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.
Jesus! / Whoa!
- Oh, my god! - Who is that?
Set up the trauma room!
Boy's name is Sean Hamill, 5th grade at st. Victor's.
- What happened? - Single stab wound to the back.
ER noticed bruising on the chest and buttocks and called us.
Sounds like somebody used this kid as a punching bag.
Sexual abuse?
No trauma, but we're still waiting on the rape kit.
Who brought him in?
Some genius threw him out of a moving car. Nobody saw the driver.
- Anything off the surveillance cameras? - Security's on it.
Detectives, Sean Hamill's out of surgery.
He okay?
He's alive.
Hey, Sean, how you feeling?
Dad.
It's okay, Sean.
They're detectives.
They want to ask you about what happened today.
You remember anything?
Last bell...
Putting my books in the locker.
I think I played stick ball with Joey Sparacino.
Then I was here.
How about after the stick ball game?
I don't remember.
A bully's been picking on him.
Last week, Sean came home covered in bruises.
- Who did that, Sean? - Nobody.
I was climbing a tree, and I fell.
Someone beat him up.
- He was too scared to say who. - Okay.
Sean, you gotta tell us.
Later, okay?
I want to go home.
No, Sean.
No, I'm Fine. Promise.
Dad, how come I can't move my legs?
What's wrong with my legs?
It's okay.
It's gonna be okay.
Principal Parker instituted a zero tolerance policy on fighting.
One incident and you're expelled.
So who did you kick out this weekend for beating up Sean Hamill?
No one. He said he fell climbing a tree.
He's lucky he didn't break his neck.
He wasn't so lucky today.
Someone stabbed Sean in the back. He won't walk again.
Now we're gonna need to interview anyone who saw Sean today.
- Teachers, students. - Starting with you, Father Justin.
- I didn't see Sean today. - Really.
Because the hospital security tape shows Sean being dumped from your car.
That's impossible. My car has been in the parking lot all day.
We have a clear match on the license plate.
But Father Justin's been in the library correcting papers all afternoon.
Okay. So why was his car at Mercy hospital?
I leave my keys on the visor so parishioners can borrow it.
We'll need the list.
In the meantime, we're gonna have to interview the students.
One time this big boy, he pushed Sean.
He fell down.
What was the big boy's name?
I don't know, but he's bad.
I saw him smoking.
What about bullying?
I start talking about people, they're gonna start talking about me.
You're gonna let whoever crippled Sean Hamill hurt someone else?
Just because I'm a recess monitor doesn't make me a narc.
Adam, if you know who beat up Sean Hamill, you've got to tell us.
- Why won't Sean tell you? - He's scared.
And I can see that you are too.
I'm no wuss.
There's this fat kid, pushes everybody around.
He beat the crap out of Sean last week.
Can you tell me his name?
Charlie Monaghan.
- He didn't hit anybody. - Mr. Monaghan, please.
What'd you do, Charlie?
He made fun of me.
He said the reason my girlfriend won't have sex with me
is cause she's afraid I'll squash her.
Okay, so you beat him up.
He made me so mad I grabbed him in the parking lot,
and I lost it.
Okay. What happened today?
I haven't seen Sean today.
I've stayed away from him ever since last week.
Is there anybody who can tell us where you were at 4 this afternoon?
Yeah. Emma.
I walked her home after the last bell at 3.
And we stopped at Farrell's ice cream on the way home.
Emma your girlfriend?
She's his half sister. She's my ex-wife's daughter.
Where can we Find her?
She's been staying with her grandparents since her mom got sick.
Apartment of Deb & Oliver Boyd 270 West 79th Street Monday, October 17
How long has Emma been living here?
Just a couple of days since Kate had to go back into the hospital.
- Kate has lupus. - Sorry to hear that.
Emma, we wanted to ask you some questions about Charlie.
Is he in trouble?
Just trying to Find out where he was today.
We went to Farrell's to get some ice cream after last bell.
Then he walked me home.
Emma, why'd you tell us where Charlie was after school?
Why not during classes or before?
The high school's in a different building than the elementary school.
After last bell is the only time she'd see him. / Sweetheart,
did Charlie tell you to say that he was with you if anybody asked?
Are you saying my granddaughter is not telling the truth?
Emma, did Charlie ask you to lie?
No.
You know how important it is to tell the truth, don't you?
Lying's a sin.
A vanilla sin, not the mortal kind.
But all sins are bad.
So you have to never do them no matter what.
She's lying to protect her brother.
Charlie loses his temper, stabs Sean,
dumps him at the ER, tells his sister to alibi him.
You gonna bring him in?
Uh, we're waiting for the crime scene report
before we have another go at him.
Ask and you shall receive, unless, of course, you're Jewish.
I'm not. / Lab lifted over a dozen prints from Father Justin's car.
They were all over the place except for the driver's side.
Pretty smart kid to be wiping prints.
He wasn't as careful with the passenger side.
Found this wedged under the seat cushion.
What is that? A strand of rope?
CSU said it's painter's canvass
like the kids use at st. Victor's for their art projects.
St. Victor's Catholic School 371 Ninth Avenue Tuesday, October 18
We always keep a roll in stock.
Lasts a lot longer than runny watercolors on paper.
Perp must've wrapped Sean in this canvass to keep his blood off the car seat.
The parking lot is only 20 yards from here.
He wraps Sean up, carries him over there,
and then dumps the canvass after he returns the car.
We're gonna need to look through the school dumpsters.
- Of course. - Well, this is interesting.
Do kids have access to these?
We teach them to be careful.
Crime scene needs to go through this room too.
I'll bring in a team.
But I got something for you first.
I checked out the security camera at Marty's deli across from the school.
- What were you doing at Marty's? - They got pixy stix.
But I saw the security camera, and I got an idea.
Video tape shows Charlie without Emma buying a chocolate bar at 4:02.
He said he walked Emma home at 3:00.
You're going to jail, Charlie.
And if we charge you as an adult, you're looking at 20 years.
For what? He didn't do anything.
Security camera puts you right outside the school
just 20 minutes before Sean was dumped at the hospital.
Clock must be wrong.
I swear I was walking Emma home.
You really think that a jury's gonna believe your story?
Especially when Emma's not even in the video tape?
Charlie, a 12-year-old will never walk again
because you stabbed him in the back.
I didn't do it. I already told you.
I was walking Emma home.
We got something.
Found these scissors in the school dumpster.
She means I found them underneath the tuna casserole.
All she did was stand there and point.
There's traces of blood on the blades. / Any prints?
Two. Neither of them Charlie's.
How do you know that? We haven't printed them yet.
We don't need to. The prints are too small.
The size a seven or eight year old would leave.
Except an eight-year-old doesn't know to clean up the prints or how to drive a car.
Emma stabbed him?
And then Charlie cleaned up the mess.
Emma's not lying to protect her brother. He's lying to protect her.
Emma isn't in school today.
She's at the hospital with her mother, which, honestly, is just as well.
It's just as well one of your students is missing school?
No, I didn't mean it that way.
- Emma's situation is complicated. - We have time.
When Emma's mother enrolled her at st. Victor's,
she told us that she was a single parent.
She hid the fact that Emma has another parent, a woman.
Emma's mom's gay.
So what's the big deal?
Same-sex couples raise kids all the time.
Yes, but they don't usually lie about being gay
and enroll their children in conservative, Catholic schools.
How'd you Find out she was lying?
When Kate got sick, her partner began coming to school functions.
The parents council was furious.
They didn't want their children in the same classroom
with the daughter of a lesbian. They wanted us to expel Emma.
- So you didn't take them seriously. - Well, we had to.
Parents were keeping kids out of school, donors withdrew their support....
- what were we supposed to do? - How about ignoring them?
That's easy for you to say,
but how do you teach Catechism with Emma in the classroom?
"Homosexuality is a sin, kids."
"But, oh, that's okay, Emma, your moms are good people otherwise."
- So why didn't you expel her? - Because her parents sued the school.
So Emma returns to st. Victor's with a target on her back.
Yes, which is why I say
the less Emma is here, the better it is for everyone.
Clinton Hospital 603 West 57th Street Tuesday, October 18
Excuse me. You can't go in there.
Police. We need to speak with Emma Boyd.
I'm Zoe, Emma's mom.
She had nothing to do with what happened to Sean Hamill.
Oh, how'd you hear about Sean?
Kate's ex-husband called.
He said you think Charlie and Emma are involved.
Charlie and Emma are covering for each other.
And we need Emma to tell us exactly what happened yesterday.
Well, her mom is dying.
Can this wait?
It'll just take a moment.
I didn't do anything.
Emma, even if it was an accident, you need to tell us.
We know that school's been tough lately. And kids can be really cruel.
Is that what happened with you and Sean?
Did he say something mean?
He said I was a freak, and I was gonna go to hell. / Why?
Because I have two moms instead of a mom and a dad.
Sweetie, we talked about this, didn't we?
What did we say?
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words may never hurt me.
Emma, Charlie lied to us.
We know that he drove Sean to the hospital.
Now, if you don't tell us the truth, he's gonna get in a lot of trouble.
I am telling you the truth!
Detective, Emma didn't hurt Sean.
Just like she's never hurt any of the other kids who are mean to her at school.
If the kids at st. Victor's are so mean, then why not send her somewhere else?
Our faith is important to us.
We want Emma to have a Catholic education,
and st. Victor's is the best Catholic school in the city.
Seems to me she can't be getting much of an education if the kids keep bothering her.
She can deal with them.
She goes to therapy. If she has any problems, she talks to me.
Where were you yesterday at 4 P.M.?
You think I drove Sean to the emergency room?
- Did you? - I was here with Kate.
Now how hard can it be to get the truth out of an eight-year-old?
You try breaking a kid whose mother is dying in the next room.
Emma's been through a lot, captain.
In the six months since Zoe and Kate took st. Victor's to court,
whole family's been harassed, they even changed their phone number, twice.
It didn't do any good.
Broken windows, graffiti on their doors.
Zoe's filed six reports. Nobody's ever been charged.
Since when did New York become a red state?
It's not just happening here.
A Catholic school in California tried to expel two brothers,
because they were being raised by a gay couple.
Emma would've been much better off
if Zoe had just gone along with Kate's lie to the school.
You think Zoe should stay in the closet just to make a bunch of homophobes happy?
You don't send your kid to military school if you're a pacifist.
- Not without expecting some friction. - So you agree with the school.
I'm just saying it's complicated.
Being Catholic means believing in certain things.
- Zoe knows that. - But she wanted to make a point.
Take the school to court. Win one for the cause.
Somebody's gotta fight the fight.
But it shouldn't be an eight-year-old.
Emma's so messed up, she has to see a shrink twice a week.
Looks like Zoe could use some counseling too.
Her LUDs show multiple calls to one number.
Father Justin.
Maybe she did need to borrow his car.
Home of Father Justin Miller 330 Ninth Avenue Wednesday, October 19
I don't think Zoe's ever called me.
Why does your number keep coming up on her phone records?
Because I gave it to Emma.
When she first started having trouble at school,
I told her to call anytime she needed someone to talk to.
Did she ever mention having trouble with Sean Hamill?
All the time.
Sean really did pick on Emma.
Every chance he got.
I talked to him.
I pleaded with him. Nothing worked.
You ever call his parents?
I tried.
I got censured for it. Again.
Still, you knew Sean was tormenting Emma,
and you kept quiet to save your own neck.
I like being a priest.
And I am this close to having the church remove my faculties.
I didn't want the school to get any bad press.
Spin control's more important than keeping two kids from ruining their lives.
I knew I should've done something.
I guess I was just hoping Charlie's beating would make Sean leave Emma alone.
Did it?
For a week.
But he was just planning the next horrible thing to do to her.
After you questioned me,
I went back to the school.
I found this in the art room.
It's Emma's ponytail.
Sean cut it off.
Then Emma used the scissors on him.
You remember seeing Emma Boyd at school that afternoon?
Yeah.
I think she was there.
- Talk to her? - No.
You don't like her, do you?
You ever pick on her?
Well, I only bother Emma because she's so weird.
She is, huh?
Why is she weird?
Her mom's a lesbian.
It's just wrong.
The Bible says homosexuality is a sin.
I don't remember seeing that in the Bible.
Corinthians says gay people are going to hell.
That's in the new testament.
The old testament is way harsher.
It says gays should be put to death.
All right, and...
so that makes it okay for you to cut off Emma's hair.
Why'd you do it, Sean?
I didn't hurt her. It was just a joke!
You went after a little girl with a pair of scissors.
All I did was cut her hair.
She stabbed me in the back.
And now I can't walk.
It's not fair.
Elliott, Sean's parents are here.
Why were you talking to Sean again?
Don't you need a parent's permission to talk to a child?
Sean is not a suspect. He's the victim.
Did he remember anything?
Yeah, that he bullied a girl at school.
Emma Boyd should have never been accepted at st. Victor's.
Why, because her moms are gay?
Look, we pay a lot of money to give Sean a private education.
We should have a say in deciding what he's exposed to.
So you told your son it was okay to pick on an eight-year-old girl.
We told him that he should feel sorry for people like Emma's moms
and that he should pray for them.
Well, that's not the message he got.
Did that girl stab Sean?
Yeah.
Then I don't care if he called her a fag dyke whore bitch from hell.
Arrest her!
Apartment of Kate Boyd & Zoe Dunlop 553 West 29th Street Wednesday, October 19
We know what happened, Emma.
Sean told us.
And you believe that little monster?
The evidence backs up his story.
Right down to why Emma's hair's so short.
She got gum stuck in it.
Charlie tried to help, he made a mess of it.
Hey, Emma.
That's not what happened, is it?
We know what Sean really did to you.
What did he do?
Emma, what happened?
You've been lying to mommy Zoe?
Yes, I'm sorry.
I didn't, I didn't mean to hurt Sean.
It's just, he kept yelling, saying, "You're a dyke! You're a dyke!"
And I told him I'm not.
And he said, "prove it."
And then he went to kiss me, so I pushed him away.
And then he grabbed me and cut off my hair.
And said, "yes, you're a dyke. and now you look like one."
I was so mad. I was so ugly.
I grabbed the scissors, and I hurt him in the back with them.
He fell down and hit his head.
And that's when you got Charlie?
He took Sean to the hospital in Father Justin's car.
He told me to throw the scissors out.
I'm sorry.
I didn't mean to tell all those lies.
Sweetie, it's okay.
It's gonna be okay.
She didn't mean to hurt anybody.
We still have to arrest her.
Well, it's late. Can't it wait until she visits Kate in the hospital?
Get an attorney and bring her in by 9 A.M.
Sean must have really scared Emma. She's a good kid.
She's never been in any trouble until now.
Who's prosecuting her case in family court?
New guy, Garrett Gillespie.
I've never met him, but he's supposed to be a hard ass.
Zoe?
We weren't expecting you until the morning.
Well, I figured we'd beat the commute.
Motion to suppress Emma's confession.
On what grounds?
Your detectives interrogated a minor without the parent present.
Emma's mom is a patient at Clinton hospital.
We questioned her in the presence of her other mom Zoe Dunlop.
Kate Boyd is Emma's biological mother.
And despite Zoe and Kate's 10 year partnership,
the law doesn't recognize Zoe as Kate's wife or as Emma's mom.
- She never adopted her. - Fine, she's not Emma's mother.
She's still her legal guardian while Kate's in the hospital.
De facto guardian, yes.
But the state doesn't afford her the right to make decisions for Emma.
She's no more her parent or guardian that a babysitter would be.
You raised Emma ever since she was born.
How can you say that you're nothing more than a babysitter?
I should have legal rights over Emma. But I don't.
So why should I claim them now when it can only hurt her?
The confession's out.
You wanna talk to Emma again, go through me.
Casey Novak?
Garrett Gillespie. I'm handling Emma Boyd's case in family court.
It's nice to meet you.
I got a call from Sean Hamill's parents.
They wanna know why Emma Boyd hasn't been arrested yet.
The mom's lawyer got the confession suppressed.
I don't need the confession to convict that girl.
There's no question she did it,
but do you really want to send her to jail for 10 years?
She jammed a pair of scissors so far into Sean's back
she severed his spinal cord.
Well, Sean tormented Emma. He drove her to the edge.
She belongs in counseling, not juvie.
You're entitled to your opinion, but this is my case.
Tell SVU to arrest Emma Boyd.
- Detectives, what are you doing here? - Where's Emma?
She went to the nurse's station to get some juice.
Excuse me. / Why?
Ms. Boyd, I'm detective Stabler.
I'm sorry, I'm here to arrest Emma for assaulting Sean Hamill.
You can't take her.
She didn't do anything.
She told me she didn't.
She told us something different, didn't she, Zoe?
Please don't do this.
We have no choice. You promised to bring her in.
What did you do, Zoe?
Deb, stay out of this.
She's my granddaughter. I wanna know what's happening.
Mom, please.
Mom, Olivia says I have to go with her.
Someone should come with us.
- I'll go. - No, I'll go.
Both of you go.
I'll stay with mom.
How'd it go?
Great. I love putting eight-year-olds in lockup overnight.
Family court judge would probably let her out tomorrow.
She can stay at home until the trial.
Home with her grandparents, I hope.
James Decker, I represent Mr. And Mrs. Boyd.
My client would like to see her granddaughter.
I'm sorry, but that's not possible.
She's at detention until her court appearance tomorrow.
You're putting my granddaughter in jail?
She stabbed Sean Hamill in the back.
None of this would've happened
if Zoe hadn't forced her lifestyle on Emma and Kate.
Lifestyle?
Your daughter didn't choose her sexual orientation.
My daughter was happy being a wife and a mother until Zoe came along.
So it's Zoe's fault that your daughter's gay?
It certainly isn't Emma's.
That child needs someone to look out for her interests.
Which is why the court has appointed an attorney for her.
We'll see about that.
Family Court Part 12 Friday, October 21
The state requests Emma Boyd be remanded to a juvenile facility pending trial.
She's clearly a violent child.
Your honor, Emma has no history of violence
and poses no danger to anyone.
She should be paroled to her parents.
I agree. However, I will require that
she wear an ankle monitor and remain confined to her mother's house.
That's a problem, your honor.
Emma's mother is in the hospital.
She has no father and no legal guardian.
Your honor, my name is Zoe Dunlop.
Although I am not Emma's legal guardian,
I'm as much her parent as her mother is.
Why haven't you adopted Emma, Ms. Dunlop?
I don't need a piece of paper to define my relationship with my daughter.
Unfortunately, in this court, you do.
Your honor, maybe I can offer a solution.
James Decker, representing Emma's grandparents.
They often care for Emma while their daughter's in the hospital.
They'd be happy to do so again until this matter is resolved.
Emma belongs at home with me.
Your honor, there is president here.
Courts frequently grant custody
to what's been defined as a non-relative family member.
Only in California.
And not when a blood relative is willing and able to take the child.
I wanna go home with mommy Zoe!
I'm sorry, I can't do that, Emma.
Ms. Dunlop, you claimed you have no custodial rights over Emma
when she was arrested, but now you want to invoke them.
You can't have it both ways.
The court hereby releases Emma to the custody of her grandparents.
We will begin fact finding on the assault case on Tuesday.
No! Mommy Zoe!
Oh, sweetie.
Hey, hey, it's just for a couple days, okay?
It's just for a couple of days, okay?
Detective Benson,
I heard Emma's trial started today.
Yeah, it's, um...
it's not going well.
Oh, what's going to happen to her?
Worst case, if the judge thinks she's a danger to other children,
she'll be sent to a juvenile facility until she's 18.
Can't I help?
I'll testify for Emma, tell the judge Sean teased her.
That's hearsay, you weren't there, you didn't see it happen.
We need proof that Sean Hamill provoked her.
What kind of proof?
Notes, emails, anything like that.
Did you check the instant messenger log at the school?
Computers don't save IMs.
The ones at st. Victor's do.
Principal Parker installed special software to monitor the student's conversations.
Family Court Part 12 Monday, October 24
And then I asked why I couldn't move my legs.
The doctor said the scissors cut my spinal cord.
Which is why I can't walk.
Your honor, a moment of the court's time?
Make it quick.
Here's your proof that Sean's a bully.
"I wanna teach you a game after school."
"It might hurt, but it'll cure you from being a queer."
Does that sound like a sweet kid?
And that's not the worst of them.
You know that I have to share this with the defense.
The minute that I do, Sean's credibility goes right out the window.
And so does yours.
Your honor, the people request a half hour recess.
It took Gillespie about ten minutes to agree on a deal.
Counseling, anger management, court evaluation wants a month,
and Emma's back home with Zoe.
Detectives, sorry to catch you so late.
You need to remove Emma from Zoe Dunlop's custody.
Mr. Decker, custody matters belong in family court.
Unless there's been a crime, it's out of our hands.
Zoe Dunlop has been sexually abusing Emma ever since Kate got sick.
We're gonna have to hear that from Emma.
You will.
She's at the hospital with her mother right now.
You can't let her go home with Zoe.
We've never heard any allegations before.
It's a pretty big coincidence that this comes out just after Zoe gets custody.
Emma showed this to her grandparents.
Why does a grown woman take pictures of herself in bed
with a naked eight-year-old girl?
You search Zoe's apartment,
you'll Find dozens more like it.
Apartment of Kate Boyd & Zoe Dunlop 553 West 29th Street Monday, October 24
Nothing unusual on the computer.
Mostly emails and a bunch of crappy MP3 downloads.
Tuition bill, tuition bill, hospital bill.
Nothing here but people asking for money.
Looks like they had enough cash to have a little fun.
Coney island, statue of liberty.
The MET.
Elliot, check this out.
Nude sunbathing.
Emma in the tub with Zoe.
What's going on?
We've had a complaint. We need to ask you some questions.
This is a really bad time.
I'm sorry, it can't wait.
Emma, you okay?
Honey, what's wrong?
Mommy's gone to be with Jesus.
Where's Emma?
Her grandparents took her home with them, but, um...
you and I gotta talk about these.
What do you think they are, porn?
You got an eight-year-old lying naked in the bed.
Emma has always been shy.
Kate and I wanted her to have a positive body image,
so I took these to show her how beautiful she is.
Well, giving her self-esteem is one thing,
but you got her vamped for the camera like she's a playboy model.
If you think these are sexy, you're the one with the problem.
She looks like an angel.
You're giving her a positive body image with this photo too?
You and Emma lying naked in bed,
touching her thighs.
Emma's therapist recommended massage to relieve her stress,
so Kate took these on the last day of my massage classes.
You think because I'm gay, I'm molesting my own daughter?
If I were straight, would this even be an issue?
This is not about who you are,
it's about what that girl said you did to her.
Emma would never say I molested her.
Mommy's always made me take my clothes off and get in bed.
Then she touched me.
Where does she touch you?
Go ahead, Emma. Tell them.
Mrs. Boyd, would you mind giving us a minute alone with Emma?
Where did you mommy touch you?
Everywhere.
Down there.
Did you tell anyone?
She said no one would understand.
I didn't want her to touch me,
but she said it will make me feel good.
How did it make you feel?
It made me feel bad.
Bad how?
Like when you tell a lie.
Or when you eat a burger on good Friday.
You felt guilty?
Like you were doing something that you shouldn't be doing?
I knew it was a sin.
Why was it a sin?
Because girls are not supposed to naked touch other girls.
It's wrong.
Emma, do you think that it's wrong that your mommies sleep in the same bed together?
God says it's against nature.
Women are supposed to be with men. Otherwise they go to hell.
Is that what you learned in school?
My grandmom told me.
She said mommy Zoe was gonna go to hell for what she did.
I doubt Zoe molested Emma.
Why? Emma told me she did.
Emma's description of the abuse was intellectual, not emotional.
Kids say that molestation hurts.
Emma called it a sin.
What do you think about those pictures?
Well, a lot of doctors recommend massage for children under stress.
I would prescribe it for Emma, if she were my patient.
How do you explain Emma's allegations?
Parental alienation syndrome.
I thought PAS was when a couple splits up
and the mom brainwashes the kids into thinking that dad's a bastard.
Well the same thing's happening here.
Except that it's the grandmother turning Emma against Zoe.
But why would Emma go along with it?
Her grandmother's manipulated her into believing that it's true.
So she used the massages to convince Emma
that her mother had done something awful.
It's emotional abuse inflicted by her loving grandmother.
At the very least, it's custodial interference.
At most, reckless endangerment.
Either way the grandparents still only get a slap on the wrist.
Unless we can prove unlawful imprisonment.
How?
Well, they kept a little girl away from her rightful home
by making her lie about being abused.
And the reason that they did that is because Zoe's gay.
Which would make it a hate crime.
It's a D felony.
They could get seven years.
Arrest them.
Oliver and David Boyd,
you're under arrest for unlawful imprisonment.
What are you talking about?
You filled Emma's head with lies to keep her away from her mother.
Her mother is dead.
Zoe is ruining my granddaughter's life.
It's our moral duty to protect her.
Well, try following the eighth commandment.
Thou shall not bear false witness.
Trial Part 83 Tuesday, November 22
Emma's grandparents tricked her into saying she'd been molested.
She understands it's not her fault.
And she understands I didn't hurt her in anyway.
She's just sad all the time now.
Her biological mother just died.
It's understandable that she'd be upset.
It's not the only reason. She's scared.
The other night she woke up crying.
She dreamed her mamma died,
and the police had come to take me to jail.
And she kept calling out for me.
But I couldn't hear her.
No one could hear her.
Thank you.
How long has Emma been in therapy?
About six months.
Since the kids at school started making fun of her for having two moms.
Emma's been attending st. Victor's for three years.
Why suddenly a problem?
No one knew about her home situation until recently.
When you insisted on making your presence known at school.
Kate was sick. Emma needed a parent for school functions.
And you needed to make a point...
that you were gay and the school better not discriminate you.
I didn't think the school would react the way they did.
But when they got angry at your lie,
you chose to take them to court.
It was important to take a stand.
More important than Emma's happiness.
No, of course not.
She was so miserable at st. Victor's.
Why not enroll her at another school?
I didn't want her to be ashamed that her mothers are lesbians.
You think it's appropriate for an eight-year-old to fight your battles?
I have never done that.
If you love her so much,
why did you make her stay at st. Victor's even though she hated it?
If I had it to do again, I would have taken her out of that place.
But you didn't.
And because of you, Sean hammil will never walk again.
Objection. / I know.
I'd change it if I could.
I made a mistake, and I'm sorry.
Nothing further.
Even after her mom got sick, Emma was always a happy girl.
And then suddenly about eight months ago, she wasn't.
What changed?
She was scared and lonely.
Zoe was either at work or at the hospital.
Emma's brother had to walk her home from school everyday.
What did you do?
My husband and I asked our daughter if Emma could stay with us after school.
Zoe didn't like it.
That's when she made Kate write her will.
She made Kate write her will?
Kate was getting sicker and sicker,
and sometimes she didn't even recognize us.
Zoe wanted to make sure she got sole custody of Emma.
Mrs. Boyd, did you persuade Emma to make false alligations against Zoe?
No.
I saw Emma was unhappy, and I asked her what was wrong.
- That's all. - Thank you.
Mrs. Boyd, can you read this signature at the bottom of your daughter's will
right next to where it says "witness"?
Ray Monaghan.
So Kate's ex-husband thought she was lucid enough to co-sign her will.
Kate wasn't thinking clearly. She, she didn't want to hurt Zoe.
She wasn't thinking of the best home for Emma.
By the best home, do you mean the best heterosexual home?
Objection. Argumentative.
I'll rephrase.
Do you think gay people should be allowed to raise children?
Ideally no.
I think parents should be raised by their father and their mother.
This is why you made up allegations against Zoe Dunlop,
because your faith rejected the idea of a gay woman raising your granddaughter.
It isn't just about faith.
I have read enough to know what would happen to Emma
- if Zoe raises her. - What would happen?
She will grow up sexually confused, promiscuous.
She will experiment with homosexual relationships.
And what makes you think that?
I have read studies.
Like the one that, that says that
kids raised by gay couples are 48 times more likely
to be molested by their parents than kids raised by straight parents.
Where did you come across these studies?
My attorney showed them to me.
When did he show them to you?
Objection. Relevance?
Please answer the question, Mrs. Boyd.
During Emma's trial in family court.
So just before you accused Zoe Dunlop of molesting Emma.
Yes.
What I read made me start looking for clues.
Then when we found the photos,
we knew we had to ask Emma what was going on.
And did Mr. Decker tell you what kind of questions to ask Emma?
Your honor, this line of questioning is a direct violation of attorney-client privilege.
Privilege protects the client, not the attorney, your honor.
I'll allow it.
Go ahead, Mrs. Boyd.
Mr. Decker said to be forceful with Emma.
He said molested children often deny being abused.
Sometimes they have to be led to the truth.
Your honor, Mr. Decker clearly coached his clients
into manipulating an abuse allegation out of Emma.
That's not just outrageous. It's criminal.
I offered advice on how to talk to an abused child. That's all.
Mr. And Mrs. Boyd never would have accused Zoe dunlop of molesting Emma,
- had it not been for Mr. Decker. - That's enough.
Counsel approach.
Your honor, miss Novak has absolutely no basis for these allegations.
And Mr. Decker has a history of representing straight clients
fighting custody battles with their gay exes.
So I get slandered for choosing who I want to represent?
You fed your clients anti-gay material before custody was even an issue
because you were gearing up for a fight.
That means you conspired to keep Emma away from Zoe.
That means you committed a hate crime.
That's ridiculous.
Not to mention you can't prove any of it.
Mr. Decker,
at the very least, this is a serious breach of ethical conduct.
Your honor...
I have no choice but to remove you as counsel and declare a mistrial.
I'm willing to offer you a plea arrangement
in exchange for your testimony against Mr. Decker.
Why would we testify against him?
Because he manipulated you by using faulty research.
According to the American sociological association,
gay parents are not 48 times more likely to molest their kids.
The article I read says differently.
That article was written by a man who was expelled
by the American sociological association for misrepresenting statistics.
The American academy of pediatrics and the national association of social workers
both agree that kids raised in gay homes
are just as healthy as kids raised in straight homes.
Why would Mr. Decker lie to us?
To further his agenda.
He wanted to use you and Emma as an example,
the damage homosexuality is doing to society.
All we wanted was to protect Emma.
Casey.
Zoe wants to speak to you.
Emma, why don't we wait outside, okay?
I wanna know why they're here?
We're gonna testify against Mr. Decker.
Zoe, we're so sorry.
We were only trying to do what we thought was best for Emma.
I don't believe you.
James Decker took advantage of them.
The same way he took advantage of Emma.
I know it would be hard to forgive them.
It's not gonna happen.
Zoe, please.
She's my granddaughter.
And she's my daughter.
You turned my baby against me.
You convinced her I was a child molester.
How could I ever trust you again?