This recap contains unmarked spoilers. You Have Been Warned
Written By Kevin Fox
Directed By Courtney Hunt
Detective Tutuola's brother-in-law is arrested for assaulting a priest during a Christmas sermon. While looking for possible evidence to exonerate the brother-in-law, detectives discover a long-buried church scandal involving a separate pastor.
Tropes
- Downer Ending: Fin's ex brother-in-law is released and the real Pedophile Priest is about to be arrested when his victim murders him during Christmas Eve Mass in front of everyone and is promptly arrested.
- Hollywood Law: Even after it was revealed that Fin's ex-brother-in-law had been stopping the attack against Fr. Shea, he is still labeled a vigilante, and the Obstructive Bureaucrat DA says he had no business assaulting someone while on parole, but should have just called 9-1-1. In Real Life, the law recognizes the difference between vigilantism, which is illegal, and defense of a third party, which is not. If you see a crime, such as a burglary or vandalism in progress, and you assault the criminal, or you assault a criminal after a crime has been committed, that is vigilantism. If, however, you see someone being assaulted, you are well within your rights to intervene, even if you literally have to fight off the assailants. (N.B. In some jurisdictions, you had better make sure the person you are helping is actually the victim.) note
- Pedophile Priest: Double subverted. A man was arrested for beating up Fr. Shea, who he thought had molested his teenage sister, after seeing said priest hugging a little girl. Turned out Fr. Shea didn't molest anyone and the girl in question was his daughter, a fact that he and her mother kept secret due to his vows. However his attacker's sister was indeed molested by a priest, just a different one.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: The judge requests that Detective Amaro wait to arrest the priest until after he concludes mass. Amaro does this, and the priest is murdered at the conclusion of mass by his victim.
