City of Lies 2021

In 2015, investigative journalist Darius “Jack” Jackson (Los Angeles Times) delves into the notorious murder of Christopher Wallace, aka The Notorious B.I.G., and meets with Russell Poole, a former and disgraced Los Angeles Police Department detective. Through a series of poignant flashbacks, Poole reveals his theory that Suge Knight, CEO of Death Row Records, paid off corrupt LAPD officers to orchestrate the murder and cover it up.

Flash forward to 1997, mere weeks after Wallace’s senseless killing. Detective Russell Poole is tasked with investigating the shooting of off-duty police officer Kevin Gaines by a white detective, Frank Lyga. Amidst the media frenzy surrounding recent high-profile cases like the Rodney King beating and O.J. Simpson murder trial, Poole faces mounting pressure from his superiors to close the case. As he digs deeper, he uncovers shocking revelations: Gaines was on Knight’s payroll and had ties to the Bloods gang.

Despite Lieutenant O’Shea’s refusal to acknowledge these findings, Poole is transferred to the Robbery-Homicide Division to investigate Wallace’s murder. Partnering with Fred Miller, he obtains a list of suspects, including David Mack, another LAPD officer in Knight’s employ, as well as Nation of Islam member Amir Muhammad and Blood member Wardell Fouse. The investigation leads them down a rabbit hole of corruption, as they discover that Mack had worked security for Wallace and was tied to a recent bank robbery.

As Poole digs deeper, he learns about Rafael Pérez, another LAPD officer with a shady past. After watching Pérez commit a crime in broad daylight, Poole takes matters into his own hands, intervening and shooting the corrupt officer in self-defense. The fallout is significant: Pérez is charged and implicates himself and other officers in various criminal activities. Poole’s determination to expose the truth earns him his own task force, but at great personal cost.

The stakes are raised further as Poole prepares to testify in Lyga’s civil trial, where he intends to reveal Mack’s involvement in Wallace’s murder and the LAPD’s subsequent cover-up. However, just as the trial is set to begin, the city settles out of court, leaving Lyga’s name forever tarnished and Poole shunned by his former colleagues in the LAPD.

As Voletta Wallace’s wrongful death claim gains traction, courtesy of the tireless efforts of Russell Poole, Mack and Amir Muhammad are initially named as defendants, only to be cleared by the LAPD and FBI in a move that effectively renders them suspects. Poole’s relentless pursuit of truth ultimately costs him his reputation, as he resigns mere months shy of his pension eligibility, leaving him financially vulnerable and emotionally drained.

Meanwhile, Jackson forges an unlikely bond with Voletta, whose decades-long quest for justice has been marked by both triumph and tragedy. As they reflect on the past, Jackson takes responsibility for a scathing article he penned earlier in his career, which unfairly implicated Wallace’s son in Tupac Shakur’s murder. Voletta graciously accepts his apology, while Poole reveals that her son’s earning potential was estimated to be a staggering $1 billion – a sum that would have been devastatingly depleted by a civil suit.

Moved by Poole’s selfless determination to bring closure to the Wallace family, Jackson learns of his friend’s plan to reopen the investigation. However, fate intervenes as Poole suffers a heart attack and passes away soon after, leaving behind a legacy of forgotten heroism. In a poignant tribute, Jackson pens an article that chronicles Poole’s tireless efforts, earning widespread acclaim in the process.

Yet, even as Poole’s story is celebrated, Jackson’s disillusionment with the system grows. He ultimately resigns from his position, finding it impossible to reconcile the systemic hypocrisy that allowed men like Poole to be forgotten. The murders of Wallace and Tupac remain a painful reminder of the justice system’s failures, leaving both families still seeking closure nearly three decades later.