Directed by Constantine Makris
Written by Richard Sweren & Stuart Feldman
The detectives investigate an incident where an SUV was chased off the road and crashed into a restaurant; killing the driver and injuring several people, including the teenage passenger, Tommy Flanagan. It turns out that the driver, John Wyatt, had just murdered a group of people on a hunting trip - then kidnapped Tommy, the son of one of the victims. Randall Stoller, who claims to have witnessed the car chase, is actually the driver who ran Wyatt off the road. Stoller is hailed as a hero by the media, even though his actions could have caused the deaths of Tommy or anyone in the restaurant. Stoller's lawyer successfully gets a manslaughter charge dismissed, but then Tommy dies from complications of his injuries.
McCoy thinks that the public will now be less sympathetic to Stoller, and the DA's office could win a case. Tommy's mother still supports Stoller, and won't testify. However, McCoy insists on prosecuting because he doesn't want Stoller, or anyone else, to be above facing consequences for their actions. In court, McCoy highlights numerous inconsistencies in Stoller's story including the fact that he lied to police, and wasted several opportunities to call for help rather than chase Wyatt himself. Nevertheless Stoller is found not guilty. Borgia says this is understandable; people are naturally fearful, and want to believe that a "hero" like Stoller would step in to help them if they needed it. McCoy responds that Tommy needed a hero too, and he certainly didn't get one in the form of Stoller.
This episode contains examples of:
- Berserk Button: McCoy says that his personal button is people who think they are above the law.
- Children Are Innocent: Tommy, although he's around 16 and thus older than most examples of this trope.
- Death of a Child: Tommy dies at age 15.
- Downer Ending: Several victims have died, and Mrs. Flanagan has now lost both her husband and son. Stoller is lauded for his actions and likely to inspire copycats, even though he contributed to several deaths.
- Hope Spot: When Tommy's mother discovers her husband wasn't the driver killed in the crash - only to learn he really is dead, and was murdered by John Wyatt.
- I Did What I Had to Do: Randall Stoller's attitude.
- Insult Backfire: VanBuren clearly disagrees with Fontana's hobby of hunting, but he fires back on the hypocrisy of criticizing hunting while eating farmed meat:VanBuren: You hunt?Fontana: Oh, yeah. My uncle Phil used to take us up to Door County, Wisconsin to hunt white tail. Of course, I always preferred using a bow, it kinda levels the playing field.VanBuren: Uh-huh, and the deer? What kind of weapon do they use?Fontana: Same as a cow.
- Outliving One's Offspring: Mrs. Flanagan outlives her son.
- Ripped from the Headlines: Based on the chases of Chai Vang and Carl Robert Brown.
- Vigilante Execution: What Stoller's actions amount to.
- Wham Line:Randall Stoller: You're treating me like I killed those people back there.Jack McCoy: What about the people you did kill? Don't they count?
