EPISODE

2. Denial

When high court judge Rachel Callaghan is shot in an underground car park, in what looks like a car robbery gone wrong, it soon becomes apparent that a hitman was hired to kill her. Despite being shot twice, the judge is left on life support in hospital with her husband and daughter by her bedside. The question on everyone's minds is who wanted the judge dead - a career criminal she's been pursuing a case against? Or someone a little closer to home?

Description: Description source · Content or data license. Source formatting adapted for this entry.

THIS ENTRY’S STORY

Plot summary and ending

Spoilers ahead. Coverage follows the scope labeled below.

Complete story — includes the ending

Brooks and Devlin investigate the shooting of Dame Rachel Callaghan ( Juliet Stevenson ), a well-known High Court judge, who is shot in the underground car park of her apartment building, in what looks like a carjacking gone wrong. They retrieve the car from a dupe who purchased it, and arrest the middleman in the sale. The middleman blames the crime on a man named Eddie. It becomes apparent that Eddie was hired to kill Callaghan, but his attempt went awry. The detectives believe that Callaghan's husband, Dan (John McArdle), was involved in the murder plot. However, Callaghan takes steps to defend her husband from prosecution, even when she is presented with evidence proving his guilt. Callaghan eventually has her medication withdrawn, prompting Steel to seek the court's permission to question her before she dies. When Callaghan tries to commit suicide, Steel seeks to have her declared mentally incompetent but Judge Mary Hall ( Diana Quick ) overrules Steel's motion. George is torn between friendship and respecting a person’s right to die as he tries to get Rachel to accept the truth of what has happened.

Sources and content license

Source and revision history · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Law & Order: UK series 4. HTML formatting and reference markers removed. · Content license