K-11 2013

Saxx, D.B. Sweeney sits in an LA jail, so high on drugs that he cannot be questioned, setting a grim, disorienting tone from the start. A prison guard, Lt. Johnson, takes a troubling interest and bribes a colleague to move him to holding cell K-11, a unit known for housing LGBT inmates. There, he shares the night with Butterfly, a young transgender woman, before Butterfly is kept in the holding cell overnight. In K-11, he encounters Mousey, Jason Mewes, the self-proclaimed boss, and Detroit, Goran Visnjic, a burly presence whose presence unsettles Saxx. The cellblock is also involved in a robust cocaine trade, smuggled in by the same guard who placed Saxx in K-11, Lt. Johnson, highlighting the depth of corruption surrounding him.

When drug kingpin Ben refuses to give Johnson a bigger cut, Ben is moved into the general population, intensifying the power struggles in the prison. A riot sparked by Mousey becomes a flashpoint for further brutality, as Lt. Johnson attempts to rape Saxx. After Detroit rapes Saxx twice, Butterfly violently murders Detroit with razor blades, and the other inmates help her hide the weapons, later claiming they witnessed nothing.

Saxx is then told he is being charged with the murder of his associate, songwriter Ian Sheffield, who had an affair with Saxx’s wife. His lawyer explains that Saxx’s wife—allegedly the sole witness to Ian’s death—wants a divorce, leaving him with only $30,000 and his car. If he does not sign, she will testify that the death was murder; if he signs, she will testify that it was an accident. He signs, hoping for release, and agrees to a plan with Mousey to get back at the corrupt Lt. Johnson before he leaves: Mousey will have sex with Johnson and then file rape charges against him.

After prison officers discover Johnson’s sexual encounter with Mousey, Johnson is charged with rape and the murder of Detroit, and is placed in a cell next to Ben, who implies Johnson will face punishment from fellow inmates. To seal the deal, Saxx deposits $13,000 in Mousey’s account before being released. Once free, his only assets are $17,000 and his car, and his first priority is to dispose of the drug stash hidden in the vehicle.