Variety & Rolling Stone Truth Seekers Summit presented by Paramount+, explores the art of documentary and investigative storytelling. Exclusive keynote conversations and panel discussions with leading documentary filmmakers, journalists, and cultural trendsetters making an impact and effecting change.
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00:00I would love both of you to just walk through the experience of hearing the verdict, the big one.
00:07What was that day like?
00:09You give your version.
00:11It's not, waiting for a jury just so people know, I don't know,
00:14maybe like surgery without anesthesia would be worse, but I'm not sure.
00:18It's just, it's horrific.
00:20There's a photo of Robbie Kaplan sitting outside the jury room on the floor,
00:25just sitting there like this waiting for the jury.
00:28You know, like a child on the floor.
00:31She may as well have had marbles in front of her.
00:35This is the first trial.
00:39We had lunch, and then we looked at Robbie sitting on the floor,
00:45and then the marshal or somebody came and said,
00:49the jury has come to a decision, there's a verdict, there's a verdict.
00:53We could not believe it.
00:55At first we thought they just have a question for the judge.
00:58No, it's a verdict.
01:00We could not believe it.
01:02Sean Crowley, who did brilliantly, we all got into the witness room.
01:10We put our arms around each other.
01:13Robbie said a Jewish prayer.
01:16Joshua, I think.
01:17Joshua said a Jewish prayer.
01:19Sean Crowley, a prosecutor who came out of the Southern District of New York,
01:26she prosecuted criminals.
01:28She looked at all of us and she said, don't get your hopes up.
01:31They didn't have enough time to consider damages.
01:36I told her not to say that.
01:38She actually said that?
01:39She said that.
01:40She said that.
01:42We all were, we just, you know, we went in.
01:50Sean had prepared us for, you know, the jury is not going to reach the decision we want.
01:59And Robbie and I were holding hands on this side and Sean and I on this side.
02:10Robbie has tiny hands.
02:12Look at the difference.
02:14I mean, look.
02:17She's lucky she has use of this entire arm.
02:23They came in.
02:24The judge said, have you, you know, Andy the clerk read the questions.
02:30Have you, the first thing was the sexual assault.
02:36The first question, did he rape E.G.?
02:39The jury came back and said no, he didn't.
02:42And boy, that was not a good sign.
02:47The second question is, did he sexually abuse E.G.?
02:51Which meant fingers, et cetera, et cetera.
02:54Everything.
02:55In New York now.
02:56By the way, New York has passed a new law.
02:57Rape is rape in this state now.
03:01And so they asked, Andy the clerk asked, what do you vote on, did he commit sexual abuse?
03:10And the reply was yes.
03:15And then they went to damages.
03:18And it was a wonder, it was more money than I ever, you know, the 5 million.
03:25It was the happiest day of my life.
03:30And it, there's something called, you know, the academy award winning syndrome that you win the academy award,
03:38and four days later your life goes back to what it was and you got all the dreck and you had to deal with the thing.
03:44I never had, I'm still up this high.
03:46I'm still up this high.
03:48It was a wonderful moment.
03:50And I heard a story two days later, a play on Broadway was in rehearsal when the verdict came through.
03:59And an actor on the stage said, kill one!
04:03And everybody stopped.
04:06It was just, you know, it was a great, great moment.
04:12I agree.