Veronica is outside eating a piece of cake at Neptune High when Duncan approaches her. Veronica tells Duncan Meg is pregnant; after a long pause, Duncan confirms he knows and tells Veronica about the letter from Meg's vent that he opened. Turns out it was a letter Meg received from her aunt; she wrote her aunt to ask if she could come live with her to raise her baby away from her parents. Veronica can't believe Duncan didn't tell her any of this, and starts to yell at him when Dick interrupts them. He invites them to his New Year's Eve party, but Duncan passes, saying he's going on vacation with his family. Dick picks up on the tension between Duncan and Veronica, and mentions Meg is awake, which is news to both of them. When Dick leaves, Duncan mentions he should go see Meg, and Veronica reveals she has a visitor's pass to the hospital and is willing to copy it for Duncan.
Meanwhile, at the "county supervisor's" office, Woody tells Keith the Aaron/Lily sex tapes have been stolen from the evidence room, and it looks like an inside job. Woody wants to hire Keith officially to investigate, and while Keith think it'll be awkward given his history with the department, he agrees.
At the hospital, Duncan and Veronica visit Meg. Meg tells Duncan her parents want to send the baby to a foster home that indoctrinates children and is basically legalized child abuse. Duncan asks why he doesn't have a say as the child's father, to which she tells him they don't want Duncan anywhere near the baby and have lawyers using his past mental health issues as grounds for termination of parental rights. A nurse comes in and tells Duncan and Veronica to leave. Duncan leaves, but Meg asks Veronica to stay. When Duncan and the nurse leave, Meg apologizes for acting bitchy towards her, saying it was the combination of being pregnant and seeing Veronica with Duncan. Veronica tells her it's okay. Meg asks for one final favor: if something should happen to her, she begs Veronica to not let her parents keep her baby whatsoever.
That night, at the Mars apartment, Keith sees Veronica's had a bad day and offers her lasagna and also offers to get her ice cream. Veronica wants to know if there's any more bad news coming her way, and Keith admits there is; she's been called for Jury Duty.
Day one of deliberations. Veronica and the other jurors are in the jury room. A yuppie businessman calls everyone to order and suggests they elect a foreman, and since he thinks it's an Open-and-Shut Case, suggests they give the job to Veronica so it can be a learning experience for her. Veronica isn't thrilled, but everyone else agrees.
At the sheriff's department, Lamb is lifting weights in the gym, shirtless. He tells Keith they've put in a new security system at the department, complete with magnetic cards, clearance levels for the staff, and no nighttime access without his say-so. Keith asks for information on all the staff, and Lamb unhesitatingly agrees.
Back in the jury room, though the yuppie businessman thinks they don't need to deliberate at all, Veronica thinks it wouldn't hurt to summarize the case. The yuppie businessman hands a file to an elderly Latino woman on his left, and briefly outlines the case. The two defendants, Robbie and Hunter (both 21 and both from rich families), are charged with the aggravated assault of Anissa, a 25-year-old woman who works at a car wash. She got a ride from the two defendants, who smoked some marijuana with her, invited her back to their hotel room and, once there, beat her when she wouldn't have sex with them. Apparently, they also had a gun, and when Anissa fought back, she managed to get ahold of the gun and fire it twice into the ceiling, scaring the defendants off. Veronica then summarizes the defendant's case; they claim the woman was a hooker who offered them sex, but an African-American man, whom they think was her pimp, showed up, fired the two shots, and ordered the defendants out of the room. They also claim it was her pimp who beat her up. An older man brings up the fact that Anissa has a criminal record, while, as Veronica points out, neither of the defendants do, and Anissa and a young black man were seen fleeing the scene. Finally, Veronica brings up the fact a man named Carnell, who identified himself as Anissa's pimp, confirmed the defendants' story. Veronica suggests they put it to a vote, paper-ballot style. As the others vote, Veronica muses while she can't stand the yuppie businessman, he was right that it seemed to be an open-and-shut case. Then the vote is revealed; one person voted for the defendant's guilty, while the other 11 voted not guilty. Veronica tells the disgruntled jurors she'll see them the next morning.
Meanwhile, at the sheriff's department, Keith questions Sachs, who tells Keith everything Lamb told him; security's top-notch, no one could have gotten in, etc.
Day two of jury deliberations. The Latino grandmother admits she's the one who voted guilty, because she's never heard of a prostitute working all day at a car wash. Some of the other jurors can see her point, and Veronica says they should discuss it further.
Meanwhile, at the sheriff's department, Keith is questioning Leo, who basically dismisses everything Lamb said about their security system. Leo also points out how much the tapes would probably be worth on the open market, and Keith kicks himself for not thinking of that. He calls Lloyd, the reporter he co-wrote the book about Lily's murder with, and asks if he's heard anything about the tapes being offered for sale to the tabloids. Lloyd agrees not only to not publicize the fact they've been stolen, but to call up an acquaintance of his at the tabloids to see if they've heard anything.
That night, at Java the Hut, Veronica is accosted by Thumper, who asks her about the trial, and while she says she can't talk about it, he asks if she's going to let the two "white boys" off. Veronica stares at him as he leaves.
Day three of deliberations. Veronica shows the surveillance footage from the motel camera, which shows, as the manager testified, an African-American fleeing the scene. The Latino grandmother points out the man fled 12 minutes after the manager heard shots ring out, and wonders about the gap in time.
At the sheriff's department, Keith is interrogating Logan. He tells Logan about the missing tapes, and Logan is outraged, especially when he realizes Keith is looking at him as a suspect. Before Logan can express his outrage, Inga interrupts, telling Keith he has a phone call from Lloyd, the reporter. Keith excuses himself and goes to the phone, and Lloyd informs Keith the tabloids are bidding at least half a million dollars for the sex tapes. Keith thanks him and hangs up. Meanwhile, Sacks puts a binder inside the interrogation room. When he leaves, Logan opens up the binder and steals some papers from it before Keith comes back in. When Keith does show up, and asks if Aaron asked Logan to do anything about the tapes, Logan again expresses his indignation, saying he'd be the last person who'd want to help the man who murdered his girlfriend.
Back at the deliberations, a single mother waitress asks how long deliberations are going to take. The Latino grandmother says she wanted to make sure everyone was taking the job seriously, and since they have been, she's ready to change her vote to not guilty if everyone else votes the same way. The others are happy to agree with that, but when Veronica calls for a show of hands, she, the grandmother and an African-American woman vote in favor of continuing deliberations, and the others groan loudly.
That night, Veronica makes Keith a Christmas dinner of game hens. Keith points out they can afford bigger birds, but Veronica counters they won't stick with leftovers this way. Keith sincerely thanks her for making the dinner. A little later, after they've finished, Keith takes her to her bedroom to give her one of her Christmas presents; he had Mac update Veronica's laptop. Veronica thanks Keith and high-fives him. She turns the computer back on and finds pictures of Carnell, the man who identified himself as the pimp, except he was actually a former star football player in college until his career was cut short by a knee injury. Veronica looks at Keith, who walks out without looking at her, and wonders if everyone in Neptune knows she's involved in the trial.
Day four of deliberations. Veronica brings up Carnell, and Madison, a sports radio jock, remembers Carnell as a star cornerback. The Africa-American woman, who's a woman's studies professor, asks how he became a pimp, and Madison mentions the knee injury. The grandmother points out how hard it would have been for him to jump over the fence with a knee injury, and everyone groans.
Back at the sheriff's department, Keith asks Sachs where the list of e-mail addresses is for everyone who works there. Sachs swears he put it there, but Keith says it's missing.
Back at deliberations, the yuppie businessman doesn't believe Robbie's father, a sports agent, would pay to have Carnell do the time for his son, but Veronica points out it happens a lot, and the grandmother points out Carnell would only be doing six months, tops. Madison brings up the gun, but Veronica has an idea; the gun actually belonged to Anissa, and she got her friend to ditch it for her because she had a firearms conviction on her record. Some of the other jurors nod in agreement, though the yuppie businessman remains unconvinced.
At the sheriff's department, Inga shows Keith an anonymous e-mail she received offering $50 grand for the tapes. Sacks confirms he received the same e-mail, and Keith asks for another copy of the office's e-mail list. Keith replies to the e-mail, and confirms he's willing to pay.
Back at deliberations, Veronica shows the tape again, and Madison concedes he looks good for a man with a busted knee, while the professor says he could easily be confused for Carnell. Veronica takes another vote, and this time, only the businessman and the older man vote for acquittal. Just then, the bailiff tells Veronica the judge wants to speak with her, and the businessman tells Veronica he'll never vote guilty, so she might as well tell the judge they have a hung jury.
Back at the sheriff's, Keith gets an e-mail that says they already have the tapes. Keith figures out it's from Logan.
Meanwhile, back in the jury room, Veronica comes back and says the judge wanted them to keep deliberating. Everyone groans except the grandmother.
At the Neptune Grand, Logan is watching the sex tapes and erasing them until there's nothing left, as well as destroying the labels, crying as he does it. Keith knocks on the door, and Logan lets him in. Logan admits he doesn't want the tapes out on the Internet, and when Keith points out what he did will hurt the case against Aaron, Logan says he can still testify against Aaron. Keith wants to arrest him, but Logan points out there's no evidence. Keith then asks how Logan managed to buy them for only $50 grand when they were being advertised for much more. Logan jokes, "Why, sir, I've always depended upon the kindness of strangers." Keith realizes who Logan is talking about.
Back in the jury room, Veronica is trying to convince the businessman of her arguments, but he won't have any of it, and says angrily he's not going to send two boys from good families to jail on the word of "that Mexican whore!" Everyone gets up and turns their back on him, and the older man tells Veronica he wants to change his vote to guilty. Finally, the businessman says he'll change his vote, gloating that the two defendants will appeal and win. Veronica thanks him for the lesson in civic responsibility. A little later, after everyone else has left, the professor sincerely congratulates Veronica on how she handled things, and Veronica thanks her. As it turns out, the professor is from Hearst College, and says she's willing to put in a good word for Veronica. Veronica points out even if she didn't want to get out of Neptune, the tuition would be expensive, but the professor points out there are scholarships, and she'd fight on Veronica's behalf for them.
That night, Veronica leaves Java the Hut only to discover 09ers have written "Muchas Gracias, Bitch!" on her windshield.
Back at home, Veronica discovers Keith reading tax records. She tells him about the verdict, and when he asks her why she's getting cleaning supplies, she claims it's to clean off bird droppings. Keith asks what she knows about Leo's finances, and her face falls.
The next day, at the sheriff's, Keith is interrogating Leo, specifically about his sister. Leo admits while he loves his sister, she has Down's syndrome, and it's a struggle for them. He also admits he stole the tapes because he needed the money for his sister to send to a better school, but was ready to put them back until he saw Logan looking at e-mail addresses and Logan assured him he just wanted them destroyed. Keith tells Leo he can't slide on this, and Leo says he knows. Nevertheless, as Leo goes to Lamb to admit what he did and resign, Keith types out a report that says the tapes were improperly cared for (especially by Leo), but since the evidence was destroyed, no one can be prosecuted. Keith then gets a call on his cell phone...
...and back at the Mars apartment, Keith tells Veronica Meg died, but her baby girl survived. Veronica is heartbroken, and she hugs her father.
That night, Veronica and Keith are watching the New Year's Eve broadcast until Keith tells her he's had enough and is going to bed. He reminds her there's money for the pizza that's coming, and goes to his bedroom. A few minutes later, there's a knock on the door. Veronica grabs the money, walks over, and opens the door...
...and it's Wallace. He tells Veronica, "Happy new year", and she cries and hugs him. A little later, they're sitting on the couch watching the countdown.
This episode contains examples of:
- Back for the Dead: Farewell, Meg...
- The Bus Came Back: Wallace, in one of the most heartwarming examples of this trope ever.
- Call-Back: Leo and Veronica's past relationship, and Veronica wanting a pony.
- The Complainer Is Always Wrong: Zigzagged. When the elderly Latina does it, she's got facts on her side. When the yuppie does it, he's being a sexist, racist jerk.
- Deadpan Snarker:Lamb: You know, Keith, you really shoulda done more to push fitness when you were here.Keith: Yeah, I was gonna get to that, but the crime-fighting kept getting in the way.
- Expy: He may be playing a radio show host instead of a jock surgeon, but Robert Maschio is still The Todd.
- Foreshadowing: Hearst College and Meg's baby.
- The Ghost: Anissa and the various males revolving around her are oft spoken of, but never appear onscreen in their own selves.
- Hollywood Law: The deliberations, full stop.
- The waitress/single mother juror expresses anxiety about losing her job due to the length of the trial. It is illegal in the state of California to fire an employee for missing work due to jury duty.
- Homage / Whole-Plot Reference: The title of the episode, and the 'A' plot, are an homage to 12 Angry Men, down to the Rogue Juror trope (although reversed here) and the fact we don't know any of the juror's names except for Veronica's (here, they're identified as "Captain of Industry", "Knitting Grandmother" and "Ned Flanders type") and Madison, a sports announcer. Also lifted directly from the play is a racist Villainous Breakdown by one of the last holdouts, resulting in the juror being shamed into changing his vote.
- Honor Before Reason:Keith: It's not always easy doing the right thing.Veronica: If that's not on the Mars family crest, it should be.
- Idiot Ball: Why wouldn't Leo just make copies of the tapes to sell them? Because the writers needed the tapes to be completely off the board.
- Veronica also carries it to a certain extent, so that the elderly Latina can look smart.
- Jury Duty: Veronica is pretty upset that she has jury duty during her Christmas break. Once she's there though, a Rogue Juror votes guilty while Veronica and the rest want to acquit (inverting the usual formula. Veronica and the rest then sides with the rogue, thanks to Veronica's detective skills revealing the defendant's guilt.
- N-Word Privileges: Subverted, when discussing the identity of the African-American man seen getting away from the hotel, the likeness of the both likely men is pointed out by the only African-American member of the jury, since a white person saying it would seem racist.
- Pulling the Thread: The Rogue Juror notes one oddity after another. A woman works a full shift at a car wash then goes out to sling her ass on the street? Not any ho she's ever heard of. The hotel manager said there was a 12 minute gap, but the tapes don't agree. Etc.
- Rogue Juror: Inverted where Veronica is forewoman of a jury and one member is the single holdout for a guilty verdict. Over the course of the episode the jurors find additional information which does, in fact, point the finger at the defendants; eventually, there is only one holdout for innocence, who agrees to vote guilty because he's sure the defendants will get off on appeal.
- Shout-Out:
- When Dick says his New Year's Eve party will be the "party of the century", Veronica snarks, "Does Truman Capote know?"
- When Keith and Veronica are having their Christmas dinner, Veronica says, "God bless us, everyone."
- Madison calls the yuppie businessman Daddy Warbucks, while the businessman calls Veronica Barbie.
- Logan jokes he thought he had the Daria marathon on his "blank" tapes.
- They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!: When Logan calls Keith "dude", Keith replies, "The name's not 'dude', it's Mr. Mars." Becomes a Chekhov's Gun later.
- Two Lines, No Waiting: Veronica's jury duty and Keith's investigation, bookended with Meg.
