Episode

Quote

Author

2x01, "The Fisher King (2)"
(2 quotes)

"The defects and faults of the mind are like wounds in the body. After all imaginable care has been taken to heal them up, still there will be a scar left behind."

Francois de la Roche Foucauld

"It has been said that time heals all wounds. I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue, and the pain lessens, but it is never gone."

Rose Kennedy

2x02, "P911"
(1 quote)

"The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children."

Dietrich Boenhoffer

2x03, "The Perfect Storm"
(2 quotes)

"Of all the animals, man is the only one that is cruel."

Mark Twain

"Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls. The most massive characters are seared with scars."

Khalil Gibran

2x04, "Psychodrama"
(2 quotes)

"Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth."

Oscar Wilde

"The basis of shame is not some personal mistake of ours, but that this humiliation is seen by everyone."

Milan Kundera

2x05, "Aftermath"
(1 quote)

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it."

Helen Keller

2x06, "The Boogeyman"
(1 quote)

"We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark. The real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light."

Plato

2x07, "North Mammon"
(2 quotes)

"It's not so important who starts the game, but who finishes it."

John Wooden

"The ultimate choice for a man, in as much as he is given to transcend himself, is to create or destroy, to love or to hate."

Erich Fromm

2x08, "Empty Planet"
(1 quote)

"Crime butchers innocents to secure a prize. And innocence struggles with all its might against the attempts of crime."

Maximilien Robespierre

2x09, "The Last Word"
(2 quotes)

"If men could only know each other, they would neither idolize nor hate."

Elbert Hubbard

"Remember that all through history, there have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they seem invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Always."

Mahatma Ghandi

2x10, "Lessons Learned"
(2 quotes)

"Some of the best lessons are learned from past mistakes. The error of the past is the wisdom of the future."

Dale Turner

"In order to learn the most important lessons of life, one must each day surmount a fear."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

2x11, "Sex, Birth, Death"
(2 quotes"

"Between the idea and the reality, between the motion and the act, falls the shadow."

T.S. Eliot

"Between the desire and the spasm, between the potency and the existence, between the essence and the descent, falls the shadow. This is the way the world ends."

T.S. Eliot

2x12, "Profiler, Profiled"
(1 quote)

"All secrets are deep. All secrets become dark. That's in the nature of secrets."

Cory Doctorow

2x13, "No Way Out"
(1 quote)

"Evil brings men together."

Aristotle

2x14, "The Big Game"
(1 quote)

"I didn't have anything against them, and they never did anything wrong to me, the way other people have all my life. Maybe they're just the ones who have to pay for it."

Perry Smith

2x15, "Revelations"
(1 quote)

"There is not a righteous man on Earth who does what is right and never sins."

Ecclesiastes 7:20

2x16, "Fear and Loathing"
(2 quotes)

"From the deepest desires often come the deadliest hate."

Socrates

"The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living."

Cicero

2x17, "Distress"
(2 quotes)

"Our life is made by the death of others."

Leonardo Da Vinci

"If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace."

Thomas Paine

2x18, "Jones"
(1 quote)

"Tragedy is a tool for the living to gain wisdom, not a guide by which to live."

Robert Kennedy

2x19, "Ashes and Dust"
(2 quotes)

"The torture of a bad conscience is the hell of a living soul."

John Calvin

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

Mahatma Ghandi

2x20, "Honor Among Thieves"
(2 quotes)

"There can be no good without evil."

Russian proverb

"Happy families are all alike. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Leo Tolstoy

2x21, "Open Season"
(2 quotes)

"One man's wilderness is another man's theme park."

Unknown

"Wild animals never kill for sport. Man is the only one to whom the torture and death of his fellow creatures is amusing in itself."

James Anthony Froud

2x22, "Legacy"
(2 quotes)

"Of all the preposterous assumptions of humanity, nothing exceeds the criticisms made of the habits of the poor by the well-housed, well-warmed, and well-fed."

Herman Melville

"Nothing is permanent in this wicked world. Not even our troubles."

Charles Chaplin

2x23, "No Way Out II: The Evilution of Frank"
(1 quote)

"I choose my friends for their good looks, my acquaintances for their good characters, and my enemies for their good intellects."

Oscar Wilde

Episode 1
Attorney Lorraine Weller: It's a valid contract. Properly negotiated. Both parties were knowing. Consenting. She looks at Alan. Willing. If she'd wanted to place certain restrictions on her donation she certainly could have. She didn't. She looks at Alan again. Hello. Shirley gives Alan a stern incredulous look. He quickly looks away. Now, as for big oil getting involved in research to combat global warming, are we seriously against that? My God! For years we've been hammering them. "You're a big part of the problem! Be part of the solution!" Now, thankfully some of these companies are trying to do just that. And given that they're billion dollar companies, if they wanna join the fight against greenhouse emissions that should make us, well... orgasmic. She walks back to the table. She looks to Alan. Are you not? Just a little? She sits down, crosses her long legs and looks at Alan suggestively. He seems a bit undone. Alan
shakes his head and gets up to do his closing, aware that Shirley has noticed that exchange.

Alan Shore: Let's look at what's happened in Washington. These huge corporations that poison our drinking water, foul our air, lay waste to our lands have discovered that instead of trying to influence government, better to simply become government. And with a little help from a friend in a very high place they've done just that. 13
Over one hundred top environmental posts have been passed out to representatives of polluting industries. Can you fathom that, Judge? As Alan happens to look back at Lorraine, she shifts her lapel to expose her brassier. Judge Robert Sanders: Don't you be asking me to fathom. I am not a, uh, fathomer! Alan Shore: Almost every agency responsible for protecting America from pollution is now being headed up by somebody from the pollution industry. The fix is in.

Judge Robert Sanders: How does this involve Stanford University?

Alan Shore: It involves a need in this country for independent, unbiased, uncorrupted environmental research. And since it's obviously not coming from Washington, academia is our best, if not our only, hope. And now it, too, is being co-opted by big pollution. The facts are that the oil industry has systematically campaigned to create doubt as to the very existence of global warming. Pumping millions of dollars into think tanks, consumer groups, media outlets, religious and civic organizations. Every penny aimed at defusing the concern over climate change. Now, they're privatizing university research. Berkeley. Princeton. Now, Stanford. Do we truly want our universities, the breeding grounds for tomorrow's leaders, innovators, visionaries, do we truly want them climbing into bed with the oil companies? Alan Shore: Lorraine! Stop it. He's not letting her get to him. Your Honor, at some point a little common sense has to prevail in this country. We've started a war, in part, for oil. One we may never get out of in our lifetime. Of all the industrialized nations n the world, we're the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and we do the least about it. We thumb our nose at the Kyoto Treaty. Our government ctually censors scientific reports from the EPA and others to edit out little findings they don't like. Even the Democratic presidential hopefuls don't talk about this because they don't want to jeopardize their campaign contributions from big oil. Big oil. Big politics. Do we really all intend to sit quietly as they infiltrate vital academic research?

Episode 2
Brad Chase: I guess if we were to accept Mr. Washington at his word, he would be the most unlucky guy I know. Dating a girl in his high school, she accuses him of rape so she wouldn't get in trouble with her dad-that's unlucky. Becomes a drug addict-can't feed his habit unless he robs someone. Bad break there. In prison, he's forced to split a man's head open ... another unfortunate bounce. Then the woman committing adultery with him just happens to turn up dead, and she gets killed at the same time he's in the apartment with her having either consensual or nonconsensual sex with her. Could he be any more cursed? Well, actually ... I guess so. Traces of her blood were found on his locker. Now what are the odds of that? Now with all this bad luck, this sure would be the wrong time to confess to something he didn't really do, wouldn't it? Now, how pathetic ... how desperate that they stoop to accusing the victim's grieving widower-- but I guess that falls in line with the rest of their logic, doesn't it? I mean, it's not the man with the violent criminal past who was last seen with her--no, it's the man with no criminal record--the one with no motive, the one who cures cancer for a living. We just arrested Joseph Washington because we're evil. Now you need to go into that room and decide who is evil. Mr. Washington isn't here today because he's a little down on his luck. He committed murder. Jerry walks slowly to the jury box, hands on thighs, his voice calm and confident.

Jerry Espenson: The fact is, while the police and the prosecution were maintaining rape, they summarilydismissed the notion of my client and the victim being lovers. They were. Ms. Rivers' therapist confirmed what Joseph Washington had been saying all along--what the police refused to so much as consider. The fact is my client was not the only person there at the time of the murder. Dr. Rivers was there. The fact is he entered the building 40 minutes prior to my client leaving. He said he remained in his car dictating some notes. Perhaps he was biding his time for the man he knew to be having an affair with his wife, to leave. Mr. Chase maintains that Dr. Rivers had no motive. That simply is not true. If he knew his wife was being unfaithful, that's motive. The fact is Dr. Rivers never told the police he'd been waiting inside the building for almost 40 minutes. He never told anybody. We discovered that by looking at security tapes. The fact is ... he lied. He admitted lying to us when we questioned him about Joseph Washington. The fact is the prosecution cannot rule him out as the killer. The fact is, as Detective Berenson testified, they never investigated anybody other than my client because they simply presumed Joseph Washington guilty. The police, the prosecution ... they're human and they make mistakes. They made one here. Now, in order to gain a conviction, the prosecution must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. That's a very high standard, one we hold dear. Gloria looks over at Alan. One we set because we know that once we start allowing people to be convicted with less, it doesn't simply make prison more likely for the guilty, but the innocent as well. And the idea of an innocent man losing his life for something he did not do--We have such an innocent man here today. Jerry turns toward Joseph. Many of us went to law school for this very privilege--to at least once, stand up in court for the innocent man. It is my heartfelt privilege to be representing Joseph ashington today. And even if you are so inclined as to presume his guilt, as does the prosecution, you must admit reasonable doubt exists. Another man was there at the time. A man who had motive, a man who wasn't totally forthcoming with the police, a man who admittedly lied to us, a man who waited in his car until Joseph Washington left. You simply cannot deny reasonable doubt exists.

Episode 3
Carl Sack: Do you realize chickens are smarter than dogs? Much, much smarter than horses. And we call them fowl. How sad that the chicken by far is the most abused animal on the planet. Raised in crates less than a square foot, the ends of their, beaks snapped off after hatching, pumped up with antibiotics to keep them alive in conditions that would otherwise kill them. Genetically altered so that they grow twice as fast, sent off to the slaughterhouse after only six weeks of living, typically in open crates where millions of them either freeze to death or get baked alive. The ones who do arrive undead are scaled to de-feather them. Then they are hung up-side down and electrocuted just enough so they don't flap around while getting their throats slit. It's not good to be a chicken. Now, the cock-fighters... they get real food. They get real room to move. They're often loved as pets. They get at least two good years before they're even asked to do combat. And if he's a really good fighter, he gets to retire to stud service, where he could live the life of ... well, of Denny Crane. The simple truth is that if a chicken is in this country hopes to be afforded a modicum of dignity, he has to fight. Studies show they might actually enjoy it. Now I suppose you could find my client guilty because technically he broke the law, which screams out with hypocrisy. Or you could say "Wait a second, Miguel Obisbo offers chickens a better life." Miguel Obisbo now trust you to be humane. Not just for his sake, but for the chickens.

Adam Jovanka: Your Honor, I think we all agree that fifteen is too young to be having sex. Is there anyone here who takes issue with that? Sometimes, when the right answer is "no" you say no. You don't start tinkering with morality to coincide with logistics. Kids need to hear "no" not "here's how, just in case" but "no". Abstinence was the right answer here. If she hadn't had sex, she wouldn't be H.I.V. positive. And even if you are so determined to opt for pragmatism, abstinence is still the right answer. Since the implementation of this policy, the teen pregnancy rate has gone down 30%. More and more kids are choosing not to have sex. And that's good. Whether they get sick or pregnant or not. And if parents disagree, by the way, they can choose to teach their kids about condoms and birth control pills and diaphragms. But once the school starts doing so, come on, you're implicitly telling the kids it's expected of them to be sexually active. And many start doing so because they feel all their friends are. Sure, we can pass out condoms. But it is simply more responsible, more moral and yes, more safe to practice abstinence. That's what we should be telling them. And this school is.

Alan Shore: This case isn't about teenage pregnancy. She didn't get pregnant. She got H.I.V. I can see why you would want to make it about teenage pregnancy, since, well, actually I can't. The United States had the worst teen pregnancy rate of any industrialized nation. And contrary to what Mr. Jovanka would like us to believe, there is no evidence whatsoever that suggests using condoms or teaching students about condoms makes them any more inclined to have sex. None. They're already inclined to have sex and have been since early puberty. They're simply going to do it, we all do it. Birds do it, bees do it. Educated fleas do it. One day, Your Honor even you... Slamming of gavel.. Yes, the fact is this case has nothing to do with the efficacy of abstinence only programs.This case is about religion, politics and federal funding. Our present administration, in blind service to the religious right, has transcended the separation of Church and State and consistently implemented a faith-based political and moral mandate. And now that same policy has been passed on to our educational system. If schools teach abstinence only, they get federal funding. If they teach any other type of sex education, they don't. And as a result, the students in these abstinence only programs aren't being taught the truth about that magnificent technological marvel, the condom. That's not a dirty word, Your Honor. Condoms. Judge slams gavel again. They first came on the scene some 3,000 years ago in Egypt. For centuries they wert merrily along in modified forms warding off syphilis, gonorrhea, preventing unplanned pregnancies, until science and medicine eventually caught up and the pill became a much more effective, less intrusive contraceptive. Penicillin and other antibiotics were miracle cures for gonorrhea and syphilis. The poor humble condom languished. And then came AIDS... this terrifying new disease that panicked the world. For many years, it has been fatal, gruesomely so in every case. There was no vaccine, no cure, no treatment. But there were condoms, and they worked. They were safe, time-tested, easy to use, and they protected both partners. The condom is arguably the single most important invention of the past 2,000 years. In fact, it has been said without exaggeration that the health of the world depends on them. Now one would think that the obvious choice would be for schools to tell their students as much. But Abby's school... indeed all schools, that teach abstinence only, have chosen to lie. They teach that condoms are ineffective at preventing pregnancies, which is a lie. They teach that condoms are ineffective at prevent disease, which is a lie. Some of the literature actually compares using a condom to playing Russian Roulette, which is a frightening, despicable, unforgivable lie. Alanturns and smiles at Abigail. Abby Hold has H.I.V., which in all likelihood will develop into AIDS. We've sort of forgotten about AIDs in this country. Treatments have improved dramatically. Drugs are keeping people alive for many years after they become infected. But the Grim Butcher's bill for this pandemic still keeps growing and growing. 65 million people worldwide have become infected. One time unprotected sex can kill you. A condom can save you. It is inconceivable, that every child in the world isn't taught that. We should be in criminal court this very moment, trying this obscenely duplicitous school for conspiracy to commit murder. Ah. But frankly, I have no stomach for that. I think of the horror that has been inflicted on this fifteen year old girl, and I'm just so profoundly sad. I can point out the evils of this corrupt system. I can tell you have effective condoms are, the lives they save and on and on and on and... but words seem to be these hollow, useless things rattling around in this courtroom. Because ultimately the lies this school told Abby Holt may... will probably kill her. They have certainly altered her life forever. And in the face of that, all I can think of is ... why??

Episode 4
Shirley Schmidt: Yes, that works out to be extremely practical for our Presidential candidates when they don't want to go near the issue. I was watching a debate. There were at least 12 candidates standing on stage. Not one dared challenge "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." I-I guess politicians feel bigotry can be ratified by a 59% approval rating, but whether your name is Hillary, Obama, Rudy or Mitt, their message is all the same: You want to be gay Fine. But for God's sake, keep it to yourself. Aren't we a proud people? Thank God for America holding out for real values, while Canada, England, Australia, Israel welcome gays into their military. In fact, every member of NATO, with the exception of Turkey, say it's okay to be gay and in uniform. But, what do they know? If you're going to impose democracy across the world, you've got to take a stand against civil liberties.

Judge Clark Brown: bangs his gavel I will not allow you to attack the United States of America!

Shirley Schmidt: Why the hell not? On this issue, we've taken a decidedly low road. We're not only tolerating intolerance, we're codifying it into national policy. How can we all not be ashamed?

Judge Clark Brown: Not everyone shares your point of view.

Shirley Schmidt: chuckles Clearly. I-in fact, it's quite a popular prejudice. We don't allow gays to marry. We don't allow them to give blood. We make it next-to-impossible for them to get health insurance. And, how about the big national tribute to Jerry Falwell, the man blamed 9-11 on God's wrath against homosexuals? We give him a state funeral like he's a national hero?

Judge Clark Brown: This case is not about Jerry Falwell. It's not about discrimination against gays in America. It is about gays in the military, a practical analysis in time of war, and I will ask you to keep your remarks on point.

Shirley Schmidt: Okay. pause Practically speaking, this war isn't going well. We keep saying we need to send in more troops. Well, Judge, there are no more troops. We've run through the National Guard. We're now tapping into private security companies. emphasizing each word There are no more troops. As a ractical matter, we have thrown 10,000 good soldiers out, because they admitted being gay Do you know how desperately the Army could use those men? As a practical matter, this policy stinks. As a moral one, I repeat: How can every one of us not be ashamed and why the hell aren't you?

Attorney Sheila Zale: This boy is 10 years old. The physical danger speaks for itself. Any time that Domingo is in the ring, he's always only an instant away from death. Moreover, you should also consider this: What kind of person is Domingo becoming? Where's the moral center of a child who is taught that torturing and slaughtering an animal is alright? Best interests of the child-that's your criterion. His best interests simply cannot be served if he's allowed to engage in a sport where "winning" means torturing an innocent animal, and "losing" means either catastrophic injury or death. steps back to her chair

Katie Lloyd: rises; clears her throat, steps into position to face Judge Victoria Peyton Good morning, Your Honor. Horrible business, this bullfighting. It's a wonder that serious injuries are relatively rare, which they are. We have more catastrophic injuries in this country from cheerleading. In football-the merican version-there are 300 thousand concussions each year, and that's just measuring high school and college students. Studies now link these concussions to lifelong depression. I suppose we should ban football, but, of course, we never will. It's part of American culture, as are firearms. There are more guns in American households than pets. I must say I don't quite fathom that one, but America began with the shot heard around the world, so I suppose guns is simply part of its fabric. In Mexico, bullfighting is part of the fabric. It may seem barbaric to Ms. Zale or you or me, but the European Union did declare bullfighting to be a protected activity, because it is part of the national culture of certain countries. Goya and Picasso have painted bullfights; Lorca and Hemingway have written about them; Bizet's "Carmen" involves a bullfighter; Almadovar's movies have dealt with them. It's considered by many to be an art, and Domingo is very, very good at it. Yes, and if you rule in her favor, what's to stop the next mother from challenging custody because Dad takes Johnny rock climbing? Or hang gliding, or hunting, or bull-riding, as they do in the West? Sports can be dangerous. The key is proper training, as Domingo has most certainly had here. There's no evidence to suggest that Miguel Obisbo has been anything other than a fit and loving father. Courts have never decided custody based on the sports that children engage in. Do you really mean to open that door?

Season 2

201

Garrett Wells: Jimmy Carter was a born-again Christian. Ronald Regan said his favourite book was the Bible. He gets up and walks around the table.It's relevant because the open notorious celebration of Christianity has never been more popular. We have an Evangelical President. John Ashcroft was a former preacher. Condolezza Rice was once a Bible teacher. The Air Force Academy has basically established Evangelical Christianity as its official religion. The football coach there put up a banner that says, "Team Jesus Christ". Have you checked the pulse of this country lately?

202

Alan Shore: Yes, your Honor. Why are we here? Certainly not because of evidence, there isn't any. Any witnesses see my client give her husband Viagra? Anybody see her put Nitroglycerine into his wine? No. We're being asked to assume that evil. Well! Why can't we impute the same sinister mentality to the deceased? Because people just don't take their own lives? We have over a million suicides, across the globe, every year. A million1 Suicide is a much more common and therefore plausible thing than murder! So why are we here? Because Kelly Nolan had a blank expression on her face when the police arrived at the scene? She was in shock for God's sake. Her husband had just died right before her eyes. Fingerprints on the wineglass? It was her house! She was having wine with her husband! Is it so inconceivable that she would touch his glass? And if she were guilty? Don't you think she would have wiped the glass clean? Or washed it so the Nitro wouldn't have been detected. Why are we here? Because her husband allegedly threatened to cut her out of his will two days before? According to Kelly, that never happened! The housekeeper says it did. But this is a witness who admittedly loathed my client, who admittedly concealed information from me so she could do more damage at trial. She has a bias! And the prosecution offered nobody to corroborate her. So! Why are we here? The coronary joke. Made to the boyfriend. Suspiciously coincidental. But that was something she said! Not did. And she said it in jest! Let's remember. There is no suggestion that either the boyfriend or the housekeeper took this remark seriously for a second! If they did, why did they not contact the police? There is simply no evidence that would allow you to conclude beyond all reasonable doubt that Kelly Nolan killed her husband! So. Why are we here? Alan looks to Denny. Denny shakes his head. But. As long as we are. What about the police? They admittedly didn't investigate any other theory, including suicide. You heard Detective Richmond, they immediately focused on Kelly, and only Kelly. Because she's the one they wanted to get. And I don't know about you, but I certainly find it curious that the prosecution, instead of reprising evidence in his closing argument, chose to focus on my client's testimonial demeanor. What the hell is that?! He wants you to convict her of murder because she came off as cold in the witness chair. I saw cold to. But what I mainly observed was someone who was rigidly unapologetic. Well, wrongly accused people tend to be that way. How warm would any of you be if you were falsely accused of murder, if you were made sport of by the media, if your privacy was violated and naked pictures of you were posted on the Internet? People, who are unrelentingly vilified, tend to end up cold and hard. Kelly Nolan has emotionally shut down. She cannot feel. She cannot emote. And she cannot fake vulnerability for the purpose of appealing to a jury's sympathy. She's innocent! And she's not required to prove it. Alan looks to Denny. Denny shakes his head. Alan shakes his head. Shadenfreude. From the German words, Schaden and Freude, damage and joy. It means to take spiteful, malicious delight in the misfortune of others. We used to dismiss this as simply an ugly side of human nature, but it is much much more than that. Recently a Stanford professor actually captured Schadenfreude on a brain scan. It's a physiological medical phenomenon. When we see others fall it sometimes causes a chemical to be released in the dorsal striatum of the brain which actually causes us to feel pleasure. If you watch the news or read the papers, which of course you don't because the Judge said not to, but if you did, you would see the undeniable delicious joy of the media and the public over Kelly Nolan's plight. I have no doubt that you want Kelly Nolan to be punished. She married for money, she had an affair, she carried on naked in the pool with her boyfriend. She's cold, materialistic, unlikable, and it might bring you all pleasure to see her go to jail. But as for evidence to establish that she committed a murder beyond all reasonable doubt? It just isn't there. The only possible route to a guilty verdict here is Schadenfreude. Alan looks to Denny. Denny nods his head. Thank you.

203

Alan Shore:I get your implication Judge, and I acknowledge the hypocrisy of a fisherman pleading for the survival of a species only so that he'll be able to continue dragging them to shore by the lip in perpetuity. But causing a fish discomfiture and cause it to become extinct as two very different things. And when talking about Pacific Salmon! This is a species that goes back to the ice-age. One that is born in a river, migrates up to two thousand miles in the sea, then returns to the very place of birth to spawn. Against enormous miraculous odds, bringing nutrients on it's journey to sustain the bald eagles, the grizzly bears, the wolves, even the Rain Forest's themselves. An entire ecosystem depends on them. If Charlotte the spider were still alive today she'd be writing in her web, "Some fish".

Judge Sean O'Byrne: Yes. Well, forgive me, but I find it insulting to be lectured by an American on the environment.

Alan Shore: Yes! Remember! We're the country that's practically wiped the grizzly bear off our maps. We got rid of bull trout. To see a Florida panther? You have to go a hockey game. We seek to count hatchery salmon as wild so the numbers go up and we can take the actual wild salmon off the endangered species list. Almost a hundred different bird and animal species have gone extinct in the last thirty years. While our national policy remains, "It's not a priority." I know all about economic interests trumping the environment. And truthfully, if we were talking about the Virgin Island screech owl or the Fresno kangaroo, I might not care, but this is the Pacific Salmon! The sea lice are killing them! Once they're gone Judge, my God! They're gone! Oh! Yes. Mindful that abroad people tend expect shock and awe when Yankees arrive on the scene, we shall leave you with two small, but lasting words.

204

D.A Valerie Murrow: There was no self-defense, or defense of others here. I'm not going to waste time telling you something you already know. The defendant simply made a decision, a reflective one, that Bernard Ferrion should no longer be among the living. Two whacks to the back of the head. Whether Catherine Piper was playing at executioner or God, she committed murder. Law and Order isn't simply something found on television four nights a week. Our integrity as a people is inextricably bound up with the idea that we are a nation of laws. You as jurors took an oath to uphold the law. In a time when we as Americans are increasingly labeled as a 'Might makes right' society, I sincerely hope for our legacy as a moral society you choose to honor that oath.

Alan Shore: In 2003 we had 16,500 murders in this country. 6200 went unsolved. On another 4000 we made arrests! The defendants eventually went free. We don't catch killers in this country. Since 1960 200,000 murders have gone unsolved. Forget about the ones where we just failed to convict! For 200,000 we were baffled! Ask me, we could use a few more vigilantes. Now! You swing that skillet at your own risk, I grant you. Kill an innocent person? Off to prison you should go. But Catherine Piper didn't do that. Catherine Piper tried law and order. She was scared for her life. She did fear for the safety of others. And in the heat of that fear she swung that skillet! Accomplishing in the process something the police couldn't. She got the bad guy. Now, I certainly don't want a society where people start arbitrarily taking the law into their own hands. I know you don't. But society certainly isn't safeguarded, nor is it remotely benefited by putting Catherine Piper in prison. Unlike the District Attorney, I don't think we're a country inextricably bound up with law and order or some National integrity. I like to think we're a people. Mostly about humanity. And humanity isn't about the right to trumpet moral superiority. Humanity is about compassion, even forgiveness. Catherine Piper in all her fear reacted in a very human way. She's here now asking you to do the same.

Atty. Christopher Palmer: Like Congressman Jacobs says, "Everybody wants the ban on assault weapons." The Democrats. The Republicans. The police. Seventy-eight percent of the public? And yet, we don't have it. Why? The Senate majority leader has said, and I quote, "The will of the American people is consistent with letting it expire." Is that consistent with your will? With yours? What the hell is going on here? The NRA has them all terrified! How powerful is this lobby? Senator Kerry, in his bid to get elected President, was advised that he had to go out and shoot an animal and to be photographed doing so. He's a wind-surfer for God's sake! Well, enough is enough. It is time to hold Congress accountable. 30,000 deaths by firearms every year in this country. And we can't ban assault weapons? People need them for personal protection? To hunt? And now we actually have legislation pending in Washington that will literally shield the gun manufacturers from being sued. Even for negligence. We an sue doctors, big tobacco, asbestos but the gun industry gets its own special legislation granting them immunity. What the hell is going on? Where are our elected officials? This one vowed to fight the gun industry. Took campaign contributions on the promise that he would. And what did Alex Naughton get in return? His sixteenyear- old nephew, while buying a quart of milk, was mowed down by two AK47's. Shirley Schmidt: Whispers. You wanna take it?

Denny Crane: It was a shot heard around the world. Remember? Not the punch. Not the stabbing. It was a shot. To rally the minutemen to defeat the Red Coats at Lexington. This nation began with a gun. Will go down with a gun. Or maybe, if we have them, won't go down at all. Let me tell you about assault weapons. The FBI now reports that terrorists are coming to America to get them because it's easier to procure them here. Now I ask you, how can we supply terrorists with AK47's and not give them to our own people? Shirley and Denise both hide their face in their hand. That may sound crazy but part of being an American in the Wild West was we came armed! It's in the bill of sale for God's sake.

Denny Crane: In our National Anthem we've got bombs bursting in air for God's sake. We drive around with our shotguns on the outside of our pickup so the neighbors will see 'em. And! No one talks about this out loud of course, but things might have turned out differently for the nephew of the plaintiff if he had had his own automatic weapon. Shirley and Denise both hide their face in their hand again. First sound of Democracy came from a gun like this one. And that's why the ban on assault weapons has been allowed to lapse. It's all about our basic civil rights. It's about Democracy. It's about freedom! The melody "Glory Glory Hallelujah" starts to play. Denny Crane. The melody continues.

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Attorney Morrison: Halloween is a secular holiday and as you can see a fun one. Now the witch at the center of this case, played with gusto by Mrs Berleft, is not a symbol of Satanism and in no way defames the religion of the Wiccans. The whole pageant, indeed all of Halloween everywhere is just make-believe. And to claim that this somehow rises to the level of persecution is not only laughable but offensive. Persecution is an issue which, to be perfectly frank, neither of these suburban arents, nor their high-priced attorneys know anything about. And it's insulting to groups who have been persecuted to raise that issue at this time in this case.

Shirley Schmidt: She get up. Evelyn takes her right hand. Grace takes her left hand. Grace and Evelyn smile at Shirley. She smiles back, removes their hands and walks up to the Judge.. The first amendment says we shouldn't discriminate against any group on the basis of religion. It's a nice theory. But the truth is the law is rarely applied to protect the Christian faith because being in the majority; well I guess we feel they can take it. And if the religion is too far out there, Christian Scientists sure, Scientologists maybe. Wiccans? Well. At what point does a religion become silly enough that it's okay to make fun of them? And who decides? What this case is really about is tolerance. Whether it's Hindus attacking Jews, or Muslims against Catholics, Christians fighting with Wiccans. The aim of the law is tolerance. And I could be wrong but I don't think we ever ratified persecution under the heading of fun. Let me read you something by Martin Nummular a German pastor who opposed the Nazis. In Germany they came first for the communists and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionist and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Protestant. Then they came for me and by that time there was no one left to speak up

U.S. Attorney Chris Randolf: In war, any war, there are casualties. For the family of a victim to sue the army for such a casualty is not only patently ridiculous it's an insult. First it offends the memory of the soldier who gave his life to defend his country. Worst, it's an attack on patriotism and the US Army itself. He enlisted. He was trained in combat. He assumed the risks of combat. This lawsuit merely represents a flamboyant attempt to showcase anti-war sentiment. It is wrong, it is baseless and it's an affront to every soldier, to every veteran who has put himself on the line to defend the United States of America. Especially, primarily the ones who have given their lives to do so.

Alan Shore: First. This is hardly about anti-war sentiments. Private Elliot was for the war. Personally I was against it, then I was for it then I was against it again, but that's just me, I'm a flip flopper. But whether one is for or against the occupation and let's assume judging from your tie one is, (The fabric of the knot of Judge Clark Brown's tie is blue with white stars; the rest of the fabric has red and white stripes ) that does not exempt the military from a duty to be honest with its soldiers. Private Elliot was told he'd serve a year. He was told he wouldn't see combat! Okay! Unexpected stuff happens he did see combat. Fine! But, he was sent into combat with insufficient backup, he was sent in to perform duties for which he was never ever trained! He wasn't given the most basic of equipment. And then after his tour of duty was finally up they wouldn't let him leave. He never assumed those risks by enlisting. Over extended, under equipped, non-trained. He never signed up for that. And now he's dead. An aside from his sister, nobody seems to care. We talk about honouring the troops. How about we honor them by giving a damn when they're killed! Our kids are dying over there! In this country, the people, the media, we all just chug along like nothing is wrong. We'll spend a month obsessing about Terri Shivo. But dare we show the body of a fallen soldier? The most watched cable news station will spend an hour a night on a missing girl in Aruba, but God forbid we pay any attention when kids like Private Elliot, killed in action...

Judge Clark Brown: You're off the point.

Alan Shore: I'm not off the point. We've had two thousand American trees fall in that forest over there and we don't even know it. Not really. But, maybe we don't wanna know about our children dying. So lucky for us this war isn't really being televised. We're not seeing images of soldiers dying in the arms of their comrades, being blown apart on the streets of Bagdad. But they are! By the thousands! And all the American public wants to concern itself with is whether Brad and Angelina really are a couple. At least with Vietnam we all watched and we all got angry!

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Atty. Michael Roper: He had incorporated many serious subjects into his programs. All with the stations approval. But when he moved on to global warming, carbon dioxide pollution, he suddenly had to be stopped? Because he was suddenly less funny? No. Because the station was owned by Globaco Oil. This discharge was wrongful, it was in bad faith. My client has built this company's fortunes for thirteen years being Zozo. It is his livelihood. He's perhaps the most popular clown in this country! And this court should issue a TRO to stop this outrageous travesty of justice.

Alan Shore: I could be wrong but a clown's main job is to be funny. Global warming is not. Your Honor, the Artic polar icecap is declining at the rate of nine percent per decade. We're talking about a rising sea level that could wipe out huge pieces of the world's land mass. More importantly, us! Massachusetts, California, our coast lines. That simply isn't funny! Unless of course you live in Nevada. Don't get me wrong; millions of Americans go to sleep at night praying that the nation's number one clown will finally start caring about global warming. But this is a children's entertainment show! And let me ask you, "If our own government is allowed to edit and alter scientific findings, if it can control the information flow on this subject? Why then shouldn't a private television station get to enjoy that same freedom?" You're a clown. Be funny. Global warming is not.

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D. A. Chelios: She had Alzheimer's disease. She has trouble remembering a lot of things, including names. Little things. The catastrophic events, traumatic ones, those sink in. Which is why she remains steadfast that Jason Matheny was driving the car that night. And consider this, if Jason weren't driving that night what a monumental coincidence then that Lydia picked him out of a police lineup! She just happened to pick the guy who owned the offending vehicle! Please! Lydia picked out the defendant because she saw him that night through the windshield. And that's not changed by the fact she had trouble remembering Shirley Schmidt's name.

Shirley Schmidt: I don't doubt she remembered Jason's face. The police picked him up as the owner of the car, plopped him in a lineup and brought Lydia in. Now we can't know whether the police nudged or influenced Lydia to select the man they felt committed the crime but, it's been known to happen. Especially with a witness who needs a little assistance. And that's where Lydia's Alzheimer's comes in. Her brain plays tricks on her. She takes Jason's face from the lineup and transfers it to the car. Stage four Alzheimer's is a form of dementia. We have an eyewitness who not only couldn't remember my name, she didn't know what day of the week it was, thought she had come here by bus when she had been driven by car. She suffers from dementia. I know we all feel for her. How could we not? She's adorable, seemingly trustworthy, and our hearts have to go out to anyone who has this insidious disease. One day we or someone we know will be her. More than 1.5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's. By the year 2015 that number could increase to 14 million. This is not someone else's disease. It has or will affect every single one of us. And of course our heart goes out to Lydia. But this trial is about proving guilt beyond all reasonable doubt. And that hasn't happened here. All the prosecution has given you is a lone witness who suffers from terminal dementia. Beyond all reasonable doubt? You know better

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A.D.A. Frank Ginsberg: Of course we're all happy that Tito Perez was rescued safely. But, the ends cannot justify the means. Not when the means involve kidnapping, FBI impersonation, false imprisonment, chopped off fingers, extortion and assault. And whether he intended to severe the fingers of Father Ryan or not? He clearly and intentionally swung that axe with reckless disregard. We are a nation of laws. We are also a country that stands for civil liberties and human rights. These are principals imbedded in our constitution. Our Bill of Rights. This man not only broke the law. He obliterated fundamental constitutional tenants in the process. Vigilante justice may be acceptable in other lands? It is not so here. This is...
Shirley Schmidt: Don't even think about it. She gets up. We keep hearing about the rights of the accused in this country. What about the victims? What about his rights? We're supposed to say, "Sorry, Tito, we'd love to save you, but there are these rules?" There's a murder in this country every thirty-one minutes, a forcible rape every six minutes, a robbery every one minute. But, hey! Let's all band together and protect the constitutional principals that make this country great. Things clearly got ugly here. But a human life was at stake. With all due respect to the civil liberties of the suspect's brother, with great deference to canon law and Father Ryan's imported door and his fingers, the life of a four year old boy was at stake. Brad Chase saved that little boys life. She points to Tito then looks at Denny. Denny mouths, "Say it."

Shirley Schmidt: It's that simple.

Alan Shore: He chuckles. Here's the thing about me. I am a hoot. But I insist on putting adversary back into the system. And I do it openly and notoriously for all to hear. While a swell guy like you doesn't want the public to know that of the thousands of industries tracked by the Better Business Bureau the credit card racket is number one in customer complaints. You don't want them to know that you deliberately target those who won't be able to pay off their debts. People you call, 'Revolvers'. People who see 'zero percent interest' in big blue print and don't know that with just one late payment you skyrocket their interest to thirty percent. That if they so much as inquire about leasing a car you raise their rates. You don't want the public to know that while over seven million families have filed for bankruptcy in the last five years you got Congress to change the bankruptcy code to make it next to impossible for people to discharge credit card debt. You don't want people to know that the credit card industry is essentially a pack of hyenas crunching on the bones of the poor. Do you? I smell something awful. He leans in to smell Jerry's body. I think it's you. Yes, this case has the stench of big tobacco and asbestos all over it. Luckily our firm has nine offices around the US, London and Hong Kong, strategically positioned for massive cla$$ action suits. And once the company you represent smells it too they'll find you're not nearly smart or powerful enough and they'll drop you for a firm that employs expertise and intimidation rather than down home hokum and smiley handshakes. And this is my favorite part, when your firm fires your obsequiese ass or losing their client... Oh my God! The stress! Your tan will fade, you'll gain a few pounds, drink a bit more, scream at the kids, and maybe your wife will finally leave you. For the realtor who sells your house because after all he'll still be able to afford Christmas in Aruba and next year's convertible. Hey, fella. Don't worry about it. It'll be a hoot.

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Attorney John Hoberg: I can't believe we're here today because these parents care too much about their child. The truth is our children are growing up in a frighteningly competitive world. They'll face global competition the likes of which we've never seen before and we are unprepared. A most recent study ranked American students sixteenth in the world in Science, nineteenth in the world in Mathematics. Of American twelfth graders thirty percent of the boys, seventeen percent of the girls cannot read at the basic level. This type of failure will kill our ids. And that's what George and Gigi Gering are trying to prevent. These parents are simply trying to secure their daughters future as best they can. A future that they know will be challenged with ever increasing competition. What I would have given to have parents as involved as the Gerings. You ask me? Their daughter's lucky her parents care so much.

Daniel Post: Right. Moving on here. The Gering's wanna be involved in their child's education. And they should be. But in their zealotry they left one thing out of the equation. The teacher. Because, let's face it, Your Honor, we treat our teachers like crap. Instead of training our educators properly and believing in them and incentivising them with decent wages, we disrespect them; we challenge them at every turn. And the government in their 'No child left behind' act have created a monster. Instead of teaching children to be innovative our educators are forced to teach to the test. And it's been documented that nation wide some teachers have themselves cheated on the tests because their salaries, their bonuses, their job security are linked to the test scores. He bends down to cough, he takes a deep breath, he sniffs and pauses. Denise starts to get up. Ah, sit down, sit down. Denise sits down. He takes a breath. Ah. And on the other side we have parents like the Gerings coming at them from all angles. Questioning their every move, instead of putting their faith in them. But they do it for a good place but all they want is complete and utter control. And believe me I know all about wanting control of your life and having very little of it. But you can't control life, you can't control your daughter, you can't control the teacher. All you can do is inspire them to be innovative thinkers, people who tap into their own creativity and confidence to try new things, to challenge the status quo, to make new discoveries. And our kids will do all that and more if we just back off and let 'em grow. He sits down. Just my luck, one of the little bastards will come up with a cure for cancer.

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Attorney Adam Jovanka: Ned Hayden killed his wife. He's serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole. Justice has been served. Emily Hayden's loss is immeasurable. But whatever closure she is seeking, she must find it in her soul. Or through her God. Not through suing Well Benefits. Well Benefits could not reasonable foresee this killing and did nothing to encourage it. They were in compliance with all State and Federal regulations regarding internet security. If you find for the plaintiff you are punishing my client for playing by the rules. And you're opening a Pandora's box of lawsuits. Not just against HMO's, but against all internet businesses. And who will ultimately end up paying for that? You know. It's you.

Alan Shore: When I was eleven years old there came a time when the temptation to explore the more secretive recesses of my older sister's life became more than I could resist. I started by poking around in her room. I ended by reading her diary. My defense, she kept it right out in the open her the mattress. And the little metal clasp on it was simply no match for the paperclip and the screwdriver. I was eventually caught, prompting my sister to have a lock installed on her door. The only consequence of the invasion of my sister's privacy was the temporary loss of her confidence and trust. The invasion of Jacqui Hayden's privacy led to her being stabbed and left to bleed to death in the street. Privacy and the safety and security that word has always implied has with time and technology become an illusion. A National Security agency has access to all our emails the world over with its echelon system. Virtually every website you visit installs a delicious cookie on to your computer which is in fact a spy to track you're every move. There are predators out in cyber space collecting data on your children while they innocently type away in chat rooms. And that little waiver you've signed in the doctor's office mostly likely allows physicians to share your information on the internet with insurance companies, the government, your employer and the courts. Make no mistake; access to your information is easy. All you need is a person's five digit zip code, gender and date of birth to uniquely identify eighty-seven percent of the US population. That is how vulnerable we are. How vulnerable you are. Well Benefits says they could not have possibly foreseen the actions of an abusive spouse intent on causing his wife harm. Let me tell you what Jacqui Hayden could not foresee. That after years of cruel and violent debasement at the hands of her husband, after she finally found her way out of the shadows she didn't foresee that the people she most trusted with her health and well-being would lead the darkness right back to her door. And now she's dead. Well Benefits made it easy for Ned Hayden to find his wife. As easy as looking under a mattress. In Judge Nora Lang's courtroom.

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A.D.A. Holly Raines: Ms Levine took her shirt off. That is not in dispute. And she did it to make a political point. Now people make political points every day. The TV, in the press, on the internet, expressing pinions of all kinds without breaking the law. For Ms Levine, our country's guarantee of free speech wasn't enough. Our guarantee of freedom of assembly? Wasn't enough. And apparently our guarantee of freedom of the press wasn't enough. None of these freedoms were enough for Ms Levine and the point she had to make. No. She had to break the law by violating our community standards of decency. No one violated Ms Levine's freedom of speech! Ms Levine violated our community laws. Don't let her get away with it.

Shirley Schmidt: She reads from a sheet of paper. Jake Watson convicted of molesting an eight-year-old girl, served two years, then convicted of molesting an eleven-year-old girl. John Bauers, convicted of multiple counts of rape. Calvin Stevens, convicted of sodomizing and molesting over a dozen boys ages six o ten. This is a list of registered sex-offenders. This is the list that the prosecution thinks Ms Levine should be put on. This is the company they think she belongs in. Do you? Do any of you think that a woman who bared her breasts at a political rally poses the same risk to the community as rapists and child molesters? Of course you don't. And I'll let you in on a little secret. She looks to the defenses' table. Neither do they. You see they arrested Ms Levine and the other women before and charged them with disturbing the peace. When a woman is arrested for sunbathing topless in a public park, she's either charged with disturbing the peace or more likely the cop says, "Hey, lady put your shirt back on." And then he goes off to deal with real crime. So why is Ms Levine different? Because she was protesting redistricting. Now, I know that may sound arcane and theoretical to you. But I assure you that to the politicians in power, there is nothing more dear to their hearts. If Ms Levine had written a scholarly article about redistricting for an obscure journal that nobody would ever have read, the District Attorney wouldn't have cared at all. But she and the other women made their argument topless. People paid attention because let's face it when two hundred women take their tops off people are going to look. But after they've gawked for a minute they might ask, "Why have they taken their tops off?" And then they might find out it's because of redistricting. And then they might say, "Well, what is that?" And then when they find out they might say, "Oh my God! Our politicians have high jacked our Democracy." The prosecutor's charged Ms Levine for violating our community standards. This is Boston. Home of the Tea Party. Home of the people and the spirit of freedom that literally created this country. Our community standard is that we won't be silenced by the King of England, much less the District Attorney! Our community standard is that we speak the truth to power. And if those in power don't like it. Too bad.

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Attorney John Lenox: Let's keep in mind exactly who's at fault for Amelia Warner's trauma. Her rapist. Instead here we are attacking the doctor that treated Amelia, who's efforts are responsible for the apprehension and imprisonment of that rapist. Because that doctor acted within his rights, did not administer medication that conflicted with his religious beliefs. Beliefs that he promised to uphold when he was hired at St. Mary's. But forget religion. Let's look at the law. In a one hundred and thirty pages of protocol on how to treat sexual assault victims the Unites States Department of Justice never even mentions the use of emergency contraception. It's simply not the standard of care. There is in fact no law in place in the state of Massachusetts that explicitly requires Catholic hospitals to dispense or provide information for emergency contraception under any circumstances. And we simply can't pretend that there is on the basis of sentiment or sympathy.

Shirley Schmidt: One of our many rights in this country is what is called informed consent. Every patient has the right to decide what happens to his or her body. And to make that decision a patient needs to rely on her doctor to disclose all available options. Do you want chemo therapy or surgery for a brain tumor? Do you want to amputate below the knee or hope for the best and risk death from gangrene? Do you want to prevent pregnancy or have your rapist's baby? Amelia Warner didn't get to chose. She was deprived of a crucial medically relevant option because her doctor did not approve of it. She didn't choose to receive health care restricted by religious doctrine. She was taken to the ER unconscious. She relied on her doctor at St. Mary's to provide her with proper care or refer her elsewhere and he failed her. Twenty-five thousand women will become pregnant from rape this year. If all of those women took this emergency contraception, twenty-two thousand of those pregnancies could be avoided. Doctors provide a crucial public benefit to a diverse society and we cannot condone it when they impose their own religion on patients whom they are professionally obligated to serve. Especially patients in their most vulnerable states. A teenage for example, brought in to an emergency room after a brutal rape. A teenage who is now left to choose in violating her own moral principals in terminating the pregnancy or postponing college to deliver this child. A child conceived against her will, a direct result of the most traumatic ordeal she has ever endured.

Alan Shore: Well. He chuckles embarrassedly. The thing is it's all my fault. I was so sure I was going to be victorious and persuade you to admit Marissa into your school. Total hubrious on my part, I went and called Darcy Devictor, she does the human interest pieces over at the local ABC affiliate. We were briefly an item. Don't let her perky on-air demeanor fool you she's actually quite deviant in the bedroom. Anyway. I figured this was exactly the kind of story that Darcy likes to... and this is the part that gets me excited... sink her teeth into. You know the little artist that can't smile and the supportive school that loves her. I always like showing off in front of an exgirlfriend, but wouldn't you know it, I got excited and jumped the gun. So! I'll let you get back to work. I'm gonna go out and let her know that I was wrong and you were right and the school prevailed in it's determination to discriminate against this little girl and her disability. Oh! Do you happen to have any of Marissa's drawings still? Darcy was dying to show them on air. Hey! This may be a way to salvage a story actually. You know? The little girl who can't smile, her dream shattered by the exclusionary will of the inbred elite. Something like that! Oh! Wait! I have something. He opens the door. Darcy? He goes over to hug Darcy. He motions to Lestor Tremont. Lestor!

Attorney Morrison: Doggy massage. Pet Prozac. Kitty yoga. Bark-Mitzvahs. Pet plastic surgery? And now life support? What is wrong with us? Have we lost all perspective? There are now as many starving people in this world as there were people in this world a generation ago. And yet every year in this country we spend over thirty billion dollars on our pets. Your Honor, you had this right from the beginning. This is ludicrous. This is a property issue just as you noted. And as hard as it is to let Barry Manilow go, it's time to stop prolonging the inevitable. He gives Judge Willard Reese a look. The Judge turns his chair toward Brad and gives him a look.

Brad Chase: Your Honor? I have to admit when I first took this case I thought it was just as silly as you do. I mean this couple broke up, they managed to divvy up the car and TV, why couldn't they figure out what to do with the cat? Because. He get's up. Unlike our cars and our TV's, our pets, they transcend mere property. He brings up a huge poster of a head shot of Barry and places it on an easel. Property that lives and breaths. Property that loves us back unconditionally in an increasingly harsh and isolating world. This is what Barry Manilow is and always has been to Beverly Bridge! Now, Barry Manilow didn't care how much makeup Beverly wore or whether her outfits were just a little bit too tight for someone her age. He never ostracized her when she got divorced. Never demanded she get a job. Never asked how she spent her money. Never came home smelling like another woman. And he never made Beverly his trophy! Barry Manilow was simply there for Beverly. In fact Barry Manilow treated Beverly better than most of her husbands did. Now he may be very ill now, but there's a slight chance that he can recover. Beverly is getting emotional. We need to hold on to that chance. Cause who among us here has the power to say that the spark of a soul is any less significant because it resides in the body of a pet?

Judge Willard Reese: I do. He pounds his gavel on the table. It's a cat. And the costs of keeping this cat on a ventilator indefinitely are exorbitant. Especially coupled with the pain this cat must be in and its remote chance of recovery. Ms Bridge, I am sorry for your loss, but I must hereby order that Barry Manilow's ventilator be shut off.

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A.D.A. Douglas Koupfer: We have a law against assisted suicide. One reason simply goes to the sanctity of life. Once we start eroding that? Once we say it's acceptable for people to start killing themselves? A terrible thing happens. It becomes acceptable. It's suddenly an option. For the senior citizen with Alzheimer's, for the fifty-year-old with cancer, for the teenager with no friends. Who decides when suicide is the way to go? In this case the decision fell to a mentally impaired woman and emotionally despairing husband. Not exactly bastions of sound judgment. His motives, however clouded by grief, may have been pure. But what about that husband who wants his wife to die to perhaps prevent the estate from being financially drained? What about the family that actually seeks to end their own suffering, because it's too horrible watching mom deteriorate? How do we assess or regulate motive? It's why we chose, as a matter of law not to go down that slope. Nobody is arguing the Mr Myerson is a bad man. He isn't. But he admittedly, reflectively acted to end the life of a human being. Under the law which you took an oath to uphold, that's murder. He sits down. Alan gets up.

Alan Shore: The dirty little secret is we went down that slope years ago. Officially we say we're against assisted suicide, but it goes on all the time. Seventy percent of all deaths in hospitals are due to decisions to let patients die. Whether its morphine drips or respirators or hydration tubes. With all due respect to the Terry Shivo fanfare, patients are assisted with death all across this country all the time. As for regulating motive? Here's a thought. Investigate it. If we suspect foul play, have the police ask questions, if it smells funny, prosecute. But here, there's no suggestion the Mr Myerson's motive was anything other than to satisfy his wife's wishes and spare her the extreme indignity of experiencing the rotting of her brain. Can you imagine? Would you want to live like that? I had a dog for twelve years. His name was Alan. That was his name when I got him. He had cancer in the end. That, in conjunction with severe hip displacement. And he was in unbearable pain. My vet recommended, and I agreed, to euphemize him. It was humane. Which we, as a society, endeavour to be, for animals. My client's act was humane. It was a selfless one, it was a sorrowful one. Ms Myerson's nurse testified as to the profound love Ryan Myerson had for his wife. Sometimes the ultimate act of love... and kindness... A beat. If you think this man is a criminal, send him to jail. But if you don't... don't. Alan returns and sits.

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Attorney Jonathan Weiner: Increased globalization. Mega corporations. How can a small businessman compete? Two ways. He must offer a unique, terrific product or service, and he must keep costs down. Now Kurt Lumis runs a first rate Escrow company. And he wants to do right by his employees by offering them Health Insurance. But, if he doesn't keep his biggest expense in check? Health Care? He loses everything. So! He instituted a very strict no-smoking policy. Now, Mr Lumis is not only reducing his business costs, he's also helping his employees who smoke by giving them motivation to quit. Now, Joan Zeder knew the company policy. She was given ample time to quit smoking and she knew she'd be fired if she didn't. But, she chose cigarettes over her job. And because Ms Zeder is an 'at will' employee, Mr Lumis had a legal right to fire her. And as to what smoking is doing to her health? She can read the warning label on the pack.

Alan Shore: The great Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw had a rather jaundiced view of our country. Shaw said that , "While our constitution was set up to prevent political dictatorship, in doing so we established a society where every ward boss is a dictator, every financier a dictator, every private employer a dictator. All with the livelihood of the workers at their mercy. Well, if Mr Lumis wants to immolate Muslinee in how he treats his employees at the office that's one thing. But Joan Zeder's actions at work have always been commendable. Mr Lumis also declared himself Emperor over Ms Zeder in her home. There he found her smoking. Something which is not against the law. Which is in fact none of his business, but he fired her anyway. Shouldn't we be able to have private lives that aren't governed by the people we work for? My God! I cannot believe I just asked that question in an American courtroom. My head may explode. Your Honor, the right to privacy, as you well know, is guaranteed under our constitution. But now, thanks to our current Supreme Court, that right is flickering like a candle in the wind. And the breeze is picking up. But Justice Scalia and his ilk aren't judging this case. You are. And at what point will we say, will you say, that provided we do not violate the law other people cannot dictate what we do in the privacy of our own homes. Your Honor, when you consider this case in the privacy of your chambers where no police or lawyers or Lumis may enter. Please think about the dying gasps of our precious right to privacy and what our lives might be like if it actually passes away.

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D.A. Jonathan Shapiro: Clearly she committed a crime. She didn't pay her taxes. The only question is will you hold her accountable. Now. No doubt, Mr Shore will try to paint her as some kind of activist hero. But she is no hero, folks. At a time when freedom has never been more precarious in this country, for her to refuse her civic duty and legal duty to pay her taxes, while we have soldiers dying over there. This woman's deliberate action is as unpatriotic, as un-American, as it is illegal. This is the cut-and-run behavior of a coward. Don't you dare declare her a hero.

Alan Shore: When the weapons of mass destruction thing turned out not to be true, I expected the American people to rise up. Ha! They didn't. Then, when the Abu Ghraib torture thing surfaced and it was revealed that our government participated in rendition, a practice where we kidnap people and turn them over to regimes who specialize in torture, I was sure then the American people would be heard from. We stood mute. Then came the news that we jailed thousands of so-called terrorist suspects, locked them up without the right to a trial or even the right to confront their accusers. Certainly, we would never stand for that. We did. And now, it's been discovered the executive branch has been conducting massive, illegal, domestic surveillance on its own citizens. You and me. And I at least consoled myself that finally, finally the American people will have had enough. Evidentially, we haven't. In fact, if the people of this country have spoken, the message is we're okay with it all. Torture, warrantless search and seizure, illegal wiretappings, prison without a fair trial or any trial, war on false pretenses. We, as a citizenry, are apparently not offended. There a re no demonstrations on college campuses. In fact, there's no clear indication that young people even seem to notice. Well, Melissa Hughes noticed. Now, you might think, instead of withholding her taxes, she could have protested the old fashioned way. Made a placard and demonstrated at a Presidential or Vice-Presidential appearance, but we've lost the right to that as well. The Secret Service can now declare free speech zones to contain, control and, in effect, criminalize protest. Stop for a second and try to fathom that. At a presidential rally, parade or appearance, if you have on a supportive t-shirt, you can be there. If you're wearing or carrying something in protest, you can be removed. This! In the United States of America. This! In the United States of America. Is Melissa Hughes the only one embarrassed? He sits down abruptly in the witness chair next to the judge. And what I'm most sick and tired of...is how every time somebody disagrees with how the government is running things, he or she is labelled un-American. And speech in this country is free, you hack! Free for me, free for you. Free for Melissa Hughes to stand up to her government and say, "Stick it"!

Alan Shore: I object to government abusing its power to squash the constitutional freedoms of its citizenry. And, God forbid, anybody challenge it, they're smeared as being a heretic. Melissa Hughes is an American. Melissa Hughes is an American. Melissa Hughes is an American! Last night, I went to bed with a book. Not as much fun as a 29-year-old, but the book contained a speech by Adlai Stevenson. The year was 1952. He said, "The tragedy of our day is the climate of fear in which we live and fear breeds repression. Too often, sinister threats to the Bill of Rights, to freedom of the mind are concealed under the patriotic cloak of anti-Communism." Today, it's the cloak of anti-terrorism. Stevenson also remarked, "It's far easier to fight for principles than to live up to them."
I know we are all afraid. But the Bill of Rights - we have to live up to that. We simply must. That's all Melissa Hughes was trying to say. She was speaking for you. I would ask you now to go back to that room and speak for her.