Logline: A lone juror makes his stand on what he deems is

right against the tyranny of the many in a conspiracy case.

Locations: Exterior of courthouse building, Interior of
courthouse (specifically jury box), conference room, and
fancy large bathroom.

Characters:
Judge Bailey (50s lady)
Deputy/Bailiff (40s man)
12 Jurors...
Abraham (40s man)
Leo (30s man)
Rico (40s man)
Clarissa (40s lady)
Deejay (40s lady)
Ernest (30s man)
Mary (20s woman)
Ingrid (40s woman)
Maurice (20s man)
Gilbert (40s man)
Harry (40s man)
Kandace (50s lady)

2.
INT. COURTROOM - DAY
In a Los Angeles courtroom, in the front of the jurors box,
Foreperson Juror Abraham (male) stands with a folded paper in
hand. Other jurors sit and wait behind him.
JUDGE Bailey (female) delegates OS.
JUDGE BAILEY
(OS)
Has the jury reached a unanimous
verdict?
ABRAHAM
Yes, your honor.
Abraham hands the paper to the bailiff and the bailiff
carries the paper to the judge. Judge Bailey reads the
verdict OS. The bailiff carries the paper back to the
Foreperson Juror on screen.
Slow pan over the rest of the sitting jurors in the jury box.
They look serious and stern.
ABRAHAM (CONTD)
(OS)
The jury finds the defendant not-INSERT: TITLE CARD: GUILTY
INSERT: OPENING CREDITS
EXT. COURTHOUSE COURTYARD - AFTERNOON
In front an imposing concrete building, 12 jurors casually
sit on benches near patches of grass for their lunch break.
Lawyers and business men and women enter and exit building.
The deputy/bailiff overlooks the jurors on the staircase.
The hot sun saps the energy of young LEO who rests his head
down listlessly. He hears a pair of women talking OS, and he
looks over that direction with little particular interest.
Clarissa and Deejay talk over lunch.
CLARISSA
Its absolutely barbaric isnt it.
DEEJAY
Detestable.
CLARISSA
Of the laundry list of things that
we have to deal with...
(MORE)

3.
CLARISSA (CONT'D)
I mean why do we have to clean up
the worlds mess? You know their
missiles can reach Hawaii, they can
even hit us here in California...
Thats scary...
DEEJAY
Hes a megalomanic with bombs...
god, who does that right? Get over
yourself.
CLARISSA
Im sick of seeing his stupid face
in the news every 6 months... we
should really send troops to Korea
already.
DEEJAY
You know theres a North and South.
CLARISSA
Yeah, I know ones good and the
others bad...
Leo tunes out and turns his attention to Maurice who sits
alone playing a stupid gem game on this mobile phone with a
stupid smile on this face. He wears headphones and hes
completely engrossed in his own world.
LEO turns his attention to ERNEST and MARY who eat chips and
sandwiches.
ERNEST
No way, when did you go to Spain?
MARY
2 years ago.
ERNEST
Whered you go?
MARY
Barcelona and Madrid.
ERNEST
Absolutely gorgeous cities... Which
one did you like more?
MARY
I liked Barcelona a lot. La
Sangrada Familia was beautiful... I
had no idea how big it was!

4.
ERNEST
Barcelona is so touristy... I loved
Madrid. Were you there during the
running of the bulls?
MARY
No, I think I was there right
after...
ERNEST
Its amazing... no joke, it was
like the whole city closed down and
had a party for a month straight...
like Spanish Spring break, you
know... Ive never seen anything
like it... but that was when I was
single... Im married now...
married with a boy coming soon...
Leo tunes out and turns his attention to a serious older
lady, KANDACE, who carefully takes out many pills from a
folded napkin. Her hands shake. She swallows each pill one by
one.
The deputy looks at his watch, he whistles, and signals for
the jurors to come back inside.
Kandace, Ernest and Mary, Maurice, Clarissa and Deejay get
ready to go back inside with disappointment. But out of all
the jurors, Leo walks with the most reluctance with heavy
stones matching his gait.
INT. JURORS CONFERENCE ROOM - DAY
The 12 jurors sit around a conference table and they pass
down strips of paper to the foreperson juror, Abraham,
sitting at the head of the table.
He straightens out the pieces of paper in a pile.
ABRAHAM
(charmingly)
Ive got a feeling this is the last
one...
He flips through the strips of paper and stacks them neatly
on top of each after reading each one. He reaches the last
paper, and his face oozes disappointment. He places the last
paper separate from the stack.
The jurors gasp out of frustration and move in their chairs
restlessly...

5.
ABRAHAM (CONTD)
11 to 1... I guess thats better
than 10 to 2...
The jurors immediately turn their attention to Mary and Leo.
MARY
Dont look at me... I want to get
out of here as much as you do...
The 11 jurors stare at Leo sitting calmly at the end of the
conference table.
ABRAHAM
I thought we came to an
understanding in the last round of
discussion...
LEO
I dont know what gave you that
impression...
ABRAHAM
Didnt we agree that there isnt
enough substantial evidence to
convict Shapiro of conspiracy...
LEO
That defense was bought... the best
that the Primrose corporation could
buy.
ABRAHAM
Thats pure speculation...
LEO
Shapiro knew about the sludge, the
chemical dump, the designs of the
waste disposal system... how blind
could a man be if hes the chair of
community relations... all he has
to do is keep his mouth shut, and
have the best lawyers speak for
him...
ABRAHAM
This isnt a trial on public
perception... its a fucked up
case, I know... I dont just speak
for myself when I say that many of
us came into this ready to see
someone pay... but you heard the
insiders and you heard the
community...
(MORE)

6.
ABRAHAM (CONT'D)
for the crimes hes accused of,
nothing sticks... someones gonna
go down for this, but you cant pin
it on Shapiro...
LEO
Its having closed eyes on the
sludge for years... its dozens of
families and their poisoned
drinking water... its kids in the
community developing cancer at 5
times the nation average... who
will bring justice?
ABRAHAM
Not you, not us... You cant
connect Shapiro and Primrose...
thats the missing piece of your
argument... Shapiro left a full
year before the allegations against
Primrose circulated...
LEO
And why do you think he left? An
admittance of guilt? This what they
want... a complete clusterfuck of
allegations, leads, and dead ends,
so convoluted that no one can
follow anything, and you cant pin
a thing on anyone...
ABRAHAM
Its the burden of the prosecution
to prove guilt beyond a reasonable
doubt... the lawyers didnt reach
that standard in there... so we as
jurors have no choice but to vote
the other way... Is it getting
clear?
LEO
Its getting clear now... its
getting abundantly clear that
everyone in here is completely
incompetent... complacent...
simple... easily swayed... the
perfect jury to reign paper
justice... Civics is dead...
The jurors take offense.
GILBERT
Look man, quit wasting our time...

7.
HARRY
You did your own personal research
didnt you, they have rules against
that you know... what you googled
Primrose and all of a sudden youre
an expert? How did you even manage
to get selected on the panel?
The other jurors unite against him.
INGRID
I refuse to stay another day in
this courthouse and listen to more
conspiracy theories... I have a
job... I have a family...
DEEJAY
I miss my kids...
ABRAHAM
Well slate the rest for
tomorrow...
INGRID
No, I refuse... we have another
hour... we can still finalize the
verdict... theres no point in
carrying this another goddamn
day...
KANDACE
Were all tired... you have no
decency...
Leo is dumbfounded.
LEO
This is... exactly what they
want...
Leo exits the conference room.
INT. BATHROOM - DAY
In a fancy courtroom bathroom with many sinks and stalls, Leo
washes his face at a sink alone. He grabs paper towels and
dabs himself down.
A juror, RICO, enters the bathroom.

8.
RICO
You bring up some strong points...
but you understand our
frustration...
LEO
Im sorry, Im frustrated too...
RICO
I get the gist of what youre
getting at... were dunces...
LEO
Its not like that...
RICO
But I agree with you... we are...
myself included... who cares about
a rich, white evil chairman and
poor families from the hood...
were fools... pretending to be
important in a high stakes case...
we really just crave this
unexpected attention in our mundane
lives... its the next best thing
to a vacation from our shitty
jobs... but this courtroom drama is
starting to get stale... the others
cant wait to get back to the
tangled shit storm from which they
so happily left behind... This
group here especially, I dont see
them budging...
LEO
What do you think? Do you think
Shapiro knew about the whole thing?
RICO
Maybe... maybe not... the truth was
what was laid out in the courtroom.
LEO
You dont care if he walks?
RICO
He won most of us, so he wins...
thats all that really matters...
LEO
Not if you can do the right
thing...

9.
RICO
Not if youre the only one who
thinks hes doing the right
thing... so whats it going to be?
Ill
more
jury
then

LEO
stake it out till
days... get it to
and a mistrial...
the onus wont be

the end, two

be a hung
at least
on us...

RICO
Or we could walk back in and have a
verdict in the next hour...
I cant...

LEO

RICO
For everyone inside...
Leo shakes his head no...
LEO
Im sorry...
RICO
Some good might come of it if you
change your mind...
I cant.

LEO

RICO
A lot of good can come... as long
as its reasonable...
LEO
Are you bribing me?
RICO
Im giving you a tangible incentive
to change your mind...
LEO
Look at you... Im gonna report
this...
RICO
And I can report you for juror
misconduct... youre divulging a
ton of bias... the court can
penalize you for thousands...
(MORE)

10.
RICO (CONT'D)
you can even serve a little jail
time on a case like this... and I
got about ten others in there who
can vouch for me...
LEO
Well fuck me, Ill still do it...
this is a fucking mistrial... as it
should be... what is this shit?
Leo walks away.
RICO
Think about Lola...
What?

LEO

RICO
Think about Cameron, Denise, think
about your cat, Lemon...
How?

LEO

RICO
Change your vote... dont ask more
questions... we can work out a
reasonable figure... you can come
out of this ordeal a real winner...
LEO
Primrose bought an insider... is it
that simple?
RICO
How simple things turn out is
entirely up to you.
LEO
Was I right about the whole thing?
RICO
The difference between whats right
and whats wrong depends on whats
at stake... for the rest of us...
it really doesnt matter...
INT. COURTROOM - DAY
Slow pan over the rest of the sitting jurors in the jury box.
They look serious and stern.

11.
RICO
(OS continue)
Its right if you make it right,
and its wrong if you make it
wrong, the world turns and we move
forward...
Pan slows still on Leos face. He is visible shaken, anxious,
fearful, and guilty.
FOREPERSON JUROR
(OS)
The jury finds the defendant not-INSERT: TITLE CARD: GUILTY
ROLL CREDITS.