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forensicated · 4 months

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02x10 - With Friends Like That

TW: Discussions of rape, GBH, controlling behaviour/relationships and victim shaming and bigoted behaviour [from Pete as well as others. What a surprise, sadly!]

Bob returns to the station with two women in the back of his car whilst Tom reunites a man with missing stock in the car park. One of the women, Debbie, is in tears having been allegedly assaulted by her boyfriend the night before. Roy gently says he thought that the hospital would keep Debbie for a bit longer but Bob says she walked out. Given Sandra's demeanor, Debbie likely didn't get much choice. The friend, Sandra, names the boyfriend as Chris Garbett and insists Debbie wants him charging. Debbie has not uttered a single word herself since Bob picked her up from the hospital. Roy gently explains to Debbie that she'd have to give evidence against Garbett to take it further and, once she's in the interview room, tells Bob not to go and get the boyfriend until Debbie has decided for herself whether or not to take it further. He wants a statement as soon as possible because he feels she will change her mind, especially as the friend keeps answering for her. Bob is trying to get June to come and take the statement but Roy thinks she might open up to Bob more. "Women are funny creatures, Bob." "You should know, Roy!"

Ted is investigating a couple who have been committing burglaries. He asks them how many they've done in the last month and they suspect about 50. "Fifty... and I thought I was going to get home early tonight!"

Tom is trying to get the man who has been reunited with the stolen motors to sign his paperwork and leave. The man is confused because no matter how he counts them he keeps coming up with one more than he should. He knows there were definitely just 74 because he loaded the van. He drops one on the floor, stamps on the box, and then hands it to Tom as a gift for Ted for finding them) and signs that yes, he's now collecting 74! Tom keeps it for himself, sticking it in on his backseat under his coat, because it won't fit in his boot.

Bob is amused at how Ted recants finding the missing mowers. He stumbled out of a pub, half pissed, and found a van blocking him in. He called the boys in blue to come tow it away - and it just so happens to be a stolen van full of stolen mowers!

In the doctor's room, Sandra strokes Debbie's hair, promising that "he'll pay for this!" Bob arranges for them to have a cup of tea and then starts to arrange to take the statement.

Tom reports a robbery to Ted, the stolen items are almost all exactly what the couple in front of him and Ted had in the Harrod's bag that they were arrested with. There are a couple of credit cards unaccounted for. The man sighs and tells the girl to hand over the cards. June has just strip-searched her so she is amazed when she pulls her wig off and hands them over!

Bob asks Debbie if she wants to go through with making her statement. Sandra answers for her and says yes. Bob repeats what Sandra has told him so far to ensure they have it straight before they start taking the statement as they need it from Debbie in her words. They both went with the boyfriend, Chris Garbett, to a disco. Debbie left with Garbett and stood on some wasteground in a fire exit doorway. Sandra starts to answer and Bob shouts for her to stop and that she'll have to leave if she won't shut up. Debbie clings to Sandra and cries, begging him not to send her away. Pete breaks the tension by arriving with teas and Bob continues. "Would you rather talk to a woman officer, Debbie?" He asks before she shakes her head and tells him that they kissed and cuddled for a while and he was gentle and she enjoyed that. Sandra snaps that she won't continue with Pete in the room and Pete is dismissed. Bob reminds Sandra to keep quiet and that he has to hear it from Debbie. Debbie continues that Garbett then put his hand up her dress, and she told him to let go and that she wanted to go home. Bob asks if he touched her on her genitals and Debbie freezes. Sandra snaps that he did and when she told him to stop he beat her up and raped her.

With the admittance of a rape - though still not from Debbie herself - Roy tells Bob where Garbett works and to arrest him there and then take him back to the flat to get anything he wore the night before, particularly underpants. He wants him taken to Tower Wharf station so that they don't see each other. Roy places Debbie in the Chief Superintendent's office as it's more comfortable and Brownlow isn't in. He arranges for SOCCO to go to the wasteland and a female FME to attend and gets June assigned to look after Debbie because "she's done a course!" Roy gently tells Debbie what she's going to have to go through and offers to contact her parents. Debbie remains silent and Sandra says Debbie's father has died and she wouldn't want her mother to know what had happened to her so she's going to stay with Debbie. Roy and June subtly separate the girls and Roy growls to Sandra, when they're alone, that Debbie has been through something that will stay with her for the rest of her life and, whilst she's in his nick, he won't have more pressure put upon her than is necessary. He warns her to stop butting in because he's afraid she's going to give Debbie a guilt complex and she isn't to interfere or she'll be removed.

Ted takes the husband of the burglary reporter to CID and shows him the recovered stolen property. He immediately recognises his daughter's radio, the cards and the tapes. He then asks where the rest is - a Cartier wristwatch, jewellery, £700 cash, platinum cufflinks, a silver teapot and more...! In total he claims there's £10K missing but luckily they're well covered with insurance (!)

In his office, Roy calls Debbie's mother and requests her to attend the station, explaining that Debbie has been assaulted. Roy brings a change of clothes - a cleaning overall - and tells June that Debbie's mum is on the way with a change of clothes.

Ted tells the couple what the husband says he's missing after the robbery and they refuse to put their hands up, claiming it reads like a catalogue. Ted reports it to the DI as an obvious insurance fiddle but doesn't let on to the couple that he knows that.

Garbett is played by Glen Murphy (London's Burning and Frank Magorian, the father/husband of the mother/daughter pair that Phil Hunter sleeps with in series 18 - despite the girl being under 16) is taken into Tower Wharf station by Mike and Bob and, at the moment at least, he's staying silent.

Debbie gives her statement to June and keeps begging for a shower or even a wash in a hand basin. June tells her sadly that, until the samples and investigations are carried out, she's not able to wash so she doesn't remove evidence. Sandra snaps at June and asks her if her knickers are damp and claims she's getting a thrill from it. June shouts back at her that she's had enough of her. Ted and Roy overhear from outside. "... I'm going, that's your problem!" Ted insists, legging it. In the room, Debbie is in tears and June is shouting at Sandra to get out of the room, claiming she's purposely trying to obstruct the investigation. "I'll get you for this!" she shouts at June. Debbie breaks down, sobbing for her mum.

Outside, Roy asks Sandra what her game is. "I don't want Deb taken advantage of, that's all!" Pete is charged with keeping Sandra at the station but away from Debbie because she's a material witness. Roy then goes to collect the doctor, explaining that Debbie is sensitive and withdrawn and easily lead by the other girl who they've now parted her from.

In the interview room, Jim reassures Debbie's mother that she's brought her the right clothes when she worries that she might not have as something to focus on other than what really happened to her daughter. Debbie's mum claims that the police will think that she's just another girl who brought it on herself when Jim says that DI Galloway is doing his best to help her, as is everyone in the investigation. She tells him that she knows that Jim is trying to help but he's just saying what he's been told to say.

In the canteen, Sandra flirts with Pete and tells him that Debbie deserves what she got because she egged him on after teasing him. She offers herself to Pete on a plate, claiming he wants to take her out because he obviously fancies her. Pete says he fancies a lot of things at the moment and then shouts for Yorkie to look after Sandra whilst he goes to the toilet. Sandra then shifts her attention to Yorkie!

In the toilets, Pete tells Jim that Debbie is a bit of a tease and that she lead Garbett on. Jim shouts that he makes him sick. "She's been raped, Pete!" "She'll get over it. She probably enjoyed it! Mine you, clean her up a bit and I'd give her one myself!" "YOU BASTARD!" Jim shouts, punching Pete clean in the face. Jim comes back for him and the two men fight until the toilet is flushed by someone in the cubicle. [Never fails to let us down, Pete...!]

Upstairs, Debbie continues with her statement, telling June that Garbett pinned her down until she couldn't struggle against him anymore. Debbie admits she didn't tell anyone in the hospital or until it came out via Sandra because she didn't want to get into trouble. She starts to say that Sandra had told her to do something but Roy interrupts to tell them that the doctor has arrived.

Garbett is still remaining silent at Tower Wharf, just staring ahead as Bob says if he was any sort of man he'd admit what he'd done to her to give her a break.

The man with the lawnmowers rings Ted and explains he left a mower for him with Sgt Penny and he wants it back because it turns out he had miscounted after all and his boss is missing one. Ted says he doesn't know what the man is on about but he'll have a word and find out and then call him back. Later, Ted runs after Tom and tells him he wants a word with him. Tom plays the innocent when Ted asks him where the mower is. He then pretends to realise and tells him it's got to go back and that it's in the back of his car for him to take back. Ted is no fool and knows it's a load of crap.

Debbie's mother is horrified when Roy explains what really happened and she worries that she's pregnant or 'diseased' (At the time of filming the AIDS crisis was at its height). She apologises and says she's punishing everyone but herself when she feels it's her fault too. Roy asks why and names Garbett as Debbie's boyfriend and the rapist. Her mother snaps in shock that Garbett isn't Debbie's boyfriend - he's Sandra's boyfriend! Debbie's mother continues to tell Roy that Sandra's mother neglected her and her siblings and they were latchkey kids. Sandra used to get collected by men at the age of 14, she'd come home at all hours and then write her own late note. Debbie's easily lead and naive and felt sorry for Sandra. Her mother encouraged her to go out and get involved in things that teens her age were into. That's why she blames herself. She excuses herself to go home and wait for her.

Suffering with a nosebleed. Jim sits at the comms desk to take over from Taffy whilst he goes for a break. "You should try leading with your left next time..." Tom tells him.

Bob tells Garbett that the term 'rapist' is going to follow him around and eat him up internally. They've seen it many times. He finally speaks and says that he didn't mean to do it, he was drunk and was led on by Debbie. Bob reports to Roy that he has admitted it but won't be medically examined or make a written statement. Roy tells him to keep pressing for an examination and that his history is just criminal damage and nothing of a sexual guilty. It's written on his file that he's stubborn and will plead guilty in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. He tells Bob that Garbett is Sandra's boyfriend. At Tower Wharf, Bob puts it to Garbett about Sandra and he pretends to not know what he's talking about.

The doctor asks Debbie what went through her mind at the time of the attack. She says she shouted no and that she didn't want it and then her mind went blank and she shut everything out. The doctor gently asks if she's had boyfriends or experienced sexual activity before and Debbie tells her no.

Roy confronts Sandra with what they know about her and Garbett. She's a hard-faced mare and claims he's not her boyfriend. Sandra finally says she didn't tell him to beat her up or rape her but, at the bar, they did have a bet/dare that Garbett couldn't take Debbie's virginity as Debbie had been saying she was going to wait for marriage. Garbett reckons he's irresistible to women and that Debbie wouldn't resist him. Roy says he knows a few men like that at the station but they don't go around raping women. Sandra watched Garbett flirting and they left at 1am with their arms around each other. Roy claims that she'd be jealous and she turned her spite from Debbie to Chris and she's punishing him because he did exactly what she'd dared him to. "I didn't dare him to rape her!" she snaps and claims she wouldn't have told her to press charges if she had. "Attack is the best form of defense." Roy points out, glaring at her. "Until now you'd covered yourself pretty well playing the role of the caring friend." He tells Pete to take her down into the detention room whilst he works out what he's going to charge her with. As Sandra is forced out of the room, the doctor comes through to see Roy and tells she has samples of Garbett's salvia, public hair and semen stains for him from Debbie's body and clothes, but she doesn't have evidence of rape. Debbie is still a virgin. Garbett 'was a man in great haste' and ejaculated before penetration.

Ted releases the burglary couple on bail, telling them he can't be fairer than that but they need to get legal advice given what they'd admitted.

Debbie is very innocent, asking June if she likes her shoes because they're the first ones she bought by herself with her own money. Roy and the doctor enter the room and tell her, gently, that whilst she has been sexually assaulted, she hasn't been raped.

Roy and June sneak off for a smoke together as they talk through what really happened. June is updated on the truth about Sandra and Garbett. Roy tells her he's going to press charges on Sandra of conspiracy to rape. He doesn't understand how any girl could do what Sandra did to a friend. June suggests that Sandra regrets sleeping around and, because she can't turn the clock back, she does the next best thing to bring Debbie to her level. "It'll all come out in court..."

Bob and Mike mock Garbett for what happened to him in the heat of the moment to get him to crack and admit what he did through anger. Bob claims that a doctor might be able to talk to him about premature ejaculation. Garbett bristles and claims he'll see his own doctor or no deal. Bob agrees to let his doctor be present but not do the actual examination.

Debbie is confused as to what has happened to her and refuses to give evidence, claiming they were her friends - or at least Sandra was. She wants to forget the whole thing and begs Roy not to force her. She says she'll think about it but without her evidence, the charges won't stick. Debbie feels like she's been given a fresh chance and never wants to relive the nightmare of what really happened to her again, especially not in court. She's not physically strong enough to deal with the truth. "It's alright. I understand..." Roy says before promising to take her home. Debbie freaks and turns, running out of the station. Before he can follow, Tom Penny calls him back to tell him about a suspicious death and Roy is wanted at the scene.

Aaaand the day goes on, just like any other as the credits roll.

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