ADULT_ETHAN ADULT_JACOB ADULT_JEHARI ADULT_JELLY ADULT_WESLEY AMANDA_GONZALEZ ANNA_GAVA ANTWON BAILIFF CHAD_ANDREWS COMMENTERS COMMENTER_DEUX COMMENTER_TROIS COMMENTER_UN COURTROOM_CROWD CYNTHIA CYNTHIA_STARBUCK DEIDRA DRYSDALE DR_PERKINS DR_PHIL DR_WACHTER GABE IRENA JENNIFER JENNIFER_MICHAEL JJ JUDGE_HUSS JURY_FOREPERSON KINNARD KRISTINE LOCAL_REPORTER_MICHELLE MARY MICHAEL NATALIA NEWSCASTER_DEUX NEWSCASTER_TROIS NEWSCASTER_UN OFFICE_CROWD OLIVIA_WINTER REPORTERS STARBUCK TAVERN_CROWD TONI VALIKA VINCENT_CINELLI WITNESS_DEUX WITNESS_UN DR PHIL There's just one question on everybody's mind: were you a 22-year-old scam artist or an eight-year-old child left for dead? NATALIA DR PHIL Is that a funny question? NATALIA Well, no. It's like if somebody decided to start telling people that your name's not DR PHIL, it's Dr. Will. And then those people tell people, and no matter how hard you try now, everybody's like, "Hey, its Dr. Will!" DR PHIL So you're saying-- NATALIA I was eight. I knew I was eight, just like how you know you're DR PHIL. DR PHIL But you told people you were 22. NATALIA Because Kristine trained me to lie. Uh, so people wouldn't figure out that I was a kid living on my own. DR PHIL But what about these accusations the Barnett's keep making, the horror movie stuff? You at the foot of their bed with a knife in your hand? NATALIA Of course, I didn't do any of that! DR PHIL Poisoning Kristine's coffee? NATALIA I was cleaning the kitchen, like she told me to. I have my spray bottle in my hand next to her coffee, she starts screaming. DR PHIL Kristine Barnett also claims you pushed her into an electric fence. NATALIA The woman tripped. Then all of a sudden she starts screaming I pushed her. ANTWON And our lawyer, you know, talked to the farmer who owns that fence. It wasn't even on. DR PHIL So then, they made it all up. Why? CYNTHIA Listen, when Natalia first got with us, there were some moments where she would act out and I'd feel like, "How am I gonna deal with this? Because this girl's been broken." You are not a burden to me, you are a light. But I think Kristine adopted Natalia as a project, another disabled kid to save. And when things got rough and she couldn't be the role model mom that she thought she was, she had to find a way to get rid of her. DR PHIL So, now you're taking them to court. What do you hope to get out of that? NATALIA It used to be getting back to my real age and getting legally adopted by my parents here. And yeah, of course I still want that part. But the other part? Getting to be a kid again, and that's all gone now. I'm 16, it's too late. DR PHIL So then, what do you want now? NATALIA I want justice. I want the Barnett's to do their time. KRISTINE Oh, for Pete's sake. Turn it off. KRISTINE I mean, look at how angry she is. It's terrifying. KRISTINE Just looking at her makes my blood pressure go up. It's not good for me. JENNIFER That's so weird, you know? 'cause I was just thinking this is exactly like a spa day. KRISTINE Is this is why you brought me here? To be tortured and taunted? DEIDRA Okay, uh, Terrence, could you please tell my client what you told me on the phone? KINNARD I know that this is hard to watch, but in the three years since Natalia gave that interview, her story's only gotten more damning. Now my team's been culling her depositions, some of her vlogs. She, uh, posted this last week. NATALIA Hey y'all, me and my family have started a GoFundMe to pay for my surgeries. NATALIA I hate being out here begging, but my doctors say I wouldn't have so much pain if the Barnett's would've taken care of me when I was a kid, so-- KINNARD Altogether, they give a pretty good peek into what the state's gonna lay out in Mike's trial next week, and yours after that. Now, you all were not harmed by Natalia, but that she was harmed by you. Grievously. KRISTINE It's hogwash. MICHAEL Can you please let him talk? KINNARD Despite your differences, you two have been killing it in the press and in the court of public opinion, but now we have to face the court of law. And as good as my team is, we've had some difficulty finding rock solid witnesses. Now, if things go well for Mike, chances are the charges against you will get dropped, too. So we have been hoping that you would have some ideas of people who could corroborate your story. KRISTINE Our story? JENNIFER You're the one who saw everything. KRISTINE Excuse me, pretty sure Mike's the reason we're in this mess. JENNIFER Is he? KRISTINE I'm not talking with her here. DEIDRA Okay, Jen, do you mind giving us the room for a few minutes? JENNIFER I do, actually. Yeah. KINNARD Michael, Jen, with all due respect, just for a little bit. We want Kristine to feel comfortable. JENNIFER MICHAEL I th-- I-I think we need her help, okay? JENNIFER Yeah, fine. I brought a book. MICHAEL Okay, thank you. JENNIFER MICHAEL NATALIA My mom keeps saying I'm rabbit hole-ing and I gotta chill, but of course I'm obsessing. This is my life. CYNTHIA No one's saying not to focus on it, baby. I'm just saying you got to eat, you gotta pee-- NATALIA Will you stop? CYNTHIA The other day, I nearly jumped outta my skin 'cause I heard Kristine Barnett's voice coming from the john. Turns out it was just Natalia Facebook stalking her from the toilet. NATALIA I'm not stalking her. STARBUCK Now, I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear anything about stalking, and draw your attention instead to the case we're building. KINNARD Now, the case we're building rest on two things: one, we have to discredit Natalia. Paint her as unreliable, a sociopath. Two, we need to show that you all were a nice couple who tried to support your capable adult dependent as best you could. So let's start with the age, who else can speak to that? MICHAEL KRISTINE Did you look into First Path? They were changing birth dates, fudging documents, it was a whole class action lawsuit. KINNARD Yep, yep. That suit absolutely goes towards, uh, discrediting Natalia's age, but it doesn't confirm it. So, who else? Doctors, uh, outside of Lawrence. KRISTINE I just cannot believe I'm here again. This is literal hell! KINNARD Well, um, maybe we could think about people who could speak to her behavior; uh, the violence. What about somebody from the school? STARBUCK So Dr Wachter, one thing the defense will argue is that Natalia was expelled for behavioral issues. DR WACHTER Yeah, I heard that Mrs. Barnett was saying that she had pulled Natalia outta school because she was a danger to their kids. She was bullying them, ramming them with her walker, but that's baloney. KRISTINE That's a dead end. KRISTINE He blacklisted me because I called out the way they treated kids with disabilities. DR WACHTER Natalia was the sweetest kid; polite, funny. DR WACHTER Honestly, it was the mom who made me nervous. KRISTINE I offered accessibility training and they laughed in my face. They were hostile. DR WACHTER She was really strict with Natalia and mean. But if you raised that with her, she would flip and, you know, say what an advocate she was for special kids. KRISTINE MICHAEL Okay. What about the mom from New Jersey? Right? She had the same issues that we had. MARY She showed up at my door with this theory that Natalia was a con artist stealing money for her medical care. MARY Uh, she kept saying that it was exactly like that movie Orphan. STARBUCK And did that track at all for you? MARY What, that she was a con artist? No. The last time I saw her, she was seven. KRISTINE No way. KRISTINE What's she gonna do? Get up there and say, "Yeah, I knew she was an adult, so I foisted her on another family?" She'll just lie. STARBUCK So why did you, then, give her up? MARY Her needs were more than we were prepared for. We thought that we were doing the right thing, giving her to a family that was better equipped to care for her. I'll never forgive myself with that. MICHAEL I don't know, she was totally honest with you, right? About-- About her son's birthday and-and how Natalia stole money from them? Right? KRISTINE That's different, sweetie. Me on the street versus in court? She'll never tell the truth. She has blood on her hands. KINNARD Okay, um, what about the psychiatric hospital? TONI I'm a pediatric nurse at Larue Psychiatric Hospital. TONI Natalia was on my rotation when they changed her age. I was worried about what might happen to a child in the adult wing of a psychiatric facility, but it was court ordered. I didn't have a choice. KRISTINE Natalia's very good at making people feel sorry for her, especially vulnerable people. It's what she did to Mike. That's part of sociopathy, manipulation. TONI I have no idea where this talk of sociopathy came from. TONI Natalia expressed joy, curiosity, empathy. Despite the mother's insistence, there was no diagnosis. MICHAEL Is there no one who can talk on our behalf? KRISTINE Don't be ridiculous, there's plenty of people. What about the neighbors? I practically had to beg that woman not to call the cops on her. JJ She was always asking for food or to use my phone. JJ She was dirty. I thought she was peculiar, but now knowing, it all adds up. I was so peeved about what she did to my grandson but turns out she was even younger than he was. MICHAEL So that's it then, I'm toast. KRISTINE I wish she had held me up against that fence until I fried. This is so much worse! JJ I hope Natalia knows, if I'd known what was really going on, I'd have done something. I-I hope this helps get her the justice she deserves. NATALIA Wow. CYNTHIA Now is this gonna hurt us, since Tally first told that gal she was 22? NATALIA Because Kristine told me to. CYNTHIA I understand that, baby. I'm asking if the judge will understand it. STARBUCK We'll have psychologists speak to the coercion that Talia faced, the Stockholm Syndrome. CYNTHIA You're feeling confident, then? Nothing keeping you up at night? NATALIA Will you stop? She said she feels good. STARBUCK What? No, no, no. I didn't say that; optimism gives me indigestion. I still wish we had a clear story for the jury to explain why a nice seeming couple would do something so godawful. DRYSDALE We've been scouring their texts to see if they ever talk about you, but there's almost nothing. NATALIA Wait, did he check her Facebook? DRYSDALE Why? NATALIA Kristine lives on Facebook, I bet a thousand bucks they use Messenger. STARBUCK Gabe? Can we subpoena the Barnett's Facebook messages? GABE Isn't the trial in two days? STARBUCK Yes, and? MICHAEL Hey, sorry you had to wait. Driving the final nail in my coffin took longer than expected. JENNIFER Oh, really? So the Kristine Barnett didn't swoop in and save the day. MICHAEL Oh God, it was brutal. It's like being tortured, beaten to a pulp. KINNARD Trials are pugilism. MICHAEL KINNARD You have to punch and get punched. Which is why I would love to discuss a potential nuclear option, a-a Hail Mary, should we need it. JENNIFER Listening. KINNARD Should this not go our way, my guess is that they will offer us immunity to testify against Kristine. I mean, the state wants Mike, but they want her more. MICHAEL Really? KINNARD Mm-hmm. You think that's something you could do? MICHAEL JENNIFER Yes, of course that's something he can do. MICHAEL She is the mother of my children! JENNIFER Who she never lets you see! Mike, this is a no-brainer. This is a literal get-out-of-jail-free card. KRISTINE All I've ever wanted to do is help as many kids as humanly possible, so the one silver lining of the pandemic was realizing I'm not a slave to geography and I can take my patented Spark Method international and bring it and sell it to organizations like yours. IRENA Sounds great, Mrs. Barnett. Can you hear me? KRISTINE Sorry, no, you're frozen. IRENA Okay, um... Um, is this better? I'm trying to say, we were very interested in your program, but my board was doing their homework on you and something comes up about child neglect charges? VALIKA Um... KRISTINE Oh wow, we made it all the way to Slovenia, huh? VALIKA Hi. Hi. Sorry. Um, just so you know, Kristine was the real victim. KRISTINE This is my friend, Val. I've been staying with her during this very difficult time. VALIKA Hi, hi. You know, she was targeted by a con artist pretending to be a child, and this person's just dragging her and her family's name through the mud. IRENA A res? That's unbelievable. VALIKA Yeah. Well, what makes it even more tragic is Kristine is the real deal. My daughter Shawn? My God, what we went through when we adopted her, and now she's going to be a freshman at Penn because of Kristine. She completely changed our lives. IRENA Wow, that's very powerful. VALIKA I would be happy to, you know, send a letter to your board or whatever you might need. IRENA Oh yeah. Yes, yes. Wonderful. Thank you, speak soon. KRISTINE I'm looking forward to it. God bless the children. You are a literal godsend. VALIKA Well, gotta do something to help you pay me back for all those fancy lawyers, right? I'm kidding. I'm kidding! You know I'm happy to help however I can. Truly. KRISTINE You know, the lawyers say if Mike gets off, they'll drop my charges too. VALIKA That's great! KRISTINE But the witnesses his team is bringing in are just... terrible. Would you ever be willing? VALIKA Yeah. No, of-- of course. I mean, you know I'm happy to sing your praises whenever I can! KRISTINE Mainly it would be talking about Natalia and what you saw, how violent she was and manipulative, and how she was a threat to me and my family. VALIKA Right. Sorry, I'm just-- I'm just trying to think. I don't know that I actually saw-saw any of the incidents. KRISTINE You just told Irena all about it. VALIKA Well, sure. But I mean, that's all stuff that you told me. I-I-I can't go into court and say that I saw things I didn't see, right? What do they always say on those shows? Uh, "Objection! Hearsay." KRISTINE Right. No, I wouldn't want you to do anything you're not comfortable with. GABE We got the Facebook messages and holy shit, hold onto your butts. DRYSDALE All right. KINNARD These messages are the most incriminating evidence I've seen in my entire career. For starters, you both use the M word repeatedly, when referring to Natalia. MICHAEL What's the M word? KINNARD No matter how many times we say that you cared for Natalia, using an epithet against little people proves bias, and that indicates intent. MICHAEL That's not fair! U-Uh, I didn't know it was a bad word. Kris, did you? KRISTINE These words go in and out of fashion all the time. KINNARD Well, look-- Okay, Michael, you also referred to her as "that thing," as in, "That thing totally blew people for McDonald's." And Kristine, you called her "A smoked-out, hungover hooker." KRISTINE That doesn't sound like me. KINNARD KRISTINE Who hasn't said ugly things about a person who was cruel to them? She was torturing us. KINNARD Honestly, it doesn't matter what you said. It's that you didn't tell us about this crap and the trials starts tomorrow. KRISTINE Well, these were private messages and we were married. KINNARD In a case involving a child, spousal privilege doesn't hold. KRISTINE She isn't a child! KINNARD The charges say she is. And so did Michael, which is why even though she's legally an adult, they're able to say you abandoned the child. MICHAEL Th-They-- They can't read these in the courtroom. KINNARD No kidding. Deidra and I are going to huddle up, get back into these case files and see if we can get these stricken. In the meantime, you two get your shit together. Read through these. Be prepared for what the other side now knows. And I'm gonna call you an Uber, my friend, because you don't look fit to drive. KRISTINE It's okay, I'll take him. We can go through this stuff together. NATALIA "I have a video of you whooping the holy freaking hell out of Natalia in the living room when you tried to beat the truth outta her." NATALIA Then she says, "Whatever. That midget was very evil and you know it." NATALIA I mean, the worse they are, the better for me, right? DRYSDALE I knew it was bad but getting in their heads, understanding how they saw you, the words they used to talk about you? I hate that you have to see all this. NATALIA It's the way a lot of people talk about people like me. DRYSDALE I'm just saying, if you decide it's too much, that you don't want to go to court, we've got you. I promise. NATALIA I'm not a kid anymore, Brandon. When I tell you I can handle this, I need you to listen. KRISTINE Why would you write something like that in a message? MICHAEL That you beat her? Because you did! And-- And you wrote right back like it was nothing, like you were proud! KRISTINE Whatever. She was evil and you know it. I was just trying to protect my family from her. When you take it out of context, it makes me sound like a monster! I swear, Michael, if I go to jail because of you-- KRISTINE Wh-- What's so funny? MICHAEL Nothing. It's just, it's ironical. KRISTINE I am not gonna let you pull that crap with me, Michael. KRISTINE What is funny? MICHAEL Terrance says that if I'm found guilty, they'll probably offer me immunity to testify against you. Apparently, the state wants you so bad that they're willing to let me off. KRISTINE And what will you do? MICHAEL It's a problem for another day. KRISTINE I know you don't wanna go to jail, Michael. I know you wanna stay with your new family, but I don't really think you want me to go to jail, do you? Can you live with that? The boys having no mother? MICHAEL I don't know. KRISTINE We should go somewhere and go through these like Terrance said. Maybe there's a way I can help. KRISTINE It should be quiet in here. Boys went to go see the new Thor. MICHAEL Oh, okay. KRISTINE Oh! What happened to the movie? ADULT ETHAN Tickets were sold out. KRISTINE Oh. ADULT JACOB What's he doing here? KRISTINE Your dad's trial starts tomorrow, so we have a few things to go over. MICHAEL You guys look really good. You got so big. KRISTINE Mike, why don't you let me talk to the boys? I'll meet you upstairs, it's the second door on the right. ADULT ETHAN But you said that he hurt you, and I-- KRISTINE He's on his meds now and he's harmless. I know how to handle him. ADULT WESLEY Who cares? I don't wanna see him. KRISTINE You won't have to see him again. ADULT JACOB Mom, no. This is crazy. KRISTINE End of discussion. I'm going up there now, so you guys are gonna stay here and keep-- MICHAEL Uh, d-- Did you plan for them to be here? KRISTINE What? No, you heard them. The movie got sold out, though they've seen it three times. MICHAEL I-I don't-- I don't-- I'm not sure I believe you, Kris. Look, it-- It's fine. I just-- We need to talk about e-everything else. This is-- This is feeling really weird, okay? It's really weird that no one is backing you up. And I'm just like, "She didn't make this up!" Did you? I mean, did-did you make this up? KRISTINE You've got to be kidding me. No, you're not pinning this on me. Who took her to Larue? Who made her her own trustee? Pretty sure it's both of our names on the re-aging petition. MICHAEL I did those things because of you! KRISTINE You lower your voice. MICHAEL Kris! KRISTINE I don't wanna scare my boys. MICHAEL I did those things, and I only did those things, because I believed you. Because you told me it was true and you asked me to do it, and I did that stuff. And if this isn't real, Kris, d-- do you understand? If-- If-- If what you said is-- And if Natalia didn't-- Oh my God! Oh my God. If we-- I can't-- I-I can't-- Oh, hold on, I need to sit down. I can't-- Kris, I'm having a panic attack. I can't-- KRISTINE Okay. MICHAEL Oh God, I can't breathe. KRISTINE Okay, I'm here. It's okay. MICHAEL KRISTINE I'm here. MICHAEL KRISTINE I'm here. MICHAEL KRISTINE Do you feel my hand? I'm here, it's okay. It's alright. You know what I think? You can't let them get into your head, baby. MICHAEL Okay. KRISTINE Don't let them undo all the good you did. Natalia was lying, she was dangerous. I know this is hard and I know you've been hurting, but you're a good man. You're a good father, a good man. You know why things got bad for us at the end? It's because you stopped needing me. MICHAEL Kris, no, I needed you. I did. I-- I-I-I thought you were ignoring me. And I-I was so lonely. I-- I was dying without you. KRISTINE You never got over what happened with her. You blamed me. I mean, the way you looked at me completely changed. You started looking at me like I was the enemy. And I know you don't mean it, but it kind of feels like what you're doing now; like I'm this terrible person. Baby, what we did was heroic. We had to protect our family. MICHAEL Uh-- KRISTINE And you stepped up. When I needed you, you stepped up. Then you had a plan to put her away, and to go to Dr. Lawrence. MICHAEL Yeah. KRISTINE When you did that, it made me feel so safe. MICHAEL Mm. KRISTINE So loved. And I guess that's-- That's the feeling I was trying to hold onto when I-- I sent you those pictures. MICHAEL God, those fucking pictures. MICHAEL I kept them. KRISTINE You did? MICHAEL Yeah, I-I like those pictures. KRISTINE I know what you like, Michael. MICHAEL KRISTINE You know I do. ADULT ETHAN We're, uh, we're pretty hungry, can we go get some pizza or something? KRISTINE Well, that's a great idea. What do you say we go to Villa Tronco like old times? Jacob? KRISTINE Wes? ADULT WESLEY You wanna come, Dad? It's been a while. MICHAEL Yeah. TAVERN CROWD KRISTINE Wes, have another piece. ADULT WESLEY I'm good. KRISTINE Waste not, want not. MICHAEL Kris, he said he's good. Christ. ADULT WESLEY Don't talk to Mom like that. MICHAEL Uh, that's Terrance. I'll be right back. Hey, what's up, my man? KINNARD Check your texts. MICHAEL Oh my God, holy shit. KINNARD Yep. The birth mom came forward with hospital records, the birth certificate, the whole nine. MICHAEL Uh, so this is like, really, really bad? KINNARD Could be the death knell. You think any more about immunity? MICHAEL KINNARD If the tables were turned, you know she'd take it. MICHAEL Yeah. Um... if-if it goes bad, let's-- l-let's do it. NATALIA "This girl is my daughter who was born 20 years ago. Doctors told me to leave the baby, that she had a complex pathology. 'Don't ruin your life,' they said. They had me surrender her immediately to an orphanage." NATALIA CYNTHIA I don't think we can show her. ANTWON Well, how are we going to hide it? I know it's awful, but I mean, it's all over the news. CYNTHIA But the way she's been obsessing, she's liable to hop on a plane and hightail it to the Ukraine. ANTWON CYNTHIA Hi baby. NATALIA I read it. It's great for the case. MICHAEL I told Terrance I'll do it, the immunity thing. JENNIFER Mm. MICHAEL Baby, I'm really scared. JENNIFER NEWSCASTER UN Proceedings begin today in a most unusual adoption case that has attracted international attention. KRISTINE Morning, bud. ADULT JACOB Have you read this, Mom? KRISTINE I don't read lies. KRISTINE Wheels up in five, boys. NEWSCASTER DEUX Michael Barnett and his now ex-wife Kristine stand accused of multiple counts of felony neglect, for abandoning their adopted eight-year-old daughter Natalia Grace, whom they claim was an adult con-artist out for blood. NEWSCASTER TROIS In breaking news overnight, Natalia's biological mother has come forward with the revelation that she gave birth to Natalia in 2003, not 1989, as the Barnett's claim. This could be the smoking gun the state needs to prove that the Barnett's abandoned her in a Westfield apartment when she was only at eight years old. REPORTERS LOCAL REPORTER MICHELLE All eyes are on the Tippecanoe County Courthouse, where counsel from both sides have gathered for a pretrial hearing to discuss the inclusion of this latest wrinkle. MICHAEL You're okay, you're okay. MICHAEL JENNIFER You got this. COURTROOM CROWD MICHAEL Uh, wait, where's Terrance? STARBUCK Your Honor, at this time, the state requests a-- JUDGE HUSS Just a moment, Ms. Starbuck. Where's the counsel for the defense? MICHAEL Uh, I-I'm sorry, My Honor. JUDGE HUSS Your Honor, please. MICHAEL Right. Your Honor. Doh. JENNIFER MICHAEL Long time listener, first time defendant. Uh, my-my counsel, um, uh, Terrance Kinnard, he's never late. So if I could-- Maybe we could have just a quick, um-- Uh, what do you call it? JENNIFER Recess. MICHAEL Recess, um, I could call him. JUDGE HUSS I'm afraid I'm the one that calls the recesses, Mr. Barnett. KINNARD Ah, Your Honor. Uh, Judge Huss, please accept my biggest apologies. Uh, two flat tires. What to the odds? STARBUCK Nice to see you, Terrence. Uh, as I started to say, in light of the breaking news about my client's birth mother, the state requests a postponement so we can send someone to Ukraine to test DNA. KINNARD Uh, I-I apologize, Your Honor, uh, but I hold our legal system in the highest regard as I know you do, too. Uh, so I'm offended on your behalf that Ms. Starbuck would waltz in here on the day our proceedings are to begin, in an attempt to trick this court into re-litigating, uh, Ms. Barnett's age. Ms. Barnett filed countless petitions to change her age, each of which was denied by the court, who upheld the fact that she was an adult when the, uh, Barnett's rented her an apartment. STARBUCK Your Honor, the state has unequivocal evidence that Natalia was eight years old when the Barnett's abandoned her, alone. KINNARD You know, I should thank you, Ms. Starbuck, because in trying to re-litigate this, you forced me to go back through paperwork I've read a hundred times and something new caught my eye. See this, here. Um, the state was previously granted the opportunity to appeal the decision in Ms. Barnett's 2017 re-aging trial, and they opted not to. And so now here we are, five years later, and they wanna waste the court's time by suddenly trying to appeal. I mean, I'm sorry, but that ship has circumnavigated the globe by now. STARBUCK Your Honor, Mr. Kinnard knows he has a losing case so he's grasping at straws, trying to throw out evidence on a technicality, truly. KINNARD If you wanna talk grasping at straws, uh, look no further than Ms. Starbuck trying to use a tabloid to smuggle the question of Ms. Barnett's age into court. STARBUCK I'm sorry, but the question of Natalia's age has not been smuggled in here. Half the charges against Mr. Barnett hinge on the question of her age! KINNARD Uh, which is why the defense would like to submit a motion to dismiss these bogus charges, uh, so as not to waste anymore of the court's valuable time. STARBUCK What? JUDGE HUSS Ms. Starbuck, i-is it true that the state declined to appeal the ruling of Natalia's age in 2017? STARBUCK Yes, Your Honor, but-- JUDGE HUSS Hold that thought. STARBUCK KINNARD Ah! CYNTHIA STARBUCK JUDGE HUSS Okay, this court will not set precedent for a criminal case to attack civil decisions; especially ones that have been upheld so many times. The state had ample opportunity to appeal the results of Natalia's age in 2017, and they declined. So I hereby grant the defense's motion to dismiss the four charges that rely on Ms. Barnett being a child. The remaining four charges that concern a legal dependent, still hold. JENNIFER STARBUCK Please, Your Honor, I beg you to reconsider. JUDGE HUSS I will give the state lunch to adjust their strategy. When we reconvene, the following rules will apply. Rule number one: Natalia may not be called a child or an adult. If the notion of her age must be referenced, she may be referred to as, "A person born in 1989." JUDGE HUSS The word adoption and discussion of her schooling are also barred, as those relate to her age. Rule number two: the topic of Natalia having been re-aged is off limits. NATALIA "Rule number three: given Natalia's legal age, the statute of limitations preclude litigating offense that took place prior to 2014?" OFFICE CROWD CYNTHIA This is BS! Everything they did to her happened before 2014. DRYSDALE Dr. Young, your orthopedist. STARBUCK Keep. The growth plate stuff is out, but she can testify that they didn't give her a walker or orthopedic shoes, and that increased her pain tenfold. DRYSDALE Her immigration papers? STARBUCK No, they have her birthday as 2003. DRYSDALE Agent Aguilar from CPS? STARBUCK Uh-uh, "Child Protective Service". CYNTHIA I'm sorry, what is happening here? The whole point is they abandoned a child. What else is there? STARBUCK They abandoned a disabled adult. We still have a case, four charges. NATALIA Well, we can still say they beat me, right? Y-You don't have to be a kid to be abused, we have the Facebook stuff. DRYSDALE We can't use the Facebook messages. CYNTHIA What? Why the heck not? STARBUCK They're protected under spousal privilege, now. We were able to make an exception because she was a child when the abuse occurred. CYNTHIA This is what I'm saying, it's rigged. This whole system, it's rigged. DRYSDALE Cynthia, with all due respect, you gotta stop. We've all been working too long and hard to let this go. This is our chance. ANTWON Don't do that. Let's try to stay respectful. CYNTHIA This isn't gonna end well, baby. NATALIA What else am I supposed to do? GABE It's time to get back in there. STARBUCK Okay, we can still do this. BAILIFF In the case of the State of Indiana versus Michael Barnett, the Superior Court of Tippecanoe County is now in session. ANTWON God is in control, remember that. NATALIA I will. JUDGE HUSS Will the defendant please rise? JUDGE HUSS How does the defendant plead? MICHAEL Not guilty, Your Honor. STARBUCK Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, because of her disability, Natalia Barnett was incapable of doing even basic tasks. She has no ability to take care of herself, yet Mr. Barnett abandoned her anyway. Now, the defense will argue-- KINNARD Natalia Barnett may look different than you and me, but she is a perfectly competent individual. Any difficulties she had while living alone are not my client's fault. Did Michael Barnett cause her Dwarfism? I don't think so. STARBUCK So, Dr Wachter, can you tell us how you came to observe Natalia's disability? DR WACHTER Sure. She attended Chapel Ridge Elementary School. KINNARD Objection! Your Honor, please instruct counsel and the witness to abide by your rulings. JUDGE HUSS Sustained. The jury will ignore that response. TONI I'm an LPN in the pediatric wing of Larue. KINNARD Objection! JUDGE HUSS Sustained. MARY This makes no sense. Her disability wasn't the reason she couldn't live alone, it was because she wasn't-- KINNARD Objection. JUDGE HUSS Ms. Starbuck, watch yourself. JJ Well, if I'd known she was a child-- KINNARD Objection. WITNESS UN Of course she didn't know how to shop for herself, she was a-- KINNARD Objection. WITNESS DEUX Well then, I don't know how to answer the question. KINNARD Objection! Objection! Objection! DR PERKINS We ran a battery of tests that were conclusive. She was a child. KINNARD Objection. DR PERKINS They knew she was a child! KINNARD Objection! DR PERKINS I'm sorry, are we just not interested in the truth here? KINNARD Objection! COURTROOM CROWD JUDGE HUSS Order. Order. The jury will ignore the witness's last remarks. KINNARD The state claims that you couldn't live on your own, but according to my math, you were old enough to take care of yourself. So can you please tell the members of the jury in what year were you born? KRISTINE Natalia. MICHAEL Hi. NATALIA I-- I'm a person... NATALIA Are you going to be my mommy and daddy? MICHAEL We sure would love that, if you'll have us. NATALIA ...born in 1989. NATALIA No, Mommy, Daddy, please don't leave me! Please don't-- Please don't leave. NATALIA I will, I will. JUDGE HUSS Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, in the matter of the State of Indiana versus Michael Barnett, have you reached a verdict? NATALIA JURY FOREPERSON We have, Your Honor. JUDGE HUSS We know these things can be emotional, but please, no outbursts. JUDGE HUSS Will the defendant please rise? JURY FOREPERSON On count one, neglect of a dependent: we find the defendant... JURY FOREPERSON ...not guilty. Count two: not guilty. Count three: not guilty. Count four: not guilty. NATALIA I'm fine. I'm fine. CYNTHIA You're smart to hide here. It's a circus down there. Michael Barnett trying to win himself an Oscar, literally on the floor. "Thank God, thank God!" NATALIA This isn't funny. CYNTHIA I know, baby. Nothing about this is funny. NATALIA Bet you're not surprised, right? You knew this was gonna happen. CYNTHIA I said nothing of the sort. NATALIA You think your face hides anything you're thinking? CYNTHIA I guess it does, if you're getting, "I told you so," from this. NATALIA Who was it that said this wasn't gonna end well? CYNTHIA I was trying to help you. NATALIA By treating me like a child? CYNTHIA No, by treating you like a young lady with a head full of steam. You act like you're invincible. And honey, you are close, but nobody's invincible; not all the way. NATALIA You don't think I know that? But we both know it didn't have to be this way. CYNTHIA What are you getting at? NATALIA The guardianship hearing! You were trying to help me then too? You didn't let us appeal the decision, you made us stop! CYNTHIA Oh, Tally, that is low. NATALIA We could have used the 10 million pieces of evidence to prove that I was a kid! My birth mother! The Facebook messages, the doctors! But I'm gonna be like this forever. For the rest of my life, people will see me like the Barnett's want me to be, a monster. A 33-year-old monster, just because you wanted to help. CYNTHIA Oh, no. Uh-uh. This is not on me, baby. There was a whole clown car of people to blame: courts, doctors, all the adults that knew what was happening and did nothing to stop it; and I'm not one of those people. NATALIA Maybe not, but you're worse, 'cause you act like you believe in me, but you think this is all I am. A project to help you feel better about yourself. You're just like Kristine! CYNTHIA You really think that? I know you're hurting right now, but as hurt as you are, you can't treat me like that. I'm not the one you're mad at. I love you. I don't think you wanna push me away. NATALIA I am a grown-ass woman, now. You can't tell me what I want. CYNTHIA Okay then. KRISTINE I just feel giddy to get my life back, just finally feel like there's this weight that's been lifted off and I can just breathe and just get back to saving kids. VALIKA I-I'm okay. KRISTINE We have to celebrate! VALIKA KRISTINE I'm going email my old publicist, tell her to shake off the cobwebs. Whoa! Facebook's blowing up. AMANDA GONZALEZ You deserve to rot in jail for what you did to that poor girl. VINCENT CINELLI There's a dark corner in hell for people like you. CHAD ANDREWS I hope you get raped. KRISTINE Ugh! VALIKA What? What is it? Kristine, what is it? KRISTINE People are sick, that's what. Case is literally closed. How can people still have questions? VALIKA I have a question. KRISTINE Oh? VALIKA Well, I just thought that-- I thought Natalia looked a lot older up there. She looked mature. KRISTINE Well, no matter how hard we Botox, we all age. VALIKA That's not what I meant. Kris, she looked taller. She has breasts now and hips. She's-- Her-- Her face looks like a young adult. KRISTINE Do you have a point, Val? VALIKA It's just that a lot of what they were saying, what the witnesses were trying to say-- Ah, do you think that possibly, maybe, maybe you could have been wrong? KRISTINE Are you kidding me? Whose side are you on, Val? VALIKA I was on yours, Kristine. But if she was a child-- KRISTINE She is a monster. VALIKA But why are you the only one who's still holding onto that story? There were so many doctors who were-- who were willing to testify on her behalf and all that stuff with her bio mom, and you couldn't find witnesses, right? KRISTINE Wow. I would expect this from some people, not my best friend. Who knew you were such a Judas. Boys, let's go! VALIKA I feel so stupid. I believed you, Kristine. ADULT WESLEY Mom? KRISTINE Get your stuff, we're going. ADULT WESLEY What? N-No way! Ethan and I are going to a party with Jayden. KRISTINE Fine. Jacob, let's go. VALIKA Kris, seriously? KRISTINE I saved your daughter. NATALIA Surprise. Sorry, I didn't know how to start. I just really need to talk to you. MICHAEL Yeah, uh, you know, I don't know if that's a-a good idea. NATALIA Michael, come on. You got off, so can we please just talk honestly? I need to understand. MICHAEL Okay. Just-- Um, just for a minute though, okay? What is it? NATALIA Um... it's-it's just-- You knew, right? That I was a kid; that she was hurting me. MICHAEL Um, that's-- I mean, it's-- it's complicated. You know? I mean, u-uh, uh, you-- you have to understand that, um, w-- we were both victims here, right? Kristine, uh, controlled me, too. She-- She-- She did it for years. She still-- I mean, she still does, and-and I just didn't have the strength to stand up to her. I think-- I think what happened, we-we were, uh, facing the same monster, that whole time, we were and we didn't even know it. That-- W-We're the same here. Right? Does that make sense? NATALIA But Michael, I was a kid. You were supposed to be my dad. MICHAEL Uh, you-- Do you wanna-- Do you wanna sit down? NATALIA Mm-hmm. MICHAEL Okay. KRISTINE Don't tell your brothers this, but you know I always like our private time the best when it's just you and me. KRISTINE Do you want some music? ADULT JACOB I remember what you did to Natalia. I'm not judging you. I'm not laying blame, I just-- I just had to say that. KRISTINE Oh, sweet boy, you were too young to know what was happening around you. We did everything we could to protect you from what was going on. ADULT JACOB But you didn't protect me from it. I saw it. And I'm not certain how to live with that. How do you? Mom, please. The trial's over. KRISTINE Exactly! So there's nothing more to talk about. ADULT JACOB In that article, her mom said the doctors told her that Natalia would never amount to anything. That her life would be better if she didn't even take Natalia home. It's a lot like what they told you about me. KRISTINE It's not the same, not the same at all. Don't you even say that! ADULT JACOB I've heard you give that speech a thousand times. He never learned to read, to tie his shoes. He'd never learned to wrap his arms around me and tell me that he loves me. KRISTINE We're almost there. NATALIA Why'd you do it, anyways? NATALIA Why on Earth did you adopt me? MICHAEL I don't-- I don't know. I can only speak for myself, but I-I just really wanted a daughter. I did. NATALIA But why? MICHAEL It's everything I've been saying. I just-- I was really broken and I wanted to feel better. NATALIA So I made you feel better, and then you didn't need me anymore? MICHAEL No. No, no, no, no, no. I didn't-- I didn't mean it like that, you have to understand. I-I was the one who was-- who was trying to hang onto you for-for as long as I could. I mean, I'm not a bad guy, right? I-I was just trying to-to make everybody happy. Don't look at me like that. What do you want me to do? Seriously, I will-- I will do anything. NATALIA Can you just admit what you did? That you hurt me? MICHAEL I-- Kristine hurt you. NATALIA Michael, if she was hurting you too, if you knew what was happening, why didn't you stop her? If you loved me, why didn't you do something? MICHAEL Mm. Hurt people hurt people, Natalia. That's just... NATALIA But you didn't have to. KRISTINE Are you freaking kidding me? What is she doing here? MICHAEL What are you doing here? KRISTINE I need a place to stay. There's a gas leak at Val's. MICHAEL What? Well, you can't stay here. You can't, my family's inside. You're gonna have to find a motel. KRISTINE I'm outta money Michael, because of you. I-- ADULT JACOB I saw you at the trial, Natalia, but I wasn't sure if I should say hi. NATALIA You-- You can say hi. ADULT JACOB I also wasn't sure if I should say that I've had time to think about stuff, and I should have helped you. KRISTINE Alright, Jacob. That's enough. ADULT JACOB They made us scared of you, but you were just a kid. I shouldn't have listened. I'm very sorry. NATALIA I-It's okay. It's okay, you were-- you were just a kid too. KRISTINE Okay, let's go to Grammy's. ADULT JACOB I don't think I want to. MICHAEL Do you-- Do you wanna stay here? KRISTINE Okay, Judases everywhere. Everywhere. DRYSDALE How'd it go? NATALIA Kristine showed up. Jake, too. DRYSDALE I'm sorry, I-I should have gone with you. NATALIA Mm. DRYSDALE DRYSDALE You shouldn't have had to face her on your own. NATALIA It's fine. At this point, I know how to handle her. DRYSDALE That woman. I don't know, I can never decide. You think she believes the story she tells? NATALIA Who cares? No one else does. JENNIFER Are you coming to bed? MICHAEL Okay. ANNA GAVA After Natalia was born, the doctor said I should give her up. They said she would never live a normal life. The doctor said there's nothing I could do for her. "You're young," They said. "You are 24 years old, don't ruin your life." KRISTINE DRYSDALE I wanted this to go differently. We failed you, Natalia. I'm sorry. DRYSDALE I'm sorry they made you lie on the stand. I'm sorry people didn't get to see the real you. NATALIA Thanks for the ride. ANNA GAVA After Natalia was born, the doctor said I should give her up. ADULT JELLY Hey Tally, is that you? Come here! ANNA GAVA They said she would never live a normal life. The doctor said there's nothing I could do for her. "You're young," They said. "You are 24 years old, don't ruin your life." NATALIA Oh. Well yeah, I saw it. ADULT JEHARI No, it's not that. Look, "We love you, Natalia." ADULT JELLY "You are a light onto the world." ADULT JEHARI "God gave you strength, Natalia." ADULT JELLY "That's right, Natalia. You go, girl!" ADULT JEHARI "You are a survivor!" ADULT JEHARI Wait, this dude's talking about marrying you. OLIVIA WINTER Love your YouTube videos. You're so funny and nice. CHAD ANDREWS I feel so bad I doubted you, Natalia. ADULT JELLY "Hope this will silence the doubters and the haters." ADULT JEHARI "We're praying for you, Natalia Grace." ADULT JELLY "You're beautiful inside and out." ADULT JEHARI "You're so courageous." ADULT JELLY "You're such a fighter." ADULT JEHARI "You deserve the world, Natalia." ADULT JELLY "And now the healing can begin." ADULT JEHARI "I wish I had her strength." COMMENTER UN Natalia Grace is a warrior! COMMENTER DEUX Prayers and best wishes for you. COMMENTERS COMMENTER TROIS They don't get to decide who you are, Natalia. ADULT JELLY "We see you, Natalia. You are loved."