Absence of Malice

Capaletti.

Carlyle.

He's dead since June, boss.

ROSEN:

The man, Santos Malderone.

And here comes our boy,

Michael Colin Gallagher.

Forty-three here, 47 now.

Tommy Gallagher's only kid,

nephew of Santos Malderone.

Occupation, wholesale liquor.

MAN 1:
Look out, punch is coming.

MAN 2:
Duck, Waddell.

Hey, where were you

when I needed you?

Hi, Donna.

Oh, hi, Meg.

Did somebody rob a bank?

Wish somebody would.

Anything new on Diaz?

Oh, sure, lots.

We're just not ready

to discuss it yet.

So where is everybody?

Oh, no place you'd care about.

They're all watching the movies.

What movies?

Surveillance film.

Tommy Gallagher's funeral.

It's pretty funny. Bob Waddell

gets slugged at the end.

Who's Tommy Gallagher?

One of the bad guys.

He got dead before you got here.

All the crooks showed up,

so we took pictures.

Ask Bob to let you see it sometime.

Sure.

He's still crazy

about you, Meg.

He's a nice guy.

Donna,

I've been here three years.

Why would they be interested

in a guy that's been dead that long?

That got him busted for

assault. That's all we got

on Michael Gallagher.

For those of you who are new,

his old man, Big Tommy,

handled five states' worth of liquor

and kept the longshoremen

out of Miami for 15 years.

He played rough.

If he'd been alive when Diaz got hit,

he'd have been Suspect 1.

Since he was dead,

he's not involved.

Big Tommy had a stroke in '67,

brought Mike down from Chicago

to run the family store.

Word is, Little Mike's clean.

I don't buy it. I wanna find out.

Meersma, IRS gets his last six years.

Six? Come on.

Work it like a net-worth case.

I wanna know every nickel he's got

and how he got it.

I wanna know his mortgage,

his car payments, and his 2106s.

Mac, you guys crawl

all over his union stuff.

Bob, Bureau gets the rest.

Friends, neighbors, butcher shop.

I wanna know where he was

when Diaz went away.

I want this guy to know

we're in town, okay?

Hey, Bob, Eddie.

How come the streets

aren't safe?

Youths.

Disadvantaged youths.

You spent all morning

at the movies?

What movies?

The Gallagher funeral.

Donna said you might show it to me.

What?

Donna's on her way out.

Hey, wait a minute, take it easy.

She didn't do anything.

What are you doing for lunch?

Sorry, I've got a date.

WOMAN 1:
He's under arrest.

MAN 1:
What for?

WOMAN 2:

Sent him to a homicide

on Southwest 8th Street.

Did you hear him yelling at me?

Rosie, line four.

It's the electric company.

WOMAN 3:

Why do they talk in my teeth?

WOMAN 4:

It's the only way

they can reach you.

MAN 2:

Apalachicola. A-P-A-L-A-C-H...

Sue, there's a story in here

on a Michael Gallagher.

I'd like to have a copy.

Make sure this is on the son,

Michael Gallagher, not Tommy.

Okay, fine.

Thank you.

Bob Waddell's office, please.

[DANCE MUSIC PLAYING

OVER SPEAKERS]

Hi.

Hey.

Sorry I'm late.

It's okay.

Got hung up on a rewrite.

Glad you called. What's up?

Kathy,

a vodka martini, rocks.

I wanted to make sure that

Donna didn't get into any trouble.

She's gotta be careful.

She didn't tell me anything.

She just said you were looking

at the Gallagher film.

Yeah, well, let's forget it, okay?

Okay.

I'm buying.

No, no, put it on mine.

MAN:
Hey, Meg.

Hi. How are you?

Did you know he has a son?

Gallagher?

I called you last night. I thought...

Oh, I got in very late last night.

How'd you know he had a son?

Oh, I met him once at a party.

Oh, you cut your hair.

Yeah.

Well, it looks terrific.

Thanks.

He seemed nice.

Who?

Gallagher.

Listen, I'm gonna tell you something.

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