Law & Order: Los Angeles Episode 1.05 Pasadena

Everyone loves Rebecca Townley, hostess and manager of Antonio's, a chic downtown restaurant. On a busy night, Rebecca's energy isn't what it normally is, and she declines an offer to hang out and drink after hours with the rest of the staff. Rebecca exits the back door into the alley, and within seconds of taking out her cell phone, is run down by an older model sedan. TJ and Winters are on the scene within a half hour as Rebecca is carted off in an ambulance. Along with a giant puddle of blood, the detectives find her purse and car keys. A homeless man dressed as Santa Claus tells TJ that the car hit Rebecca, then backed up and ran over her again. Meanwhile, Winters paws through Rebecca's purse to find a sonogram photo. What first looked like attempted murder is now homicide; Rebecca was 16 weeks pregnant.

Restaurant owner Antonio is devastated to hear what happened to his best manager. Rebecca peacefully split with her husband last year, and he doesn't think she was seeing anyone new. She certainly didn't tell him she was pregnant; however, she did recently tell him she was quitting. When Antonio begged her to stay, she agreed to for a little while, but only if she could work at his downtown restaurant instead of the one in Santa Monica, where she'd worked for years. The cops proceed to investigate Rebecca's West Hollywood apartment, which seems to have been deserted for the last month. Wondering whether Rebecca's relationship with her ex-husband is fine, TJ and Winters pay Robert Forester a visit.

On his way in from a business trip to 29 Palms, Forester invites TJ and Winters into his house. He's shocked to hear that Rebecca's in a coma, and claims he hasn't seen her in four months. They divorced because Rebecca had an affair, and no, he wasn't aware she was pregnant. He doesn't know who Rebecca cheated with, but he must be rich jerk; Rebecca always had big aspirations. When Forester offers an alibi in the form of his 29 Palms hotel bill, etc., the detectives move on to LAPD's garage to check out Rebecca's car. Winters finds a corporate gas card issued by Yarborough Media Strategies. Hoping to find Rebecca's baby daddy, TJ and Winters meet with Adam Yarborough. When he learns that Rebecca's in a coma, Yarborough tells the detectives to leave their card with the receptionist on their way out; he's going to call his lawyer.

Back at RHD, TJ and Winters brainstorm with Gonzales. The only addresses affiliated with Yarborough are his offices in L.A. and the house he shares with his wife in D.C. TJ's certain Yarborough has a "shag palace" somewhere, but neither his car nor his license provide any clues. When Winters discovers that Rebecca charged two recent visits to a Pasadena OB/GYN, the partners visit Dr. Peter Weinstein. Having just learned she was having a boy, Rebecca was over the moon, but the doctor doesn't know the identity of the baby's father. However, Rebecca gave him a West Pasadena address, which matches the address of her emergency contact - Adam Yarborough! In fact, the doctor just delivered prenatal vitamins to that address. It's not long before Adam's wife Carolyn answers the door to find TJ and Winters, holding a search warrant.

Winters pounds Carolyn with questions, but she insists she's never heard of Rebecca - until TJ comes downstairs holding her prenatal vitamin prescription bottle. Adam rushes into the house, warning Carolyn not to say another word. Winters points out that Carolyn has just been lying to them. So they can arrest her for obstruction, or both Yarboroughs can come down to RHD for a friendly chat. The detectives interrogate husband and wife separately. Adam insists that Rebecca was their surrogate mother, but Carolyn claims that Adam had a brief affair with her. Since they're unable to have kids, they agreed to house her until the baby was born, then raise it as their own. Carolyn's lawyer promises she has an ironclad alibi on the night of Rebecca's hit-and-run, when she was at a book club meeting until 12:30.

After Winters tells TJ what Carolyn said, TJ lays into Yarborough. Why go to so much trouble to hide the fact that Rebecca was living with him? Yarborough's lawyer whisks him away to attend a political fundraiser in Bel Air. The next day, TJ and Winters visit the fundraiser's host, Louise Harmon. She's relied on Adam for several years to help raise money for her charities. Last night, he left the event with Congressman Nelson. The cops question Nelson, who admits that he and Adam closed down a hotel bar in Westwood. Adam started off working for Nelson as a staffer, then went on to run two of his campaigns. Nelson claims that Adam is totally trustworthy, though there's some gossip that he has a wandering eye. Afterwards, Winters disparages Nelson as a typical politician, always playing both sides.

After questioning the bartender to learn that Yarborough left early, the cops bring him back down to RHD. Finally, Yarborough admits he had a brief affair with Rebecca. They met last summer at Antonio's restaurant downtown. Winters knows that Rebecca was working in Santa Monica last summer, so this can't be true. Price informs that Rebecca just emerged from her coma, so the cops head to the hospital, only to learn that no one told Rebecca she lost her baby. Becoming hysterical, Rebecca blurts, "Tom Nelson killed our baby!" Knowing they can't force Nelson into a paternity test, Morales tells the detectives to find corroborating evidence. Price interviews Rebecca's mother Theresa, who's visiting from Ohio. She wanted Rebecca to move home, but Rebecca insisted she didn't need Theresa's help, since she was "moving up in the world."

Morales and Price question Carolyn Yarborough, who stands by the story she told police. When Price threatens that she's one step away from conspiracy to commit murder, Carolyn confesses. An illegitimate child would have ruined Nelson's proposed run for governor, so her husband went along with the cover-up. Rebecca was mostly happy to go along with it too, until Nelson sent a car to take her to a Dr. Taketa's office. When Price learns that Taketa is an abortionist, Morales pulls the trigger, ordering a subpoena to have Nelson paternity tested. Next, they have to tie Nelson to whoever drove the car that ran down Rebecca.

While Nelson submits to a paternity test at his home, Price is thrilled to make small talk with his wife Patricia, who recently published a book about her victory over ovarian cancer. After Price and the tech leave, Nelson barks orders to his people, hoping to stay ahead of the media. Patricia suggests they tell their son before he reads about it on the Internet, then realizes she'll be alone, again, on this one. After results of the paternity test come up positive, Price learns that the firm Rebecca's ex works for happens to be one of Yarborough's clients, which just landed $100 million in contracts thanks to legislation sponsored by Nelson. Forester started working at the firm immediately after separating from Rebecca. There can only be one reason he didn't tell police about his connection to Nelson: he's hiding something.

Back at the hospital, Rebecca explains that she and her ex haven't spoken since the divorce. She told him about her affair with Nelson, but he didn't know she was pregnant; it would have destroyed him. The car that struck her was an older model with a crown hood ornament and metal antenna. Also, Rebecca didn't mean to accuse Nelson of anything - it was the painkillers talking. He would never hurt her or their unborn son. When Price relates this information to Morales, he knows one thing for sure: an older car would have had to stop between L.A. and 29 Palms for gas. TJ and Winters hit the road to find the gas station. Attendant Hal got to work at 6:00 a.m. to find that someone broke the lock on his hose, and left behind a shirt used as a rag. Later the cops are thrilled to report that Rebecca's blood was found on the shirt, and Forester's print was found by the hose.

After Forester's arrest, Nelson holds a press conference to distance himself. Hardin drinks wine while watching Nelson on TV, complaining that such men always play the victim card. Price and Morales announce their intention to move against Nelson, thinking he reached out to Forester through Yarborough. If they want to bring charges against a U.S. Congressman, Hardin insists they get video of Nelson buckling Forester into his seat belt. Forester's attorney Linda Tabor has run up against Morales before, and she too is skeptical of his case. With no murder weapon, i.e. the car, he has no case. Meanwhile a digital tech explains that someone accessed Forester's computer remotely on the night in question. Luckily, the tech is able to backtrack through an IP address to learn that Forester's computer was being accessed by a computer in Nelson's office.

Price presides over the search of Nelson's office. Nelson insists his office is clean, and indeed, Winters reports the computer in question isn't there. At the preliminary hearing, Forester and Nelson's attorneys move for dismissal, complaining Morales has no evidence. Claiming that the murder weapon isn't essential to prove guilt, Morales ticks down his list. He can prove that Nelson is part of an ongoing conspiracy to disguise the fact he fathered a child out of wedlock, which includes having Yarborough claim paternity, and rewarding Forester's silence with a high-paying job. Morales asks to let a jury hear the case and the judge agrees, freeing Nelson on bond, and holding Forester on remand.

In short order, Nelson asks for a conference with Morales. Nelson assures Morales that he brought Rebecca to the abortion doctor in a moment of panic, but she made him see the light. He's been trying to do the right thing, paying for her medical bills, her mother's visit, etc. Afterwards, Morales admits he believes Nelson. So what's the narcissist's version of doing the right thing? Price guesses it's divorce your wife because you've grown apart and marry your mistress. But hide your assets first. Late that night, Price discovers that Nelson set up a family trust 10 years ago. Last month he paid a bill to the same lawyer. Could Nelson have been setting up another trust for Rebecca and her baby? Figuring the lawyer will never tell, Morales and Price visit Rebecca.

Rebecca claims that Nelson was adding her and her baby to his family trust. Nelson assured her they were going to be a family, and he would tell his wife when the time was right. Morales knows there's no legal way Nelson could have added Rebecca to the family trust without his wife's consent... unless her consent was immaterial, like say, if she died of cancer. Morales and Price proceed to question Patricia Nelson, confronting her with their knowledge of her frequent trips to New York to see her old cancer doctor. Morales pushes it, claiming it must have come as a shock to Patricia that Nelson was already planning his new life without her. When Patricia asks if Morales is accusing her of murder, he admits that the cops are on their way to her uncle's vacation home in Palm Springs, where he's sure they'll find the car that ran down Rebecca.

Price receives a text. TJ and Winters are outside the garage, about to pry the door open. Morales offers Patricia one chance. If she agrees to testify against her co-conspirators, he'll keep her out of prison so she can she spend her final months at home. Patricia admits she has about six months to live. After she found out about Nelson's affair, she threatened Forester with losing his job unless he helped her. He refused at first, but once he learned Rebecca was pregnant, he was in. Patricia had him use her uncle's car, and she helped fabricate his alibi by accessing his computer remotely while he did the deed. She just couldn't let Nelson erase her from his life! As uniformed officers lead Patricia off to jail, word comes back that her uncle's garage is empty. Patricia realizes that Nelson must have figured out what she did, and gotten rid of the car to protect her.

In court, both sides pull for a sentence of probation for Patricia, but the judge won't hear of it, claiming, "As long as I wear this robe no one murders a baby and walks." Patricia Nelson is sentenced to 365 days in jail, and court is adjourned. The Nelsons share one last bittersweet hug before Patricia is led away. Afterwards, Nelson claims he loves his wife; he just couldn't stand the thought of losing her and being alone. Price is skeptical, which Morales blames on her youth. When she's older, she'll realize that the one thing men fear the most is being alone.