Desperate Justice
Encyclopedia
Desperate Justice is a 1993 film starring Lesley Ann Warren
, Bruce Davison
, and Shirley Knight
. It was based on the novel
of the same name by Richard Speight
, who also co-wrote the screenplay
.
housewife and mother Carol Sanders enjoying a morning run through the neighborhood with her 10-year-old daughter, Wendy. As they return, Carol's husband Bill reveals that he's managed to land an important business deal, though the happy mood is cut short after realizing that the couple's older, rebellious daughter, Jill, has overslept again. Wendy offers to wake her, but a minor argument ensues between the two sisters after she does so, though Carol quickly defuses it.
Later that day, Carol must cover for a co-member of her women's club and host a club luncheon; however, the luncheon runs late, leaving her unable to pick up Wendy (who's staying after school to work on a science project). Since Bill is in Los Angeles
for a meeting concerning his aforementioned business deal, Carol calls Jill at the record store where she works and asks her to pick Wendy up, but Jill inadvertently forgets about it until 10 minutes after she was supposed to be at Wendy's school.
However, once on the road, Jill runs into a traffic jam and doesn't get there until much later. Not finding Wendy anywhere on the school grounds, she hurries home and tells her parents the news; Bill returns to the school with her, but they are still unable to find Wendy, and the police are called, who soon discover the presence of blood and suspect it might be hers.
Unable to sleep that night, Bill and Carol receive a visit from one of the detectives on the case, who found Wendy on the side of the road after being badly raped and beaten, which left her in a coma
. She is brought to the local hospital's ICU
while the police try to determine if the crime was committed by a school faculty member or a stranger. A tearful Jill says she feels like what happened was her fault, but Bill assures her that is not the case.
Two days later, an arrest is made: Frank Warden, the janitor at Wendy's school. As it turns out, Frank had two molestation charges in California
, but they did not show up on his background check. While detectives assure Bill that they have a slam-dunk case, a number of discrepancies soon come to the surface in court, culminating in a solid alibi
from Frank's mother, Bess, who testifies that her son was dining with her in a restaurant when the crime occurred, and the case is dismissed as a result. Seeing Frank smiling and laughing about the decision, a grief-stricken Carol suddenly snaps, pulls out a gun and shoots Frank in open court, critically wounding him.
After Carol is released on bail
following her arrest, Wendy emerges from her coma, though a doctor reveals that it will take time for her to recall the traumatic events she went through, and that she'll need support from her family and psychiatric help. In the meantime, Carol attempts to secure a defense attorney and approaches Ellen Wells, who had represented Frank Warden, but she is unable to do so, as Frank is still alive.
Desperate for assistance, Carol then tries to approach Frank's mother, but Bess angrily turns her away, revealing that Frank had just died in the hospital. Later that day, a tearful Wendy has suddenly learned about everything her mother has been through, along with her own ordeal (as Jill had filled her in), and in an emotional scene, Carol does her best to help her understand. However, this decision later sets off an argument between Jill and Carol, during which Jill accuses Carol of blaming her for what happened to Wendy and wishing it had happened to her instead.
Now having managed to secure Wells' service, the two prepare for Carol's case, but the unexpected twists and turns soon complicate things. To top it off, Carol returns home to find Jill and her boyfriend Brian making out in Jill's car, and after Carol makes a scene about it, another argument ensues. Angrily, Jill repeats her earlier claim that Carol blames her for Wendy's ordeal, as well as not having any time for her, culminating in Jill storming out of the house.
By the next morning, Jill has still not returned home, causing Carol to miss her first court appearance, much to the presiding judge's annoyance. Finally, she finds Jill sitting by Wendy's hospital bed, and the two have a heart-to-heart talk where Carol admits that Jill was right: despite Carol's repeated denials, in trying to blame someone because of her overwhelming pain, she unfairly scapegoated Jill because she didn't want to blame herself.
However, Jill now sees the validity in what Bill told her earlier, and assures her mother that none of them are at fault. A short time later, Wendy has finally come home and the family has a "welcome home" party in her honor, but she admits to Jill that she's feeling "scared" and "different" from her family and friends, and wonders if they'll still like her. Jill assures her not only will they still like her, they'll like her more for the strength and courage she showed the whole time. Satisfied, she emerges from the house and is warmly received by her family and the invited guests.
Not long after Wendy comes home, the trial finally begins, with Carol attempting to prove that she had lost control of herself in the moment she shot Frank Warden. However, the jury ultimately returns a guilty
verdict on the charge of manslaughter
, and a sentencing
date is set for two weeks later, but realizing that any further strain would not be good for Carol or the family, Wells makes a motion for a more immediate sentence, which is granted, and the date is moved up to the following day.
Just before the sentence can be handed down the next day, a voice from the gallery requests to address the court: Bess Warden, who admits to having provided a false alibi for her son at his original trial, thinking the courts could prove Frank's crime without her help.
Realizing everything Wendy has been through, and knowing jail time will neither bring back her son nor make what he did to Wendy go away, she asks for leniency in Carol's sentencing. Moved by her statement, the judge reduces his originally planned 6-year sentence to just three years (which can be reduced to two for good behavior), and also grants weekend visitation rights to Carol's family.
in the UK on 8 October 2001.
Although the film never received a DVD release in the United States
, it has been frequently seen on both Lifetime and sister channel Lifetime Movie Network
since its original airing.
Lesley Ann Warren
Lesley Ann Warren is an American actress and singer. She has been nominated once for an Academy Award and Emmy Awards and five times for Golden Globe, winning one....
, Bruce Davison
Bruce Davison
Bruce Davison is an American actor and director.-Early life:Davison was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Marian E. , a secretary, and Clair W. Davison, a musician, architect, and draftsman for the Army Engineers. His parents divorced when he was three years old. He was raised by his...
, and Shirley Knight
Shirley Knight
Shirley Enola Knight is an American stage, film and television actress. She has been nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, in 1960 for The Dark at the Top of the Stairs and in 1962 for Sweet Bird of Youth....
. It was based on the novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
of the same name by Richard Speight
Richard Speight
Richard Speight was an English-born railway commissioner in Victoria, Australia. After a career in railway management in England, he accepted the new post of railway commissioner of the Railways Department of Victoria, in 1883. He was tasked with implementing the Railway Construction Act 1884,...
, who also co-wrote the screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
.
Plot
The film opens with ArizonaArizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
housewife and mother Carol Sanders enjoying a morning run through the neighborhood with her 10-year-old daughter, Wendy. As they return, Carol's husband Bill reveals that he's managed to land an important business deal, though the happy mood is cut short after realizing that the couple's older, rebellious daughter, Jill, has overslept again. Wendy offers to wake her, but a minor argument ensues between the two sisters after she does so, though Carol quickly defuses it.
Later that day, Carol must cover for a co-member of her women's club and host a club luncheon; however, the luncheon runs late, leaving her unable to pick up Wendy (who's staying after school to work on a science project). Since Bill is in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
for a meeting concerning his aforementioned business deal, Carol calls Jill at the record store where she works and asks her to pick Wendy up, but Jill inadvertently forgets about it until 10 minutes after she was supposed to be at Wendy's school.
However, once on the road, Jill runs into a traffic jam and doesn't get there until much later. Not finding Wendy anywhere on the school grounds, she hurries home and tells her parents the news; Bill returns to the school with her, but they are still unable to find Wendy, and the police are called, who soon discover the presence of blood and suspect it might be hers.
Unable to sleep that night, Bill and Carol receive a visit from one of the detectives on the case, who found Wendy on the side of the road after being badly raped and beaten, which left her in a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
. She is brought to the local hospital's ICU
ICU
ICU may refer to:*I.C.U. , an Australian thriller starring Christian Radford*Intensive care unit, a specialized facility in a hospital that provides intensive care medicine...
while the police try to determine if the crime was committed by a school faculty member or a stranger. A tearful Jill says she feels like what happened was her fault, but Bill assures her that is not the case.
Two days later, an arrest is made: Frank Warden, the janitor at Wendy's school. As it turns out, Frank had two molestation charges in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, but they did not show up on his background check. While detectives assure Bill that they have a slam-dunk case, a number of discrepancies soon come to the surface in court, culminating in a solid alibi
Alibi
Alibi is a 1929 American crime film directed by Roland West. The screenplay was written by West and C. Gardner Sullivan, who adapted the 1927 Broadway stage play, Nightstick, written by Elaine Sterne Carrington, J.C...
from Frank's mother, Bess, who testifies that her son was dining with her in a restaurant when the crime occurred, and the case is dismissed as a result. Seeing Frank smiling and laughing about the decision, a grief-stricken Carol suddenly snaps, pulls out a gun and shoots Frank in open court, critically wounding him.
After Carol is released on bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
following her arrest, Wendy emerges from her coma, though a doctor reveals that it will take time for her to recall the traumatic events she went through, and that she'll need support from her family and psychiatric help. In the meantime, Carol attempts to secure a defense attorney and approaches Ellen Wells, who had represented Frank Warden, but she is unable to do so, as Frank is still alive.
Desperate for assistance, Carol then tries to approach Frank's mother, but Bess angrily turns her away, revealing that Frank had just died in the hospital. Later that day, a tearful Wendy has suddenly learned about everything her mother has been through, along with her own ordeal (as Jill had filled her in), and in an emotional scene, Carol does her best to help her understand. However, this decision later sets off an argument between Jill and Carol, during which Jill accuses Carol of blaming her for what happened to Wendy and wishing it had happened to her instead.
Now having managed to secure Wells' service, the two prepare for Carol's case, but the unexpected twists and turns soon complicate things. To top it off, Carol returns home to find Jill and her boyfriend Brian making out in Jill's car, and after Carol makes a scene about it, another argument ensues. Angrily, Jill repeats her earlier claim that Carol blames her for Wendy's ordeal, as well as not having any time for her, culminating in Jill storming out of the house.
By the next morning, Jill has still not returned home, causing Carol to miss her first court appearance, much to the presiding judge's annoyance. Finally, she finds Jill sitting by Wendy's hospital bed, and the two have a heart-to-heart talk where Carol admits that Jill was right: despite Carol's repeated denials, in trying to blame someone because of her overwhelming pain, she unfairly scapegoated Jill because she didn't want to blame herself.
However, Jill now sees the validity in what Bill told her earlier, and assures her mother that none of them are at fault. A short time later, Wendy has finally come home and the family has a "welcome home" party in her honor, but she admits to Jill that she's feeling "scared" and "different" from her family and friends, and wonders if they'll still like her. Jill assures her not only will they still like her, they'll like her more for the strength and courage she showed the whole time. Satisfied, she emerges from the house and is warmly received by her family and the invited guests.
Not long after Wendy comes home, the trial finally begins, with Carol attempting to prove that she had lost control of herself in the moment she shot Frank Warden. However, the jury ultimately returns a guilty
Guilty
Guilty commonly refers to the feeling of guilt, an experience that occurs when a person believes that they have violated a moral standard.Guilty or The Guilty may also refer to:-Law:*Guilty plea, a formal admission of legal culpability...
verdict on the charge of manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
, and a sentencing
Sentence (law)
In law, a sentence forms the final explicit act of a judge-ruled process, and also the symbolic principal act connected to his function. The sentence can generally involve a decree of imprisonment, a fine and/or other punishments against a defendant convicted of a crime...
date is set for two weeks later, but realizing that any further strain would not be good for Carol or the family, Wells makes a motion for a more immediate sentence, which is granted, and the date is moved up to the following day.
Just before the sentence can be handed down the next day, a voice from the gallery requests to address the court: Bess Warden, who admits to having provided a false alibi for her son at his original trial, thinking the courts could prove Frank's crime without her help.
Realizing everything Wendy has been through, and knowing jail time will neither bring back her son nor make what he did to Wendy go away, she asks for leniency in Carol's sentencing. Moved by her statement, the judge reduces his originally planned 6-year sentence to just three years (which can be reduced to two for good behavior), and also grants weekend visitation rights to Carol's family.
Cast
- Lesley Ann WarrenLesley Ann WarrenLesley Ann Warren is an American actress and singer. She has been nominated once for an Academy Award and Emmy Awards and five times for Golden Globe, winning one....
as Carol Sanders - Bruce DavisonBruce DavisonBruce Davison is an American actor and director.-Early life:Davison was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Marian E. , a secretary, and Clair W. Davison, a musician, architect, and draftsman for the Army Engineers. His parents divorced when he was three years old. He was raised by his...
as Bill Sanders - Shirley KnightShirley KnightShirley Enola Knight is an American stage, film and television actress. She has been nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, in 1960 for The Dark at the Top of the Stairs and in 1962 for Sweet Bird of Youth....
as Bess Warden - Missy Crider as Jill Sanders
- Allison MackAllison MackNot to be confused with Alison MacAllison Mack is an American actress. She is best known for her role of Chloe Sullivan on the Superman-inspired television series Smallville.-Early life:...
as Wendy Sanders - David Byron as Frank Warden
- Annette O'TooleAnnette O'TooleAnnette O'Toole is an American actress, dancer, and singer-songwriter. She is most recently known for portraying Martha Kent, the mother of Clark Kent on the television series Smallville.-Early life and career:...
as Ellen Wells
DVD release
Desperate Justice was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in the UK on 8 October 2001.
Although the film never received a DVD release in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, it has been frequently seen on both Lifetime and sister channel Lifetime Movie Network
Lifetime Movie Network
Lifetime Movie Network is a cable channel that is part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, LLC, a subsidiary of A&E Television Networks, LLC. A&E Television Networks is a joint venture of the Disney-ABC Television Group, Hearst Corporation and NBCUniversal. LMN offers women-oriented movies...
since its original airing.