

and certainly no evidence
of my client's guilt.

The grand jury is nothing more
than the District Attorney's puppet...

Enough, Mr. Pollard.

The court takes judicial notice
of the indictment.

Patti:
When we were little,
she had us both taking lessons,

trying to get an agent.

- Melnick: How old were you?
- Patti: Five.

- And Priscilla?
- She was three.

And was this something
you both enjoyed?

I didn't.

Melnick:
And your sister, Priscilla?

It was harder for her.

I left, and after that Priscilla
was expected to fill that void.

I see. And what did these
expectations entail?

Well, when she was five

she had dance class
three times a week after school

and on Saturdays
from 1:00 to 5:00.

Melnick:
Patti, did Priscilla
ever express to you

that she was unhappy with the way
your mother had planned her life?

Once she lost an audition
for "The Nutcracker Suite."

My mother was very upset.

It was always like that.

And that night
when we got home,

Priscilla asked me, did I think
Mom didn't love her anymore?

Objection.
Hearsay.

Sustained.

Patti, tell the court
why you would like

to be appointed administrator
of your sister's estate.

Because, in my opinion,
my mother is unfit.

Melnick:
Do you believe that your mother
was responsible for Priscilla's death?

Yes, I do.

Thank you.
No further questions.

Aside from when Priscilla
was a five-year-old,

did she ever tell you that
your mother treated her badly?

No.

Did Priscilla ever tell you
your mother forced her

to make pornographic films?

We didn't discuss...

Did she ever tell you
your mother made her

do anything she didn't
want to do?

- No, not in those words.
- In fact... when you told her

that you thought your mother
was pushing her too hard,

she got angry at you,
isn't that true?

- Yes, but she...
- Patti...

who will receive Priscilla's money
if your mother is convicted?

- I will.
- I see.

And how long has it been
since you've seen your sister?

Well, we talked
every couple of weeks.

When was the last time
you saw her?

It's been about two years.

So you were very devoted.

You came to her funeral,

and you came to collect
an inheritance.

- Objection, Your Honor!
- (gavel bangs)

Mrs. Blaine:
She wanted to be an actress.

I did too
when I was her age,

only I didn't have someone
to encourage me.

I wanted it to be
different for her.

But why these films?

She wanted to act
for the cameras.

They weren't giving her
that in school.

There's a difference
between acting, though,

and acting
in a pornographic film.

All she did was take off
her clothes.

Did Priscilla ever do
anything more

than undress in front
of the camera?

No. It never went
further than that.

- I made sure of that.
- Thank you, Mrs. Blaine.

Mrs. Blaine, Priscilla
was going to star

in an upcoming film
with the same director,
wasn't she?

- Yes.
- And as the star
in that film,

she would have to do more

than just take off her clothes,
isn't that true?

They told Marilyn Monroe
that nude calendar

would ruin her career.

It made her a star.

Ahem... would you tell us,
please, Mrs. Blaine,

was Priscilla nervous about
starring in a pornographic film?

All actresses are nervous
before a big part.

Yes, but when your daughter
came to you

and told you she was nervous,
what did you say to her?

I told her she should talk
to her friend, Angel...

she had made
a lot of films.

Mrs. Blaine, did it never
occur to you

that starring
in a pornographic film

might not be in your daughter's
best interest?

Priscilla was an adult.
She made her own decisions.

I did nothing wrong!

No, you merely encouraged her
to prost*tute her...

I encouraged her to do
exactly what she wanted to do!

Be seated.

The particulars of this case
are repugnant to me.

Frankly, I don't think
either of the applicants

are fit administrators
of Priscilla Blaine's estate.

It's also clear
the prosecutor's office

is using this proceeding
to reach its own goals.

However, I cannot
in good conscience

ignore the criminal charges
against the applicant.

I'm going to sign an order
issuing letters

to the objectant,
Patricia Blaine.

(bangs gavel)
This hearing is adjourned.

What are some of the effects
of amitriptyline?

Man:
Alleviates nervous tension,
symptoms of depression.

And in larger dosages?

Reduced inhibitions,
may evoke a state of euphoria.

What is the usual
prescribed dosage?

25 milligrams,
three times a day

to a maximum of 150
milligrams as necessary.

- There are 25 milligrams
to each tablet?
- Yes.

How much of this drug
did Ms. Blaine take
the night she died?

- Over 200 milligrams.
- So, that's at least
eight tablets?

Man: Yes.

Was there any physical
evidence to indicate

whether or not Ms. Blaine
was an habitual user of dr*gs?

The corrosive appearance
of the stomach lining

and the presence
of partially digested tablets

suggest her system
didn't easily absorb the drug.

If I'm a vegetarian
all my life,

and one night
I eat a steak,

my body has a hard time
digesting it, right?

Something like that.

So, it's more probable
than not that Ms. Blaine
was not an abuser?

Man:
That's correct.

Stone:
And if she had wanted
an extra kick,

- 50 milligrams
would have sufficed?
- That's correct.

So, in your expert opinion,
Doctor,

why would Ms. Blaine
have taken eight tablets?

To die.

I told her never
to take more than one.

Had Priscilla ever asked you
for dr*gs before?

No. And I had never
offered them.

Did she say why she wanted
the amitriptyline?

She was nervous
about the new film.

- The one she was
going to star in?
- Yes.

Why was she nervous?

She didn't think she could
go through with it.

Stone:
Go through with what,
Ms. Greer?

Having sex in front
of a camera.

So, she needed the dr*gs
to help her do that?

Yes.

Thank you.
No further questions.

You and Priscilla
were good friends?

- We were friendly.
- Just friendly?

Well, her mom didn't want us
getting too close.

In fact, didn't Mrs. Blaine
discourage Priscilla

from spending any time
with you at all?

- Yes.
- Why was that, Angel?

She knew that I took dr*gs.

And she didn't want
Priscilla associating

with people who took dr*gs,
isn't that right?

Yes.

When did Priscilla Blaine
start working for you?

I believe
it was late February.

And how many of these films
did she appear in?

Four... no, five.

Was she featured
in any of these?
No.

Yet she was going to,
and I quote,

"star in your next film."
Is that correct?

Yeah.

Did Mrs. Blaine
know about that?

Did she know?
She wanted script approval,
the whole bit.

In your new film,
was Priscilla Blaine

expected to perform sex acts
on screen?

Tastefully, yes.

Did Mrs. Blaine
know that her daughter

was expected to perform
sex on screen?

She'd been watching us sh**t
for months. She knew.

And when did your film
go into production?

We were supposed to start
sh**ting June 3rd.

The morning after
Priscilla Blaine died?

Yes.

Thank you.
No further questions.

Ahem... Mr. Frome,

did you approach Priscilla
about starring in this new film?

No, she came to me.

Priscilla came to you
and asked if she could
star in the film?

Something like that.
Was her mother with her?

Frome:
No, she was alone.

Do you have
any reason to believe

that Mrs. Blaine forced
her daughter to ask you for the part?

- No.
- Objection. Beyond the scope
of the witness' knowledge.

Mr. Stone, I did
permit you great latitude.

I'll allow it.

She was
legally an adult.

If she didn't want
to do pornography,

why didn't she
just walk away?

Her mother had total control
over her life.

Priscilla was powerless
in that relationship.

She dated a boy
her mother didn't want her to.

She lied to get out
of a performance

and she even began seeing you
without her mother's permission.

She lied because she was
afraid to confront her.

But she was an actress.
Did she really have

that kind of difficulty
expressing herself?

She was so used
to subverting her emotions,

there were days she came
to my office

and couldn't say a word.

She found... other ways.

What other ways?

She had long, lovely hair.

She knew her mother
prized her hair.

A month ago,
she cut it all off.

Not styled... shorn.

Doctor, this is a transcript

from the time you discussed
that incident with Priscilla.

Would you please read
the highlighted portions out loud?

"Priscilla:
'I started, and I just
kept going.'

Doctor:
'Why did you do it? '

Priscilla:
'Maybe... I don't know,

Mom said my hair
was what sold me or something.

I thought without the hair,
whatever...

maybe she'd get it. "'

Doctor, would you
characterize that incident
as self-destructive?

Cutting hair,
cutting skin...

it's how some kids
get their point across.

And did you believe
it would lead

- to more serious forms
of self-destructive behavior?
- It usually does.

Dr. Seliger,
did Priscilla Blaine

ever talk to you
about committing su1c1de?

Indirectly.
How so?

She made a tape
of a monologue

from a play she did
in class.

What did she plan
to do with that tape?

She gave it to her mother.
Said she "hoped she'd understand."

When did she give
the tape to her mother?

A week before she died.

Your Honor,
at this time I'd like to play
the tape for the Court.

The Defense
renews its objection.

Mr. Stone is insisting
the death was a su1c1de,
and is now attempting

to introduce non-relevant
facts into that theory.

Objection's noted,
Mr. Pollard.

I'll allow the tape
for what it's worth.

Mama, you awake?

I couldn't sleep.

I haven't slept
in days.

Last night in the dark
I looked at myself in the mirror...

and all I could see
were the whites of my eyes.

And I knew how scared
I really was.

Are you dreaming, Mama?

Remember Abilene, Mama?

How the towns clicked by...

and I begged you to stop
the train?

Lexington, Nashville,
Little Rock.

I was sick
for a thousand miles.

And I hated you
for it.

Well, Mama, you sleep.

Me...

I'm getting off
this train.

I'm tired now, Mama.

When you wake up...

don't be angry
that I'm gone.

It's my turn to sleep.

Adam:
So they might believe
the girl committed su1c1de,

but the defense will appeal.

Admission of the tape
was reversible error.

Judge Hale
didn't think the tape
was overly prejudicial.

Even if the girl
did k*ll herself,

it's tough to prove
that the mother's behavior

was the proximate cause
of her death.

And we're almost there.
The tape went a long way
to prove that.

Mrs. Blaine knew that acting
in those films

was making
her daughter suicidal.

Yeah, but if she doesn't
take the stand,

you got no way of proving
what she knew or didn't know.

And Pollard's no fool.
He's been around.

No way he's gonna
put her on the stand.

No way you're going
to make your case.

What if it wasn't su1c1de
after all?

At the probate hearing,
Mrs. Blaine said

that when Priscilla was nervous
about starring in a film,

she told her to talk
to Angel about it.

At trial, Angel said Mrs. Blaine
didn't want Priscilla around her.

Maybe she knew Angel
was getting dr*gs

to get through
the performance.

So Mrs. Blaine
sent Priscilla to Angel

to get the dr*gs
to help her have sex on camera.

So we change our theory?

Priscilla didn't commit
su1c1de, she OD'd?

Mrs. Blaine not only
forced her daughter
to have sex on camera,

but she gave her
the dr*gs

to help her do that.

Ergo, she is guilty
of her daughter's death.

And with her prior testimony,

we don't even need
Mrs. Blaine on the stand.

Now, Ben,
what do you think?

Do you believe this girl
committed su1c1de?

I do believe that Mrs. Blaine
is guilty of her daughter's death.

I'll do anything to make it stick.

(loudly)
It's prejudicial.

It's inflammatory...

I am not deciding
on decibel level, Lucas.

There is nothing in that transcript
that would prejudice a jury.

What about her right
against self-incrimination?

Mrs. Blaine testified under oath.
She was represented by counsel.

Her rights were fully protected.

"Question:
'What did you say
to your daughter

when she told you
she was nervous? '

Answer, Mrs. Blaine:
'I told her to talk to her friend Angel.

She made a lot of films."'
Now, what's the problem with that?

He's manufacturing
proximate cause.

A jury could infer
that the defendant

sent her daughter to Angel
specifically to get dr*gs.

- Still, if the girl
committed su1c1de...
- Pollard: Exactly.

What if she didn't?
What if she accidentally OD'd?

Your point being...?

We're in agreement
on one major point...

nobody will ever know
what Priscilla's intentions were.
But we do know

that her mother intended to get
that film made no matter what the cost.

That's a sandbag.
He's changing theories
in mid-case

because he hasn't got
anything to stand on.

Oh, I think not.
I think if you ask a jury,
they'll tell you

her taped plea to her mother...

the most passionate
performance of that girl's life.

I see no reason
to overrule the motion.

I'll allow Mrs. Blaine's testimony
to be read into evidence.

I'll need 10 minutes
with my client.

So now you're telling me
it was an accident...

and it's still my fault?

Mrs. Blaine,
I'm not a psychiatrist...

I don't know what part
of your psyche made you push

your own flesh and blood
into pornography... but yes, I do think

Priscilla's death was your fault,
both legally and morally.

But I loved her.

She was my life.

No, she was your daughter.
She had a life of her own.

Criminally negligent homicide...

with a sentencing
recommendation?

An "E" felony?

She's not dangerous, Ben.

Man two?

She does the max.

It was kind of like
a fairy tale, wasn't it?

Which one?

"Mirror, mirror
on the wall..."

She looked at her daughter
and saw herself.

Somehow, I don't think
she'll ever understand
what she did wrong.

No, I suppose you're right,
but it's scary.

What's that?

That an emotion like love
can do so much damage.

(elevator bell rings)

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