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[soft piano chords playing]
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[Chucky] I took my responsibility.
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Nothing I can say or do
could bring him back.
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I messed up, you know, and
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gotta man up
and, you know, own up to your... actions.
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[Eduardo] I've been in prison
over a decade already.
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It's wrong. That's messed up.
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I was a victim myself in this, you know?
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And I can't... I can't do nothing about it.
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I can't defend myself.
I cannot say nothing.
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[music fades]
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[theme music playing]
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[reel whirring]
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[reel clicking]
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[Ted] As far as investigations go,
it was what we call a cluster.
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We had three defendants whose stories
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continually changed.
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All three of them initially claimed
no knowledge of the incident,
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no knowledge of a taxicab ride.
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We had three guys
who were downright allergic to the truth.
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[intriguing music playing]
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My name is Chucky Phillips,
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and I've been sentenced to 20 to life
for murder in the second.
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I was born in Syracuse, New York.
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Grew up playing sports.
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I was definitely a jock in high school.
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I was always the captain of the team,
you know, whatever sport I played.
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I had dreams of going to the NFL or MLB,
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you know.
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They were my dreams in those...
Be a professional athlete one day.
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It wasn't till, well, high school
I started getting in trouble.
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About freshman year,
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I started hanging out with the wrong guys,
you know.
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After school, you know,
running the streets.
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You know, chasing after girls.
There was a period I was in selling drugs,
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at one point, uh...
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Teenage boy stuff, you know?
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I met Eduardo...
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I would say maybe 2007.
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He dated my sister.
That's how we got cool.
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[interviewer] All right.
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[Eduardo] My name is Eduardo Trinidad,
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and I was convicted for murder,
40 years to life.
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I was born in Puerto Rico,
and I was also raised over there.
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I grew up in a foster home
'cause my mom had passed.
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My father wasn't never there for me.
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I was really quiet, uh...
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Always timid.
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Um, but...
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I mean, I wasn't a bad person at all.
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[poignant music playing]
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[Eduardo] I came out here
to the United States for a better life.
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I had, like,
work in construction, um, mechanic.
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I know plumbing, I know electricity.
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Um, they called me a little MacGyver.
[chuckles]
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I did a little bit of everything around.
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My main purpose that same night
was because my son was born that night.
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Um, I made it to Syracuse around,
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I'd say eleven o'clock, around there,
almost midnight.
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So, the visiting hours in the hospitals
are closed. I can't go there.
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So, I went to Chu...
I went with Chucky to the party.
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Um, and like that, that's how I met
the other guy, DeJesus.
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- [dance music playing]
- [indistinct party chatter]
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[Eduardo] I think the party was
about ten to twelve people.
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Wasn't no more than that.
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In my part, I wanted to enjoy it
'cause, you know, I'm happy.
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I was gonna have my newborn son,
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and I wanted to celebrate that.
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We did a lot of drinking,
uh, mixing liquor,
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beer, you know, various types of pills,
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ecstasy, Xanax. There was marijuana there.
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We was all pretty wasted.
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One of the guys had a gun,
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you know.
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Even at the party,
it was passed around the party.
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The guys at the party wanted to hold it.
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Everybody wanted to look at it
and touch it.
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- [menacing music playing]
- [party chatter fades]
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[Eduardo] The gun...
Who brung it, I don't know.
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I touched it, yeah.
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I went outside,
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trying to use it, but it didn't work.
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Um, after that,
I don't know who... who got it.
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The owner of the apartment got mad
and started kicking everybody out.
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[menacing music continues]
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[motor slows]
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[Eduardo] I was sitting
behind the passenger.
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DeJesus was in the middle,
and Chucky Phillips was behind the driver.
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Nobody was talking.
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The only one that was doing the talking
was me 'cause I was on the phone,
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talking to, um, my kid's mom
that's in the hospital.
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[Chucky] When we get in the city,
someone says, "Make a right, right here."
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So we turn off the main road.
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And I notice that's not my street.
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That's when I said, "Okay,
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we must be running
because this is not my street."
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You know, just... It was gonna be like
not pay for a taxi ride, just run.
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You know, young stupid kids' stuff,
you know?
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[Eduardo]
All I heard was the car going slow.
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I didn't even know that the gun
was in the cab when we left.
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I see Denny take the gun,
and he pulls it on the driver.
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So I think maybe he's going to rob him.
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The driver grabs the gun from him,
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and there's a struggle.
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So, I don't know why, I just...
I grabbed it, and I yanked it from him.
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And...
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- I shot him.
- [music builds]
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[gunshot]
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[Eduardo] I was opening the door
when I heard a boom.
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I ran out of the car
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and ran between some houses.
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I came back down
to see where was the guys,
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and I didn't see the... the cab driver.
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The car wasn't there anymore.
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So, I thought that everything was cool
and I went back to the house.
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I went up the hill, went to the house,
and they was already there.
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In the morning was
when they came and arrested us.
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We all got arrested
and got taken down to the prison.
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[intriguing music playing]
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My name is Ted Kiefer.
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I was one of the investigators
involved in the Timothy Gordon homicide.
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I believe that this went
from jumping the fare,
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to a robbery,
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ultimately to a murder.
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After being shot,
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Mr. Gordon traveled
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about one mile.
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And I believe he was in some sort
of severe shock
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with the trauma to his head,
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being shot at close range.
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Where he ended up was where,
ultimately, we got involved initially.
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The scene of his motor vehicle accident.
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Mr. Gordon was traveling
in this direction, towards us.
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When he got to the intersection,
he failed to stop at the stop sign,
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or turn right or left.
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As such, at a high rate of speed,
he traveled across this street,
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entered into this driveway here,
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colliding with a parked vehicle.
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It was a horrible, horrible crash.
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And it was all the result
of a senseless crime.
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[soft melancholic music playing]
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[Ted] Timmy Gordon was just
out trying to earn a living.
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The fare he picked up couldn't have been
more than a twenty dollar bill.
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I guess the emotion
is just the true senselessness of it.
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The fact that for... for a ride home
on a bitter cold night,
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it cost this man who's out working,
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not sleeping like
the rest of civilization,
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it cost him his life
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for less than a 20 dollar bill.
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It generates a lot of emotion.
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[music fades]
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[somber music playing]
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When I first laid eyes
on these defendants, all three of them,
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I thought to myself,
"These are little boys."
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"They're young men at best."
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I couldn't believe
how young they appeared.
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[somber music continues]
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[Ted] Mr. Trinidad was known
to our gang violence task force.
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They had a file on him.
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They knew him by his nickname: Ba La.
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Trinidad volunteers
that Chucky Phillips and himself
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are active members
of the Latin Kings street gang.
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Eduardo Trinidad placed all the blame
on Denny DeJesus.
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Chucky Phillips, he did the same.
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So we had two people
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placing all the blame on Denny DeJesus.
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What shocked most of us
investigating the case
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was that these three so-called friends,
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two of these friends were willing
to throw the third friend under the bus
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for something he didn't do.
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Cop or no cop, in my opinion,
that's pretty grimy.
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Willing to throw
somebody else's life away.
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[dark music playing]
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According to Trinidad,
he was merely going to jump the fare,
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but at some point during jumping the fare,
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he was alerted by Chucky
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to come back to the scene.
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He could've kept on running.
He got out of the cab and left.
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He could have kept running. He didn't.
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He turns, he goes back to the cab,
and according to him,
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he was going to help
run the cabbie's pockets.
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However, there was too much blood
on the cabbie, and at the scene.
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So any claims...
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that Mr. Trinidad might have
about being a passive observer,
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00:17:42,360 --> 00:17:45,560
according to his own statement, he wasn't.
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[haunting music playing]
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[woman] Felony murder, a classic example
would be the bank robbery.
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Let's say multiple individuals
decide to rob a bank.
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One individual stays outside
to actively be the lookout.
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Other individuals go inside.
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The gun is discharged,
and an innocent security guard is killed.
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00:19:01,560 --> 00:19:03,880
All three people could be liable,
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00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:06,960
because they had the shared intent
to rob the bank.
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So, it is a way
to hold all participants liable
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for the death of another
during the course of a felony.
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My name is Kerry Buske. I was one
of the assistant district attorneys
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assigned to prosecute the case
of the People of the State of New York
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00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:28,480
versus Chucky Phillips, Denny DeJesus,
and Eduardo Trinidad.
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00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:41,240
Plea bargaining gets cases resolved.
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00:19:41,840 --> 00:19:43,880
From the prosecution standpoint,
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00:19:43,960 --> 00:19:48,480
they won't have to put their victim,
their victim's family, their witnesses
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00:19:48,560 --> 00:19:50,360
through every single case,
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00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:53,040
and they can save resources.
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00:19:54,240 --> 00:19:57,400
In exchange for that guilty plea,
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00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:03,960
the People will often offer
a reduced sentence, or a reduced charge.
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00:20:13,080 --> 00:20:15,440
Chucky Phillips did apologize.
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00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:20,400
He did show a degree of remorse and regret
for this horrific action.
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00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:25,280
And that, I think,
is reflective in his 20 to life sentence.
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00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:30,480
[music intensifies]
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00:20:40,680 --> 00:20:46,320
I was really surprised that Eduardo
didn't want to try to negotiate something.
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00:20:46,400 --> 00:20:48,720
Maybe he didn't want to take exactly
what we were offering,
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00:20:48,760 --> 00:20:52,400
but that he wasn't coming,
trying to negotiate us down.
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00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:54,080
Even up to the morning of the trial,
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00:20:54,160 --> 00:20:56,800
I remember going in
for jury selection thinking,
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00:20:56,880 --> 00:20:58,360
"I think he's probably gonna plea,
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00:20:58,440 --> 00:21:00,920
'cause the blood of the victim
is on his coat,"
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00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:03,480
and he said he ran the pockets of the guy.
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00:21:03,560 --> 00:21:07,400
He was clearly notified
of the potential ramifications
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00:21:07,480 --> 00:21:11,120
of what could happen
after a conviction by jury.
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00:21:12,600 --> 00:21:16,600
He chose to not take that plea,
to reject it,
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00:21:17,200 --> 00:21:20,080
and to take the case to trial.
He's allowed to do that.
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00:21:20,160 --> 00:21:23,400
It is the People's burden to prove
their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
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00:21:23,480 --> 00:21:26,320
It was called upon us to do it.
And we did it.
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00:21:26,400 --> 00:21:28,440
He was convicted of all three counts,
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00:21:28,520 --> 00:21:30,960
and he was sentenced
by a county court judge.
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00:21:37,560 --> 00:21:40,040
[eerie music builds]
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00:21:41,880 --> 00:21:44,680
[Eduardo, on recording] Why I plead
not guilty instead of plea bargain?
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00:21:45,120 --> 00:21:46,800
Because I wasn't gonna allow them
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00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:52,160
to try to have me say I'm guilty
for something I didn't do.
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00:21:55,960 --> 00:21:59,080
We didn't participate together on it,
you know what I'm saying?
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00:21:59,840 --> 00:22:03,800
Nobody pointed me
as the guy who pulled the trigger.
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00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:05,400
Nobody.
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00:22:09,120 --> 00:22:13,880
I wasn't shocked, um,
when I heard them say guilty, or whatever.
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00:22:15,880 --> 00:22:18,520
At first, I was... I didn't believe it.
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00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:21,960
I... I didn't have the feeling
of believing it.
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00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:29,760
Hell... It's a decade lost already
with my kids.
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00:22:29,840 --> 00:22:32,200
They're already grown-ups, um...
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00:22:33,080 --> 00:22:35,000
I lost all that part, um...
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00:22:38,080 --> 00:22:41,120
Um, that's pretty something like
messed up, you know?
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00:22:50,760 --> 00:22:57,360
I feel very sorry
for Timothy Gordon's family and friends.
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00:22:58,040 --> 00:23:04,040
I did not, at one point
during this recording...
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00:23:05,960 --> 00:23:09,640
hear one mention... [skeptical laugh]
...of a man's life that was innocently...
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00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:13,320
Um, an innocent man's life
that was brutally taken from him.
244
00:23:14,240 --> 00:23:17,600
He doesn't like the concept
of felony murder.
245
00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:21,000
He doesn't like the fact
that he was held responsible,
246
00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:22,920
even though he wasn't the shooter.
247
00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:27,080
And he is angry at the law
he was prosecuted under.
248
00:23:28,720 --> 00:23:30,960
He mentions his own children.
249
00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:34,680
You know, Timothy Gordon is never
gonna get to have his children,
250
00:23:34,760 --> 00:23:37,000
he's never gonna get
to call home to them.
251
00:23:37,800 --> 00:23:42,200
So this is essentially, in my opinion,
252
00:23:42,280 --> 00:23:46,080
the same Ba La that stood up at sentencing
253
00:23:46,160 --> 00:23:49,840
after a... jury found him guilty,
254
00:23:51,360 --> 00:23:53,400
and said, "This is an injustice,
255
00:23:53,480 --> 00:23:55,720
and I'm gonna fight it
till the bitter end."
256
00:23:55,800 --> 00:23:58,120
That's what he's doing. Um...
257
00:23:58,200 --> 00:24:03,800
it's just a complete disregard for
the evidence that was presented at trial,
258
00:24:03,880 --> 00:24:08,040
and a complete disregard
for a man's life that was lost.
259
00:24:10,520 --> 00:24:13,480
[poignant music playing]
260
00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:36,000
[Chucky] I'm still trying
to figure out to this day, like...
261
00:24:37,560 --> 00:24:38,560
Why?
262
00:24:41,400 --> 00:24:43,880
I can't even tell you the answer, like...
263
00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:46,440
I wasn't in my right state of mind. Um...
264
00:24:47,280 --> 00:24:49,680
It's hard to explain, because
265
00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:55,160
I think it was a combination
of alcohol and pills mixing, you know?
266
00:24:57,800 --> 00:25:01,200
Worst mistake of my life.
You know, I think about it every day.
267
00:25:01,280 --> 00:25:04,520
You know, not only that I took a life,
but I ruined my life.
268
00:25:06,480 --> 00:25:09,160
The gun was Trinidad's.
He brought it from Utica.
269
00:25:10,400 --> 00:25:13,240
Just the lifestyle,
the lifestyle he lived, you know.
270
00:25:13,920 --> 00:25:16,680
I don't know if he needed it
for protection or he just need...
271
00:25:16,760 --> 00:25:19,120
He wanted it,
just the lifestyle he lived.
272
00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:24,280
You know, I... I took my responsibility.
273
00:25:25,360 --> 00:25:29,440
My part's played. I pled guilty.
People don't usually plead guilty.
274
00:25:31,400 --> 00:25:34,360
I felt that it was the right thing to do,
you know?
275
00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:41,240
I feel bad for the parties involved,
you know, like the deceased...
276
00:25:43,280 --> 00:25:44,280
co-defendants.
277
00:25:47,720 --> 00:25:49,360
Trinidad, his sentence blew my mind
278
00:25:49,440 --> 00:25:52,360
'cause he got 40 to life
for going to trial.
279
00:25:53,840 --> 00:25:57,440
It's just... It don't make sense how...
280
00:25:58,520 --> 00:25:59,840
if I pled guilty
281
00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:01,880
and he went to trial,
282
00:26:01,960 --> 00:26:04,320
he gets more time than me
for the same crime.
283
00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:07,840
It makes me believe that,
284
00:26:08,800 --> 00:26:11,040
okay, I did the right thing
with taking a plea deal,
285
00:26:11,120 --> 00:26:15,080
because I would have had 40 to life.
There's no question about that.
286
00:26:27,480 --> 00:26:30,520
[soft country guitar music playing]
287
00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:09,240
[Christine]
Denny has always been consistent
288
00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:13,920
that he did not know
there was going to be any shooting.
289
00:27:15,480 --> 00:27:19,480
He had no concept
that they were going to use the gun
290
00:27:19,560 --> 00:27:22,560
that had been played with at the party.
291
00:27:29,680 --> 00:27:34,720
I believe that Denny DeJesus did pay
292
00:27:34,800 --> 00:27:38,160
for what Chucky Phillips
and Eduardo Trinidad did.
293
00:27:40,800 --> 00:27:46,240
However, the fact that Eduardo Trinidad
is serving 40 years to life
294
00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:49,960
and the shooter is serving
20 years to life,
295
00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:55,840
this is one of the big injustices
of the criminal justice system.
296
00:27:57,680 --> 00:28:00,400
I'm not saying that Trinidad is innocent.
297
00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:04,800
I'm saying that his sentence
is hugely disproportionate.
298
00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:09,800
The fact that he was guilty
did not warrant
299
00:28:11,640 --> 00:28:13,600
double the sentence of the shooter.
300
00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:23,000
People are being penalized for
exercising their right to a jury trial.
301
00:28:24,960 --> 00:28:31,080
I do have a deeply ingrained sense
of justice and fairness,
302
00:28:31,160 --> 00:28:37,360
and plea bargaining
goes against some of that grain.
303
00:28:40,280 --> 00:28:44,080
Everybody accused of a crime
in the United States
304
00:28:44,160 --> 00:28:48,040
has the right to a fair trial by a jury.
305
00:28:48,560 --> 00:28:53,200
And, if they are coerced
into pleading guilty
306
00:28:53,280 --> 00:28:57,720
by the fact that if they go to trial
and they get found guilty,
307
00:28:57,800 --> 00:29:00,720
they are going to get
a much harsher sentence
308
00:29:00,800 --> 00:29:03,720
than what they would get
if they plead guilty,
309
00:29:03,800 --> 00:29:06,640
it's... it's violating the Constitution.
310
00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:17,840
I believe that equal sentences
for Trinidad and Chucky Phillips
311
00:29:17,920 --> 00:29:20,240
would have been completely appropriate.
312
00:29:20,880 --> 00:29:27,480
Obviously, with plea bargaining
there is going to be some disparity,
313
00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:30,800
but... two times as much?
314
00:29:31,880 --> 00:29:33,400
This case is just...
315
00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:35,320
shouting...
316
00:29:35,400 --> 00:29:38,240
[chuckling]
317
00:29:38,320 --> 00:29:41,160
..."Injust... Unjust result."
318
00:29:41,680 --> 00:29:43,240
[birdsong]
319
00:29:44,200 --> 00:29:46,920
[soft country guitar music continues]
320
00:30:06,920 --> 00:30:08,440
[Bill] The name is Bill Walsh.
321
00:30:09,200 --> 00:30:12,720
I was a county court judge
in Onondaga County for 11 years.
322
00:30:30,640 --> 00:30:35,840
My recollection of Eduardo Trinidad was
that he was fairly aloof during the trial.
323
00:30:37,960 --> 00:30:42,040
I can't remember how much
he participated with his lawyer,
324
00:30:42,120 --> 00:30:47,000
but I had the distinct feeling that
he's what the Irish would call a hard man.
325
00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:48,640
Uh...
326
00:30:49,480 --> 00:30:52,200
What I heard during the trial
327
00:30:52,280 --> 00:30:56,440
was just how cold and senseless
the crime itself was.
328
00:30:56,520 --> 00:30:58,400
It just didn't need to happen.
329
00:30:58,480 --> 00:31:02,680
They could have taken the money
and they could have left. But they didn't.
330
00:31:02,760 --> 00:31:05,000
Mr. Gordon picked them up,
331
00:31:06,280 --> 00:31:09,840
took them where they wanted,
did everything that he was supposed to do,
332
00:31:09,920 --> 00:31:12,400
and was rewarded with a bullet
in the back of the head.
333
00:31:12,480 --> 00:31:14,320
And that was just senseless.
334
00:31:17,480 --> 00:31:19,480
[somber music playing]
335
00:31:20,960 --> 00:31:23,480
[Bill] Had Mr. Trinidad elected
to plead guilty,
336
00:31:23,560 --> 00:31:26,720
in all likelihood,
his sentence would've been less,
337
00:31:26,800 --> 00:31:30,560
because if he waives his right to appeal,
that ends it.
338
00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:33,320
Two co-defendants
have already pled guilty,
339
00:31:33,400 --> 00:31:37,520
uh, and that would've been the third,
and it would've ended for the family.
340
00:31:37,600 --> 00:31:40,880
They wouldn't have to
have relived it a second time.
341
00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:44,080
And I think that was very damaging
to the family.
342
00:31:44,160 --> 00:31:47,920
[hesitates] The anguish you could see
on their faces was heartbreaking.
343
00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:52,680
And I felt that he could have
spared them that, and he did not.
344
00:31:53,600 --> 00:31:54,920
And he was punished appropriately
345
00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:57,360
with the maximum sentence
permissible under the law.
346
00:31:59,600 --> 00:32:02,600
He was sentenced to the maximum,
347
00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:04,760
under the murder conviction,
348
00:32:04,840 --> 00:32:08,680
of a minimum of 25 years
and a maximum of life in prison,
349
00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:14,240
and he received 15 years on the
criminal possession of a weapons charge.
350
00:32:14,800 --> 00:32:17,760
He could be sentenced consecutively,
which I did.
351
00:32:17,840 --> 00:32:20,960
So, uh... that was, uh...
352
00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:24,200
It was a pretty sizable sentence.
353
00:32:28,280 --> 00:32:31,480
[Bill] I base my decision
as to an appropriate sentence
354
00:32:31,560 --> 00:32:33,480
on what I hear during the trial.
355
00:32:36,600 --> 00:32:39,920
If you roll the dice, doesn't pay off,
356
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:42,200
there's a price to be paid for that.
357
00:32:50,640 --> 00:32:53,320
[somber music playing]
358
00:33:10,200 --> 00:33:14,960
[Eduardo on recording]
Chucky with 20, and me with 40 to life.
359
00:33:16,400 --> 00:33:17,920
I don't think that's fair.
360
00:33:19,720 --> 00:33:21,480
My life's been destroyed.
361
00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:26,640
I would have been going with my kids,
trying to enjoy life.
362
00:33:27,200 --> 00:33:29,720
Trying to give my kids things I never had...
363
00:33:30,280 --> 00:33:31,680
[shaky breaths] Uh, parents.
364
00:33:33,400 --> 00:33:37,160
I would have tried to give that to them,
tried to break the cycle,
365
00:33:37,240 --> 00:33:40,120
try to bring a better... My life with...
366
00:33:40,880 --> 00:33:42,000
with our family, as well.
367
00:33:45,800 --> 00:33:51,400
[continues on recording] My earliest
release for parole will be in 2047.
368
00:33:52,840 --> 00:33:55,360
I think I'll be around 70
around that time.
369
00:33:58,160 --> 00:34:00,280
It will be a whole wasted lifetime.
370
00:34:05,360 --> 00:34:08,720
At that time, you won't be able
to manage nothing. What can you do?
371
00:34:17,200 --> 00:34:18,280
[soft click]
372
00:34:26,160 --> 00:34:29,120
Well, it was interesting hearing from him.
373
00:34:29,200 --> 00:34:32,520
I think that was the first time
that I've really heard from him,
374
00:34:32,600 --> 00:34:33,720
but, uh...
375
00:34:35,720 --> 00:34:37,600
I would probably expect
376
00:34:38,240 --> 00:34:39,760
that same, uh,
377
00:34:40,600 --> 00:34:45,200
same type of speech from virtually
any defendant that I sentenced
378
00:34:45,280 --> 00:34:49,480
that wound up in jail after being
convicted of a crime by a jury. Uh...
379
00:34:49,560 --> 00:34:50,800
He maintains his innocence
380
00:34:50,880 --> 00:34:54,720
and that doesn't come
as much of a surprise, but, uh,
381
00:34:54,800 --> 00:34:57,480
Mr. Trinidad elected to go to trial,
382
00:34:57,560 --> 00:35:00,040
he was found guilty
by a jury of his peers,
383
00:35:00,120 --> 00:35:01,600
and he was sentenced accordingly.
384
00:35:01,680 --> 00:35:04,720
And he absolutely deserves
to be where he is today.
385
00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:09,160
The shooting would not have happened
386
00:35:09,240 --> 00:35:12,080
had not Mr. Trinidad
given Mr. Phillips the gun.
387
00:35:12,720 --> 00:35:15,640
Without that assistance,
there would be no murder.
388
00:35:15,720 --> 00:35:19,120
There would be no murder charge
against either one of them.
389
00:35:19,200 --> 00:35:21,280
It would've simply been a robbery.
390
00:35:21,360 --> 00:35:22,600
But he chose
391
00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:27,720
to assist Mr. Phillips
in the taking of a human life,
392
00:35:28,680 --> 00:35:31,800
and he is just as guilty
as the fellow who pulled the trigger.
393
00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:34,640
And I'm very comfortable
with what I sentenced him to.
394
00:35:39,120 --> 00:35:41,560
[music fades]
395
00:36:08,680 --> 00:36:11,160
[Eduardo] I chose to fight for my rights.
396
00:36:12,440 --> 00:36:15,680
And I think everybody has the right
to do that.
397
00:36:17,320 --> 00:36:18,560
The system is broken.
398
00:36:19,160 --> 00:36:22,520
And they're doing to people just like me,
all the time.
399
00:36:22,600 --> 00:36:23,840
All the time. Always.
400
00:36:24,600 --> 00:36:26,240
We got to be real about that.
401
00:36:32,400 --> 00:36:35,120
[Ted, on recording] He goes back
to the cab, and according to him,
402
00:36:35,200 --> 00:36:39,200
he was going to help
run the cabbie's pockets.
403
00:36:39,280 --> 00:36:44,040
However, there was too much blood
on the cabbie and at the scene.
404
00:36:44,120 --> 00:36:48,040
No, it was not about running pockets
or nothing, you know what I'm saying?
405
00:36:48,120 --> 00:36:51,080
I was really worrying about what happened,
you know what I'm saying?
406
00:36:51,160 --> 00:36:52,960
I came running back down.
407
00:36:53,040 --> 00:36:55,280
Yeah, and my intention was,
408
00:36:55,360 --> 00:36:58,560
if there's nobody around
who could help him, I'm gonna help him.
409
00:36:58,640 --> 00:36:59,840
But he was gone.
410
00:36:59,920 --> 00:37:01,320
So I thought it was all right.
411
00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:05,240
I thought nothing really bad happened,
you know what I'm saying?
412
00:37:05,320 --> 00:37:06,960
Until I seen it on the news.
413
00:37:08,000 --> 00:37:10,120
That's when my heart broke for real.
414
00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:14,120
[somber music playing]
415
00:37:14,200 --> 00:37:17,080
The gun was Trinidad's.
He brought it from Utica.
416
00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:20,816
[continues on recording] Just the
lifestyle, the lifestyle he lived,
417
00:37:20,840 --> 00:37:21,720
you know.
418
00:37:21,800 --> 00:37:24,440
I don't know if he needed it
for protection or he just need...
419
00:37:24,520 --> 00:37:27,040
He wanted it,
just the lifestyle he lived.
420
00:37:29,200 --> 00:37:32,520
No, um, I did come from Utica.
421
00:37:32,600 --> 00:37:35,960
But not with a weapon.
That weapon was already there.
422
00:37:36,040 --> 00:37:37,680
That got nothing to do with me.
423
00:37:40,400 --> 00:37:45,000
Trinidad's sentence blew my mind 'cause
he got 40 to life for going to trial.
424
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:50,360
[continues on recording] It just shows
the justice system is unfair.
425
00:37:52,680 --> 00:37:54,400
No, it wasn't fair at all.
426
00:37:56,760 --> 00:38:00,200
I just came for my newborn son.
427
00:38:00,720 --> 00:38:02,800
I came for my newborn son.
428
00:38:04,400 --> 00:38:07,160
And didn't made it. Didn't made it, um...
429
00:38:10,240 --> 00:38:11,640
I mean... [sighs]
430
00:38:11,720 --> 00:38:15,760
I know a lot of people...
They're gonna look at it, like,
431
00:38:15,840 --> 00:38:19,960
lied, or whatever the position is, but...
432
00:38:20,640 --> 00:38:23,480
um, I just came
to celebrate my son, to see him,
433
00:38:23,560 --> 00:38:25,360
to hold him in my hand, you know?
434
00:38:25,440 --> 00:38:27,920
At least to accomplish something
that my dad didn't do.
435
00:38:28,640 --> 00:38:29,640
And, um...
436
00:38:30,480 --> 00:38:32,560
I guess I got a... [wry laugh]
437
00:38:32,640 --> 00:38:36,680
I didn't have the opportunity.
I wasn't having enough luck for that.
438
00:38:40,840 --> 00:38:43,560
[voice breaks] I destroyed ten years
of my life already on this.
439
00:38:48,120 --> 00:38:49,480
Is this really justice?
440
00:38:54,400 --> 00:38:56,880
[poignant music playing]
441
00:39:10,120 --> 00:39:12,520
[closing theme music playing]