Seeing this next to last episode of the short lived Trial By Jury series from the Law And Order franchise makes me doubly wish that this show had found an audience that could look beyond Jerry Orbach's demise. This show is about a father and son who both confess to the killing of a transgender woman who is pre-op.
The story as we first get it is young Victor Rasuk hooked up with a transgender woman by mistake and when she got a look at the private parts later freaked out and killed her. That's a story that could have flown if true, in my working days at the Crime Victims Board I had a case where precisely that happened and it was not the only incident with the same scenario.
But that's not what happened here. Rasuk as it turns out accompanied his father Giancarlo Esposito to the deceased's apartment and it was Esposito who beat the 110 pound victim to death. It's Esposito who is then arrested and Rasuk agrees to plead to a lesser offense to testify against his father.
The father is a real piece of ultra alpha male work. And Rasuk is torn between family loyalty and the fact his plea could be on the line. He makes a very wrong choice.
There are no winners here not law enforcement, not the victim's family and friends and in the end not the perpetrator and his family.
What was interesting here was that a short scene where a transgender activist played by Xavier O'Connor is shown speaking for the community of transgender people. O'Connor is by no means identified as an offshoot of the gay rights movement. In fact it's alluded that O'Connor is speaking for a specific transgender organization. Without using the name and possibly because the Trial By Jury producers had no permission, the transgender equality movement does have its own national organization and many support groups in various localities. I'm glad the show took note of that.
Another reason to regret the short life of this series.
The story as we first get it is young Victor Rasuk hooked up with a transgender woman by mistake and when she got a look at the private parts later freaked out and killed her. That's a story that could have flown if true, in my working days at the Crime Victims Board I had a case where precisely that happened and it was not the only incident with the same scenario.
But that's not what happened here. Rasuk as it turns out accompanied his father Giancarlo Esposito to the deceased's apartment and it was Esposito who beat the 110 pound victim to death. It's Esposito who is then arrested and Rasuk agrees to plead to a lesser offense to testify against his father.
The father is a real piece of ultra alpha male work. And Rasuk is torn between family loyalty and the fact his plea could be on the line. He makes a very wrong choice.
There are no winners here not law enforcement, not the victim's family and friends and in the end not the perpetrator and his family.
What was interesting here was that a short scene where a transgender activist played by Xavier O'Connor is shown speaking for the community of transgender people. O'Connor is by no means identified as an offshoot of the gay rights movement. In fact it's alluded that O'Connor is speaking for a specific transgender organization. Without using the name and possibly because the Trial By Jury producers had no permission, the transgender equality movement does have its own national organization and many support groups in various localities. I'm glad the show took note of that.
Another reason to regret the short life of this series.
