Stan Harkovy (Elliott Gould), the elderly owner of a tax preparation business finds himself involved in a shooting of three armed robbers. Two are dead, one is wounded and Harkovy claims self-defense. He finds himself acclaimed as a hero but his story rings false to detectives Lupo and Bernard. They wonder why anybody would target a tax prep store, since they could not expect a lot of cash. They talk to the survivor, Angel Colón, who had applied to be a corrections officer before the robbery. It comes out that he was not being robbed; a trust fund baby named Max Purcell wanted to buy his store for little money and was shaking him down.
Tropes present in this episode
- Hidden Depths: Lupo can read Japanese.
- Loved by All: Stan Harkovy is one of a few white business owners in his neighborhood, but he says he gets along with everyone.
- Mama Bear: Angel's mom starts screaming at Stan when he visits Angel in the hospital.
- Mistaken for Thief: Downplayed example; Lupo asks Gregory, Stan's assistant, if he is in a gang because of his tattoo. The tattoo reflects his interest in martial arts. Subverted when it turns out that he is in the same dojo as the surviving robber, then double subverted when that is a red herring.
- Outliving One's Offspring: Max Purcell's mother is dead; her father is still alive.
- Police Brutality: Big guy Bernard goes to Angel's hospital and raises the level of his bed, making him cry out in pain.
- Self-Defense Ruse: McCoy's basic claim in prosecuting Stan is that Stan knew it wasn't a robbery, which makes his claims an example of this trope. The jury are not convinced.
