LAW & ORDER {LAW AND ORDER}: EMPIRE (TV)
Summary
One in this series of dramas that deals with the investigation, arrest, and prosecution of criminals. The first half of each episode concerns the police procedure that leads to the arrest of a suspect, while the second half covers the efforts of the district attorney to prosecute the case. In this episode, the wealthy Gilbert Sanderson dies of an apparent heart attack in an upscale restaurant, and Briscoe suspects foul play when they learn that he had recently taken a dangerous dose of Viagra. Briscoe and Curtis interview Sanderson's close friend Julian Spector, with whom he attended a charity dinner on the night in question, though Spector seems more interested in his plans for an expensive new sports stadium bearing his own name. The detectives track down the event host, "professional fundraiser" Katrina Ludlow, and she soon admits to having an affair with Sanderson. Mrs. Sanderson denies killing her husband, though explains that he was "rattled" by a late-night call from Spector, and the detectives find that Spector stood to lose millions if Sanderson did not give him a high ratings report on the stadium plans, thus giving him ample motive.
Briscoe and Curtis question a high-end drug dealer, Mario, who admits to selling the Viagra to Spector, and the detectives conclude that he intentionally drugged Sanderson to protect his business deal. Schiff meets with Spector and his wealthy cronies face-to-face, and Spector's lawyer, Mosbeck, swiftly submits a motion to dissolve the grand jury subpoena, which the judge grants. Ludlow, however, tells Curtis that she has damning evidence against Spector and will assist them in exchange for protection, and he takes her to a safe house outside of the city. She produces the Viagra, explaining that Spector told her to dose Sanderson with the "mood enhancer" to improve their evening together. When Curtis prepares to enter it into evidence, however, she begs him to stay with her overnight, apparently fearful for her safety. She admits her attraction to him, and though he firmly states that he is faithful to his wife, he confides in her about Deborah's MS and his concerns about her eventual death. Spector is soon arrested, thanks to Ludlow's new evidence, and the judge dismisses Mosbeck's objections and allows the trial to go forward.
On the stand, Ludlow explains about Spector's instructions to dose Sanderson with the fatal Viagra, asserting that she did not know of his heart condition, but Mosbeck attempts to destroy her credibility by highlighting her past lies and experiences with mental illness. McCoy and Carmichael look into her background and, finding some significant financial discrepancies, are disturbed to realize that Ludlow actually accepted money from Spector to knowingly kill Sanderson. McCoy tells her to accept a second-degree murder plea, but Ludlow counters that she will testify for the defense and claim that Curtis intentionally tampered with the Viagra evidence during their "romantic" night together at the safe house. Trapped, Curtis takes the stand and submits to Mosbeck's harsh questioning about his so-called "personal and intimate" relationship with Ludlow and his comments about his wife's health, firmly denying that he began or attempted to begin an affair with her. Spector is soon found guilty, though Carmichael notes that his plan to buy time by killing Sanderson actually worked, as his plans for the stadium successfully went through. Ludlow smugly confronts Curtis, pointing out that history is filled with wealthy and powerful murderers like Spector whose crimes mattered little in the long run. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: May 5, 1999 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:45:38
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:71742
- GENRE: Drama, police/detective
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, police/detective; Drama, legal
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1990-2010
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Ed Sherin … Executive Producer
- Dick Wolf … Executive Producer, Created by
- Rene Balcer … Executive Producer, Writer
- Kathy McCormick … Co-Executive Producer
- Jeffrey Hayes … Co-Executive Producer
- Billy Fox … Producer
- Lewis H. Gould … Producer
- Richard Sweren … Producer
- I.C. Rapoport … Co-Producer
- William N. Fordes … Co-Producer
- Matthew Penn … Director
- Robert Palm … Writer
- Mike Post … Music by
- Jerry Orbach … Cast, Detective Lenny Briscoe
- Benjamin Bratt … Cast, Detective Reynaldo Curtis
- S. Epatha Merkerson … Cast, Lieutenant Anita Van Burren
- Sam Waterston … Cast, Assistant D.A. Jack McCoy
- Angie Harmon … Cast, Assistant D.A. Carmichael
- Steven Hill … Cast, District Attorney Adam Schiff
- Julia Roberts … Cast, Katrina Ludlow
- Kathleen McNenny … Cast, Mrs. Sanderson
- Henry Woronicz … Cast, Mr. Hughes
- Gerald Anthony … Cast, Mario
- John Rich … Cast, Judge Richard Tabachini
- David Hugh Kelly … Cast, Julian Spector
- Edward Herrmann … Cast, Mr. Mosbeck
- Leslie Hendrix … Cast, Dr. Elizabeth Rodgers
- Ira Hawkins … Cast, Reverend Jenkins
- Ben Lipitz … Cast, Dick Marcus
- Craig Wroe … Cast, Harris Wollinsky
- Dimitri Christy … Cast, Driver
- Daniel Murray … Cast, Gilbert Sanderson
- Alexander Blaise … Cast, Massimo
- Nancy Duerr … Cast, Mimsy
- Gwendolyn Lewis … Cast, Brooke
- Steve Rosenberg … Cast, Bartender
- Jimmy Palumbo … Cast, EMS Technician
- David A. White … Cast, Uniform
- Dustin Evans … Cast, Foreman