Eight-year-old Jenna Wechsler is killed when a townhouse blows up. The house's owner, Miles Schaffner, survives. Police on the scene find that the explosion was deliberate: a gas pipe was cut, and wiring was tampered with. Green and Cassady initially investigate an environmentalist group whose leader had sent threats to Miles' lawyer. Miles owns land that he allows the group to use, but his ex-wife Rosalie is forcing him to sell his land to pay an outstanding settlement that he owes from the divorce. Miles has repeatedly refused offers from a supermarket chain called IdealMart, but if he died, they'd be the highest bidder and his estate would have to sell the land to them.
Van Buren is under political pressure to solve the case, so she insists that Green and Cassady continue to look into Rosalie. They learn that she used to be an electrician and still has a key to the house. Rosalie is charged with murder. Her lawyer, Alyssa Goodwyn, specialises in women's issues and spins the case as being about Rosalie's right to the money Miles owed her. She files a motion to dismiss and Judge Edith Milbanks, is strangely hostile to the case despite the solid circumstantial evidence. She gets angry with Connie for objecting to the very idea of the judge considering the motion and dismisses the charges. Rubirosa discovers the judge has connections through a charity to Rosalie and should have recused herself. McCoy and Rubirosa file a motion to re-instate and have the judge recuse, but she refuses. Branch is forced to intervene, meeting the judge at a sushi bar and threatening her with an official complaint, leading to the case being re-instated with a new judge.
McCoy posits Rosalie wanted Miles dead so the land would be sold to IdealMart and she'd finally get her money. Meanwhile, Rubirosa takes a closer look at documents compiled by IdealMart's lawyers. These show that less than a week before the explosion, Miles cancelled an insurance policy he'd had on the house for over thirty years.
McCoy can't prosecute Miles because the documents weren't supposed to be read - Rubirosa didn't realize they were confidential until after she'd already seen them. So he convinces Goodwyn, who's an old ex, to help him. They stage a scene with Rosalie to tell Miles that she's accepted a plea deal for manslaughter. Rosalie says that, since the deal doesn't include an arson charge, she's already placed an order of attachment for the insurance settlement. Miles says he cancelled the policy, but Rosalie says she's made legal provision for this because Goodwyn warned her he'd do it. He becomes enraged and confesses to blowing the house up; saying it was the only way to stop Rosalie taking everything he had. He is arrested. Rubirosa later tells McCoy and Branch that Miles had to sell to IdealMart to cover his legal fees. Branch hypothesizes the document was intentionally left to be found by IdealMart so that they could have the prime Bronx real estate.
This episode contains examples of:
- Ambiguous Situation: Whether or not IdealMart intentionally left a protected document in the files they sent to the DA's office in order to put the Government on Miles' trail so he would be charged and forced to sell. Branch certainly thinks this is the case, but it is entirely speculative either way.
- Bait-and-Switch: The episode is built to convince the audience think that Rosalie caused the explosion, just to show near the end that it was Miles who did it.
- Bait-and-Switch Comment: When asked under interrogation if she would take her divorce money from IdealMart, Rosalie lists negative things about the company, no unions, forced overtime, etc...then enthusiastically says yes.
- Batman Gambit: The prosecution, defense and defendant pretend that a plea has been reached and that Rosalie will still be able to get her money after her release in six years in hopes that Miles will snap and confess in order to prevent the payout. It works perfectly, with Miles almost immediately confessing without thinking about what he is doing.
- Death of a Child: Jenna's death is a key element of the plot.
- Divorce Assets Conflict: Miles owed his wife of twenty years $20 million dollars and did everything to avoid paying the full amount, having only paid a quarter of that in ten years. He is so determined to not pay, he cancels the insurance on his valuable home, blows it up in an attempt to commit suicide and frame his wife.
- Empathy Doll Shot: A variant. There's no such shot when Jenna is killed, but a version plays out when her doll is used as evidence in court (she was carrying it at the time of the explosion.)
- Expy: IdealMart is an obvious stand in for Wal-Mart.
- Gold Digger: Rosalie, who hasn't worked for thirty years since marrying Miles.
- Honor Before Reason: Miles Schaffner is wealthy enough to pay off his ex-wife, both in cash and assets and simply be rid of her. Instead he drags the fight out for ten years, then concocts an elaborate scheme to destroy his newly uninsured home, kill himself and frame his wife. When he survives and a young girl is killed by mistake, he won't admit his culpability in hopes she will go to prison and he won't have to pay her. Even being told that she will go to prison for six years isn't good enough for him, because the deal stipulates she will be owed the remaining amount upon her release. He hates her that much.
- Innocent Bystander: Little Jenna was in the wrong place and the wrong time. Miles only meant to destroy the building and kill himself.
- Jerkass:
- Miles Schaffner didn't mean to kill anyone, but his recklessness brought on by his greed and hatred of his ex-wife Rosalie leads to the death of a little girl. He would rather see his ex-wife falsely convicted then admit what he did.
- Rosalie is not much better. Why she is entitled to the money, her number one concern is herself and the lifestyle she has become accustomed to. While her skills as an electrician are a prime reason she is charged with the crime, her personality and shameless greed did her no favors either. When Green and Cassady arrest her, she is berating a maid for not folding linens correctly.
- The initial judge, Edith Milbanks, knowingly has connections to the defendant that should have made her recuse herself. Instead, she hides them and dismisses the case despite the strong circumstantial nature of it. Even when confronted with this information, she refuses to re-instate the charges and recuse herself, threatening McCoy and Rubirosa with a contempt charge. Branch has to directly threaten her with an official complaint in order to get her to do the legal and ethical thing.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Miles expresses such a reaction when told about Jenna's death. It's probably genuine, since he didn't anticipate anyone else getting hurt as part of his plan.
- Outliving One's Offspring: Jenna dies at the beginning of the episode. Her parents are both alive afterwards.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Judge Edith Milbanks dismisses the case against Rosalie who is being framed, but only because of their mutual ties to a Women's Rights Group.
- Soapbox Sadie: Goodwyn, who's built her career around campaigning for women's issues. When asking her to help him get Miles to confess, McCoy says that she should put her client first for once instead of her pet cause.
