Directed by Edwin Sherin
Written by Robert Nathan, Sally Nemeth, David Black, & Alan Gelb
Lucy Neven, a famous soap actress, is found severely beaten and comatose in a park. The police trace Jesse Unger, who has been buying Lucy's stage costumes after a crew member on the show stole them to sell. Lucy identifies Jesse out of a line-up and confirms he has previously stalked her. Jesse is deemed fit to stand trial, and Lucy is determined to testify against him, fearing he will kill her if released. Whilst on remand Jesse sends Lucy a letter; Stone realizes that Jesse is trying to strengthen his case for an insanity defense. In court, Jesse claims that voices in his head told him to kill Lucy. His father and psychiatrist both testify that Jesse has been hearing voices since his mother's death when he was in high school.
Stone fears that if Jesse gets an insanity defense, he will be taken into hospital and shortly be released. Jesse's lawyer has successfully had a number of clients acquitted or declared insane; in several of those cases, the defendant began showing signs of delusion only after the case had already gone to trial. Stone convinces the jury that Jesse's sudden claim to an insanity defense proves he knows his actions were wrong, and that if released he will continue to pose a danger to Lucy. Jesse is convicted of attempted murder. Although Lucy is happy that he'll be in jail for a long time, Stone believes the law should be changed and that Jesse does belong in a psychiatric hospital.
This episode contains examples of:
- Actually Pretty Funny: When Cerreta and Logan first start knocking on the doors of those who sent twisted letters to Lucy, the first one turns out to be a man in a wheelchair. Cerreta recovers by claiming he's there to ask the man for nominations for citizen of the block, and the man retorts he wouldn't nominate anyone in the building. Both Cerreta and Logan chuckle at this after the man slams the door on them.
- Always Murder: Averted. Cerreta and Logan investigate when a soap opera actress is severely beaten by an obsessed fan.
- If I Can't Have You…: Jesse's motivation for trying to kill Lucy.
- Married to the Job: According to her doorman, Lucy was like this, saying his aunt had more of a social life than Lucy did.
- Ripped from the Headlines: From several cases of stalking and murder of celebrities, including Rebecca Schaeffer, Theresa Saldana, and Andrea Evans.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Jesse's father got him his job, lawyer and psychiatrist through personal connections.
- Shout-Out: Cerreta is the first one to theorize Lucy might have been beaten by an obsessed fan, which Logan calls Cerreta's John Lennon theory.
- There Should Be a Law: A variation. Stone knows that Jesse is ill and should be in a hospital. Unfortunately, the law as written left him little choice but to put him in jail, in order to protect Lucy.
