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In the criminal
justice system
sexually-based offenses
are considered
especially heinous.
In New York City,
the dedicated detectives
who investigate
these vicious felonies
are members of an elite squad
known as
the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
I found her moaning, half-naked,
bleeding from her chest and privates.
Couldn't tell her age.
Her face was too badly beaten.
She moan anything
you could make out?
Nothing that sounded
like words.
We got this call 45 minutes
ago.
Why is she still here?
They've only been here
five minutes.
Moses wasn't available
to part the morning rush hour.
Deep stab wound, left chest.
Hand me a 4 by 4.
I was afraid to move her.
I called
for the bus, I put a rush on it.
What have we got?
Good old-fashioned stoning,
New York style.
My guess,
after the stabbing and ***.
What about the weapon?
Nothing yet.
Any ID?
Still looking.
BP 90 over 60.
That's as
good as we're gonna get.
Let's get her
out of here.
What is this, open season?
A few drinks, a little smoke, a bunch
of guys wet down a couple dozen women?
Wilding's back in vogue.
I hate that word "wilding.
"
Like it's some kind of party.
You ride,
I'll cover the scene?
Is there anything I can tell
the chief of detectives
when he calls me
for the fifth time?
Female Jane Doe,
probably in her 20s.
She was ***, stabbed, and
beaten with stones.
Left for dead.
No clue who she is?
We grid-searched,
put divers in the pond.
The scene was
pretty much trampled.
It could have been a dump job.
No ID, no knife.
I rode the bus with her.
She was mumbling something in Arabic or
Hebrew.
Nothing that I could make out.
Thanks.
That was the hospital.
They
got post-op photos for us.
They poured four units in her.
It's touch and go she'll survive.
What about
the *** kit?
It turned up hair, ***, bruising, and
blood from a freshly perforated ***.
A ***.
You know what the chief was telling
me during our last conversation?
It's pucker time, folks.
Now, call every precinct,
transit, and housing district.
See if anybody
reported her missing.
Go talk
to the park precinct captain.
See if there's any ongoing
problems we should know about.
But be warned,
that guy is a jerk times 10.
Crime in the park
is the lowest in 30 years.
It was different today.
Today was an anomaly.
That's why I'm out here.
All we're asking is whether you have any
wolf-pack type activity on your radar.
Like the wilding after
the Portofino Day Parade.
Another anomaly.
Look, we get the usual isolated
incidents, but no gangs.
Not in my park.
Captain, one more question
Look, call me.
I got people waiting.
Had a nice chat with
your superior.
Lovely guy.
Capt.
Walson give you
the not-in-my-park routine?
Why? You know different?
He's worried about getting his ***
dragged down to the Morris Commission.
Why, what's he spooked about?
The brass versus big bucks,
with him in the middle.
Bunch of private school punks on their
mountain bikes trying to be gangsters
who get their kicks lifting purses,
or surrounding some pretty thing
and scaring the hell
out of her.
And he didn't tell us this
because
Because he didn't spot
this pattern till yesterday.
Know who these kids are?
Yeah, I busted one of
their leaders last week.
Hi.
I'm Detective Benson.
This is Detective Stabler.
What now?
Is Chris Lyons at home?
You want to talk to him?
Here, call our attorney.
We can either do this the easy
way, or we can do it your way.
Now, your way means
a search warrant.
Six officers
inside your townhouse
turning it upside down
well into the evening.
I'm sure your neighbors
would understand.
We'll meet you
at our attorney's office.
Is there a reason
you're harassing my client?
Yeah.
Your client
was arrested last week
for threatening a mother
walking her infant in a stroller.
She was a dime, yo.
Chris.
I was just checking her out.
We've already
answered that charge.
Hey, yo, where were you
early this morning?
My God.
You're talking
about that woman.
The attack in the park.
How dare you accuse my son
David.
I wasn't there.
He was home all night.
And don't you
say another word.
How about we hear
about it from him?
How about we don't?
He's 15.
Hey, yo, homeys,
you walk the walk.
You got it in you
to talk the talk?
So we like to look
at the ladies.
But what happened to that
lady, we're not down with that.
What are you down with?
Dot-comming.
From 1:00 in the morning
till Pops here kicked me off.
Around 9:00.
You can check our records.
We'll be in touch with you.
What have we got?
Lab called.
It's not what we thought.
Your victim only had
one person's DNA inside her.
She was dumped
after she was stabbed.
Are you sure about that?
Hospital says she lost
half her blood volume.
We didn't find anywhere near
that amount of blood at the scene.
Okay.
Fibers?
White cotton.
Found in the blood, on her
clothes, her legs and genitals.
Meaning she wasn't
wearing any pants.
The attack followed the ***
by maybe eight hours.
Anything on the rocks?
We found a bloody print.
Doesn't match the victim or
anyone in the system.
But this
may help you ID her.
She was wearing it.
CSU picked it up
at the hospital.
Hanford.
You wanted to go back to
college.
Now's your chance.
Any of these?
No.
No.
No.
No.
We think she's from somewhere
in the Middle East, maybe Israel.
Wait.
Elliot, look at this.
Amir
Amir, Nafeesa.
Post office box
That zip code looks
like the East Village.
She's from Afghanistan.
Emergency notification,
Daoud Tarzi, East Village.
We need to fax Munch
that photo ID.
Mr.
Tarzi?
He doesn't live here anymore.
What do you want?
Who are you?
David Hamoud.
How about some ID?
Anything with a photo
on it?
No, I don't drive
and my passport's
in my safety deposit box.
Have you seen this woman?
No.
Who is she?
How long
have you lived here?
I just moved in last week.
Do you know
where Mr.
Tarzi is?
I'd tell you
who the super is if I knew.
I got a stuffed drain
with his name on it.
You got that trying
to fix it yourself?
Yeah, as a matter of fact.
I'm sorry, if you'll excuse
me.
I'm late for a meeting.
I'll be back in the evening
if you want to talk.
Oh, God.
Is that her?
I can't be sure.
She missed class
this morning.
Is that unusual?
I've had Nafeesa in different
sections each semester.
She's never
missed a class.
You ever talk
one-on-one with her?
Constantly.
She couldn't believe
how free the press is here.
The Taliban government in
Afghanistan controls the media
the way they control women.
She came here
to escape?
Well, unless she sneaked
out of the country
her parents must also be here.
Afghan women can't even leave
their homes on their own.
She have any friends
in the class?
Annette Fleming.
They were joined at the hip.
It's her.
I can't believe it.
When was the last time
you saw her?
Just yesterday, in class.
How could this happen?
Well, maybe you can
help us find out.
Was she acting like
anything was wrong lately?
The opposite.
Nafeesa was loving life.
She have a boyfriend?
She wouldn't talk about it.
I think it was her way
of protecting herself.
Protecting herself
from what?
Her father.
An Afghan diplomat.
She thought that he may
have been looking for her.
If he had his way, Nafeesa
and I wouldn't even be friends.
Sounds like a strict guy.
A control freak.
He wouldn't let her go out,
made her wear the robes.
Like she had to back home?
She'd wear them
when she left the house
and change
when she got to school.
She hated so much
that she had to do that.
She was talking to Prof.
Husseini,
who was helping her to adjust.
And where did she keep
these forbidden clothes?
In her locker.
You gotta sign for this.
Yep.
That's it?
That'll be all.
Thanks, guys.
Can you imagine what Maureen would do
if you told her she couldn't wear jeans?
That's a place
I wouldn't go.
Boyfriend?
Could be.
Her address.
East Side.
This young woman was found
in the park.
Do you recognize her?
It is our daughter.
She's in Intensive Care
at Mount Sinai.
She's dead?
Actually, she's in critical
condition, but she is still alive.
Nafeesa did not
understand her place.
She chooses a man's work.
She turns her back on her
traditions, on her family.
We still have a son, Jaleel.
But she is dead to us.
Sir, your daughter
was beaten and ***.
It is zina.
Zina?
She has slept with a man
who was not her husband.
Do you recognize
this man?
No.
Your son is
He's not here.
Please.
My wife and I suffer agony
that she chose this life.
Please to leave us to grieve
for our daughter.
What, it's her fault
she was ***?
She brought shame and
dishonor to her family.
They behead women for that
where she comes from.
My first wife dishonored me.
I had to pay her alimony.
Look what we found
in the knapsack.
Boyfriend, maybe? Suspect.
We're in the diplomatic
community now.
Anybody know what her
father does for the Afghanis?
Only that
he's with the mission.
Well, let's get specific,
people.
If they're covered
by immunity
and we go to them with anything
but their daughter's condition
the "G" is all over us.
Son of a ***.
What?
It's that guy
from the apartment.
Who said
he never heard of her.
Right.
Well, maybe we should
refresh his memory.
Pick him up.
He's halfway down the block.
He made us.
Hi.
How are you?
Stick them in the air.
Nice tackle.
You won't find her!
I'll never tell them
where she is!
Hear that? I'll never
tell them where she is.
Who's them?
You'll never find her.
We already did.
You have the right
to remain silent.
Anything you say can
and will be used
against you in a court of law.
You
have the right to an attorney
Name's Daoud Tarzi, 33.
No priors.
Immigration said he got here
in '88, alone, no family.
Became a citizen in '93.
And what does he do?
His own import-export
business.
Fabrics.
Well, let's keep this out of the
papers until we're sure he's the doer.
I want to see her.
Why? So you can
beat her up some more?
How bad is she?
Critical.
I'm responsible for this.
Okay, you want to tell us
about it?
I love her.
We argued.
She ran out.
What did you fight about?
Does it matter?
Her father already won.
Won what?
His twisted sense of honor.
His revenge
for her leaving home.
Well, he said she was dead to him.
Didn't sound like he wanted revenge.
What he doesn't want is a reputation for
letting his women do what they please.
What do you want?
For her to stop acting like
she's from some primitive tribe.
You couldn't handle that.
She wouldn't let go.
So you decided
to do something about it.
I overreacted.
We argued.
I dared her to leave.
I never thought she'd leave.
I love her.
I wanted to marry her.
Find somebody who heard that
argument.
I'll call Cabot for warrants.
Yeah, I heard them fighting.
In their first language.
English
is definitely their second.
Anything you understood?
Before the screaming
started
she called him
a control freak.
And something
about her father.
Then what?
Then five minutes
of gibberish.
Door slams,
and one of them stomps
down the stoop.
Just one of them?
Yeah, just one.
Whoever stayed
turned on the TV.
They looked happy.
They all look happy.
This was in the laundry.
Bed
sheet.
There's blood on it.
Okay, lab says the bloodstain
on the bed sheets, it's hers.
***'s definitely his.
What about the stones?
No match on the prints
but they got an odd reading on
the blood, so they're retesting it.
Print's not his
or hers.
Even without the blood on the rocks,
it's his ***.
Her blood on his sheets.
It's no problem.
People v.
Daoud Tarzi.
"One count attempted ***,
second degree
"one count ***
in the first degree.
"
Mr.
Gibson,
how does your client plead?
Not guilty on both counts,
Your Honor.
Ms.
Cabot?
Your Honor, this was
a particularly brutal crime.
The victim was ***, stabbed,
beaten, and left to die.
We're asking
for remand without bail.
My client has no criminal
history, Your Honor.
He's an upstanding member
of his community
he has his own
import-export business
Good.
Let's make sure
he doesn't export himself.
The defendant is remanded
without bail.
What does that mean?
Her parents are here.
He wants me to tell you
that her parents are here.
So noted.
He also wants me to tell you that
he will take a lie detector test
against my advice.
Our examiner.
I'll set it up.
Is your name Daoud Tarzi?
Yes.
Were you born in Lebanon?
No.
Were you born
in Afghanistan?
Yes.
Did you *** Nafeesa Amir?
No.
Do you now live
in Afghanistan?
Her parents were
at the arraignment.
That's a strange way
to show you don't care.
Do you now live
in the United States?
Yes.
Did you stab Nafeesa Amir?
No.
How did he do?
Passed.
Or beat it.
He's not the first person
to fool the box.
If he can fool the box,
he can fool the jury.
Maybe he's
telling the truth.
If he proposed marriage
to Nafeesa
there has to be somebody else
who knows about the relationship.
She wouldn't even tell
her best friend about it
for fear of how
her family would react.
That Hanford professor.
He's a Mideast specialist.
He was counseling
Nafeesa on adapting to life in America.
We were going to go talk to him
until we thought Tarzi confessed.
Well, let's see
if your professor can tell us
why their love
had to be such a secret.
Nafeesa Amir came
to you for help.
Lots of students from
my part of the world do.
To help them assimilate.
It's tough enough
for a man.
It's even tougher
for a woman.
How so?
They're tempted by all of the things
they're not allowed to do back home.
Under the Taliban regime,
that means almost everything.
Like having a job,
going to school.
Leaving the house alone, or without
every inch of one's body covered.
She would be scorned
as a vice-monger.
What about her family?
They've been here for years.
Her family, like all the
Afghan diplomats at the UN
are holdovers
from the previous government.
They treated women like something
more than just indentured servants.
But when the Taliban took over, they
put women under virtual house arrest.
There is nothing in the Koran
that allows them to do that.
Well, tell their thugs.
It would be like the militia
running this country.
That's why the UN
won't recognize them.
It would be very dangerous for
Nafeesa's family to try and go back home.
So Nafeesa's father
is not a Taliban?
Maybe he's a Taliban mole.
Just because he doesn't wear their
colors does not mean he isn't with them.
Nafeesa had to choose between
her family and her future.
She wanted to live
as a modern woman.
She had to leave
her parents' home to do it.
Was there any reason she'd
want to hide from her family?
If she tried this kind
of thing in Afghanistan
women there
have been murdered for less.
Much less.
We have enough
to convict you, Mr.
Tarzi.
Even if you did pass the lie detector
test, you confessed to the police.
Confession?
I never confessed.
You said, quote,
"I am responsible for this.
"
I meant that I feel responsible,
not that I attacked her.
He passed the lie detector test.
It wasn't his DNA on the stones.
It was his DNA inside her.
We were from the same part
of Afghanistan.
Near Kabul.
I helped her
to find an apartment.
I wanted to help her
find herself.
What was she looking for?
To be more than a factory
for producing sons.
We fell in love
but we couldn't tell anyone.
She didn't want her father
to find her.
Why? Was she afraid of him?
She's the reason
he has his job
his apartment,
his car with a driver.
How is it, in a society where a woman
has no authority, she has all this power?
He promised her to the son
of a government minister.
Turning her back on that was like
spitting in her father's face.
And the night Nafeesa
was attacked?
I asked her to marry me.
Gave her a diamond ring.
She said yes.
She was a ***.
You forced her.
No.
She didn't say no.
But I shouldn't have
pushed her.
And she walked out?
She said I was trying
to dominate her.
She throws the ring in my face.
Before
I could stop her, she's out the door.
I should have tried
to stop her.
Why all the lies?
You see this?
It's from a cop.
What cop?
Came looking for Nafeesa.
He had a gold badge.
I knew Nafeesa's father
sent him.
If it isn't Bishop Tutuola.
John Munch.
Ross Campo.
What brings you guys
to this dump?
This.
It's yours.
What about it?
You laid it on the boyfriend of
that girl we found in the park.
I got nothing
to say about that.
He does.
Especially the part
about you breaking his head.
Like you never tuned
anyone up on the job?
My pleasing personality
usually does the trick.
You, on the other hand,
weren't on the job.
So I do a little work
on the side.
Help me out here, Fin.
Come on.
Better us bring this
to you than IAB, right?
Last time I checked, cops weren't
allowed to moonlight as Pls.
Three weeks ago
boss at the security company
I work for gets a call.
Some diplomat looking
for his missing daughter.
Says they're going back to their tent in
the desert, wants to bring her with them.
Asked me to check it out.
You find her?
I got as far as the boyfriend.
Says he doesn't know her.
His mouth is moving, her
picture's hanging behind him.
Like I'm some knucklehead.
So I tune him up a little.
But he still
didn't tell you.
Said I might as well shoot him,
'cause he was never gonna tell me.
And she never showed?
I sat on the place
for two nights.
Nothing.
Final lab report.
And?
We've got a problem.
There were two types of DNA
on the stones.
One was Nafeesa's,
and the other was Tarzi's.
Well, if not him,
then who?
That's why
they retested the blood.
Lab says both DNA types
have similar characteristics.
Meaning it was
a family member.
Anything else we don't know
about these people?
The State Department has the
father listed as an attach�.
Diplomatic rank.
Jaleel Amir just turned 21,
graduated NYU.
He still lives
with his parents?
Yes, he does.
But he's not a student?
Hello?
His immunity expired the day
he turned 21.
She died 10 minutes ago.
Has Nafeesa Amir
been around lately?
Yeah.
She was here
Tuesday night.
What time?
Around 7:00.
Woman gets out of a cab,
tries to run past me.
I didn't know it was Nafeesa.
She wasn't wearing the get-up.
She say anything to you?
Too busy crying.
I know she's family.
I just let her go up.
Did you see her leave?
No.
But that doesn't mean
she didn't.
I get off at 11:00.
Ask the night guy.
Anyone else in her family,
you see them come in or out?
Her brother came out.
Jaleel.
*** treats me
like his personal slave.
What time was that?
Around 8:00.
He calls, orders me to bring
the big shopping cart upstairs.
Did you?
You kidding? The guy hasn't
tipped me in four years.
Told him I couldn't leave the
desk, come get it yourself.
Any idea
what he wanted it for?
Whatever it was, he didn't
bring it through this door.
Must have put it in his car
in the garage.
I told you to leave us alone!
Sir, your daughter passed
away, and you don't even care.
Saleh?
Go now.
Where's your son?
Get out.
We know Nafeesa was here
the night of the attack.
Doorman saw her come in.
Nobody saw her leave.
Because your son took her out through
the garage and dumped her in the park.
Were you watching when he put
the knife through her heart?
She was a ***, like you.
She was your daughter!
He is on his way home
to Afghanistan.
Okay.
My son is protected
by the Vienna Convention.
Arresting him is a violation
of international law.
You need to take a refresher
course in international law.
The day he turned 21,
his number was up.
Would you like some? No?
Juice?
No, thanks.
We're just visiting.
Jaleel Amir?
I am proud I killed her.
She deserved to die.
This amuse you? Jaleel Amir, you're under
arrest for the *** of Nafeesa Amir.
You have the right
to remain silent.
You think you can arrest me? My father
will have me on the next plane home.
I'll probably need Munch
for trial.
Anticipating problems?
A diplomat's son?
I expect a very heavy gun.
Captain.
Ms.
Cabot.
Something wrong, sir?
All I want to know is,
did two of your detectives
harass a diplomatic attach�?
No, sir.
We went looking for his son.
But what we should have done was
arrest Saleh Amir as an accomplice
to his daughter's ***.
If I may, I'd like to
No, you may not.
Amir has filed a formal complaint
against the US government
for his ill-treatment by the NYPD,
and the Feds are eating it up.
The case against Jaleel Amir is solid,
Deputy, and frankly, it's out of your hands.
I've got two rogue cops who
browbeat foreign officials
two others who don't understand
the basic Miranda warning.
Cases get dismissed
for much less.
The suspect
was properly Mirandized.
He did confess before he was warned,
but it was an excited utterance.
Which makes it admissible.
The only way this case will not
see the inside of a courtroom
is if Jaleel pleads out.
I suggest that you
reconsider your position.
And why would I want
to do that?
To save your own skin?
I need the five on your
t�te-�-t�te with Saleh Amir.
I'm cleaning it up right now.
If
it's not pig Latin, "now" means now.
All right.
Where's the heat coming from?
The Commissioner.
Saleh Amir
told the State Department
that we violated Article 30
of the Vienna Convention
because you grilled him
about his son.
We didn't grill him.
If this had happened
back home
Jaleel would have done
three months in prison
and gotten a hero's welcome
when he came out.
Well, this is the Afghanis
playing hardball.
They didn't
Mirandize my client.
It was an excited utterance.
We
have a planeload of witnesses.
Relax, Ms.
Cabot.
I'm not about to penalize the
police for doing their job.
Mr.
Amir's confession was an
excited utterance, and it's in.
In that case, Your Honor, my
client is changing his plea
to not guilty by reason
of mental disease or defect.
Give me a break.
My client didn't know what he was doing
was wrong when he killed his sister.
Ignorance of the law
is not an affirmative defense.
He told the police
he was proud of what he did.
That sound sane to you?
Your Honor,
it's obvious what he's doing.
He can't hide behind the Fourth
Amendment, so now it's insanity.
And if I ignore him, it
could be reversed on appeal.
I'm ordering Mr.
Amir
be examined by a psychiatrist.
You have nightmares
about Nafeesa?
The Koran says Nafeesa's shame
before God is her own.
That it can't be passed to you, that
she faces the consequences alone.
Did Abraham have a choice when Allah
commanded him to kill his own son?
I can't talk about this.
Can't or don't want to?
I have nightmares.
Isn't that enough?
How long have you
had the nightmares?
Since I was 8 years old.
When it happened.
Do they wake you up?
After he slits her throat.
Whose throat?
My aunt.
I can't do this.
Because you couldn't
stop it?
I was a child.
My father made me watch.
How was I supposed
to stop it?
Your father killed your aunt?
My grandfather.
His grandfather
killed his aunt
because she cheated
on her husband.
Jaleel was just
following the rules.
He's perverting holy scripture
to justify ***.
It's what he was taught.
His rite of passage
to manhood, to honor.
Meaning he doesn't know
what he did was wrong?
I think he does.
I asked him if he has nightmares
about his sister.
He wouldn't answer.
His body language said yes.
And a jury may be just
as confused as he is.
Then you have to get a jury that
can see past their confusion.
Mrs.
Weinberger,
would you have a problem
finding a defendant from
the Middle East not guilty?
Absolutely not.
Thank you.
Mr.
Post.
We thank Mrs.
Weinberger for her
service, and ask that she be excused.
Approach, Your Honor?
All 10 of his peremptory
challenges have been women or Jews.
I don't have
to give a reason.
If this continues I'll have
to ask for a Batson hearing.
You can't let her
stack the jury
With women? People v.
Blunt.
The appellate division specifically
applied Batson to gender discrimination.
It applies to religion, too.
Your Honor
Careful, Mr.
Post.
Ms.
Cabot is right.
You don't want a Batson
hearing in this court.
We boarded the plane.
The defendant was sitting
in the first-class cabin.
Did he know
you were there for him?
Yes.
He smiled.
Tell the jury
what happened next.
Before we could read him
his Miranda Rights
Mr.
Amir confessed
to having killed his sister.
What were his exact words?
"I'm proud that I killed her.
She deserved to die.
"
Thank you, Detective.
So, Mr.
Amir showed no remorse
for having murdered his sister?
On the contrary,
he was proud of it.
In fact, you said
he seemed glad to see you.
I said he smiled.
He smiled at you
and said he was proud.
Doesn't seem like something
a sane person would do.
Objection! Detective Munch
is not a psychiatrist.
Withdrawn.
Detective, how many people have
you arrested in your career?
I don't know the exact number.
More than 100, correct?
Probably.
How many of them smiled at you
and said they were proud
of having killed someone?
One.
And the defendant is that one
person, isn't that right, Detective?
Yes.
No further questions.
He shows signs
of severe trauma.
What signs?
Delusional thinking
night terrors, vivid,
recurring dreams that wake him.
He avoids talking about it
if he can.
In your professional opinion,
Doctor
do these symptoms
prevent Mr.
Amir
from knowing the difference
between right and wrong?
No.
Thank you.
Dr.
Skoda, you say the defendant knows
what he did was wrong by our standards.
Yes.
Doctor,
if I wake in the night
and I hear a noise, and I take my gun,
and I shoot an intruder in my house
I know killing is morally wrong,
yet I did what I had to do
to save my family from harm.
How is that different
from what the defendant did?
Objection.
Relevance?
Goes to the defendant's
state of mind.
If you're arguing self-defense,
this is an insanity case.
And this question goes directly
to what was in my client's mind.
I'll allow it.
Please answer
the question, Doctor.
Jaleel's sister wasn't
threatening to kill him.
But Jaleel thought his sister's actions
threatened to destroy his life
and the lives of his future
children.
Isn't that right, Doctor?
It's not a valid comparison.
Please answer
the question, Doctor.
Isn't it true
my client believed
his sister's actions threatened
the lives of his family?
It's possible.
I can't say with certainty
what he was thinking.
Exactly.
Thank you, Doctor.
In Deuteronomy,
the Bible says
if a man meets a *** in
a town and sleeps with her
you shall stone them both
to death.
But, Professor, honor killing
isn't about religion.
No.
The Koran says
all humans are equal.
It is about families and their honor
that determines their status in society.
So if a man believes a woman in his
family is sexually promiscuous
she has reason
to fear for her life.
Yes.
But countries like Jordan
and Egypt are trying
to make honor killing as legally
heinous as any other ***
with the same penalties.
Thank you, Professor.
Prof.
Husseini, honor killings are
part of ancient cultural tenets.
Yes.
Part of the cultural fabric
that pre-exists modern society.
Yes.
So if you're raised in the
tradition of this ancient culture
what would you believe would
happen to a family without honor?
The men could lose their jobs, the
children could become outcasts
the family could be scorned and
mocked, with no chance of success
until the honor is restored.
And for a man, that means
controlling his women?
Yes.
Isn't it true that last year,
three out of every four murders
in the Gaza Strip and West
Bank were honor killings?
Yes.
But the Palestinians
Isn't it true that the only way these
countries have to protect women
from their own families
is to put them in prison?
In protective custody, yes.
And isn't it correct,
Professor
that in this barbaric custom,
the more brutal the killing
the greater the honor restored
to the family?
Yes.
So it's reasonable, having
grown up in this world
my client may have come to accept
honor killing as necessary to survive?
Well, he may have accepted it, but
I hardly think that it is reasonable.
I had to restore my family's honor.
We would never survive the shame.
You've had time
to think about it.
Would you change anything
that happened, if you could?
I would change
what Nafeesa did to us.
Thank you.
You killed your sister
because she was with a man.
Her marriage was arranged.
Being with another man
was not her decision to make.
When you dumped your
sister's body in the park
why did you leave her
half-naked?
To shame her
as she shamed us.
And the stones?
That is what we do
to *** in my country.
You're proud
of what you did?
Yes.
Then, Mr.
Amir,
why did you run away?
What do you mean?
You're a man, aren't you?
A man stands up
and takes responsibility.
A man isn't afraid to face the
consequences of his actions.
I am not afraid.
No? The police arrested you on
the plane.
You were running away.
Does that sound honorable
to you?
Does that sound like something
a real man would do?
You are twisting everything.
Objection.
Badgering the witness.
Even now, you were looking at
your father to tell you what to do.
Does he tell you what to do?
Did he tell you
what to do that night, too?
Objection! Irrelevant.
Move to strike.
The jury will disregard the previous
mention of the defendant's father.
Move on, Ms.
Cabot.
You were afraid of spending the rest
of your life in an American prison
weren't you?
That's a lie!
Because you knew
what you did was wrong.
No! I did it
for our family's honor!
I'm concerned the jury's
buying Jaleel's act.
What? That anyone who kills his own sister
has to believe he's doing the right thing?
Right.
Which makes him guilty by
reason of mental disease or defect.
Hard to argue with that logic.
You can see my problem.
When we collared him, he
was sitting in first class
no cap, no beads, styling in
totally westernized Internet casual.
His wardrobe
isn't helping me.
If the jury thinks Jaleel is
culture-programmed to kill
he gets his insanity verdict.
Well, we're out of people
to say otherwise.
His culture didn't program him
to kill.
His father did.
Jaleel is afraid of him.
Everybody is afraid of Saleh Amir.
Except for one person.
We're forgetting Mrs.
Amir.
Mrs.
Amir is out-of-bounds.
Anyway, Mrs.
Amir would never
give up her son
or go against her husband.
She already has,
on both counts
when she told us that he was
on a plane home to Afghanistan.
She testifies, she's
sentencing herself to death.
She defied her husband once
because he's the reason
that her daughter's dead.
She
wants justice for her memory.
We reach out to her again, I think
she'll defy him again to get it.
We can't ask unless
we're ready to protect her.
We're ready, 24-7.
Talk
to her.
Let her know that.
But don't cross
the diplomatic line.
I have already lost Nafeesa.
I don't want
to lose Jaleel, too.
But Nafeesa hasn't
lost her honor.
Have you lost yours?
You don't understand.
I think we do.
Nafeesa was your husband's
ticket home.
He promised her to a Taliban,
didn't he?
And when he found out that she
was sleeping with somebody else
he had Jaleel kill her
in the name of honor.
We can offer protection
to you.
I don't want your protection.
I want my daughter.
Nafeesa came home
to be with us.
My husband asked her
if she was still a ***.
She wasn't.
What did he do?
Hit her.
She fell.
Then Jaleel tried to help her.
My husband said:
"Let her lie there, like she lies
with her American boyfriend.
"
What happened next?
My husband got a knife
from the kitchen.
Jaleel, he begged him not to.
But my husband
told Jaleel to kill her
for our honor.
To kill her
to prove his manhood.
And he stabbed her.
And they took her away.
Has the jury
reached a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
Will the defendant
please rise?
On the charge of *** in the
second degree, how do you find?
We find the defendant guilty.
This court is dismissed.
Captain? Jaleel is convicted.
*** two.
Thanks.
You know, Saleh Amir didn't miss
a second of this trial until today.
You'd think he'd want
to hear the verdict.
He's gone.
Saleh Amir?
Left last night in a limo.
All that baggage, looked
like it was for good.
What about the wife?
She wasn't with him.
Okay, we need the keys now.
Olivia.