Murder in the First

Terry: "My darling wife, Cindy, may her guts rot in hell.

"I loved her so much.

"She broke my heart. Then I broke her neck.

"Yes, I killed her.

"I shouldn't've, but she deserved it.

"Now it's my turn.

I deserve to die, too. Mark Strauss."

It's poetic.

- Hildy: Too poetic. - Awfully convenient.

The jury just heard Blunt was getting blown by the victim

minutes before she was killed.

They're finally looking at him like a murderer.

And that same night, Strauss decides

it's finally time to confess? No way.

Besides the people in this room, who else knows the note exists?

No one. Just us.

Did you log the suicide note as evidence?

Not yet.

Should we?

Well, we should, only if we think it's real.

It was typed into a blank word document.

- And he didn't e-mail it to anyone? - No. We checked.

He had just recently moved into that apartment,

so his Internet wasn't set up yet.

Then why did he write it on his computer?

Hildy: Exactly, especially when there was

pen and paper sitting right beside the laptop.

So, our working assumption is that Blunt killed this guy?

Had him killed. Blunt's wearing a bracelet.

So ironically, he's the one guy we can rule out.

Koto: So, let's drag them in and rattle their cages.

Bill Wilkerson, Ivana West. Who else?

Mm... we could do the lawyer... Hertzberg.

Perez: No. Not Hertzberg.

He won't say a word, and he'll know something's up.

We should question Jimmy Salter.

Okay, but question him

only as part of the homicide investigation.

There can't be any mention of the note.

I can stall Siletti 24, maybe 48 hours max.

Wait... shouldn't we bring him in on this

so he doesn't get blindsided?

Siletti? Absolutely not. Judge Greer's going to grill him.

The less he knows, the better.

There's got to be a suicide note. Right?

Well, I only know what you know...

media reports of a possible O.D.,

police investigating.

Beyond that, I haven't been briefed.

Your honor, move to recess

until Homicide and D.A. Perez rule this death.

Surely we can pause for a day or two

so we're not all consumed by this circus.

You'd like that, Warren...

kill my momentum in the middle of my case.

There is nothing about this outside situation

that affects the trial.

A witness who has already completed his testimony

has died.

He'd hardly completed his testimony.

As I recall, we were all just starting to think

that maybe he killed Cindy Strauss.

His role in this trial was over,

and as for the circumstances of his death,

there is no evidence, no facts, no rumor out there

that justifies a pause in these proceedings.

Your honor, I request that the state be allowed

to finish its case against Mr. Blunt without interruption.

How close are you to resting?

Two days, three at the most.

Very well. We're gonna proceed.

There's to be no mention of Strauss' death

by either of you or any other witnesses.

When the state finishes its case,

if... if Perez hasn't ruled on the death of Mr. Strauss...

I'll file a motion for mistrial.

And I am gonna have to consider it.

Understood.

All right. Let's get on with this.

- -

Mr. Wilkerson,

on the night Cindy Strauss died, where were you?

I was home, uh, all evening with my wife.

Did you hear from Ms. Strauss that evening?

Yes, she, uh, texted me a message at 9:00 P.M.

I have the verified contents of that text message

I would like to enter

as people's exhibit 1, your honor.

- May I approach the witness? - You may.

Is that the text you received?

Uh, yes, it is.

Could you read the time and date stamp and the message?

Yes. Uh, June 5, 2014,

uh, 9:02 P.M.

Text message from Cindy Strauss.

Uh, "Erich and I spoke.

Everything's cool. See you tomorrow."

Did she arrive at work the next morning?

Uh, no. Um, we had a 10:00 A.M. flight to New York,

and Cindy was supposed to show up at 7:00 A.M.,

uh, to perform her pre-flight duties.

And when she didn't show at 8:00, I got worried.

I called her several times. She didn't respond.

And so I drove over to her house.

And when she didn't answer her door,

I found the manager of her complex,

who opened the door with a-a-a master key.

And we found Cindy...

dead on... on the floor.

I was stunned. Um...

heartbroken. And, uh...

I told the manager to get the police,

and I stayed with the body until they arrived.

Then what did you do?

Uh, they questioned me,

and I told them essentially what I just told you,

and then I went over to the plane

to tell Erich what had happened.

And what did he say?

Wilkerson: Well, he asked me

if the, uh, police thought it was a homicide,

and I said, uh, "I don't know."

Well, were you surprised by his reaction?

Well, yeah, a little, yes.

Uh, it seemed cold, but he could have been in shock.

Thank you.

No further questions.

Mr. Wilkerson...

were you aware that Ms. Strauss and Mr. Blunt

were having a sexual affair?

Yes, she confided it to me.

Hmm. So...

you and Ms. Strauss were good friends?

Well, we spent a lot of time together on the road.

Just to set the record straight,

you and Ms. Strauss were also having a sexual affair.

- Is that correct? - Regretfully, yes.

Why regretfully?

I'm a married man. I-it was a mistake.

And I ended the relationship soon after it began.

Was this before or after

she commenced her affair with Mr. Blunt?

I don't know. Um, I suspect before.

Were you jealous of her and Mr. Blunt's relationship?

- No. Not at all. - Mr. Wilkerson,

during the time you had your affair with Ms. Strauss,

did you ever hit her?

Never.

Did you ever hit your wife?

- Excuse me? - Is it not true

that as recently as two days ago, in a heated argument

in the presence of your respective attorneys,

you punched your wife and knocked her down?

She went nuts on me. She attacked me!

Uh, I was trying to defend myself.

So that would be a yes.

Yes.

Going back to the night in question,

you testified that you received an S.M.S. message

from Ms. Strauss on the night of her death at 9:02 P.M.

Is that correct?

9:02 P.M.

And yet the medical examiner testified

that Ms. Strauss' time of death was 8:30 P.M.

Do you think she sent it from the afterlife?

Siletti: Objection. Argumentative.

I'll withdraw the question.

The police report states that Ms. Strauss' phone

was found in her apartment when the police arrived the next day.

Mr. Wilkerson...

is it possible that you killed her, took her cellphone,

- sent yourself the text... - Objection!

and then returned the phone the next morning...

Objection!

- when you went to the house... - Prejudicial!

- Badgering the witness! - to discover the body?

Judge Greer: Sustained.

Mr. Daniels, one more stunt like that,

I'm gonna hold you in contempt.

- Uh, Mr. Wilkerson. - We need you to come with us upstairs.

Oh, my... You got to be kidding me, right?

- Right this way. - Come on.

You don't mind if I cry, do you?

We just have a few questions for you.

Mark Strauss.

Poor bastard.

It's a real shame.

Were you guys friends?

Are you kidding me? No.

With the way he abused Cindy...

now, I'm not saying he deserved it,

but karma's a bitch.

Take it he killed himself?

Why do you say that?

Just a hunch.

Trials put a lot of people through the wringer.

Where were you last night when Strauss was killed?

So, it is a homicide?

Wow.

Boy, I'd have bet anything he killed himself.