Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series)

Criminal Stories (2014)

Alec Baldwin: Jimmy MacArthur

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Quotes 

• Olivia Benson : [to Jimmy]  You know, I've spent fifteen years counseling women who have been assaulted, women who I have pushed to testify, you know, telling them they're not alone, "it's not your fault," "you're strong," but until you go through it yourself...

  Jimmy MacArthur : I was there for some of it. Harrowing, just to watch.

  Olivia Benson : It's over now.

  Jimmy MacArthur : So do you feel you have...

  Olivia Benson : Closure?

  [Jimmy nods] 

  Olivia Benson : Ah, yeah. You know, there's some things, you can put them behind you, but they do change you. It's a process. The good news is, I don't have as many nightmares now.

  Jimmy MacArthur : [while writing on his notepad]  Nightmares about Lewis...

  Olivia Benson : You know what, Jimmy, I'm sorry. I... um... can we keep the nightmares off the record?

  Jimmy MacArthur : Well, you do know you're supposed to say, "off the record" beforehand, but that's okay. I don't want to give the prick the satisfaction either.

  Olivia Benson : Thanks. I owe you.

  Jimmy MacArthur : You and everybody else in the world.

• Jimmy MacArthur : [When Olivia goes to visit Jimmy at his office at the Ledger]  Sergeant. So the mountain really does come to Muhammad. You, uh... want me to autograph the front page for you?

  Olivia Benson : Your story's wrong, Jimmy. Somebody set out a pile of horse manure and you just stepped right into it.

  Jimmy MacArthur : And you came here to clean that up for me? Circle where I got it wrong. Your vic lied about where she went after the benefit, she lied about being in the park...

  Olivia Benson : And if you'd bothered to ask me, I would have explained to you that more than half the time, the victim initially omits details of some aspect of the crime.

  Jimmy MacArthur : They omit details of some aspect? She made the whole thing up. There was no hate crime.

  Olivia Benson : Yeah? What makes you so sure?

  Jimmy MacArthur : She claims that they said, "Go back to India, you Muslim bitch." How did they know that she was from India? Or that she was Muslim? Or that muslims even live in India? Racism is a crime of ignorance.

  Olivia Benson : So you doubt her story because her attackers knew that she was Muslim?

  Jimmy MacArthur : Mooks like that never attack attractive women. They pummel "towelheads" behind a dumpster. You know that her father was the victim of a hate crime after 9/11? The police wouldn't take the report.

  Olivia Benson : So she stages a rape twelve in a half years later? Come on, Jimmy. Get real. The girl was attacked.

  Jimmy MacArthur : You are a real sob sister, you know that? Your vic had a couple of drinks, had sex with somebody she shouldn't have, then conflated her father's story with her own to get her family sympathy.

  Olivia Benson : The hospital reports show injuries consistent with rape.

  Jimmy MacArthur : But not scrapes from the stone wall, right? Just rug burns and carpet fibers consistent with a rough ride on some guy's floor.

  Olivia Benson : Who showed you that report?

  Jimmy MacArthur : You want my source? Okay, I'll give it to you. Write this down. It's a funny name. G-O... space... F-U...

  Olivia Benson : [cuts him off]  I got it, Jimmy.

• Reverend Curtis Scott : Mr. MacArthur, you claim to be the conscience of your newspaper. Where's the compassion for a young woman who's been violently assaulted?

  Jimmy MacArthur : The only assault here is on the truth. She lied.

• Jimmy MacArthur : [to Olivia]  You think I'm in the tank for Kemp? How dare you? I write for the working stiff, the guy that takes the 7 train, the guy who worries whether his kid needs a new pair of shoes or not.

  Olivia Benson : Okay, Jimmy, I understand.

  Jimmy MacArthur : No, you don't. If I wanted to sell out, I would have done that a long time ago. I should throw you out of here on your can.

  Olivia Benson : So you had no idea that Junior was involved in this?

  Jimmy MacArthur : That prick? No. If there were any truth to it, I would have written about it because it's a hell of a story.

  Olivia Benson : Well, then write it.

  Jimmy MacArthur : Bring her here. Have her tell me her story and I'll consider it.

  Olivia Benson : Are you out of your mind? Do you think she would talk to you after what you did to her?

  Jimmy MacArthur : No. She knows I'll see right through her, just like I did in the first place, just like I see right through you. You screwed up this investigation. Now you want me to save your ass.

  Olivia Benson : That's not what this is.

  Jimmy MacArthur : Oh, yes, it is. And you can get down on your knees until they're raw. I'm not gonna change my mind.

  Olivia Benson : Wow, don't flatter yourself, pal.

  Jimmy MacArthur : Good night, Sergeant Benson. It's time to go because you are boring me and that is the greatest sin of all.

• Olivia Benson : [to Jimmy after Heba testifies in court]  You happy now?

  Jimmy MacArthur : Well, it certainly isn't boring.

  Olivia Benson : She was telling the truth in there.

  Jimmy MacArthur : You lack confidence in the wisdom of the jury?

  Olivia Benson : They all read your columns, Jimmy. The way you crucified that girl, she was discredited before she even took the stand.

  Jimmy MacArthur : I see. So she digs herself a hole in the mud in Central Park, your squad falls in and it's my fault? I got my story right.

  Olivia Benson : No, you only got half of it right. Those two sons of bitches raped her and now they're gonna walk.

  Jimmy MacArthur : What do you want from me?

  Olivia Benson : How about a retraction?

  Jimmy MacArthur : That's funny.

  Olivia Benson : Yeah? You said that Heba wasn't raped and you know that she was.

  Jimmy MacArthur : Jimmy Mac don't retract. He don't apologize. He don't explain.

  Olivia Benson : Wow. So that is it. The great Jimmy Mac. It's all gone to your head, hasn't it? The awards, the long nights at Elaine's, the celebrity...

  Jimmy MacArthur : Don't forget the Knicks tickets.

  Olivia Benson : It's sad. You used to be good. You used to have a conscience. You're not a reporter anymore, Jimmy. You're just like them.

  [Jimmy starts coughing & gagging] 

  Olivia Benson : Hey, by the way, you should think about laying off the sauce.

  [walks away] 

• Olivia Benson : [to Jimmy]  So here's to justice, huh?

  Jimmy MacArthur : Nothing new. The biggest rat always gets the cheese. It's okay. Elias is on the wheel now.

  Olivia Benson : How's that?

  Jimmy MacArthur : [shows Olivia a piece of paper]  My last column for "The Ledger."

  Olivia Benson : Last?

  Jimmy MacArthur : Yeah. It's about a month in the life of Elias Kemp Jr., how he raped a girl in his office, pinned the rap on his best friend, wrote a check and walked away while his dad calls my publisher and asked to keep his kid's name out of the paper.

  Olivia Benson : Jimmy, you sure you want to run that?

  Jimmy MacArthur : I already posted it on the web. Every time that kid's name goes into a search engine, this story will come up. He can hire all the reputation managers he wants. He's f... he's toast.

  Olivia Benson : Jimmy, hold on. W... where are you gonna go? There aren't that many papers left.

  Jimmy MacArthur : Don't ever cry for Jimmy Mac. I always land on my feet. I'm 55 years old, my profession is dying, my ex-wives all hate me, my credit cards are maxed out 'cause I got three kids in college and I never felt better in my life. I said my piece and now the whole world knows that I got balls the size of Jupiter again.

  Olivia Benson : [reaches for her wine]  Here's to Jupiter.

  Jimmy MacArthur : Oh, yeah. One more for the road?

  Olivia Benson : [to the bartender]  I'll have what he's having.