LAW & ORDER {LAW AND ORDER}: SCHOOL DAZE (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 detectives investigate a school shooting at which four students were killed, noting with surprise that the unidentified shooter, who was dressed like a "ninja," escaped. Briscoe and Green interview a number of witnesses, and one student explains that a boy named Howard seems like a possible candidate. Another boy, Kevin, is found to have taken video of the incident, and the detectives view the grim footage. They learn that Howard has brought weapons to school in the past and is now missing, though Van Buren points out that black students are very rarely school-shooters. They finally locate the boy and Green chases him down on foot, though Simone Adams appears at the station house to rescue him and tells them that he was visiting his mother in prison at the time of the shooting and is therefore not the culprit.
Briscoe and Green then pursue another suspect, a girl named Colleen who has made violent threats against bullies in the past, but learn that she no longer even attends the school in question and was in therapy at the time. Another student, Brian, then receives a threatening e-mail from a "Ninja Nightmare" hinting at the shooter's return, and the school psychologist admits that a boy named Henry Semple fits the profile and is likely the killer. When the detectives find him at home, he attempts to pull a gun on them and is arrested. The ballistics are matched to the school shooting and he is tried in court, where his lawyer requests that he be sent to a private psychiatric hospital at the parents' expense. The judge refuses and sends him to prison, though Lewin points out that he clearly needs mental health care, while McCoy and Carmichael declare that they are seeking the maximum penalty of consecutive life sentences. Needing more evidence, Carmichael talks to Kevin, who states that he carries a video camera at all times for posterity and happened to capture the shooting. Henry's parents seek a meeting and the mother pleads for leniency, saying that she wants to change lawyers, though the father seems uncertain. McCoy is surprised to learn that former A.D.A. Jamie Ross intends to represent Henry, saying that he should not be tried as an adult and that the school psychologist's information should be suppressed.
McCoy argues that Green and Briscoe did not need a court order and had to act quickly on the shrink's tip because of the e-mail threat, but Ross reveals that the e-mail was a fake and sent from New Orleans, which the detectives should have known before arresting Henry, and the judge agrees and dismisses the charges. Lewin angrily points out that they falsely accused two kids before locating Henry and should have had him committed in the first place. McCoy and Carmichael break the bad news to the victims' parents, who reveal that Henry may have told someone his plans ahead of time, and the team is frustrated at again receiving information belatedly. Kevin finally admits that Paul, another student, called him the night before the shooting and told him to bring his camera in order to film some sort of big event. Paul explains that he and Henry were both severely bullied, though he did not believe that Henry would really kill anyone. Henry's parents then reveal that he suffered a brain injury at a young age and could potentially be declared incompetent, and Dr. Skoda interviews the boy, who explains that he wanted to fit in and finds it "sort of cool" that his classmates are now afraid of him. Skoda agrees that he is competent to stand trial, but points out that his brain is still developing. Nevertheless, Carmichael plans to head to court, and Mr. Semple worries that his son will be set free to hurt others. Despite Mrs. Semple's pleas, he finally admits that Henry confessed to him on the day of the shooting and was upset that he "missed some of the real jerks." He tearfully testifies in court and Henry is found guilty on all counts, and the team notes that he may receive the full sentence after all. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: May 16, 2001 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:46:48
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:71743
- GENRE: Drama, police/detective
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, police/detective; Drama, legal
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1990-2010
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Jeffrey Hayes … Executive Producer
- Dick Wolf … Executive Producer, Created by, Writer
- Barry Schindel … Executive Producer, Writer
- Arthur W. Forney … Co-Executive Producer
- Richard Sweren … Co-Executive Producer
- Kathy McCormick … Co-Executive Producer
- Lynn Mamet … Supervising Producer
- William N. Fordes … Supervising Producer
- Roz Weinman … Producer
- Gary Karr … Producer
- Kati Johnston … Producer
- Lewis H. Gould … Producer
- Kathy O'Connell … Associate Producer
- David Black … Consulting Producer
- Richard Dobbs … Director
- Eric Overmyer … Writer
- Mike Post … Music by
- Jerry Orbach … Cast, Detective Lennie Briscoe
- Jesse L. Martin … Cast, Detective Ed Green
- S. Epatha Merkerson … Cast, Lt. Anita Van Buren
- Sam Waterston … Cast, Jack McCoy
- Angie Harmon … Cast, A.D.A. Abbie Carmichael
- Dianne Wiest … Cast, D.A. Nora Lewin
- Robert Emmet Lunney … Cast, Bill Semple
- Mia Dillon … Cast, Patricia Semple
- Michael Shulman … Cast, Kevin Miller
- Timmy Reifsnyder … Cast, Henry Semple
- Doris Belack … Cast, Judge Margaret Barry
- Marisa Redanty … Cast, Principal
- J.K. Simmons … Cast, Dr. Emil Skoda
- Carey Lowell … Cast, Jamie Ross
- David Lipman … Cast, Judge Morris Torledsky
- Michelle Hurst … Cast, Simone Adams
- Kevin N. Davis … Cast, John Laramie
- Elizabeth Kemp … Cast, Laila Jacobs
- Halley Feiffer … Cast, Colleen Jacobs
- Colin Fickes … Cast, Paul
- Mary Kaye Swedish … Cast, Dr. Helena Forsythe
- Les McDonough … Cast, Mr. Miller
- Rudy Roberson … Cast, Lonnie Nolan
- Lyndsey Watkins … Cast, Linda Johnson
- Sebastian Sozzi … Cast, Tommy Gutierrez
- Chris Knowings … Cast, Brian Anders
- Nancy Ticotin … Cast, Detective Reina Perez
- Neal Hemphill … Cast, Father #1
- Don Clark Williams … Cast, Father #2
- Fermin Suarez … Cast, Father #3
- Dee Pelletier … Cast, Mother #1
- Gretha Boston … Cast, Mother #2
- Michael Winther … Cast, Reporter
- Michael E. Lopez … Cast, Max Roberts
- Kathleen Hunt … Cast, Linda Fox
- Freddie L. Robinson Jr. … Cast, John Reese
- Olivia Oguma … Cast, Melanie Hsu
- Pam Bel Anu … Cast, Uniform Policewoman
- Terianne Falcone … Cast, Mrs. Miller
- David Sajadi … Cast, Uniform Policeman
- Sanjiv Jhaveri … Cast, Clerk
- Jeannine Comeau … Cast, Paralegal
- Joyce Lee … Cast, Foreperson
- Tamara Torres … Cast, Woman
- Albert E. King … Cast, Howard Earl
- Greg Wood … Cast