That's a lot of Trumplicas.
The Bureau goes to Seattle in Washington, U.S., to pay a visit to Robert Hicks, head USNay movement, and see if he has any ties with SOMBRA, since they appear to be financing his political campaign. Receiving Chief Ripley's orders, Jack and the player go to a USNay bus to see what they can find, only to be greeted by the body of Wolf News reporter Kelly Purnell stabbed in the neck.
Tropes:
- Agitated Item Stomping: Robert did this with Kelly's "Best Reporter Award" since he felt she was stealing the spotlight from him as The Face of the USNay movement.
- Ambiguous Situation: Evan Clarke, Kelly's cameraman, had planted Spy Cams all over her hotel room and whatever place she went, which makes Jack and the player assume he's a pervert who wanted to spy on her while he argues Kelly had asked him to put those cameras for her own safety. In the end, none of this is made clear.
- Anguished Outburst: Virginia Purnell killed her own daughter in a fit of rage and sadness after she pretended to not know her in the bus, which made Virginia realize Kelly didn't care about her family anymore.
- I Ate WHAT?!: Jack accidentally bites a slice of pie laced with laxatives that the triplets offer to him during an analysis.
- The Bus Came Back: The Douglas Triplets, who were sent back with their grandparents in Case 30, return here to keep aiding Lars in lab work.
- Call-Back: Niilo Virtanen, the Unified Nations representative you met in Case 49, makes another appearance here.
- Continuity Nod:
- The victim worked for Wolf News, the same news company first mentioned in Case 9.
- Jack recalls how O.M. MediLab unleashed a pandemic in India.
- Elliot says he fears someone would spy on him hearing Vanna Alabama, like what Sanjay did in Case 45.
- Convenient Photograph: Thanks to one of the hidden cameras Evan had planted to spy/protect the victim, Elliot manages to recover a photograph showcasing the moment Kelly was killed, giving you an important clue.
- Dramatic Sit-Down: Virginia asks to sit down for a moment when you inform her about Kelly's death.
- Dreadful Musician: Robert Hicks' singing of the national anthem is apparently so awful that Jack begs him to stop during a meeting with him.
- The Face: Kelly had become this for the entire USNay movement, outclassing even Robert himself and, as result, making fame go over her head. Due to this, she started acting like she was above everyone, including her own family, which led to her death.
- Food Slap: The killer threw hot coffee at the victim's face before killing her with a pocket knife.
- Hates Their Parent: While "hate" might be a strong word, Kelly stopped caring about her parent's lives once she moved to Seattle and became an acclaimed reporter, to the point she refused to attend her father's funeral and pretended to not know her mother when they encountered each other.
- I Have No Son!: Virginia, Kelly's mother, says this about her daughter after you discover she murdered her, due to Kelly refusing to acknowledge her parents anymore.Virginia: No! I... I remember hurting someone, but she had NOTHING in common with my sweet little girl!That woman in the bus wouldn't even look up from her phone to greet me! It was like I was nothing to her!
- Honor Before Reason: Despite having proof that someone wants him dead, Niilo refuses to back off from his work as an UN representative and decides to go to the meeting he was scheduled to attend in Alaska, although Jack offers himself to dress as him and attend it in his place.
- Impromptu Tracheotomy: The victim was killed by being stabbed in the neck with a pocket knife.
- Instant Death Stab: According to Grace, the stab that killed the victim led to an almost instant death due to penetrating her carotid artery.
- It's All About Me: Robert Hicks, the head of the USNay movement, is shown to only care about himself and his movement, to the point he broke Kelly's "Best Reporter Award" because she was starting to take the spotlight away from him as The Face.Robert: Well, we had an argument. That woman was getting above herself. All the attention had gone to her head... She'd started acting like she was the star of the movement!But this is MY movement! I'm the real star here and I told her so! She needed to be put back in her place!
- Kill on Sight: During the Additional Investigation, Jonah and the player find instructions left by Niilo's stalker claiming that he should be terminated on sight, which is enough to prompt Chief Ripley to offer Niilo protection and accompany him to Alaska for his next meeting.
- Laxative Prank: Ana Gutierrez, the barista of the coffee shop the victim often attended, put laxatives on an apple pie and anonymously gifted it to Kelly as a payback for discriminating against her, saying that she wished her coffee was made by "a true American" despite the fact that Ana's family had been in the United States for four generations.
- Lonely Funeral: Kelly refused to attend her father's own funeral despite her mother's pleas, which made Virginia realize she no longer cared about her family and drove her over the edge, leading to Virginia murdering Kelly.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Once she's confronted by Jack and the player over murdering her own daughter, Virginia has this kind of realization and bursts into Tears of Remorse.Virginia: My baby girl... My sweet little girl... Oh, <Player's Name>, what kind of a mother am I?! I killed my own child!
- National Anthem: One of the killer's traits is that the know the American anthem.
- No Such Thing as Bad Publicity: In-Universe example with Robert, who claims that him being detained due to making a scene while drunk will benefit his campaign for this reason.Robert: You know, you guys have done me a favor. When the public hears about how the establishment tried to silence me, my popularity will skyrocket! Take this pick-me-up as a thank you.
- Obliviously Evil: Zig-zagged. While Erin Bryant, the PR officer for O.M. MediLab, appears to be unaware of SOMBRA's existence, she was still covering for O.M. MediLab's tax evasion scheme, meaning she was willingly helping SOMBRA commit a (admittedly minor in comparison to all of things SOMBRA has done) crime without realizing she was helping SOMBRA in the first place.
- Offing the Offspring: Kelly was killed by Virginia, her own mother.
- Overcomplicated Menu Order: Kelly's order at the coffee shop was this, as described by Ana:Ana: Oh, I remember her. She ordered a sugar-free, non-fat, no whipped cream, extra hot, vanilla soy hot chocolate with peppermint syrup drizzle, sprinkles and a dusting of cinnamon.Jack: I... You've lost me.
- The Paranoiac: After you inform him of Kelly's murder, Robert gives a speech accusing the USStay movement of killing her and fearing that they will come for him next, which gets debunked when you solve Kelly's death and find out it had nothing to do with either movement.
- Patriotic Fervor: Robert Hicks and every supporter of the USNay movement appear to be blinded by patriotism, as they believe the United States would be better ditching the Unified Nations and not adhering to their rules anymore.
- Posthumous Character: Hector Purnell, Kelly's father, died some time prior to the start of the case, but his death and disinterest about it on Kelly's part was what led to Virginia killing her.
- Properly Paranoid: In the Additional Investigation, Niilo Virtanen appears asking for your help due to believing someone is following him, and his suspicions turn out to be right when Jonah and the player find he's a target for assassination.
- Shout-Out:
- The case's title comes from the film Sleepless in Seattle.
- Evan Clarke carries a "Pony" camera, parodying Sony.
- Robert Hicks is a parody of Donald Trump.
- Virginia Purnell resembles Sophia Petrillo.
- Al Capone is mentioned by Elliot.
- Starting a New Life: Kelly had done this once she left her old home and went to the big city that is Seattle, soon becoming one of Wolf News' most successful reporters and even becoming The Face of the USNay movement. Unfortunately, this came at the expense of neglecting her parents and ultimately her death.
- Sympathetic Murderer: All Virginia wanted to do was to have her daughter back after being neglected by her for so long, but Kelly's rejection coupled with Virginia's weak state of mind made her kill her daughter in an Anguished Outburst and regret it immediately afterwards, even leaving a bouquet of flowers asking for forgiveness. For this reason, Judge Adaku decides to put her on a medical institution instead of prison.
- Trumplica: Robert Hicks. Just look at him.
◊ - Villain with Good Publicity: As far as the public knows, O.M. MediLab is just a respectable pharmaceutical company that just happens to be founding the USNay movement. Even its PR officer appears to be unaware of their connections to SOMBRA, although not their tax evasion scheme...
