skeptical spirit

C.J. Nicholas: [ecstatic] I got it! This is the big one!

Martin Weldon: Sit your ass down.

C.J. Nicholas: [as Corey takes a seat] District Attorney Mark Hunter is faking forensic evidence to get convictions in murder trials.

Martin Weldon: [to Corey] He's not sitting his ass down.

Corey Finley: I am, though. My ass is right down. Snug. This is his idea.

C.J. Nicholas: I've got proof.

Martin Weldon: Sit your ass down.

C.J. Nicholas: [complies] Hear me out. Three years ago, Hunter lost a string of cases. Now that's not something a district attorney's supposed to do. And then- bada bing- 17 murder convictions in a row. Now he's leading the polls for governor. Do you think maybe he's on a lucky streak?

Martin Weldon: DAs don't try cases they don't expect to win.

C.J. Nicholas: [pulls out crime scene photos] Okay, take a look at this.

Corey Finley: [to himself] Oh, man.

C.J. Nicholas: It's the crime scene photo from the Andre Benson case.

Martin Weldon: [disinterested] Why am I listening to you?

C.J. Nicholas: There was no footprint match, no fiber match, no trace that Andre Benson was even there, except for this cigarette butt. So Andre Benson had the presence of mind to pick up his shell casings, but not his cigarette but that he left right next to the victim's hand?

Martin Weldon: I think you used the word "proof."

C.J. Nicholas: [pulls out a tape] The interview tape. Just bear with me here.

[puts tape in a VCR]

C.J. Nicholas: The detective on the left, one Anthony Merchant. Now, before Hunter joined the DA's office, he was a police detective, and his partner for many of those years was none other than Detective Lieutenant Anthony Merchant. Now watch.

[In the tape, Merchant offers Benson a cigarette]

C.J. Nicholas: Okay, here we go.

[pauses the tape]

C.J. Nicholas: That's how they got the cigarette butt with Benson's DNA. It's right there in front of use.

Martin Weldon: This is your proof?

[to Corey]

Martin Weldon: Are you going along with this?

[Corey just raises his hand]

C.J. Nicholas: All of these 17 convictions were decided by DNA evidence. In each case the lead detective was none other than Anthony Merchant.

Martin Weldon: How did you get that tape?

C.J. Nicholas: From a source.

Martin Weldon: And I bet this source has a skirt.

C.J. Nicholas: [scoffs] Does it matter?

Martin Weldon: [shakes his head] Not really.

C.J. Nicholas: Then, what is it? I mean, this is a story- a monster story!

Gilbert Romans: There were four stab wounds. One severed the left carotid artery. Another just beneath the sternum punctured the aorta. The remaining two punctured the abdomen and opened the small intestines.

Mark Hunter: Dr. Romans, I'd like you to take a look at this knife, previously entered as People's Exhibit C. It was taken from the defendant's apartment.

[hands over the bag with the knife]

Mark Hunter: Could that be the murder weapon?

Gilbert Romans: [inspecting the knife] Yes, the blade's length and width are the same as the stab wound.

Mark Hunter: And when you examined the knife, did you find any traces of blood on it?

Gilbert Romans: No, it had recently been cleaned with a strong, industrial-strength cleaning solution, and deformities on the handle indicate that it had been boiled. Plus, striations on the blade indicate the blade had recently been reground.

Mark Hunter: I have no more questions. Thank you, Dr. Romans

[to Mr. Spota]

Mark Hunter: Your witness.

Gary Spota: So, just to be clear, what you're saying is, you don't know if this is the actual murder weapon or not.

Gilbert Romans: No.

Gary Spota: Thank you. No further questions.