BACK ROOKIE05 23*m*f 1 1/2 ROOKIES: episode: terrorism or robbery? INT MORNING SPLIT-SCREEN: TWO POLICE PRECINCTS (a thug enters each precinct simultaneously wearing baseball cap with head down and sits in the waiting area, both thugs constantly monitor men's restroom door and their wrist watches, then, one at a time, when a man exits the men's restroom, the thug sneaks into the restroom before the door closes, moments later, both thugs exit restrooms simultaneously looking at their watches and exit the buildings) EXT MORNING SPLIT-SCREEN: TWO POLICE PRECINCTS (both thugs look all around, then check their watches as they walk away from the buildings, then press a button on their cell phones. A second later small explosions rock both buildings, smoke emits from the front doors, fire horns blast intermittently, then civilians and policemen pour out of both buildings) INT MORNING WIDE: SCHOOL GYMNASIUM, SCIENCE FAIR (Katie stands in front of her science fair project in a row of other science projects. The other projects are a moving ferris wheel, an erupting volcano, and a confined rocket blast off. Katie's project, FORENSIC SCIENCE, has a working microscope which another student looks into, a diagram showing the lenses and how the object is magnified, several picture-captures from a microscope showing the trace evidence along side JPGs from the internet which Katie used to solve the previous four cases, also pictures of the four vaults/safes where the stolen jewelry was found, with the clues to combinations to all the safes with the solutions to the combinations) PRINCIPAL (steps up to the microphone afar) May I have your attention please? It's time to make the Science Fair awards. (the following is spoken in the background while Katie and Laura interact in the foreground) First of all, I'd like to thank all you students for working so hard on your science projects. I know from personal experience how much effort it takes to produce a quality science fair project. I would also ask you students to thank your parents for their help with these projects. Thanks to you and to them, this year's Science Fair has been the biggest and best Science Fair in the history of this school. Now, before I present this year's winners, let me tell you the criteria we used to measure this year's science projects. First of all, we looked at originality. We graded down the projects that were copied or borrowed from a previous year. Second, we looked at the written explanations and applications of science to your project. Third, we looked at the neatness and finish of the models and the display. LAURA (enters frame wearing police uniform, as Katie talks inaudibly to the girl looking through the microscope) Excuse me, Katie, you got a minute? KATIE (rises up, smiles) Sure. (approaches) Did you see how my project turned out? LAURA Ah, ya, ah, it's very professional looking. Ah, listen, ah, I hate to interrupt your Science Fair, but... KATIE ... you got another case for us to work on together? LAURA Ah, yeah, but, this is your big day and they're about to hand out the awards. Maybe I should handle this one on my own. KATIE Oh, don't worry about that. I don't stand a chance. LAURA What do you mean? Your project is really slick looking. KATIE Naw. Most of the good ones have moving parts, and flames and smoke and motion. Mine just sits there. So, what do you have for us? LAURA At least two of our precinct headquarters buildings were bombed this morning. We think it's terrorists. KATIE (exiting) Well, what are we waiting for?! LAURA (follows) You're sure... KATIE (points over shoulder) This is kids' stuff. PRINCIPAL And the first place winner is Katie Archer. Katie? Where is Katie? Anybody know where Katie is? EXT MORNING WIDE: NEAR PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS BUILDING (Laura parks half a block away, she and Katie exit car, approach Sarg) LAURA (approaches) Hiya, Sarg. Has the bomb squad arrived yet? SARG Been here and gone. The fire inspector is in there to make sure the air is safe to breathe. LAURA Did you say the bomb squad has been here and gone... already? SARG Yeah. Turns out there were three bombs in there. (points) The second bomb exploded just a couple minutes after the bomb squad arrived, but the third bomb they defused and took away with them. LAURA They're gone already?! (looks at watch) It's been less than an hour since the first bomb went off. How could they have cleared the entire building already?! SARG I don't know. But, the damage from the two explosions were minimal and the bomb squad gave us the CODE FOUR, so we're going back in as soon as the fire inspector gives the all clear. KATIE Where was the bomb squad truck parked? SARG (points) In the alley behind the building. (Katie slips out of frame toward the alley) LAURA Something's not right here, Sarg. They can't search a building this big and defuse a bomb in such a short time. (turns) What do you think, Katie, do you... (looks around) Where did she go? (sees Katie turning down an alley, follows running) Katie! We don't have the all clear yet! (the bomb squad truck arrives, parks and the men exit truck, then the Chief drives up and parks) SARG What's up, guys? I thought you gave us a CODE FOUR. LEADER How could we give you a CODE FOUR when we just got here? SARG Maybe it was another bomb squad, then. LEADER There's only two squads and the other one just arrived at the third precinct. Are you saying that someone was already here claiming to be the bomb squad? CHIEF (approaches) What's going on? What's this about another bomb squad? SARG Apparently, the bomb squad that just left wasn't the real bomb squad! CHIEF My daughters were supposed to be here. Where are they? SARG No idea. INT MORNING WIDE: ALLEY BEHIND PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS LAURA (rounds corner on the run, sees Katie kneeling near a square hole that had been blasted in the side of the building with debris scattered all around and shining a flash light through the hole) Katie, something is not right. I don't think it's safe to be this close to the building. KATIE (unimpressed, still examining hole and the pavement around) It's okay. This was not a real terrorist attack. This whole bomb thing was a diversion. LAURA Did you hear what I said?! There might be another bomb in there! KATIE I seriously doubt it. LAURA (grabs Katie, pulls her toward the street) Tell me about your doubts at a safe distance. EXT MORNING WIDE: NEAR PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS BUILDING (Laura exits alley with Katie in tow, moving toward Chief and Sarg) CHIEF (approaches) Oh, there you are! I was worried about you. It's not safe back there! That bomb squad was a fake. LAURA That's what Katie said. CHIEF Why. What did you find out? KATIE Well, here's my theory: INT MORNING SPLIT-SCREEN: TWO POLICE PRECINCTS RESTROOM (dramatization: thugs enter restrooms simultaneously, pull a small package from their pockets, drop them into waste baskets and exit the restroom) KATIE (voiceover) Two noisey but harmless bombs were dropped into waste baskets in the restrooms of two precincts to make us think that there was a terrorist attack underway all over the city. EXT MORNING SPLIT-SCREEN: TWO POLICE PRECINCTS (dramatization: both thugs exit building simultaneously, look all around, then check their watches one last time, then press a button on their cell phones. A second later a small explosion rocks both buildings, fire horns blast intermittently, then civilians and policemen pour out of both buildings) EXT MORNING WIDE: NEAR PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS BUILDING SARG How did you know about the restroom? KATIE Excuse me? SARG The restroom. That's where the first bomb went off. How did you know? KATIE Because the restrooms are open to the public. But those bombs were just noisey diversions to get everybody out of the building so the fake bomb squad could get into this building without being disturbed. CHIEF Why would a fake bomb squad want access to this building and not the third precinct? LAURA That's a good question. KATIE I don't know what it was, but they blew a hole in the basement wall (points) back there to bring it outside without being seen. SARG That was the SECOND bomb. KATIE The second explosion wasn't a bomb. It was a shaped charge. LAURA What's a shaped charge? KATIE The hole in the basement wall wasn't round like a bomb would make. It was square. LAURA Oh. A SHAPED charge. SARG But why blast a hole in the basement wall? KATIE I don't know. But I saw scrape marks on the pavement in the alley next to the square hole as if someone or something was pulled through the hole. What was down there? CHIEF The holding cells! Did the prisoners escape? SARG No. Right after the first explosion, I had the guards transfer both prisoners to the main jail downtown. CHIEF So, if they weren't after the prisoners... SARG The only things that are down in the basement are holding cells... LAURA (gasps) And the evidence lock-up! SARG Oh, man! LAURA You're not thinking what I'm thinking, are you, Sarg? CHIEF What are you thinking? BOTH Lucifer Snidely! CHIEF I don't get it. What about Lucifer Snidely? SARG He has his preliminary hearing tomorrow. LAURA And without the evidence against him... SARG The stolen jewelry from thirty burglaries... LAURA The judge will have to set him free for lack of evidence. CHIEF Why, that slippery little... LEADER (enters frame) The building has been cleared. You're free to reenter the building. (all exit frame toward building) KATIE I can't wait to look at the surveillance videos. INT MORNING WIDE: PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS VIDEO ROOM SARG (types on the computer keyboard and points at the various camera images on the monitor as Katie, Laura and Chief look on) That's the bomber there in the waiting area near the restrooms. LAURA He's wearing a baseball hat and he keeps his head down. SARG No way we're going to I.D. him from that. (types and mouses) Let's fast-forward a little... past where the fake bomb squad truck arrives. (points at screen) This is where the fake bomb squad guy takes the third bomb out the front door. EXT MORNING SURVEILLANCE: PRECINCT MAIN ENTRANCE (thug, dressed in full bomb suit descends the stairs carrying what looks like a bomb at arm's length, then another explosion rattles the camera) INT MORNING WIDE: PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS VIDEO ROOM CHIEF What was that?! LAURA That's the second explosion... the one from the alley. KATIE Do we have a surveillance camera in the alley? SARG (points, enlarges image) Sure. Here. EXT MORNING SURVEILLANCE: ALLEY BEHIND PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS (jump cut: the fake bomb squad truck is parked 20 feet away as a thug dressed in a bomb squad coverall attaches shaped-charges in a rectangle-shape to the basement wall, then backs away, ducks and presses a button, the shape charges explode) INT MORNING WIDE: PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS VIDEO ROOM CHIEF It was a shaped charge, just like you said, Katie. (Katie smiles, then slips out of the room unseen) EXT MORNING SURVEILLANCE: ALLEY BEHIND PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS (before the smoke completely clears, a rectangular hole in the basement wall appears and immediately someone from inside slides six evidence bins singly out the hole. The thug reenters the frame and loads the bins onto the fake bomb squad truck) INT MORNING WIDE: PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS VIDEO ROOM CHIEF You guys were right, it was the evidence they were after. LAURA (voiceover) It was like a magic act. Watch me carry a fake bomb out the front door, while I steal you blind behind the building. SARG I hate to admit it, but this plan was a stroke of genious, because when that second bomb went off, we all backed away from the building giving the fake bomb squad guys even more room to get away with it. We were absolutely sure this was a terrorist attack. CHIEF This is really embarrassing. If we don't get those bins of evidence back TODAY, this incident will give the whole department a black eye. I'm counting on you, Sarg. SARG It's all hands on deck for this one, Chief. (turns) Laura and Katie, you.... Where is Katie?! LAURA (exiting) Not again! I'll find her. INT MORNING WIDE: ALLEY BEHIND PRECINCT HEADQUARTERS (Katie kneels near the hole in the basement wall examining the pavement with her hand-held microscope) LAURA (runs by alley entrance, stops, returns) Oh, there you are! What are you doing here?! We're supposed to be out catching bad guys. KATIE I'm narrowing the search for the bad guys. LAURA And how will you do that? KATIE According to the surveillance video, the fake bomb squad truck was parked right here. (motions broadly, then resumes examination) And this is where the rear doors opened. LAURA And what are we going to learn from that? KATIE Well, this is where the perps climbed out of the truck. So, this is where we'll find trace evidence from the bottoms of their feet. LAURA And tell me what you found. (pulls out pad and pen) KATIE (repeatedly comparing the microscope finding to her cell phone screen) Six or eight different things so far. The first thing is dirt. LAURA Dirt? You mean soil? KATIE Black dirt, like what Mom uses in her flower pots. I also found some juniper berries, and three kinds of plant pollen, and these... little things tiny black things... so they can't be plant pollen grains... it looks like they're spores... fern spores. LAURA What do you make of all that? KATIE (looks up and down the alley) I don't see anywhere around here for soil to be planted, no juniper bushes, no flowers, no ferns and there are no florists in this area. (stands) I think... the fake bomb squad truck was actually a delivery truck from a plant nursery. LAURA (cell phone to ear) Yeah, Sarg, Katie thinks the fake bomb squad truck was a stolen delivery truck from a plant nursery. You got any BOLOs for that? You do? Can you check to see if traffic division has any sightings of this truck? It was? (writing) Fire away. Thanks Sarg. I'll call you if we get a lead from the truck. (pockets cell phone) The truck was stolen last night from a nursery and it was just reported abandoned in an alley about a mile away. (exiting) Let's go. INT MORNING WIDE: DOWNTOWN ALLEY (both wear rubber gloves) LAURA (peeling the magnetic BOMB SQUAD sign off the rear door revealing the nursery company logo, examines both sides for finger prints) These guys were good! They didn't leave a single finger print anywhere. I hope you found some evidence, Sis. KATIE (kneeling on the floor inside the truck examining the fake BOMB SQUAD coveralls abandoned by the robbers with a magnifying glass) Hello! What have we here?! (pulls out pocket microscope, peers) LAURA Find something? KATIE Yeah, all the robbers left their coveralls behind when they abandoned this truck. I'm looking for trace evidence that may have rubbed off on the insides of the coveralls from their street clothes. LAURA Anything specific? KATIE Fish scales. (pulls out cell phone, pokes screen) LAURA Fish scales. Do you think the evidence is pointing at Snidely's fishing boat again? KATIE (repeatedly comparing the image in the microscope with the pictures on the cell phone screen) No. These scales are from tuna fish. Specifically, albacore tuna. (pages through cell phone data) It says here the closest albacore tuna fish are off the coast of Mexico. LAURA Lucifer Snidely's boat could easily go that far. KATIE Yes, but remember... LAURA Oh, of course! Lucifer Snidely's boat was impounded after he was arrested! So, do we have to search every boat in the marina? KATIE I don't think these fish scales are from a boat. LAURA Why not? KATIE These scales are from the insides of the robber's coveralls. I found two scales on the inside of the left knee and one scale on the inside of the right knee. LAURA How does that eliminate a boat? KATIE (poking the screen of her cell phone) This truck is full of potting soil and plant fragments, but no fish scales. And I didn't find any soil or plant fragments INSIDE the coveralls. LAURA Keep going. KATIE That means the fish scales didn't rub off of his feet while he was putting on the coveralls or taking them off. LAURA You think they rubbed off the knees of the street clothes he was wearing underneath the coverall? KATIE That's what it looks like to me. LAURA How does a guy get fish scales on the knees of his pants? KATIE From the floor... from kneeling on the floor where there's fish scales on the floor. LAURA He COULD HAVE knelt on the deck of a boat that went down to Mexico. KATIE OR, he knelt on the floor of an abandoned tuna cannery. (shows screen) LAURA (poking cell phone) That's the abandoned tuna cannery down by the harbor! (to phone) Yeah, Sarg, it's me again. Katie and I have a lead. Just a sec. (to Katie) You think it's owned by Lucifer Snidely? KATIE (pokes cell phone screen) Not likely. Lucifer Snidely is too smart for that. (shows screen) Yes. It says here the cannery is owned by... LAURA (reads) Bellview Properties. (beckons Katie, exiting toward patrol car with cell phone to ear) Sarg, Katie and I are heading over to the abandoned tuna cannery down by the harbor. Can you call Bellview properties and ask them to open the building for us? EXT MORNING WIDE: ABANDONED CANNERY (Laura and Katie exit patrol car and are greeted by Agent) AGENT (offers hand) Hi, I'm Clare Robison from Bellview Properties. They said you wanted to look around in there. (points and beckons as they move toward Cannery entrance) LAURA By any chance has Snidely Industries had anything to do with this building? AGENT It's odd you should ask. We had an unsolicited cash offer to buy the building yesterday, but the lawyer I spoke with said he wouldn't sign the papers until after his engineers had a chance to evaluate the building this morning. KATIE (softly) Engineers, yeah right. INT MORNING WIDE: ABANDONED CANNERY LAURA (shines flashlight under conveyors and around exhaust hoods, walks past an inverted stainless steel tank, shouts) How you doing, Sis? Find anything? KATIE (shot widens to show Katie following stealthily shining a flashlight, sings) Found it! LAURA (turns back, shines light) I already looked at that. There's nothing there. KATIE (to Agent while pointing at the inverted tank) I'll bet this tank wasn't here last time you were in this building, was it, Ms Robison? AGENT As a matter of fact, no it wasn't. It was over against that... (points to the wall where two other identical tanks stand next to a gap) wall next to the other ones. Why would Snidely's engineers move it? LAURA Actually, they weren't really engineers. AGENT They what?! LAURA They were actually criminals who stole some evidence from police headquarters this morning. AGENT Oh, dear! I'm not in trouble here, am I? LAURA No. You had no idea this whole thing was a scam. KATIE I'll bet Snidely Industries decided to go through with the purchase this morning, didn't they? AGENT Why, yes. Escrow closes in two weeks. How did you know? KATIE Because they dumped about fourteen million dollars worth of jewelry here... (points) this morning. LAURA Katie, are you sure about this? (points) It's not like Lucifer Snidely to use a tank as a dead drop. It doesn't have a lock on it. KATIE (grabs the control for an overhead crane and pushes the UP button, the tank lifts off the floor, revealing a large safe.) The dead drop is not the tank. It's UNDER the tank. LAURA (bending to see the refrigerator-size safe) Well, I'll be! KATIE Okay, let's look for the combination to the safe. (jump cut: the tank is now clear of the safe, Laura examines the outside of the safe for clues, while Katie shines flashlight all around the area in the distance looking for clues) LAURA Katie, I don't know how to tell you this, but the only numbers I'm finding are the serial number and the part number. There's nothing out of place here. You don't suppose Snidely changed his M.O., do you? KATIE (turns) That's it! LAURA What's it? KATIE Lucifer Snidely knows that we found his combinations in the past when the robbers left them at the dead drop. I'll bet this time one of the robbers delivered the combination to Lucifer Snidely in jail. LAURA (cell phone to ear) I think you might have something there. I'll call the jail. INT AFTERNOON WIDE: JAIL CONTROL ROOM (Cop stands behind the guard who is seated at the computer scrolling fast-forward through the videos) GUARD According to our visitor logs, Lucifer Snidely's visitor checked in at 9:16 am this morning. COP That's just over an hour after the fake bomb squad left the precinct. GUARD (presses PLAY, points) Yes, here is the visitor sitting at the table with Lucifer Snidely. (visitor on the video slides his hand slowly across the table toward Snidely who slides his hand forward until their hands touch, then both withdraw their hands) COP (points) There! Did you see that?! The visitor passed something across the table to Snidely. GUARD It's against the rules for visitors to give things to prisoners without having them inspected first. This gives us grounds to search Snidely's jail cell. INT AFTERNOON SPLIT-SCREEN: JAIL AND CANNERY (phone conversation) COP You were right, Archer, the visitor passed something to Snidely this morning right after the robbery, but it's not what you think. LAURA What was it? COP A pack of chewing gum. LAURA (to Katie) A pack of chewing gum. KATIE (shares phone with Laura) That's it! That has to be the combination to the safe! COP It can't be. We pulled out all the gum from the package and opened each piece. There were no numbers written anywhere. KATIE Then, it's not numbers we're looking for. Look for writing on the outside of the package, small writing that wouldn't be noticed. COP (examines the outside of the package closely) No, it just has the ingredients. KATIE Look carefully. Are the words in the ingredients really food items? COP Oh. No. They're listed like ingredients, but they're nonsense words. KATIE (readies pen and pad) Read them to us slowly. (writes) COP (reads) Straight Snore Heaven Tree Spine Tricks Alive Nun Clue Hero KATIE (reads) Straight Snore Heaven Tree Spine Tricks Alive Nun Clue Hero Is that right? COP Yes. But no way that's a combination to a safe. KATIE Yes, it is! It's a code. We just have to decode it. (turns toward safe) LAURA Okay, thanks, Malloni. (pockets cell phone) (end split screen) So, what do you think, partner? KATIE (reads numbers referring constantly to the ten-key pad) Straight Snore Heaven Tree Spine Tricks Alive Nun Clue Hero LAURA Maybe Malloni is right, Sis. Maybe this is just one of Snidely's tricks to waste our time. KATIE I got it! LAURA Got what? KATIE These words are rhymes of numbers. LAURA Rhymes... of... numbers. KATIE Yeah, push the buttons. Here we go. (points to the ten-key pad on the safe) The word Straight rhymes with 8 (Laura repeats each number and pushes the button) Snore rhymes with 4 Heaven rhymes with 7 Tree rhymes with 3 Spine rhymes with 9 Tricks rhymes with 6 Alive rhymes with 5 Nun rhymes with 1 Clue rhymes with 2 Hero rhymes with 0 (the green LED glows, and Laura opens the door showing the bins of evidence) INT MORNING WIDE: COURTROOM JUDGE (pounds gavel) This court will come to order. The next matter before this court is a preliminary hearing in the case of the State vs Lucifer Snidely. I will now entertain motions from counsel. LAWYER (stands) The defense moves for dismissal of all charges. JUDGE On what grounds? LAWYER On the grounds that there is no physical evidence against my client. JUDGE What say you, Mr Prosecutor? PROSECUTOR (stands) On the contrary, your honor, we have physical evidence to support our case against the defendant. SNIDELY Show me! JUDGE (pounds gavel) Mr Snidely, you're out of order. You may only speak through your attorney. SNIDELY (whispers, gestures) LAWYER (stands) Your honor, my client is charged with possession of stolen property and conspiracy to commit grand theft. In order to prove these charges, the state must have the stolen property in custody. But we have reason to doubt said stolen property is in custody, so we would like to SEE the stolen property. JUDGE Mr Prosecutor? PROSECUTOR (stands, shouts toward rear) Bring in the evidence. (double doors at the back of the courtroom open with a thud when Laura and Katie push two cartloads of bins of evidence toward the judge) As you can see, Your Honor, all items of evidence are still in their original sealed pouches and with their original labels. (Laura and Katie smile broadly) SNIDELY (softly) I think I'm going to be sick. JUDGE The motion for dismissal is denied. The defendant will stand trial. (pounds gavel) Next Case. LAURA (high-fives with Katie subtly as they exit) What could be sweeter than this? KATIE Did I mention that I won first prize at the Science Fair? ©2011 Bob Snook. Conditions for use: Do not sell any part of this script, even if you rewrite it. Pay no royalties, even if you make money from performances. You may reproduce and distribute this script freely, but all copies must contain this copyright statement. http://www.bobsnook.org email: bob@bobsnook.org BACK |