Line of Duty Page #6

DRYDEN:

(On TV.)

Sergeant Alex Wallis and Constable

Vince Butler both leave behind

families devastated by their loss.

REPORTER 1 (O.S.)

Who were the other casualties?

DRYDEN:

(On TV.)

A police detective was pronounced

dead shortly afterwards. A second

police detective suffered minor

injuries. We’re withholding both

their names for operational

reasons.

REPORTER 1 (O.S.)

Can you confirm reports that there

was another casualty? A civilian?

DRYDEN:

(On TV.)

No.

REPORTER 2 (O.S.)REPORTER 3 (O.S.)

Deputy Chief Constable --Deputy Chief Constable --

Dryden pointedly ignores the questions. He takes on a more

emotional demeanour.

(CONTINUED)

Line of Duty #2.1 cherry revisions 25.6.13 35.

148 CONTINUED:

DRYDEN:

(On TV.)

“There’s been an attack on the

Police.” Those were my words on the

night of the ambush. For the

families who lost their loved ones,

the hurt goes on. For those of us

charged with finding their killers,

we must set that pain aside and

proceed with clear minds. And it’s

clear to me there’s another attack

on the Police, an insidious and

ultimately more devastating one.

Our numbers have been cut back.

Public safety has been jeopardised.

There’s no clearer indicator than

the fact that on that night we

weren’t even able to protect

ourselves.

Lindsay shows no reaction.

Loud music starts up, reverberating through the walls from

next door. It bugs her, makes her feel a prisoner in her own

home.

CUT TO:

149 INT. AC-12. LOBBY. NEXT DAY.

Escorted by a member of AC-12 staff and with her Police

Federation representative alongside (DI SAM ROYAL, 40s),

Lindsay (in collar) enter through a revolving door. Royal

signs them in at the desk.

ROYAL:

DI Royal. DI Denton.

CUT TO:

149A INT. AC-12. LIFT. CONTINUOUS.

Lindsay and Royal ascend in a lift with a window looking out

on stairs and a car park beyond. She looks nervous as hell.

CUT TO:

149B INT. AC-12. OPEN-PLAN OFFICE. CONTINUOUS.

At her desk, Kate takes no part in the interview. She appears

completely neutral about the matter.

Line of Duty #2.1 cherry revisions 25.6.13 36.

150 INT. AC-12. INTERVIEW ROOM. MOMENTS LATER.

Lindsay and Royal take their seats and open up their files

containing photocopies of statements etc. Steve and Hastings

pore over the various documents in front of them. Georgia

starts the tape while all this is happening. Georgia doesn’t

want to show it but she’s apprehensive.

GEORGIA:

AC-12 interview, DI Lindsay Denton

and Federation rep DI Samuel Royal,

in the presence of Superintendent

Hastings, DS Arnott, DC Trotman.

HASTINGS:

DI Denton, thank you very much for

coming in today. To be clear,

you’re being interviewed as a

witness, not as a suspect in

matters of crime, discipline or

misconduct.

LINDSAY:

Whatever I can do to help, sir.

HASTINGS:

Thank you. Now, your current post

is the Missing Persons Unit located

at 4th Street Station?

LINDSAY:

That’s correct, sir.

HASTINGS:

How did you come to be involved in

the operation that took place on

the night of September 5th?

LINDSAY:

Bad luck. I was on the ghost rota.

The Duty Sergeant took a call. He

passed it on to me.

HASTINGS:

What was said in that call?

LINDSAY:

The caller identified herself as DS

Akers. DS Jayne Akers. Akers or the

individual identifying herself as

Akers advised me that there was an

immediate and credible threat to

the life of a protected witness.

(CONTINUED)

Line of Duty #2.1 cherry revisions 25.6.13 37.

150 CONTINUED:

HASTINGS:

Did she expand on the nature of the

threat?

LINDSAY:

No, she did not.

HASTINGS:

Did she indicate how she’d come by

this information?

LINDSAY:

No, she did not.

HASTINGS:

Go on.

LINDSAY:

DS Akers requested assistance.

STEVE:

You were the duty station.

ROYAL:

DI Denton is entitled to be

questioned by an officer at least

one rank superior.

STEVE:

There’s no suspicion of DI Denton.

She’s being interviewed purely as a

witness.

LINDSAY:

(To Royal.)

Sam, it’s all fine.

(To Steve and Hastings.)

We were the duty station as Akers

and the Witness were at that time

located within the precinct of 4th

Street and the 4th Street Estate.

HASTINGS:

Did you share information with

officers at 4th Street Station?

LINDSAY:

I did not, sir.

HASTINGS:

You did not? Why not?

(CONTINUED)

Line of Duty #2.1 cherry revisions 25.6.13 38.

150 CONTINUED:
(2)

LINDSAY:

DS Akers impressed on me the secure

nature of our communication, and

that I should involve others only

when strictly operationally

necessary. I invented a cover story

involving the arrest of a missing

persons suspect.

STEVE:

You shared the information with no

one?

LINDSAY:

I discussed the matter with Deputy

Chief Constable Dryden. I sought

his approval to render assistance.

HASTINGS:

Hadn’t DS Akers advised you to

inform as few people as possible?

LINDSAY:

A critical incident response of

that type requires Gold approval.

HASTINGS:

Quite right.

STEVE:

You always adhere to regulations?

LINDSAY:

That’s what they’re there for.

HASTINGS:

I can see you and I are going to

get on like a house on fire, DI

Denton!

Nervous laughter.

HASTINGS:

Deputy Chief Constable Dryden. What

induced you to call him in

particular?

LINDSAY:

An incident occurred a few months

ago in which the Duty CS failed to

answer; DCC Dryden made it known he

could be contacted in such

circumstances.

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)

Line of Duty #2.1 cherry revisions 25.6.13 39.

150 CONTINUED:
(3)

LINDSAY (CONT'D)

I think it was his way of finding

out which brass were pulling their

weight and which weren’t.

HASTINGS:

Why did you assign Wallis and

Butler?

LINDSAY:

They were two officers I knew by

reputation. They could handle

themselves.

STEVE:

Two unarmed officers.

HASTINGS:

No firearms? No back-up?

LINDSAY:

If there was anything I could do to

reverse that decision ...

She looks very low. Awkward beats.

ROYAL:

DI Denton’s statement records she

was acting on DS Akers’

instructions.

At this point the atmosphere is starting to turn tenser. Both

Hastings and Steve act quickly to restore the more convivial

atmosphere.

HASTINGS:

No one’s blaming you, if those were

Akers’ instructions. But maybe they

struck you as irregular?

STEVE:

(Off Lindsay’s

hesitation.)

You took the view it was Akers’

area of specialisation?

LINDSAY:

Exactly.

Despite Hastings’ and Steve’s best efforts, Lindsay looks

anxious. Royal pours Lindsay a glass of water. She drinks,

her hand trembling.

Georgia looks very uncomfortable with the interview.

(CONTINUED)

Line of Duty #2.1 cherry revisions 25.6.13 40.

150 CONTINUED:
(4)

GEORGIA:

The ambush, ma’am. It must’ve been

frightening.

LINDSAY:

It was.

STEVE:

You ever experienced anything like

that before?

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