Episode
Homicide: Life on the Street: A Case of Do or Die
Overview
Ballard and Bayliss are called to the scene of the mysterious death of a woman, whose body is found at the bottom of a forty-foot cliff. This victim was to be married the following morning. The two detectives work to determine whether the death was accidental or intentional (via murder or suicide). Meanwhile Sheppard and MGee begin investigating the death of a movie patron, whose body was discovered after the show ended and the theater cleared out. MGee mentions to Sheppard that his sister is about to have a baby, which means Gee is about to become a grandfather. Their investigation reveals that the movie patron was regularly loud and obnoxious and thus bad for business. When an overdose of a sedative is found in his bloodstream, the detectives question the theater owner, who was currently in litigation with the victim. Unfortunately for Ballard and Bayliss, their case remains unsolved.
Details
- Series
- Homicide: Life on the Street
- Season
- Season 7
- Episode
- Episode 14
- Air date
- 1999-02-12
- Runtime
- 45 min
Episode context
A Case of Do or Die is Episode 14 in Season 7 of Homicide: Life on the Street. It aired on 1999-02-12. The runtime is 45 min.
Previous / Next
Episode 13: Homicide.com
The Internet is stage for a ritual murder, which was staged -- which was staged, or was it? The body is found the following morning and Sheppard takes the call, her first since the beating. Since Lewis can't be found, she partners with Bayliss. Second shift detectives Bonaventura and Austin catch word of the day shift's case. It seems the victim in Sheppard's case was a witness they had interviewed the day before about an online murder hoax. The detectives are informed about another murder that is scheduled for midnight. It's a red ball. The detectives try to put the clues together, but come up with nothing and must wait until the netcast begins before they can trace the killer. The trace is successful, but when they arrive at the scene, the killer has left them a computer with the words ""Ha Ha Fooled You."" Barnfather wants Bayliss reassigned as primary if something doesn't turn up soon. Sheppard goes online to flush out the killer. He advertises another murder will take place at www.i
Episode 15: Sideshow (II)
Danvers brings news of his appointment to the District Court bench as the investigation of a government official named Janine McBride continues in New York. Their prime suspect Chesley Purcell is dead and her shooter is in the hands of the Feds. The Baltimore detectives investigate the background of Chesley Purcell and it turns up the name of a man in prison who still appears to be running his organization.
This crossover starts on Law and Order S09E14 Sideshow (I).
More episodes from this season
Episode 12: The Same Coin
Gharty has a Vietnam flashback. Sheppard is placed back into rotation. Lewis asks Falsone to switch cases, as Lewis is still unsure about Sheppard's ability to be back on the street in the part of town where their call lies. Munch and MGee work a case where the victim was hit and run. One of the victim's possessions is a knife that has some meaning for Gharty, who later is able to recognize the tattoo found on the victim. Sheppard confronts Lewis about the case switch. She and Stivers talk more... after Stivers, working with Falsone, sees him ""go off"" on a potential witness... Munch and MGee find their hit and run vehicle, a rental SUV, whose renter claims to know nothing of the incident and says he had filed a stolen-vehicle report. Munch pulls the victim's DOD file and---for good measure---Gharty's! Munch, begins to spread doubts with the other detectives about Gharty's Vietnam experience, because the file tells him that Gharty had a less than honorable discharge. A kid, who had stol
Episode 16: Truth Will Out
A woman comes looking for Falsone, knowing that he solved a real old case, wants him to look into a case for her from 1972. Her parents told her that she was responsible for her younger brother's death. Despite being three years old at the time, the woman has doubts about her parents' story. So Falsone and Stivers reopen this case, which was closed by Gee when he was a new detective. The reopening of the case makes Gee think that he may not have been totally focused on the case at the time. Their investigation reveals the woman's mother used her as a scapegoat for the mother's crime. Bayliss and Ballard's case involves a body that was shot, but the victim was already dead from a drug overdose. The male sergeant at the scene piques Bayliss's interest, so they get together for drinks. Their relationship doesn't develop, because word is spreading about Bayliss being the owner of the ""In Plain Site"" web site. Bayliss begins feeling pressure about his being different and considers celibacy.
Episode 11: Bones of Contention
A body buried for 6 - 20 years is uncovered at a construction site. Munch and Lewis begin the process of trying to solve this old crime. Falsone and Ballard's relationship has heated up, and that fact becomes apparent to their fellow detectives. Sheppard returns to work, but is discouraged when Gee assigns her to desk duty. Gharty tells Billie Lou that he'll attend her bass-playing concert. Munch & Lewis with help from the ME and MGee, identify the body and then begin to piece together what happened to her. Gee lays down the law to Ballard & Falsone: they have to knock it off if they want to stay working on the same shift; they agree.
Episode 17: Zen and the Art of Murder
Lewis and Munch begin to investigate the death of a Buddhist monk beaten to death. Lewis isn't interested in working the case with Bayliss, whom he feels, may become too emotionally involved. Ballard and Falsone agree to call their relationship quits. Ballard and Gharty's case involves a man who was shot down in the street; the three witnesses that saw the shooter all have different recollections of his appearance. As a result, their prime suspect cannot be charged. Gee asks for Bayliss's assistance in the Buddhist murder and to Lewis's dismay, Munch abdicates his position in the investigation to Bayliss. Lewis and Bayliss take different approaches to the investigation. Bayliss's approach leads him to the man who committed the crime, but cornering his suspect leads to a showdown with guns and Bayliss fires a fatal shot. Later Bayliss tries to reconcile the shooting with his own feelings about being a Buddhist and being a cop.
Episode 10: Shades of Gray
A white bus driver striking a black female pedestrian sparks a riot. The driver is killed, and some distance away from the riot another body is found. MGee and Gharty look into the death of the driver while Lewis and Sheppard look into death of the other body. Lewis finds a clue at the scene, a button (later discovered to be missing from a police uniform). Gharty and MGee actively debate whether race was the motivation for the driver's beating death; MGee suspects the incident wasn't racially motivated. The bus riders are interviewed to find out what they know. Lewis and Sheppard approach a house looking for their witness (without backup). For her trouble Sheppard keeps hold of her suspect, but loses her gun and is severely beaten. Ballard is recalled from her hiking vacation. Lewis lays down the law for the residents of ""Little Jamaica""; he wants Sheppard's gun returned tonight. The witness Sheppard caught identifies Hellriegel as the murderer, and the men who beat the driver to death
Episode 18: Self Defense
In Stivers and Falsone's case, a man is found shot dead in his bed, with no signs of a struggle. Gee lobbies Barnfather to find a way to get them the ability to have some control over their FBI liaison, so they don't experience the same problems they had with the Janine McBride case. Barnfather lets Gee know that there is Captain's position opening up and he should be inline for it with no catches. Lewis lets Ballard accompany him on a bar stabbing, when she accuses him of being afraid to work with a female, since the incident with Sheppard. While she does get to help him with the initial investigation, Lewis manages to work the rest of the case on his own, leaving her to handle the details. Meanwhile, Ballard's usual partner Gharty spends a ""mental health day"" at the Waterfront Bar, drinking and proposing to Billie Lou. Stivers and Falsone discover their victim had a bad breakup with his ex-wife Eleanor Burke, and she admits to committing the crime; however, as an assistant US attorne
Episode 9: Kellerman, P.I. (2)
Debbie Straub signs the plea agreement, pointing to Craig as the killer of the baby. Falsone wants more time to work on the case. Danvers reminds Kellerman there was a time when the truth mattered more than his paycheck. Gharty goes off when Sheppard and MGee ask to many questions about Kellerman's leaving of the homicide unit. Kellerman appears to begin doing the right thing, but doesn't pass anything on to anyone who might be able to do anything with it. Craig believes that Debbie isn't going to let him down and he has no plans to testify on his own behalf. Ballard searches for a dinner date when Falsone leaves a message he won't be joining her. When she sees him in the Waterfront later, she lets him know how she feels about his method of communication. The case goes to trial, Debbie testifies that Craig killed the baby; with no evidence to the contrary, the jury finds Craig guilty. Falsone talks with Craig about what really happened; however, it is all to no avail as the following m
Episode 19: Identity Crisis
Falsone and Lewis investigate the murder of a man in his own backyard. The victim's nose was removed from his body. Ballard and Gharty investigate the murder of a bartender at a strip club. Canvassing the neighbors, Falsone feels that one of the neighbors isn't what she appears to be. Later when they interview her husband, he gets the same feeling. The MEs complete a record setting day of completing autopsies, but find themselves with one unidentified extra body. Munch and Bayliss get the call, but insist that until they can get a crime scene to go to, the problem isn't theirs. Griscom finds the crime scene in the morgue freezer. Ballard mentions to Gharty that he might want to consider stopping his drinking. Falsone's theory about the victim's neighbors proves true when MGee checks into the Witness Protection program. MGee's phone call puts the wheels in motion to get the family moved. Falsone and Lewis arrive just in time to take their suspect into custody and away from the Feds. The
Episode 8: Kellerman, P.I. (1)
Mike Kellerman's new vocation is private investigation, where the majority of the work involves catching cheating spouses. Falsone and Stivers catch a case where a newborn baby's body is found buried behind a motel. A young couple had checked into the room where the baby was delivered. The room was paid for using the girl's credit card. When they locate the girl (Debbie at home with her parents), she collapses and is brought to the hospital. The boy, Craig, is also located. Both say that the baby was stillborn; however, the autopsy reveals that the baby took a breath after it was born, so the death is ruled a homicide. Falsone notes that of the two, only the boy Craig seems to show any compassion for the baby. Kellerman meets Sheppard for a beer and tries to ask her about Falsone's baby case, later he asks around the squad room. Kellerman is hired to conduct his own investigation by the girl's defense team. Gee demands that Falsone and Stivers find convicting evidence before Kellerman
Episode 20: Lines of Fire
Emmet Carey is holding his two children hostage in the apartment of his wife's sister. He sees MGee on television and decides that he will talk only to him and occasionally Gharty who is also on the scene. The wife also shows up on the scene and gets past the security. Her screaming sets of Emmet, who fires two shots out that window that strike his wife dead. MGee has to keep the information from him as they continue to negotiate. The crisis ends when Emmet releases his stepdaughter, but makes a deadly choice for himself and his son.