Post by TVFan on Jul 5, 2008 18:48:24 GMT -5
Recap Provided by Cellogal
June 4, 1994
Suburban neighborhood, where we hear “Shine” by Collective Soul. A couple of movers open the moving van as a guy comes out of his new house and tells them they can use the front door, and if they need water or soda, it’s in the fridge. One of the movers, an African-American with a very nice smile, thanks him and tells him that’s very nice of him. A balding white guy gets out of the passenger seat and starts to unload. Meanwhile, a blonde teenage girl with a camera asks her dad if these are really ex-cons, and he explains that the moving company hires them to help them get back on their feet. She snaps some pictures of her dad, and he smiles and tells her to stop it. She asks if he’s worried they’ll steal something, and he replies by telling her that people deserve a second chance. “Like Mom?” the girl asks. Her dad says that’s different, she challenges him, and he suggests that they not do this here. “Fine,” she pouts, then heads up to the black mover, who’s removing a box labeled “Kate.” “FYI,” she brats, “that’s mine.” The mover asks where she’d like him to put it, and her dad points to the house and tells him upstairs, first room on the right. Dad asks Kate if she’d like to see her new room, and she rolls her eyes, but follows him and the movers inside.
Upstairs, Kate surveys her new room, which is very feminine, with hardwood floors, pink walls, and lace curtains. It’s a lovely room, but Kate is unimpressed. The mover comes in and sets her box down, then tells Dad that it’s a beautiful house. Dad thinks so, too. “And you?” he prods Kate. She says she wants to go home. Deciding that he doesn’t want to be involved in whatever maelstrom of family drama this is, the mover excuses himself to go get the rest of the boxes. After he leaves, Dad tells Kate that he’s doing the best he can, but Kate argues that she misses Mom. Dad does, too, and Kate, near tears, demands to know why he put her in that place again. Dad says that she’s sick again, and Kate bursts out that she’s not sick. Dad argues that if Mom doesn’t stop drinking this time, she’s going to kill herself. This silences Kate, at least momentarily, and she turns her back on Dad and stares out the window. Dad says he ought to get back down there and leaves.
Outside, the mover looks up and sees Kate at the window, and the two of them look at each other for a moment before he heads inside with another box. Inside, Kate closes her eyes and begins to cry.
Oh, SNAP. In the kitchen, Kate lies in a pool of blood, a spoon at her side, clad only in a white T-shirt.
In the evidence warehouse, a detective carries a box marked CLOSED with “Lange, K.” written on the end to its resting place on the shelf.
Present Day
Squad room. Lilly sits at her desk, listlessly fanning herself with a sheaf of phone messages. “Feel anything?” she asks. Scotty checks the thermostat and pronounces the AC dead. Vera heads over, griping that it’s not even 9:00 and it already feels like it’s 90 degrees. Lilly informs them that the weatherman says there’s no letup in sight, and Vera takes action by whapping the thermostat with the back of his hand. “What’s that gonna do?” Scotty asks him, but Vera looks up at the ceiling. “Do you feel that?” he asks. “I think it’s workin’.” Jeffries approaches then, and Lilly hands him her makeshift fan, saying that an inmate’s been calling all morning for him. “Andre Tibbs,” Jeffries reads, then declares that a blast from the past. Scotty says the name is familiar, then asks Jeffries if Tibbs is on the row. Jeffries answers that Tibbs got lethal injection for the rape/murder of a kid in 1994. Vera asks Jeffries if he worked that job, and Jeffries says he interrogated him. Lilly asks if he confessed, and Jeffries replies that he didn’t, and if the evidence hadn’t been so airtight he would have beaten it out of Tibbs for what he did to that girl. Scotty asks Jeffries why Tibbs is bugging him now, and Jeffries points to an article in that day’s newspaper as a possible answer. A cop in the 17th, Joey Norman, was found to be dirty, planting drugs and taking payoffs. The article tells us the rest of the story, which is that Norman killed himself. Lilly, having skimmed the article, informs us that the DA’s office is worried that Norman screwed up three other cases. “So the guy blows his brains out,” Vera concludes, and Scotty asks what the connect is between the dirty cop and the death row inmate. Jeffries replies that Andre Tibbs always claimed that he was framed by his arresting officer: Joey Norman. Well, that’s a connect for you. The phone rings, and Jeffries answers it, then says he’ll accept the charges. “Andre,” he answers, and we see Andre calling from jail with the response, “They call me Mr. Tibbs.” Heh. “Right,” Jeffries agrees, calling him a regular Sidney Poitier, then asks Andre if he called to talk about the movies. Andre says he heard about that dirty cop offing himself. “What’d I tell you?” he asks Jeffries. Jeffries points out that this has nothing to do with Andre’s case, but Andre reminds Jeffries that Norman arrested and framed him, nabbing that letter from his back pocket. Jeffries argues that that letter was never going to prove Andre innocent, but Andre protests that it would prove that cop a liar, and then maybe Jeffries would believe his story. Jeffries tells Andre to tell it to his lawyers, but Andre argues that he’s “done with them snakes in the grass,” and he’s telling it to Jeffries. Jeffries smoothly tells Andre that nobody framed him, but Andre asks what if he did. “You not gon’ wonder about that?” he asks Jeffries. “Why should I?” Jeffries asks. Andre answers that his execution is set: they’re going to kill him in three days. Jeffries looks slightly stunned as he lowers the phone from his ear, then glances over at Lilly.
Credits.
Evidence Warehouse. Stillman comes in, commenting that he never thought he’d be so happy to be coming down there. Lilly, who’s already there, smiles and says that it’s the only cool spot in the whole place. Stillman asks Jeffries and Lilly what they’ve got, and Jeffries gives us the 411: Kate Lange, 16, raped and stabbed to death, and Andre Tibbs was the only suspect. Lilly adds that Andre had just been released from a 3-year term in County for assault, and Jeffries says that Andre was working for a moving company at the girl’s house the day of the murder. That night, Lilly continues, Kate’s father heard a noise, came downstairs, and saw Andre standing over Kate’s body. Stillman concludes that Kate’s dad made a positive ID, and Jeffries says that Officer Norman caught Andre running from the scene with blood on his boots. “Blood that matched the victim’s,” Lilly adds. Stillman proclaims this open-and-closed, but Lilly asks Jeffries about this letter Andre claims the cop took off him. Jeffries says it was some apology to Mr. Lange for mouthing off during the move. Jeffries surmises that Internal Affairs would have the letter now, if they’ve been through Norman’s desk, locker, house… “If it exists,” Stillman adds, and Jeffries says that the state is killing Andre in three days, and they don’t need anyone wondering if they got the right guy.
Jail. Andre is escorted to the visiting area, where Jeffries is waiting for him. He concludes that he got to Jeffries, and Jeffries asks Andre if this is all a game to him. “Gettin’ your kicks before you die?” Andre replies that he’s getting them while he can, then notices Miller. “And you are…” he begins. “Detective Miller,” she finishes icily. “Welcome to the Row, baby girl,” he greets her, and she storms over. “Don’t you ‘baby girl’ me, Tibbs, or your black ass goes back to Isolation,” she responds. Hee. I love her. Andre concludes he’s got to earn her first, and she just gives him an icy stare. Andre gets back down to business and asks them if they found the letter that cop took. “If there was a letter,” Jeffries replies, and Miller tells Andre that even if there was, it’d be a long shot that Norman held onto it. Jeffries orders Andre to forget the letter, reminding him of the blood and the ID. Andre argues that he’s said a million times that there was blood on his boots because he was inside that house. “Deliverin’ that apology letter…right,” Miller remarks. Andre says he lost his cool earlier that day, and he went back that night. The door was open, he went inside, and that’s when he saw her. Jeffries concludes that Andre up and ran, then asks him why he didn’t help. “Look in the mirror, brother, you would’ve run, too,” Andre tells him. Jeffries says he didn’t kill anyone, and Andre says that neither did he. Jeffries gives him the bottom line: the girl’s father saw him. Andre reminds Jeffries that he’s told him again and again that the man is lying, and Kat asks why he’d do that. Andre says it’s because he tiffed him off that day.
Lange house. Accompanied by G. Love & Special Sauce’s “This Ain’t Living,” Andre carries in a box as Kate prances downstairs and asks Dad what they’re doing for dinner. Dad, who’s consulting with the other mover, says he hasn’t thought about it yet. Kate asks if they have chocolate milk in the fridge, and Dad tells her that the fridge isn’t plugged in yet. Kate, apparently unable to bear one more injustice, rolls her eyes. Dad asks Kate if she wanted the vanity and the mirror in her room. “Whatever,” Kate replies, “it’s not even mine.” She flounces out the door, and the bald mover tells Andre that there are a couple more things in the truck. Andre says he’s on it, and heads back outside. Bald Mover observes the family drama and comments that sixteen can be tough. Dad surmises that Bald Mover has kids, and he says he has a girl the same age, but he and his daughter have always been close. Andre has the mirror and starts upstairs with it. Bald Mover asks Andre if he needs a break there, and Andre pants that he’s just getting his grip right. Dad asks Bald Mover if Andre’s okay, and Bald Mover replies that Andre’s got his problems, namely drinking. Andre starts to pick up the mirror again, and Dad approaches the stairs and offers to help. Andre insists that he’s good, but Dad won’t back off, saying that it’s valuable, it belonged to his wife when she was a girl, and they engage in what amounts to a tug-of-war with the mirror, Andre arguing that Dad is making him look bad, and Dad suggesting that they just put it down. Bald Mover looks on in horror as they smash the mirror up against the banister, and it breaks. “What the hell is wrong with you?” Dad explodes, and Andre reminds him that he asked him to let it go, that he had it. Dad argues that Andre didn’t have it. Andre orders Dad to get out of his face, and Dad asks him if he has any idea what he just did. Andre roars again for Dad to get out of his face. Kate comes in and watches the commotion, and Bald Mover fires Andre on the spot. Instantly contrite, Andre protests that he needs this job. “Sorry. Clear out,” Bald Mover replies, and after a moment, Andre does. Kate sadly watches him go.
Miller asks Andre what happened after he got fired and left, and Andre tells her he started off strong that day, but by that point, he needed a drink, bad, so he went back to his corner stool. Jeffries guesses Andre got his courage up and started thinking about that little girl, but Andre denies it, saying he got his courage up and wrote up that apology. Miller asks why he waited until 1:00 AM to drop it off, and Andre says he thought if he could just make it to last call and not pick up his glass, that he’d have a chance at life. As if to prove the irony of his point, the guard comes in and tells Andre that his time’s up. “Less than three days left…and counting,” Andre says bitterly. Jeffries asks him why not go out telling the truth, and Andre says he already did. Jeffries looks on thoughtfully as they lead Andre out.
Squad room. Kate’s dad is telling Scotty and Lilly that he never believed in the death penalty, but when he walked into that kitchen and saw his girl, his thinking changed right there. Lilly asks him if he’s sure Andre Tibbs did it, and Dad says that of course he’s sure. Scotty reminds Dad that he positively identified Andre as the man who killed his daughter, and Dad says he did. “And you’re sure Officer Norman didn’t influence that call?” Lilly asks him, and he’s silent. Scotty tells Dad that if he’s 100% certain Andre did it, they just need him to tell them that, but Dad shakes his head slightly. He says he was the one who found Kate’s body that night, and somebody had to pay.
Exterior, Lange house, where we hear Duran Duran’s “Come Undone.” Dad tells an officer , presumably the illustrious Officer Norman, that he heard a noise, came downstairs, and saw…and then he’s unable to continue. Officer Norman tells Dad to take his time, then points to Andre sitting in the squad car and asks Dad if that’s him. Dad remembers him from the moving company and says he was there that day. “And is he the man he saw in your home tonight?” Officer Norman asks. Dad says tearfully that he hired Andre, he brought him here, and Officer Norman cuts him off and tells him that he needs him to focus, then asks again if that’s the man he saw. Dad replies he didn’t see anything, but heard something, footsteps running. Officer Norman says that he found Andre three blocks from here, running with blood on his boots. “He did it: you know it, I know it. He’s gotta pay for that,” Officer Norman declares. Right then, two more officers wheel Kate’s body out of the house, and Dad looks on in tears. Officer Norman suggests that they start over. “Is that the man you saw tonight?” he asks once more. Dad looks at Andre again, then says yes.
Dad insists that his daughter’s blood was on Andre’s shoes, and it had to be him. “But, you didn’t see Andre in your house that night?” Scotty asks, and Dad is silent. “You never saw him, did you?” Lilly asks, and Dad shakes his head and says no. “I never saw anyone,” he says. Lilly looks exasperated, and Scotty just glares.
DA’s office. The ADA storms in and asks Stillman and Jeffries what the hell this is about, then orders them not to sit. Stillman tells him that Mike Lange changed his story, and the ID is no good. He adds they want access to all the evidence in the case, and IA isn’t granting it. The ADA smarmily tells them that Tibbs ran through all his appeals, and the case is closed. Jeffries starts to talk about the integrity of the case if Norman tampered with evidence, but the ADA says he prosecuted this, busted his ass, and asks if Jeffries is questioning his integrity. Jeffries says that the ID is out the window, then asks if that doesn’t mean anything to him. “This guy stupid or what?” the ADA asks Stillman. Oh, no you DIDN’T. The ADA tells them that speculation that Officer Norman tampered with another case is just that: speculation. Stillman plays the sympathy card, telling the ADA (whose name, we learn, is Danner), that he knows he’s already taken hits on several cases because of Norman, and a search warrant is all their asking. ADA Danner says that Internal Affairs will get to it on their own time. Stillman protests that that could take ten years, and Andre Tibbs has got two days. “Tough,” Danner says, and Jeffries surmises that if an innocent man dies tomorrow night, Danner doesn’t care. Danner shrugs and says he told them their position on this, then asks them to leave before he drop-kicks them both out of his office. They do, even though I know there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell that Danner could drop-kick even ONE of those cops, let alone both. They could SO take him.
Store. Lilly and Vera are talking with Bald Mover, who explains that he was trying to do some good hiring ex-cons, and then this little girl ends up dead. “Worst nightmare, huh?” Lilly remarks, and Bald Mover says that if something like that happened to his daughter, he doesn’t know how he’d go on; she’s all he’s got in this world. Vera asks Bald Mover, whose name is Mr. Nelson, about the trouble Andre got into that day breaking a mirror, and Nelson supposes so. Lilly asks Nelson if he remembers Andre threatening Mike Lange or his daughter, and he doesn’t. Lil asks if he noticed anything odd, maybe the way Andre was looking at her, and Nelson shrugs and says he’s realistic: some guys will look at any girl, young or old, and his concern was “don’t touch.” Vera surmises that Andre didn’t touch, and Nelson confirms it. He says he was trying to keep his business alive, and he didn’t think it mattered, and Vera understands and tells him to go on. That day, Nelson says, early on, before he fired Andre, Mr. Lange offered to buy the movers lunch, so he gave Nelson his car keys, and Nelson gave them to Andre.
Exterior, Lange house. As Dionne Farris’ “I Know” plays in the background, Nelson gives the keys to Andre, and he asks about them. Nelson tells him they’re the keys to Mike’s car: he buys, we fly, then says that it’s better if he stays here. Andre questions whether Mike would want him in his car, but Nelson encourages him to go on, hurry up, and get the burgers. Kate and one of her friends are lying on a blanket in the front yard, and her friend pops up and concludes that Andre’s heading out, then suggests that he get them some beers. Kate orders her friend, Barbie (Barbie? Seriously?) to leave him alone, and Andre apologizes and says he can’t do that. Barbie asks Andre what prison is like, and Kate, mortified, calls her a dork and orders her to shut up. Barbie continues, looking at him flirtatiously and saying that he can totally tell them if he got shanked and stuff. Andre’s pager goes off then, and Barbie lifts it from his belt with a smarmy, “Paging Mr. Drug Dealer.” Kate proclaims Barbie a total freak, and Andre asks Barbie for his pager back so he can make the food run. Kate tells her to give it back, but she won’t until he answers her question. “So, why were you in prison?” she asks innocently, and Andre asks if she’s sure she wants to know. She is. Andre says he beat a man almost to death, and Kate asks him why. “Why what?” Andre asks. “Why do that?” Kate replies. Andre says he was drunk, that’s why, and Kate looks thoughtful. Barbie guesses this is why no beer run, and Kate softly orders her to give Andre his pager back, which she finally does, then asks him if he needs some help getting food, and, without waiting for an answer, hops into the car. Nelson comes out and asks Andre why he’s still there, saying that they’re getting hungry. Andre gets into the car.
Lilly asks Nelson exactly how long they were gone, and Nelson says it was long enough, that the burger place wasn’t that far. “So, long enough to make a set of those keys,” Vera concludes, and Nelson shrugs. Lilly says that could explain why no forced entry.
Barbie’s place of employment, which is, shockingly enough, a law office. I suppose making a “We girls can do anything, right, Barbie?” joke would be unnecessary. Anyway, she tells Scotty that Andre never got out of the car, and those keys never left the ignition. Miller refers to the file and says that she’s read the original interview, and nowhere in it does Barbie mention the long lunch with Andre. Barbie says that she was sixteen, and wasn’t going to let her parents know she tried to seduce an ex-con. Scotty asks if Andre stopped anywhere else, like a key place, and Barbie says it was just the burger joint. Miller comments that the two of them were gone quite a while, and Barbie admits to giving Andre wrong directions because she wanted to get lost with him, but he didn’t go for it. Miller says that if she’s got anything else to tell, now’s the time, and Barbie says it was her fault, what happened to Kate. Scotty asks why she says that, and Barbie says she was always looking for a hookup, even when there wasn’t one.
Lange house, where we hear “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” by the Crash Test Dummies. Barbie walks in as Kate and Andre are packing up the moving boxes. Andre tells Kate they need to wrap the boxes a little better, and Kate smiles and apologizes. Andre spies a family photo sticking out of a book in one of the boxes, and asks if this box goes to her room. Kate says it goes to the attic, but he picks up the photo and asks if she’s sure about that. “Nice photo,” he comments as he hands it to her. Kate explains that she learned how to use a timer that day, that her mom taught her how. Kate then asks Andre if he’s better, and he’s not sure what she means. “The drinking,” she says quietly. Andre doesn’t answer and starts packing stuff up, and Kate apologizes, saying it’s none of her business and she’s acting like Barbie now. Andre says everybody’s got their own point, their own bottom, where there’s no place they can go but there, and when you hit that, you either die, or you close your eyes and believe. “Believe what?” Kate asks, and he replies that you have to believe there’s something out there bigger than what’s eating you alive; something better. Kate asks if there is something better, and Andre tells her that it’s up to you to find it. “What if you don’t?” she asks softly, but Nelson interrupts before Andre can answer, saying they need his help out there. He suggests that Kate might want to hold onto the photo, and she says maybe she will.
Barbie says Andre and Kate had this connection, and she didn’t want Kate to just leave it at that. Seriously? Fixing up your best friend with a much older ex-con? Seriously? Anyway, Miller asks Barbie what she did about that, and Barbie admits to getting Andre’s number off his pager. Scotty asks if she used it, and Barbie says she didn’t, but she dared Kate to page him, bugging her all day. Miller surmises that Kate did, and Barbie says it was late that night, and Andre called right back. Scotty and Miller exchange a disbelieving glance. “So…Andre called Kate the night of the murder?” Scotty asks, and Barbie nods.
June 4, 1994
Suburban neighborhood, where we hear “Shine” by Collective Soul. A couple of movers open the moving van as a guy comes out of his new house and tells them they can use the front door, and if they need water or soda, it’s in the fridge. One of the movers, an African-American with a very nice smile, thanks him and tells him that’s very nice of him. A balding white guy gets out of the passenger seat and starts to unload. Meanwhile, a blonde teenage girl with a camera asks her dad if these are really ex-cons, and he explains that the moving company hires them to help them get back on their feet. She snaps some pictures of her dad, and he smiles and tells her to stop it. She asks if he’s worried they’ll steal something, and he replies by telling her that people deserve a second chance. “Like Mom?” the girl asks. Her dad says that’s different, she challenges him, and he suggests that they not do this here. “Fine,” she pouts, then heads up to the black mover, who’s removing a box labeled “Kate.” “FYI,” she brats, “that’s mine.” The mover asks where she’d like him to put it, and her dad points to the house and tells him upstairs, first room on the right. Dad asks Kate if she’d like to see her new room, and she rolls her eyes, but follows him and the movers inside.
Upstairs, Kate surveys her new room, which is very feminine, with hardwood floors, pink walls, and lace curtains. It’s a lovely room, but Kate is unimpressed. The mover comes in and sets her box down, then tells Dad that it’s a beautiful house. Dad thinks so, too. “And you?” he prods Kate. She says she wants to go home. Deciding that he doesn’t want to be involved in whatever maelstrom of family drama this is, the mover excuses himself to go get the rest of the boxes. After he leaves, Dad tells Kate that he’s doing the best he can, but Kate argues that she misses Mom. Dad does, too, and Kate, near tears, demands to know why he put her in that place again. Dad says that she’s sick again, and Kate bursts out that she’s not sick. Dad argues that if Mom doesn’t stop drinking this time, she’s going to kill herself. This silences Kate, at least momentarily, and she turns her back on Dad and stares out the window. Dad says he ought to get back down there and leaves.
Outside, the mover looks up and sees Kate at the window, and the two of them look at each other for a moment before he heads inside with another box. Inside, Kate closes her eyes and begins to cry.
Oh, SNAP. In the kitchen, Kate lies in a pool of blood, a spoon at her side, clad only in a white T-shirt.
In the evidence warehouse, a detective carries a box marked CLOSED with “Lange, K.” written on the end to its resting place on the shelf.
Present Day
Squad room. Lilly sits at her desk, listlessly fanning herself with a sheaf of phone messages. “Feel anything?” she asks. Scotty checks the thermostat and pronounces the AC dead. Vera heads over, griping that it’s not even 9:00 and it already feels like it’s 90 degrees. Lilly informs them that the weatherman says there’s no letup in sight, and Vera takes action by whapping the thermostat with the back of his hand. “What’s that gonna do?” Scotty asks him, but Vera looks up at the ceiling. “Do you feel that?” he asks. “I think it’s workin’.” Jeffries approaches then, and Lilly hands him her makeshift fan, saying that an inmate’s been calling all morning for him. “Andre Tibbs,” Jeffries reads, then declares that a blast from the past. Scotty says the name is familiar, then asks Jeffries if Tibbs is on the row. Jeffries answers that Tibbs got lethal injection for the rape/murder of a kid in 1994. Vera asks Jeffries if he worked that job, and Jeffries says he interrogated him. Lilly asks if he confessed, and Jeffries replies that he didn’t, and if the evidence hadn’t been so airtight he would have beaten it out of Tibbs for what he did to that girl. Scotty asks Jeffries why Tibbs is bugging him now, and Jeffries points to an article in that day’s newspaper as a possible answer. A cop in the 17th, Joey Norman, was found to be dirty, planting drugs and taking payoffs. The article tells us the rest of the story, which is that Norman killed himself. Lilly, having skimmed the article, informs us that the DA’s office is worried that Norman screwed up three other cases. “So the guy blows his brains out,” Vera concludes, and Scotty asks what the connect is between the dirty cop and the death row inmate. Jeffries replies that Andre Tibbs always claimed that he was framed by his arresting officer: Joey Norman. Well, that’s a connect for you. The phone rings, and Jeffries answers it, then says he’ll accept the charges. “Andre,” he answers, and we see Andre calling from jail with the response, “They call me Mr. Tibbs.” Heh. “Right,” Jeffries agrees, calling him a regular Sidney Poitier, then asks Andre if he called to talk about the movies. Andre says he heard about that dirty cop offing himself. “What’d I tell you?” he asks Jeffries. Jeffries points out that this has nothing to do with Andre’s case, but Andre reminds Jeffries that Norman arrested and framed him, nabbing that letter from his back pocket. Jeffries argues that that letter was never going to prove Andre innocent, but Andre protests that it would prove that cop a liar, and then maybe Jeffries would believe his story. Jeffries tells Andre to tell it to his lawyers, but Andre argues that he’s “done with them snakes in the grass,” and he’s telling it to Jeffries. Jeffries smoothly tells Andre that nobody framed him, but Andre asks what if he did. “You not gon’ wonder about that?” he asks Jeffries. “Why should I?” Jeffries asks. Andre answers that his execution is set: they’re going to kill him in three days. Jeffries looks slightly stunned as he lowers the phone from his ear, then glances over at Lilly.
Credits.
Evidence Warehouse. Stillman comes in, commenting that he never thought he’d be so happy to be coming down there. Lilly, who’s already there, smiles and says that it’s the only cool spot in the whole place. Stillman asks Jeffries and Lilly what they’ve got, and Jeffries gives us the 411: Kate Lange, 16, raped and stabbed to death, and Andre Tibbs was the only suspect. Lilly adds that Andre had just been released from a 3-year term in County for assault, and Jeffries says that Andre was working for a moving company at the girl’s house the day of the murder. That night, Lilly continues, Kate’s father heard a noise, came downstairs, and saw Andre standing over Kate’s body. Stillman concludes that Kate’s dad made a positive ID, and Jeffries says that Officer Norman caught Andre running from the scene with blood on his boots. “Blood that matched the victim’s,” Lilly adds. Stillman proclaims this open-and-closed, but Lilly asks Jeffries about this letter Andre claims the cop took off him. Jeffries says it was some apology to Mr. Lange for mouthing off during the move. Jeffries surmises that Internal Affairs would have the letter now, if they’ve been through Norman’s desk, locker, house… “If it exists,” Stillman adds, and Jeffries says that the state is killing Andre in three days, and they don’t need anyone wondering if they got the right guy.
Jail. Andre is escorted to the visiting area, where Jeffries is waiting for him. He concludes that he got to Jeffries, and Jeffries asks Andre if this is all a game to him. “Gettin’ your kicks before you die?” Andre replies that he’s getting them while he can, then notices Miller. “And you are…” he begins. “Detective Miller,” she finishes icily. “Welcome to the Row, baby girl,” he greets her, and she storms over. “Don’t you ‘baby girl’ me, Tibbs, or your black ass goes back to Isolation,” she responds. Hee. I love her. Andre concludes he’s got to earn her first, and she just gives him an icy stare. Andre gets back down to business and asks them if they found the letter that cop took. “If there was a letter,” Jeffries replies, and Miller tells Andre that even if there was, it’d be a long shot that Norman held onto it. Jeffries orders Andre to forget the letter, reminding him of the blood and the ID. Andre argues that he’s said a million times that there was blood on his boots because he was inside that house. “Deliverin’ that apology letter…right,” Miller remarks. Andre says he lost his cool earlier that day, and he went back that night. The door was open, he went inside, and that’s when he saw her. Jeffries concludes that Andre up and ran, then asks him why he didn’t help. “Look in the mirror, brother, you would’ve run, too,” Andre tells him. Jeffries says he didn’t kill anyone, and Andre says that neither did he. Jeffries gives him the bottom line: the girl’s father saw him. Andre reminds Jeffries that he’s told him again and again that the man is lying, and Kat asks why he’d do that. Andre says it’s because he tiffed him off that day.
Lange house. Accompanied by G. Love & Special Sauce’s “This Ain’t Living,” Andre carries in a box as Kate prances downstairs and asks Dad what they’re doing for dinner. Dad, who’s consulting with the other mover, says he hasn’t thought about it yet. Kate asks if they have chocolate milk in the fridge, and Dad tells her that the fridge isn’t plugged in yet. Kate, apparently unable to bear one more injustice, rolls her eyes. Dad asks Kate if she wanted the vanity and the mirror in her room. “Whatever,” Kate replies, “it’s not even mine.” She flounces out the door, and the bald mover tells Andre that there are a couple more things in the truck. Andre says he’s on it, and heads back outside. Bald Mover observes the family drama and comments that sixteen can be tough. Dad surmises that Bald Mover has kids, and he says he has a girl the same age, but he and his daughter have always been close. Andre has the mirror and starts upstairs with it. Bald Mover asks Andre if he needs a break there, and Andre pants that he’s just getting his grip right. Dad asks Bald Mover if Andre’s okay, and Bald Mover replies that Andre’s got his problems, namely drinking. Andre starts to pick up the mirror again, and Dad approaches the stairs and offers to help. Andre insists that he’s good, but Dad won’t back off, saying that it’s valuable, it belonged to his wife when she was a girl, and they engage in what amounts to a tug-of-war with the mirror, Andre arguing that Dad is making him look bad, and Dad suggesting that they just put it down. Bald Mover looks on in horror as they smash the mirror up against the banister, and it breaks. “What the hell is wrong with you?” Dad explodes, and Andre reminds him that he asked him to let it go, that he had it. Dad argues that Andre didn’t have it. Andre orders Dad to get out of his face, and Dad asks him if he has any idea what he just did. Andre roars again for Dad to get out of his face. Kate comes in and watches the commotion, and Bald Mover fires Andre on the spot. Instantly contrite, Andre protests that he needs this job. “Sorry. Clear out,” Bald Mover replies, and after a moment, Andre does. Kate sadly watches him go.
Miller asks Andre what happened after he got fired and left, and Andre tells her he started off strong that day, but by that point, he needed a drink, bad, so he went back to his corner stool. Jeffries guesses Andre got his courage up and started thinking about that little girl, but Andre denies it, saying he got his courage up and wrote up that apology. Miller asks why he waited until 1:00 AM to drop it off, and Andre says he thought if he could just make it to last call and not pick up his glass, that he’d have a chance at life. As if to prove the irony of his point, the guard comes in and tells Andre that his time’s up. “Less than three days left…and counting,” Andre says bitterly. Jeffries asks him why not go out telling the truth, and Andre says he already did. Jeffries looks on thoughtfully as they lead Andre out.
Squad room. Kate’s dad is telling Scotty and Lilly that he never believed in the death penalty, but when he walked into that kitchen and saw his girl, his thinking changed right there. Lilly asks him if he’s sure Andre Tibbs did it, and Dad says that of course he’s sure. Scotty reminds Dad that he positively identified Andre as the man who killed his daughter, and Dad says he did. “And you’re sure Officer Norman didn’t influence that call?” Lilly asks him, and he’s silent. Scotty tells Dad that if he’s 100% certain Andre did it, they just need him to tell them that, but Dad shakes his head slightly. He says he was the one who found Kate’s body that night, and somebody had to pay.
Exterior, Lange house, where we hear Duran Duran’s “Come Undone.” Dad tells an officer , presumably the illustrious Officer Norman, that he heard a noise, came downstairs, and saw…and then he’s unable to continue. Officer Norman tells Dad to take his time, then points to Andre sitting in the squad car and asks Dad if that’s him. Dad remembers him from the moving company and says he was there that day. “And is he the man he saw in your home tonight?” Officer Norman asks. Dad says tearfully that he hired Andre, he brought him here, and Officer Norman cuts him off and tells him that he needs him to focus, then asks again if that’s the man he saw. Dad replies he didn’t see anything, but heard something, footsteps running. Officer Norman says that he found Andre three blocks from here, running with blood on his boots. “He did it: you know it, I know it. He’s gotta pay for that,” Officer Norman declares. Right then, two more officers wheel Kate’s body out of the house, and Dad looks on in tears. Officer Norman suggests that they start over. “Is that the man you saw tonight?” he asks once more. Dad looks at Andre again, then says yes.
Dad insists that his daughter’s blood was on Andre’s shoes, and it had to be him. “But, you didn’t see Andre in your house that night?” Scotty asks, and Dad is silent. “You never saw him, did you?” Lilly asks, and Dad shakes his head and says no. “I never saw anyone,” he says. Lilly looks exasperated, and Scotty just glares.
DA’s office. The ADA storms in and asks Stillman and Jeffries what the hell this is about, then orders them not to sit. Stillman tells him that Mike Lange changed his story, and the ID is no good. He adds they want access to all the evidence in the case, and IA isn’t granting it. The ADA smarmily tells them that Tibbs ran through all his appeals, and the case is closed. Jeffries starts to talk about the integrity of the case if Norman tampered with evidence, but the ADA says he prosecuted this, busted his ass, and asks if Jeffries is questioning his integrity. Jeffries says that the ID is out the window, then asks if that doesn’t mean anything to him. “This guy stupid or what?” the ADA asks Stillman. Oh, no you DIDN’T. The ADA tells them that speculation that Officer Norman tampered with another case is just that: speculation. Stillman plays the sympathy card, telling the ADA (whose name, we learn, is Danner), that he knows he’s already taken hits on several cases because of Norman, and a search warrant is all their asking. ADA Danner says that Internal Affairs will get to it on their own time. Stillman protests that that could take ten years, and Andre Tibbs has got two days. “Tough,” Danner says, and Jeffries surmises that if an innocent man dies tomorrow night, Danner doesn’t care. Danner shrugs and says he told them their position on this, then asks them to leave before he drop-kicks them both out of his office. They do, even though I know there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell that Danner could drop-kick even ONE of those cops, let alone both. They could SO take him.
Store. Lilly and Vera are talking with Bald Mover, who explains that he was trying to do some good hiring ex-cons, and then this little girl ends up dead. “Worst nightmare, huh?” Lilly remarks, and Bald Mover says that if something like that happened to his daughter, he doesn’t know how he’d go on; she’s all he’s got in this world. Vera asks Bald Mover, whose name is Mr. Nelson, about the trouble Andre got into that day breaking a mirror, and Nelson supposes so. Lilly asks Nelson if he remembers Andre threatening Mike Lange or his daughter, and he doesn’t. Lil asks if he noticed anything odd, maybe the way Andre was looking at her, and Nelson shrugs and says he’s realistic: some guys will look at any girl, young or old, and his concern was “don’t touch.” Vera surmises that Andre didn’t touch, and Nelson confirms it. He says he was trying to keep his business alive, and he didn’t think it mattered, and Vera understands and tells him to go on. That day, Nelson says, early on, before he fired Andre, Mr. Lange offered to buy the movers lunch, so he gave Nelson his car keys, and Nelson gave them to Andre.
Exterior, Lange house. As Dionne Farris’ “I Know” plays in the background, Nelson gives the keys to Andre, and he asks about them. Nelson tells him they’re the keys to Mike’s car: he buys, we fly, then says that it’s better if he stays here. Andre questions whether Mike would want him in his car, but Nelson encourages him to go on, hurry up, and get the burgers. Kate and one of her friends are lying on a blanket in the front yard, and her friend pops up and concludes that Andre’s heading out, then suggests that he get them some beers. Kate orders her friend, Barbie (Barbie? Seriously?) to leave him alone, and Andre apologizes and says he can’t do that. Barbie asks Andre what prison is like, and Kate, mortified, calls her a dork and orders her to shut up. Barbie continues, looking at him flirtatiously and saying that he can totally tell them if he got shanked and stuff. Andre’s pager goes off then, and Barbie lifts it from his belt with a smarmy, “Paging Mr. Drug Dealer.” Kate proclaims Barbie a total freak, and Andre asks Barbie for his pager back so he can make the food run. Kate tells her to give it back, but she won’t until he answers her question. “So, why were you in prison?” she asks innocently, and Andre asks if she’s sure she wants to know. She is. Andre says he beat a man almost to death, and Kate asks him why. “Why what?” Andre asks. “Why do that?” Kate replies. Andre says he was drunk, that’s why, and Kate looks thoughtful. Barbie guesses this is why no beer run, and Kate softly orders her to give Andre his pager back, which she finally does, then asks him if he needs some help getting food, and, without waiting for an answer, hops into the car. Nelson comes out and asks Andre why he’s still there, saying that they’re getting hungry. Andre gets into the car.
Lilly asks Nelson exactly how long they were gone, and Nelson says it was long enough, that the burger place wasn’t that far. “So, long enough to make a set of those keys,” Vera concludes, and Nelson shrugs. Lilly says that could explain why no forced entry.
Barbie’s place of employment, which is, shockingly enough, a law office. I suppose making a “We girls can do anything, right, Barbie?” joke would be unnecessary. Anyway, she tells Scotty that Andre never got out of the car, and those keys never left the ignition. Miller refers to the file and says that she’s read the original interview, and nowhere in it does Barbie mention the long lunch with Andre. Barbie says that she was sixteen, and wasn’t going to let her parents know she tried to seduce an ex-con. Scotty asks if Andre stopped anywhere else, like a key place, and Barbie says it was just the burger joint. Miller comments that the two of them were gone quite a while, and Barbie admits to giving Andre wrong directions because she wanted to get lost with him, but he didn’t go for it. Miller says that if she’s got anything else to tell, now’s the time, and Barbie says it was her fault, what happened to Kate. Scotty asks why she says that, and Barbie says she was always looking for a hookup, even when there wasn’t one.
Lange house, where we hear “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” by the Crash Test Dummies. Barbie walks in as Kate and Andre are packing up the moving boxes. Andre tells Kate they need to wrap the boxes a little better, and Kate smiles and apologizes. Andre spies a family photo sticking out of a book in one of the boxes, and asks if this box goes to her room. Kate says it goes to the attic, but he picks up the photo and asks if she’s sure about that. “Nice photo,” he comments as he hands it to her. Kate explains that she learned how to use a timer that day, that her mom taught her how. Kate then asks Andre if he’s better, and he’s not sure what she means. “The drinking,” she says quietly. Andre doesn’t answer and starts packing stuff up, and Kate apologizes, saying it’s none of her business and she’s acting like Barbie now. Andre says everybody’s got their own point, their own bottom, where there’s no place they can go but there, and when you hit that, you either die, or you close your eyes and believe. “Believe what?” Kate asks, and he replies that you have to believe there’s something out there bigger than what’s eating you alive; something better. Kate asks if there is something better, and Andre tells her that it’s up to you to find it. “What if you don’t?” she asks softly, but Nelson interrupts before Andre can answer, saying they need his help out there. He suggests that Kate might want to hold onto the photo, and she says maybe she will.
Barbie says Andre and Kate had this connection, and she didn’t want Kate to just leave it at that. Seriously? Fixing up your best friend with a much older ex-con? Seriously? Anyway, Miller asks Barbie what she did about that, and Barbie admits to getting Andre’s number off his pager. Scotty asks if she used it, and Barbie says she didn’t, but she dared Kate to page him, bugging her all day. Miller surmises that Kate did, and Barbie says it was late that night, and Andre called right back. Scotty and Miller exchange a disbelieving glance. “So…Andre called Kate the night of the murder?” Scotty asks, and Barbie nods.
