21. The Penalty Box

Complete story — includes the ending

Alicia and Diane are put in the odd position of representing a judge, the honorable Richard Cuesta, who has been accused of misconduct in a murder trial he handled for the state as a prosecutor twenty years earlier. New DNA evidence has overturned the conviction and Cuesta faces removal from the bench if he is found guilty. With Cuesta backed against a wall, the Lockhart/Gardner team realizes that they must stretch the truth to mount their best defense. As tensions rise, Alicia and Diane realize that Judge Cuesta's adherence to the truth might make him his own worst enemy. When FBI agent Lana Delaney approaches LeMond Bishop, the drug dealer blames Kalinda for the federal attention – an accusation that might have grave consequences, given Bishop's character. As the firm's new named partner Howard Lyman grows increasingly erratic, Will and Diane discuss hiring a new litigator. After two years in the state's attorney's office, Cary Agos returns to his old home at Lockhart/Gardner.