Runaway Jury Page #10

Wendall Rohr. An overdue pleasure.

Rankin Fitch.

Nice suit. Very, um, "of the people,"

Yours is nicer. What would you call it?

"Gun lobby protecting its own"?

Oh! Swank shoes. Big tobacco?

Big alligator. Wrestled it myself.

Excuse me, we're cleaning up in here.

Am I gonna get beat up now, Mr. Rohr?

What'd you do to my witness?

Threaten his family?

Write him a check? Just curious

about what your technique is, Mr. Fitch.

Maybe he, uh, decided against biting

the hand that fed him these past few years.

You know exactly why he came to us.

Oh, please. Don't tell me you hung

your case on somebody's conscience.

I hung my case on my own conscience.

Oh. I get it now.

You are a moral man

living in a world of moral relativity.

- It's just so quaint, so precious.

- Hey! Don't do that.

This is about my witness, right?

This is about you messing with my client,

my case and the rules of law

that govern our country!

- Our country?

- Yes!

I didn't figure you for a patriot,

Mr. Rohr, what with your blatant disregard

for the people's right to bear arms.

You know, the Second Amendment?

Is that why you're doing this?

To protect the Constitution, is that it?

Of course not. I'm in it to win.

Just like you are.

- Because that's what I was hired to do.

- Uh-huh.

- Everything else is colored bubbles.

- Colored bubbles? Colored bubbles?!

A system that calls for 12 people to sit

and listen to testimony of witnesses, fella!

And that includes my witness,

who you've disappeared!

If you're relying on testimony

to win this case, you've already lost it, fella!

You think this jury cares anything

about negligent distribution?

- Product liability?

- You bet your ass they do!

Oh, most of 'em can't even say the words,

let alone understand the meaning.

You think your average juror

is King Solomon? No!

He's a roofer with a mortgage.

He wants to go home

and sit in his Barcalounger

and let the cable TV wash over him.

And this man doesn't give a single,

solitary droplet of sh*t

about truth, justice or your American way.

- They're people, Fitch.

- My point, exactly.

You don't have an idea of

what I've been talking about, do you, sir?

What do you hope to achieve if you win?

What do you mean?

You gonna bring Jacob Wood

back to life? No.

You just ensure that his wife

goes to the cemetery in a better car.

And that the heel that she snaps

on the way to the graveside

belongs to a $1200 shoe.

You get your name in the paper.

But Jacob Wood

and all the other gun violence victims

remain rotting in their crypts.

You know what, Fitch?

- You're gonna lose.

- I doubt it.

Well, maybe not this case,

maybe not the next, but someday,

you know, someday.

I've seen it before with guys like you.

- You wanna know why?

- Why?

Because you cannot

carry that much contempt

without it becoming malignant,

until you're gonna be all alone

in a room full of shadows,

and all you're gonna have

is the memories of all those

people's lives you have destroyed.

That's a good story, Wendall.

But it's just further proof

of why you can't beat me.

Because you may be right...

but the thing of it is, I don't give a sh*t.

What's more... I never have.

That suit.

- Good evening, Wendall.

- George. Mason.

So... what's this about?

I'm going to need access

to the firm's emergency reserve.

- Emergency reserve?

- Yeah.

- In what amount?

- Ten million.

Gentlemen, I've lost my footing in this trial.

- Yeah?

- I'm looking for a David Lancaster.

You a bill collector?

I work for Dodge and I track people down

who have rebates

that they forgot to apply for.

I don't know where he went.

No forwarding address.

Wish I did, though. Got this letter for him.

- Kept it right here.

- Wow. Can I... can I take a look at that?

"Jeff Kerr, care of David Lancaster. "

- You know Jeff Kerr?

- No.

"Professor Frank Phelan

at Bloomington University. "

Mm-hm.

You know I could maybe split the rebate

with you if you wanted to let me...

Jeff Kerr.

Jeff Kerr.

David Lancaster.

Lots of aliases.

Jeffrey Kerr.

Hello there, Jeffrey.

So, as CEO of Vicksburg

Firearms, you were unaware

that your company's product

was being sold illegally?

- Yes, sir. Absolutely, sir.

- Mr. Jankle, are you a family man?

Yes, sir, I am. I have a son

and I have an eight-year-old grandson.

Anything else you'd like to add?

The Second Amendment

permits every good citizen of

this country to keep and bear arms.

Now, we at Vicksburg Firearms,

we didn't write it.

But as long as it stands,

we're gonna continue

- to operate under its protections.

- Thank you, sir. Nothing further.

Counselor.

Mr. Rohr, do you care to cross?

- Yes, Your Honor.

- Proceed.

- Now, Mr. Jankle...

- Yes, sir.

The, uh, ad copy

used to sell the Performa 990,

- would you read it to the court, please?

- It's right there, Counselor.

Oh, but I think that the jury would like to

hear it from the head of the company here.

If you could say it,

starting with, "Also available in... "

"Also available in a print-resistant finish. "

I see. Now, who in your mind, sir, might

be eager to purchase a Performa 990

semiautomatic assault-type weapon

in a fingerprint-resistant finish?

- Anybody.

- Anybody?

Fingerprints are 90% water.

Water corrodes metal. Metal rusts.

Wouldn't it be more appropriate

then to use the word "rustproof"

than "fingerprint-resistant" when

you're trying to sell this weapon

- to the general public?

- Well, you know,

I didn't write the copy for that

advertisement, sir. I think you know that.

- Did you see it?

- Objection:
Prejudicial.

- Sustained. Mr. Rohr.

- My apologies, Your Honor.

- Uh, now, Mr. Jankle?

- Yes, sir.

Tell me, sir, how much of

Vicksburg's profits come from

assault-type weapons, would you say?

Oh, I have to apologize to you, Mr. Rohr,

I do not know the answer.

I'm not familiar with that percentage.

But you are familiar with who buys

a weapon of this sort, aren't you, sir?

Well, the gun's intended

for recreational use.

Ah. For who?

Farmers or weekend sportsmen?

- Home protection.

- Or disgruntled day-traders?

- Objection, Your Honor.

- Sustained.

We sell these guns legally.

Oh, come on, Mr. Jankle, you know

that this gun is favored by criminals.

The statistics of your gun company

show that fact!

- Sir, that is up to law enforcement.

- I see. So that's not your problem.

- Why don't you just say it?

- Objection, Your Honor.

- Sustained.

- It is the government's responsibility!

Say it to the jury, sir,

that it's not your problem.

- Well, I...

- Say it to my client, Celeste Wood,

who lost her husband,

that it's not your problem.

- Tell it to the whole court...

- You amaze me, Mr. Rohr.

...that this Performa 990 with the

print-resistant finish is not your problem.

I stand on the Second Amendment,

goddammit!

Look, we've got damage-control strategies

and your testimony before cross

was more than strong.

Oh, you... you are the one that told me

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