American Violet Page #2

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been gathering information

for months.

He has a very strong case.

- There must be

some kind of mistake.

- Miss Roberts, I would

advise you to be silent.

Mr. Foster's job

is to build a case against you.

- You can ask anyone.

I don't have

anything to do with drugs.

- Miss Roberts,

you're only hurting yourself.

Mr. Foster, were drugs found

on Miss Robert's person

when she was arrested?

- Apparently not.

- At her place of work?

In her home?

Does she have any record

as a drug dealer?

- The Harmon County

Drug Task Force

has conducted an extremely

impressive operation.

It convinced the DA.

It convinced

the grand jury.

And frankly, David,

if you saw it,

it'd convince you.

- Miss Roberts,

how many children do you have?

- Four.

Sherice is eight,

Sharonda's five,

Laquisha's four,

Tanya's two.

But I never done any drugs,

and I wouldn't-

- Mr. Foster,

could I speak with you alone

for a minute, please?

- Certainly.

[Indecipherable speech]

- Miss Roberts, you have

a very talented lawyer.

And against my better judgment,

he has convinced me

to offer you a plea bargain.

- Miss Roberts,

despite what Mr. Foster

believes to be

the strength of his case,

because your record

is relatively clean

and due to the nature-

- And because of the age

and the needs of your children.

- He's prepared

to offer you a plea.

- If you plead guilty

to felony possession

with intent to distribute,

you can go home today

with a ten-year

suspended sentence

and a small fine.

- But I never sold any drugs.

- Then post bail.

We'll set a court date.

- $70,000?

Or you can stay in jail

and await your pretrial hearing

in...

end of March.

- That's almost six months.

I can't do that.

What am I gonna do

about my kids?

- I'm sorry the burden

your behavior has imposed

on your children,

Miss Roberts.

That is why I'm prepared

to offer you a plea.

But be under no doubt,

if you don't take the plea,

we will prosecute you to

the fullest extent of the law.

Good-bye, David.

- What's he mean by

"the fullest extent of the law"?

- 16 to 25 years.

[Toilet flushing]

- Be careful the sh*t you hear

from the public defender.

- Mm-hmm.

- Did he tell you,

if you plea, you a felon?

- No more food stamps,

no AFDC,

no welfare,

no Medicare

for you or your kids,

never again.

- Can't get a job.

Can't vote.

You girls

in the project?

Then they throw you out.

That's government housing.

- Mm, mm, mm, mm

Mm, mm, mm

[somber piano music]

Mm, hm, mm

Mm, hm, mm

Mm, hm, mm

Mm, mm-mm

Mm

Mm, mm

- I don't want to be late.

[Knocking on door]

[Loud hip-hop music playing]

[Knocking on door]

- Who's out there?

- Miss Alma Roberts.

I came to get

my granddaughters for church.

- Yay.

[Child crying]

- Are they ready?

Oh, come on, baby.

Don't push her.

Come on, sweetie.

Come here, pumpkin.

[Child crying]

- Her diaper is full.

- She ain't bothered by it.

- I'm bothered by it.

- It bothers you,

you change it.

- I'll come by

when I want them back.

- That's great.

Darrell,

that's just great.

Come on, y'all.

- Glory

- Glory

- Glory

Our Lord

- You don't think

she might've been

mixed up with drugs,

do you?

- Heck no.

Dee ain't no angel, but

she sure ain't no drug dealer.

- Sherice is fighting.

- What?

- Grandma,

Sherice is fighting.

- What's going on?

Come here.

- Let go!

Ow!

- Cut that out!

Don't you push her!

Sherice!

Acting like that

in your Sunday clothes.

Quit it!

Stop it!

- Come on.

Stop that this instant.

- Hey, hey.

- This is what the Lord expects

from you on the Sabbath?

Sherice, Chantrelle,

what's wrong?

- She grabbed me.

- 'Cause you called my mama

a drug dealer.

- Your mama

is a drug dealer.

- Oh, oh, wait a minute!

- Stop that now.

- Come on,

not another word

from either one of you,

not another word.

Did y'all

see this here?

Y'all see this here?

This thing done tricked down

to the children.

Now, I wonder

where they got that from?

Half of our congregation

is in trouble with the law,

some that did wrong

and some that didn't.

Sherice...

Chantrelle...

I want you...

- Lord, have mercy.

- Thanks, Gladys.

- Dee Roberts.

- How I look?

- You look great.

- Thanks.

- Dee?

Dee!

- Ten minutes.

- There she is.

I see her.

- Hey, Mama.

- Hey,

say hi to your mama.

- Hey, babies.

- Hey, Mama.

- Do you see her?

Come here, sweetie pie.

- Ah.

- You look good, Dee.

- Look at my hair, Mama.

I am not looking good.

But look at y'all,

how pretty you are

in your Sunday dresses.

- Yeah,

we been to church.

- What happened to Sherice?

- Oh, she okay.

She just got

into a little scuffle.

- Here, let me talk to her.

- Come on, Sherice.

Come on up

so your mom can see you.

Come here.

Can you see her?

Come on up here

so you can see her.

- Hey, baby.

- Hey, Mama.

- What happened to you?

- Nothing.

- Mm-mm.

I can see

something happened.

Come on.

- They said you were

staying in here for life.

They say

we're gonna be homeless.

[Children crying]

- Everybody, calm down,

calm down.

This is all right.

It's all right.

You are not

gonna be homeless.

They crazy,

'cause your mama,

your mama's coming home.

She's coming home

real soon,

ain't you?

- Mm-hmm.

- They offer you a plea?

- I didn't do anything,

Mama.

- Dee, everybody pleas,

and nobody ever's guilty.

- I'd be a convicted felon,

Mama.

- You'd be home

with your girls.

- They'd throw me

out the apartment.

I'd lose my food stamps,

the money

for Sharonda's medicine.

- You gonna lose all that anyway

if you go to prison.

- Didn't you always say,

"The truth will set you free"?

- [Chuckles]

Girl,

that's in the afterlife.

God care about the truth.

The DA don't

give a sh*t about the truth.

He'd lock n*ggers up

till judgment day.

- Time's up.

- Dee?

Darrell has been coming back

to get the girls.

So you think about that

when you thinking of what to do.

- He still with Claudia?

- Mm-hmm.

- Mama, don't leave the girls

alone with her.

- Dee, I am doing

the best I can.

- Mama?

- He is their daddy.

- Mama, do not leave them

alone with her.

Promise me, Mama.

- Think about that plea.

- Mama?

Mama?

Mama, you know what she's done-

- Say bye to your mama.

- Bye, Mama.

- Bye.

- Oh, babies, bye.

- Love you.

- Bye, babies.

Bye, babies.

I love you, Mama.

- Dee!

- Bye!

- Bye, Dee.

We love you.

Come on, baby.

Let's get

out of this jail.

They love to see black folks

up in this place.

- To the desk and he said,

"You know how many times I've

been through this with you?

"I'm gonna tell you right now,

you gonna have to arrest me,

'cause I don't give a sh*t"-

- Excuse me.

Do y'all know

where I might find Judge Pryor?

[Knocking on door]

- Judge Pryor?

- Yes, Sam?

- I have someone here

who'd like to speak with you.

- Yeah, come on in.

- Appreciate it.

- And I think

the U.S. Supreme Court-

- We-

we've counted all the votes.

We counted them

on election day.

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