The Ledger

14.6 Identity

In the fun little episode (14.6), an unemployed software manager's family discovers him murdered at home. Brsicoe and Green are puzzled to learn that not only had the man been fired from his job months earlier (unbeknownst to his wife), but also he had deposited nearly $400,000 in his bank account around the same time. Briscoe and Green chase the money trail from bank to bank to bank and from diamond dealer to diamond dealer trying to figure out where the money originated. Eventually, the learn that the money came from the refinancing of the home of Lonnie Jackson, and elderly man living in Harlem. But Mr. Jackson is nowhere to be found, so the detectives go from place to place until they eventually find him at the home of a friend.

It turns out that the the software manager had stolen Jackson's identity, mortgaged his house, laundered the proceeds, and lived off the cash. When McCoy tries to bring charges, his lawyer insists he's not competent to stand trial, so guess who McCoy brings in to establish competency. That's right! Good ole Elizabeth Olivet. Eventually, Jackson admits that he discovered Hitchens was the one who ripped him off, tracked him down, and shot him with a gun he recovered from the Nazis in World War II.

The episode partakes in the paranoia about technology and the Internet that the series has evoked almost since the Internet was first popularized. In my opinion, the technophobia has gotten old, but the L&O writers haven't tired of milking it yet. According to Jackson, all his problems began when his son gave him a computer and he signed up for some sweepstakes using identifying information. Myra, the red-haired girl who has become the forensic computer technician makes another annoying appearance in this episode, mystifying everyone with her ability to recover lost data with a suspicious simplicity.

Cast-wise, there's great stuff in this ep: Jackson is played by old-timer Paul Benjamin, and his first lawyer is played with great dignity by the familiar character actor Roscoe Lee Brown who has been appearing on television since the 1960s. The episode also marks the return, after 10 years, of Lorraine Toussaint as defense attorney Shambala Green.

The episode's title refers not only to the identity theft, but also on the defendant's insistence that he is not crazy or incompetent, and that he wanted to do something to show that he mattered in the world. The teaser involves the victim's young daughter telling her younger brother that she doesn't want anyone to know they're related. This attitude is reflected by Jackson's son towards Jackson himself.

Posted by adm at January 30, 2004 01:38 AM

Comments

Post a comment

validate