| "In God We Trust" | ||
|---|---|---|
| ← | L&O, Episode 15.23 | → |
| Production number: E5326 First aired: 11 May 2005 | ||
 | ||
| Written By Richard Sweren Directed By David Platt | ||
Plot
A gun found at the scene of a fatal fire is linked to an unsolved killing and the investigation produces a defendant whose attorney claims is a different person since becoming a born-again Christian.
Synopsis
An arson fire occurs in an apartment, and a firefighter is forced to jump out and he dies. Detectives Joe Fontana and Nick Falco arrive. Since the fire was so powerful the firefighter had to jump out and died, it means the arsonist is responsible for the death, making it murder.
At the 27th Precinct, Joe and Nick's boss Lt. Anita Van Buren and a CSU tech tells them there was an accelerant used. Van Buren tells his men that they need to go talk with the residents since the top floor was obviously the target.
They speak with one man who says he saw someone banging and yelling at another tenant's door. That tenant is a woman who refuses to tell them anything. Joe and Nick subsequently talk to the woman's daughter, who reveals her father hates her mother.
Joe and Nick go into the father's apartment, where they find a bus driver's jacket with gas all over it. They find and arrest him at a girlfriend's house. He soon admits that he set the place on fire to kill his wife, but never intended to kill his daughter or the fireman. His motivation for the arson was that his wife wouldn't let him see his daughter.
Joe and Nick charge him with felony murder, but then the M.E. tells them the fireman didn't die from the jump: he died from a gunshot wound to the leg.
Cast
Main cast
- Dennis Farina as Detective Joe Fontana
- Michael Imperioli as Detective Nick Falco
- S. Epatha Merkerson as Lieutenant Anita Van Buren
- Sam Waterston as Executive A.D.A. Jack McCoy
- Annie Parisse as A.D.A. Alexandra Borgia
- Fred Dalton Thompson as D.A. Arthur Branch
Recurring cast
- Mimi Lieber as Defense Attorney Wendy Weiss
- Michael Louis Wells as Legal Aid Attorney Kevin Clemens
- Leslie Hendrix as M.E. Elizabeth Rodgers
- Michael Mulheren as Judge Harrison Taylor
- Selenis Leyva as Detective Mariluz Rivera
- Leslie Crocker Snyder as Judge Rebecca Logan
- Tom Bruno as FDNY Chief Daniels
Guest cast
- Jim True-Frost as Bruce Elwin
- Dena Tyler as Nancy Harvard
- Debra Monk as Judge G. Proctor
- Robert Turano as Detective Novoselic
- Carolyn Baeumler as Emily Wilder
- Ephraim Benton as Leshann Munde
- Aisha de Haas as Agnes Bowers
- Tami Dixon as Jenna Tarantino
- Paulina Gerzon as Hannah Wilder
- Katy Grenfell as Eileen Griswold
- Gabe Hernandez as Al Gonzalez
- Gerry McIntyre as Pastor Ronald Meacham
- Jim Moody as Reggie Lennard
- Robert Spillane as John Gruner
- Ronald Wyche as Claude Worthy
- Lawrence Ballard as Captain McVeigh
- Mark Casella as Lieutenant Hardie
- Michael J. Shea as Clerk
- Bruce Grossberg as Super
- Joseph Vincent Gay as Uniform
- Michael Shen as Clerk
- Turi Haim as Customer (uncredited)
- Ilene Schwartz as Pedestrian (uncredited)
- Robert Bizik as Attorney (uncredited)
References
- ACLU
- Jesus Christ
- Colorado Supreme Court
- William O. Douglas
- Sean Grafton (victim)
- Justin Lennard (cold case victim)
- Mallon Hotel
- New Hampshire
- Pratt Institute
- Antonin Scalia
- Terri Schiavo case
- World Trade Center
Quotes
| “ | Well, I take my hat off to you guys. Personally, I'd rather dodge bullets than run into a burning building. | ” |
–Joe Fontana to Chief Daniels | ||
----
- Borgia: There are more people in this country who believe in angels than in evolution.
- McCoy: I doubt if Judge Taylor is one of them.
- Borgia: Then we lucked out. There's a judge or three who could be sympathetic to this.
- McCoy: Such as?
- Borgia: Judge Scalia wrote that our laws derive their authority from God. William O. Douglas wrote that we are a religious people whose institutions pre-suppose a Supreme Being.
- McCoy: How does that translate to a free pass for murder?----
| “ | I don't care if he comes to court with a hair shirt and a scourge. Murder is murder. | ” |
–Jack McCoy | ||
----
- Borgia: Forgiveness is a Christian ideal.
- McCoy: And if you don't believe in Christ, well, then you'll just have to serve your time? The logical outgrowth of this insanity. The defense is asking the judge to recuse himself.
- Borgia: Why?
- McCoy: He has an anti-Christian bias.----
| “ | No one could argue with a straight face that Bruce's faith and rehabilitation aren't sincere. So here's the $64,000 question, Judge. Will the law recognize his rebirth in Jesus Christ? Or is it too scary to acknowledge that there's a higher moral authority than what's written in a law book somewhere? Bruce Elwin rendered himself unto the very Power we openly acknowledge is the inspiration, even the source, of our legal institutions. God is woven into the fabric of our laws. Our legislative and our judicial open their sessions with prayer. Witnesses who come into this courtroom are asked to swear on a Bible. Over your head, Judge, higher than the law itself, is a simple statement, "In God We Trust". Is that just lip service? Let's put our money where our mouth is? Look at what God's done for Bruce Elwin. Can the justice of men do better? | ” |
–The defense's closing argument | ||
----
| “ | Is Ms. Weiss serious? If you really, really, really turn to God, you can murder someone and walk away with a clean slate? That doesn't put Mr. Elwin in line with any higher moral authority I'm aware of. It places him above the law. We can all acknowledge the existence of a higher moral authority! We see it in action, when our collective conscience compels us to reject unjust or immoral laws. But while our actions may guided by our faith, we deliberately don't conduct them under the guise of religion. Our Founders left "God" out of the Constitution, not for lack of faith among them, but because of what they knew about the toxic combination of state and religious power. So, if Mr. Elwin regards his prosecution for a hate murder as unjust or immoral, let him present his arguments without the cloak of religion. To that, the People say the defendant's virtuous conduct after Justin Leonard's murder should be a factor in his sentencing. But to dismiss this case outright, would be a miscarriage of justice that contradicts more than 200 years of American jurisprudence. If you kill someone, Mr. Elwin, you have to answer to the State first. And to Justin Leonard and his family. And then, hopefully, someday, to your Maker. | ” |
–The prosecution's closing argument | ||
----
- Borgia: I'm just curious, Jack. What were you going to offer?
- McCoy: I was considering going as low as man one, praise the Lord.
Background information and notes
- Alexandra Borgia revels she goes to a church.
- Goof: Michael Louis Wells is credited as "Matthew Clemens" in all previous episodes save one, but in this episode his first name is given as "Kevin" by ADA Alexandra Borgia.
Episode scene cards
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|
|
Mallon Hotel |
P.S. 322 |
Home of |
| 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|
|
Broadway & 108th Street |
Apartment of |
Arraignment Court |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Supreme Court |
Westside Family Center |
Supreme Court |
Supreme Court |
| Previous episode: "Sport of Kings" |
"In God We Trust" Law & Order Season 15 |
Next episode: "Locomotion" |