Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Case Study No. 0378: Craig Rossiter and Unnamed Female Librarian

N.T.E.19. Part 1.
9:42
N.T.E.19. Part 1.
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[scene opens with the members of the Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad gathered around a large tree in the middle of Richmond Park, the scene of the decade-old murder]
BRIAN: If this tree could talk, just think what it could tell us.
GERRY: I get rained on a lot and covered in bird shit!
SANDRA: Oh yeah, you're not a fan of the great outdoors, are you?
GERRY: Not the outdoors, the country! It's dangerous, trees in particular!
[Sandra takes out the case profile and looks it over]
SANDRA: Okay, Craig Rossiter, 32. Murdered June the 6th, 1996. Almost ten years to the day. No murder weapon found, no sign of a struggle, no sign of anybody else present.
JACK: Body was found here?
SANDRA: Yeah, close to the trunk. Dry, no rain. The surrounding area was completely undisturbed. The post-mortem indicates that he died where he lay from a single blow to the head.
BRIAN: And no sign anywhere of the killer's presence?
SANDRA: No.
GERRY: Maybe he fell out the tree.
SANDRA: It's a nice idea, but the position of the body and the post-mortem prove that he didn't fall from any height. It's a complete mystery.
BRIAN: What was he?
SANDRA: He was a librarian in Acton, and this is the other weird thing, is that was the only information on Rossiter that the murder team could find. Nothing else was known about him ... until now. According to new information, he was also a--
[Grace and her therapist Sarah arrive on the scene]
GRACE: He was a witch.
GERRY: He was a what?
GRACE: Witch.

[...]

[Sandra is interviewing the officer who previously investigated the murder case]
SANDRA: So, you were previously in charge of the investigation?
IAN SINCLAIR: Rossiter, aye. I remember. Loner the librarian. I was just a D.I. back then, it was a complete ass of a case.
SANDRA: Yeah, I got that from the file.
IAN SINCLAIR: Single, lived alone, thirty-three.
SANDRA: Thirty-two.
IAN SINCLAIR: No friends to speak of, except work colleagues. Oh, the mother! She was an alcoholic. My guess is she's dead by now.
SANDRA: She is. Now, you suggest in your notes that Rossiter was gay.
IAN SINCLAIR: Well, it was the only motive we could go with. Mostly because of where he was found. The Royal Parks police said it was a gay pick-up area, and he had no girlfriends. No one else seemed to know him. There's no weapon, no forensic, body was left out. Yeah, as I say, it was a real bugger ... uh, no pun intended.
SANDRA: So you never uncovered any clues to his character, such as hobbies or interests related to witchcraft?
IAN SINCLAIR: Come again?
SANDRA: You never heard anything about Rossiter being a witch?
IAN SINCLAIR: [laughs] What, you mean he had a broom and a cat?
[Sandra just stares at him]
IAN SINCLAIR: No. No, uh, I can't recall anything about the dark arts, no.
SANDRA: Okay.
IAN SINCLAIR: So, uh, if you get the killer, does that mean you'll put him away for a spell?
SANDRA: Thanks very much for your help.

[...]

[Jack and Brian enter the Bravington Library and talk to the female librarian (played by Alison Skilbeck) at the front desk]
JACK: Uh, good afternoon. Um, I'm Jack Halford, this is Brian Lane. We're from UCOS, we phoned.
LIBRARIAN: Oh ... yes.
BRIAN: We're looking into the murder of one of your colleagues.
JACK: Craig Rossiter.
BRIAN: It was about ten years ago. Would you remember him?
LIBRARIAN: No. No, I wasn't here then.
JACK: What about the rest of the staff?
LIBRARIAN: We're all relatively new. I heard about it, but ...
BRIAN: I wonder, do you have an occult section here? Of or relating to magical, mystical, or supernatural arts, phenomena, or influences?
[she points to a doorway behind them]
LIBRARIAN: Through there.
BRIAN: Thank you.
JACK: Thank you.
[cut to Jack and Brian perusing through the "Supernatural" section of the library]
BRIAN: They've not been taken out much, have they?
JACK: Well, what call is there for a spell to release faeries from your psychic halo?
BRIAN: Hm ...
[he looks at the "due date" slip in the back of one of the books]
BRIAN: The year Rossiter died.
JACK: Eeh?
[Brian heads back to the front desk carrying a large stack of occult books]
BRIAN: 'Scuse me.
LIBRARIAN: Yes?
BRIAN: Would you be able to tell me who borrowed these just from these dates?
LIBRARIAN: Absolutely not. We don't divulge that kind of information.
BRIAN: Oh, it's a secret, is it?
LIBRARIAN: No, it's illegal.
BRIAN: Ah, the Data Protection Act.
LIBRARIAN: Yes.
BRIAN: Well, no, actually. Because, y'see, there are certain provisions under the Act which permit access to specific material if there's a public interest in that information's disclosure ...
LIBRARIAN: No.
[as the two continue arguing, the camera pans to see Jack leafing through one of the books and - when he notices a photo of the pagan spirit "The Green Man" on one of the pages - ends up hiding it under his jacket]

[...]

[Brian and Gerry find the temporary home of Rhoda Wishaw - another witch who was in the coven with Rossiter - in the woods]
GERRY: Now, you knew Craig Rossiter. He was a witch just like you, wasn't he?
RHODA: A warlock. A searcher, but ... I never thought he was on the right path for finding it.
BRIAN: Finding what?
RHODA: Whatever it was that he was looking for.
BRIAN: You were in a coven with Cara Nabb. All the other members are either dead or deranged.
RHODA: What, do you think they were put under some kind of a spell?
GERRY: Yeah well, Rossiter wasn't. He was put under some heavy blunt object.

[...]

[Brian returns the stack of occult books that he checked out to the library]
BRIAN: Returns.
LIBRARIAN: Oh, thank you.
BRIAN: Do you know, I've always wondered ... if a librarian borrows books, do they have to stamp them out as well?
LIBRARIAN: Yes, of course.
BRIAN: Ah!
[he laughs and walks away, then cut to the librarian turning out the lights for closing time ... except that Brian has hidden in the stacks, so (once she leaves) he walks over to her desk and turns on the computer]
BRIAN: Let's see. Which books did Rossiter take out?
[he sits down and begins typing]

[...]

[Brian is sitting on a chair in the dark holding his head in his hands, as the sound of people walking towards him is heard]
LIBRARIAN: [from off camera] He said he would be sitting just round here, by the lift, Officer.
[the librarian and the police officer find him, as he pretends to be embarrassed by the whole thing]
BRIAN: Oh, I'm so sorry ... I was on the toilet, and I came over right queasy. I must've passed out.
LIBRARIAN: [to the officer] I'm really sorry.
POLICE OFFICER: That's alright ...
[he turns to Brian]
POLICE OFFICER: Are you alright now?
BRIAN: Yeah yeah, much much better, thanks.
POLICE OFFICER: Come on.
BRIAN: I feel daft really, y'know?
[cut to Brian ringing Gerry's doorbell in the middle of the night]
GERRY: [angrily] What do you want?
BRIAN: Warlock.
GERRY: Eh?
BRIAN: Rhoda called Rossiter a warlock, not a witch. Do you know what "warlock" means, literally?
GERRY: And do you know what the time is, literally?!
BRIAN: "Oath breaker," a breaker of his word. Now listen to this ...
[he pushes his way into Gerry's apartment and starts unfolding a crumpled piece of paper]
GERRY: Look, do you want a drink?
BRIAN: Yeah, a glass of water ...
[he points to the paper]
BRIAN: This is a list of book titles borrowed by Rossiter the year he died, but not from Bravington. Through the interlibrary lending service. Now listen!
[he starts reading from the list]
BRIAN: "Satan and His Place in Your Life" ... "A Voyage to the Dark Side and Back Again" ... Now remember what Cara Nabb said to Jack, about Rossiter's dying was nothing to do with him being a white witch? Well no, of course not. Because they're not white witches, they're black!
[cut to Jack, who has broken into Cara's house near Richmond Park, where he is looking for clues into the recent disappearance of Grace]

[...]

[Brian and Gerry are showing Sandra the list, which includes other titles like "The Origins of the Devil" and "Blood on Satan's Claw"]
BRIAN: He got hold of every Satanic text he could find, in the twelve months before he died.
SANDRA: Yeah, but why was he killed? I mean, if they were all black witches, why kill one of their own?
BRIAN: Maybe it's the "666" thing.
GERRY: What?
BRIAN: Y'know, Book of Revelation. The Mark of the Beast. The Beast, Aleister Crowley ... They kill one of their own on the sixth day of the sixth month, 1996.
GERRY: That's like that film, "The Wicker Man." Didja ever see it?
SANDRA: Yeah, yeah. Edward Woodward, they burn him alive.
GERRY: Yeah, because in the film, he's a virgin.
BRIAN: As of midnight tonight, it's the sixth of June, 2006. 6-6-6.
SANDRA: Ten years to the day since Rossiter died.
BRIAN: Grace ...
GERRY: Yeah, and I'll betcha any money you like she's a virgin!
SANDRA: Jack ...
BRIAN: Jack? I wouldn't of thought so ...
GERRY: No, no! In the film, Edward Woodward's a policeman!

[...]

[Jack has been discovered by Cara]
JACK: So, tell me about the cult of the Green Man ... or should I say, Jack in the Green?
CARA: No, we call him Green George, a thousand year old tree, maybe more. A place of worship, probably three times as old. A line of worshippers stretching back, unbroken ... We are not a cult. It's a system of spiritual belief, it's dedicated to good. To love.
JACK: I see. Is that why you have a picture of the Devil downstairs?
CARA: The picture to which you refer is our Cernunnos, the horned god. He predates Christ by about two thousand years.
JACK: Really? Well, I don't think yours is an order dedicated to love. I think it's a cult of death, and I don't know how or why, but I think Craig Rossiter was lured into it for one reason only. To be murdered.
RHODA: [from off camera] Cara, we have to hurry!
[as Jack turns towards the sound of the voice, Cara jabs a stun gun into his neck and knocks him unconscious]

[...]

[fearing that Grace will be sacrificed, the three members of UCOS have called for police backup, as they head for the spot in Richmond Park where Rossiter was murdered]
SANDRA: Oh shit, it's Grace!
[the camera pans around to show Grace being led to the spot by the chanting coven members]
GERRY: They're gonna kill her!
BRIAN: They are, they're gonna bloody sacrifice her! They're gonna do it! What we gonna do?
[Sandra looks down at her walkie talkie, as they hear the voice of a police officer say "In position."]
GERRY: The boys are here!
SANDRA: Come on!
GERRY: Let's go!
[police cars surround the coven members, while Grace quietly slips away]
SANDRA: Freeze! Freeze! Where's Jack?
GERRY: Where is he?!
RHODA: [looking around] Where's Grace?
GERRY: Wherever she's not gonna be sacrificed by you lot would be my guess!
RHODA: Are you insane? Is that what you think we do?
CARA: [crying] Grace!
RHODA: Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry, dear! The hour is past, the spell is broken! We're too late, we're too late ...
[cut to Jack regaining consciousness on the floor]
JACK: Oh ...
[he starts to get up, when suddenly he sees what he thinks is the image of his dead wife in the doorway]
GRACE: You ruined it, you ruined everything!
[the woman turns out to be Grace, whom Jack wrestles with before restraining her]
JACK: Grace? Grace!
[Grace sits on the bed and starts crying]
GRACE: He said he loved me! He told me ... He promised me love. Amazing, incredible love.
JACK: Rossiter?
GRACE: [whispering] He's the devil.
JACK: You see him? You see him, don't you?
[Grace is looking at a chair in the corner of the room, where the image of Rossiter appears to her]
JACK: You see Rossiter, he appears to you! Have you always seen him, ever since he died?
GRACE: [whispers] Yes. Do you see him?
JACK: No, not him ... someone else. Have you told anyone about this?
GRACE: No never, until now.
JACK: Well, what about now? Do you see him now?
[she looks at the chair, but it's now empty]
GRACE: No. No, he's gone. Is--
JACK: No, she's gone.
[they hug]
GRACE: We came ... We came together again tonight. Um, Green George in the green. To lift the curse and ... his curse!
JACK: It's alright, he's gone.
GRACE: Yeah, I know. I remember ... I killed him.
[cut to Rhoda and Cara being interrogated]
RHODA: Rossiter was extraordinarily charismatic. Within a year of joining us, he had used this power to prey on us.
BRIAN: Prey?
RHODA: [whispering] Sexually.
SANDRA: Including Grace, who believed she'd had sex with the devil.
RHODA: Grace was the final straw.
CARA: To abuse one so young ...
RHODA: We realized then that in order to protect ourselves, we had to--
SANDRA: Kill him.
CARA: We all struggled with him, and in that struggle, he died. We never meant to kill him, but in doing so in this sacred place, we defiled our own shrine, and we were cursed.
GERRY: Cursed?
CARA: Rhoda managed to mitigate the effects, but even her gifts fell short of fully protecting the rest of us.
GERRY: You look pretty good on it.
CARA: [pause] I have cancer.
[Sandra turns away to answer her phone]
SANDRA: [into her cellphone] Pullman.
BRIAN: "6-6-6" ... That's a Satanic date.
RHODA: No! It is only on this date, and at that special hour, that the moon and stars were in alignment. But you stopped us, and so we have failed.
SANDRA: Okay, thanks ...
[she hangs up her phone and turns back to the group]
SANDRA: Your house is empty, so last chance. Where's Jack Halford?
JACK: [from off camera] He's up here!
SANDRA: [looks around] Jack?
[they run over to see Jack and Grace sitting up in the tree]
BRIAN: How'd you get up there?
JACK: I walked, from that tree to this tree. Same as they did.
GRACE: We are one, one with the green. Betwixt and between. Unseen.
JACK: Magical ...

[...]

[Jack and Grace are now back on the ground, explaining Rossiter's murder to the others]
JACK: [pointing to the tree] He died up there.
SANDRA: The P.M. shows he couldn't have, he didn't fall.
JACK: That's right, he didn't. He was killed up there, and he was lowered by them very carefully. They could leave this tree, arrive and leave without leaving any trace. Correct? And you all just sat there--
GRACE: And watched as I killed Craig.
RHODA: You?
CARA: No no no! You didn't do it, Grace!
GRACE: Yes I did. It was me.
CARA: Grace, I'm dying. You saw Craig die, but you didn't kill him. I killed him, do you understand?
[she turns to the others]
CARA: Whatever you think happened here, I take sole responsibility! I killed Craig Rossiter!
SANDRA: Okay, cheers ...
[she motions for the police to take her away]

---

From bbcprograms.com:

"New Tricks" - Series 3, Ep 5 "Wicca Works" (2006)

Rossiter, a librarian, had been a member of a coven when he died 10 years ago. There were few clues as to the cause of his death. The team has to infiltrate the coven and speak to other members in order to get answers. But the investigation leaves them all feeling very uneasy.

With barely any leads, Sandra (Amanda Redman) takes the team to Richmond Park, the scene of Rossiter's death. A young woman, Grace Woodford (Poppy Miller), appears unexpectedly at the scene, clearly distressed and accompanied by her therapist. Also part of the coven, Grace remains traumatised by Rossiter's death although has little memory of the sequence of events leading up to it. But Grace is able to provide the names of other coven members, including Rhoda Wishaw (Stephanie Beacham), a white witch living in Ashdown forest.

The case takes another sinister turn when Brian (Alun Armstrong) visits the library where Rossiter used to work and makes a startling discovery.

---

From imdb.com:

Witchcraft starts to affect the team when they look into the case of a 32 year-old librarian from Acton, Craig Rossiter, who was found dead under a tree in 1996. The murder is quite peculiar in that there was no evidence that anyone else was present at the scene. He died from a single blow to the head. The case is brought to their attention by Grace Woodford and her therapist Sarah Lavin. Grace says Rossiter was a witch, a believer in wicca, and that she was there the night Rossiter was killed. She can't remember a thing however. Jack sees a resemblance between the way the body is posed and images of the Green Man he finds in various books on witchcraft. None of the detectives initially give any credence to witchcraft having any part in this but soon, strange events begin to have them think otherwise.

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