Cab driver Daniel Johnson is found dead behind the wheel. He was carrying $15,000 to repay a loan shark and took the money from his wife Denise's (LisaGay Hamilton) business account without her permission. Logan and Briscoe identify the killer, Charlie Kovac, but then find that he's been murdered too. They discover Denise used to work at a restaurant that hired Kovac as a plumber, and she had access to her boss's gun. The gun is a match for the weapon that killed Kovac, so Denise is arrested.
Denise now runs her own restaurant and has ambitious plans for it, but her husband frequently blew money on get-rich-quick schemes. If she had tried to divorce him, she would have owed him half her business. So she hired Kovac to kill Johnson, and then shot Kovac herself. But the prosecutors struggle to prove a connection between Denise and Kovac. Her lawyer gets the count of Johnson's murder thrown out. Now, she can be convicted only for Kovac's murder, and the prosecutors are not allowed to mention her involvement in her husband's death.
Kincaid discovers that a few months previously, Johnson was almost shot by another would-be robber, Dewey Latimer. This happened at the same time and on the same day of the week as Johnson's murder - when Denise knew he had a regular passenger to collect. Latimer accepts a deal to drop the charges against him in return for his testimony against Denise. McCoy announces that the prosecutors will now present Kovac's murder as Denise taking revenge for Johnson. Her lawyer has her testify that, while she's sorry her husband died, she doesn't blame the killer. Johnson's death was a relief because he was so irresponsible.
McCoy then says that he'll bring in Latimer as a rebuttal witness to testify to Denise's credibility. Even if she appeals upon conviction, the appellate judges will know she's a killer, and won't let her get away with it. Denise says she grew up in poverty and has worked hard all her life to make something of herself, but all Daniel did was throw away her efforts. She had him killed, and then shot Kovac because he was trying to hit her up for even more money. Denise accepts a plea for murder. Kincaid is somewhat dumbfounded that even after killing two men, Denise still sees herself as the victim in this situation.
Tropes present in this episode
- Asshole Victim: It's not hard to see why Denise hated her husband Daniel, as he was spending mostly her hard earned money as fast as they made it. It doesn't excuse her actions though.
- The same goes to Kovac, who murdered Daniel and tried getting more money from Denise. When the authorities find his dead body, they are more happy that they were spared the paperwork and the tax payer's money was saved.
- Awful Wedded Life: Johnson and Denise's marriage seems to have been a constant battleground.
- Batman Gambit: McCoy was planning on using Latimer's testimony as bait in order to lure Denise's lawyer into returning to the stand and convince everyone she was a murderer, whether because she hired a hitman or her killing the hitman. Had it failed, Denise and Latimer would have walked. Luckily for McCoy, Denise fell for the plan.
- Crazy Homeless Person: One of these is caught trying to use Johnson's credit card, and inadvertently leads the detectives to Kovac.
- Deal with the Devil: McCoy agrees to get Dewey Latimer (who's a hired killer) out of jail in exchange for implicating Denise.
- Everyone Has Standards: Logan and Briscoe brought a child protection service worker with them so they could take Denise' son away with an innocent lie so to protect the child from seeing her mother be arrested.
- Hit Man: Denise hired two of them to kill Johnson.
- It's All About Me: As Kincaid points out, Denise caused the deaths of two men, but can only talk about it in terms of how she was affected.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Denise Johnson killed Charlie Kovak to get him off her back and to cover up that she hired him to kill her husband. In court, towards the end of her trial, Jack changed the People's theory of her motive to be that Denise killed Kovak in order to avenge his murder of her husband Danny. McCoy did so to lure Denise onto the stand so he could reveal to the jury that she didn't care about her husband at all.
- Ripped from the Headlines: Appears based on the murder of Anthony Riggs, a Persian Gulf War vet who was killed by his wife Toni Cato Riggs shortly after he returned.
- Villain with Good Publicity: Daniel Johnson. Everyone apart from his wife loved the guy for his generosity (admittedly with her money, not his) and his charm. The titular "Purple Heart" medal was awarded to him after all, everybody seemed to love the guy!
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Latimer made a deal for his release from prison in exchange for his testimony, which he was never required to give. Whether the DA's office made good on the deal regardless is never shown.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Schiff gives one to McCoy for his deal with Latimer, basically calling it a desperate move in a case he's slowly losing. It doesn't help that he didn't even consult anyone about the deal to begin with, which further angered Schiff.
- What You Are in the Dark: In public and to his friends, Danny Johnson was recognized as kind, party-loving, and charming. In truth, he selfishly placed his family in jeopardy through various get-rich-quick schemes, ultimately pushing his wife to orchestrate his death.
- Self-Made Woman: Deconstructed with Denise Johnson. She grew up very poor, and clawed her way out of poverty to start a family and her own restaurant. Unfortunately, she’s also shown to be selfish, willing to resort to murder to protect her newfound stability and chance at further success.
