For the most part, police procedurals fall into one of two categories. In the first, the police adhere to the law to get justice, but the other shows the law pushed aside to get to a form of justice. Either the officers stick to a moral code, or for them, morality is fluid, if it exists at all. Chicago P.D., more often than not, falls into the latter. One need look no further than the recent season finale, which saw Voight (Jason Beghe) manipulate proceedings to bring an end to Deputy Chief Reid’s (Shawn Hatosy) season-long reign of corruption, getting a form of justice. But there is perhaps no greater example of how that moral ambiguity affects the unit as a whole than the last five minutes of “Reckoning,” the Season 6 finale.
‘Chicago P.D.’s “Reckoning” Brings Two Season 6 Storylines to a Head
Chicago P.D.‘s “Reckoning” brings two Season 6 storylines to a head. The first is Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department Brian Kelton’s (John C. McGinley) ascension to the mayoralty. The corrupt police officer turned corrupt politician has a troubling past, including refusing to authorize an investigation as a district commander into a serial killer in the area because he wants to keep the crime statistics in his district down so as not to ruin his ambitions. He’s been toying with Voight and the Intelligence Unit throughout the season, and when (not if) he becomes mayor, he’s shutting it down.
The second storyline begins in “Descent,” Season 6’s ninth episode, where Antonio Dawson (Jon Seda), who has developed an addiction to painkillers, seeks out a drug dealer to buy drugs from, even offering protection from the police in exchange. But the trafficker he tracks down also happens to be on the Intelligence Unit’s radar, and Dawson lies about why he’s there when they arrest the dealer. Unfortunately, the incident draws attention to Dawson from Jason Rizzo (Sam Pearson), the dealer’s cousin, who kidnaps Dawson’s daughter. After Voight violently beats the dealer for information, they find his daughter alive, tied up, beaten, and raped. It’s too much for Dawson, who loses it on hearing Rizzo talk about what he did and pushes him out a window to his death. Voight sends Dawson away, and Adam Ruzek (Patrick Flueger) takes the blame, crafting a story that Rizzo was killed in the altercation that took place after disarming him.
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‘Chicago P.D.’s “Reckoning” Gets Ugly
“Reckoning” sees Internal Affairs looking into Jason Rizzo’s death at the behest of Kelton, with Trudy (Amy Morton) telling Voight, Dawson, and Ruzek that they’ve taken over the investigation, prompting concern that they’ve found something that traces the incident back to Dawson. Voight visits former First Deputy Superintendent Katherine Brennan (Anne Heche), a dirty cop in her own right who took the rap for keeping the serial killer rampage quiet after Kelton threatened to release previous allegations against her. Voight needs her to give him a name, someone who will rat out Kelton before he becomes mayor and quashes the unit. That name is gang member Wilson Young (Phil Rice), a major player who’s never had any charges laid against him thanks to his status as Kelton’s “fix-it man.”
As the unit works to catch Young in a compromising position, one which will force him to come clean about Kelton, Ruzek is called into Internal Affairs, where David Heller (Matthew Rauch) tells him that something doesn’t add up about his Rizzo story, that blood on the scene doesn’t match him or Rizzo, but the DNA is in the system, and it belongs to someone on the Intelligence Unit. Heller offers Ruzek a chance to amend his statement, but he declines. He’s called in again after Heller finds a photo of Ruzek looking at someone off-camera. Heller reveals that he knows it’s Dawson and offers Ruzek immunity and 24 hours to decide, or he will be charged with perjury. Heller adds that he doesn’t have a choice: Kelton won’t let them let up on the investigation.
The unit is about to trap Young when a gunman opens fire and kills Young, escaping from the scene. It isn’t long before it’s confirmed that Kelton ordered the hit, but nothing ties him to it, Young, or anything that will expose Kelton’s villainy before he becomes mayor of Chicago. They have lost. But Voight, as we know, doesn’t take kindly to losing and vows to do everything he can to ensure Kelton doesn’t ruin their careers or disband the unit. Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer) confronts Voight about what that means, to let him know what he plans, but Voight simply says he is going to see Kelton and “do what needs to be done” before telling Jay the unit is going to be his someday.
The Last Five Minutes of ‘Chicago P.D.’s “Reckoning” Showcases the Moral Decay in the Intelligence Unit
The final five minutes of Chicago P.D.‘s “Reckoning” showcase the moral decay present in the Intelligence Unit. Ruzek is taken into custody by Internal Affairs, unwilling to accept Heller’s offer. Dawson pops a pill, signaling a relapse into addiction. Kelton, fresh off his confirmed victory to become mayor, is found dead in his home, shot, and Voight is seen driving away from the scene, suggesting he’s the one responsible.
When questioned by Dawson about why he’s taking the rap, Ruzek responds by saying he knew there was only one choice he could live with when Rizzo went out the window, adding that he doesn’t know who he really is outside the police life. Ruzek has lost himself, a byproduct of the moral decay that has eaten away at his sense of self. Earlier in the episode, Dawson approaches Chris Boyd (Drew Powell) to find dirt on Heller, only there is none. He’s an honest, decent man like Dawson used to be. The weight of it all pushes Dawson back into addiction.
Ultimately, it boils down to Voight being the author of the moral ambiguity of the Intelligence Unit. He’s the one who drove the idea of finding an alternative story to Rizzo’s death, and while Ruzek went off-script, his detention is the result of Voight’s insistence. The decision to try and find dirt on Heller is Voight’s, again evading telling the truth in favor of finding something morally bankrupt in the man that he can leverage to his advantage. At one time, Dawson would never have stooped to that level, but the lack of a moral line has claimed his soul. And while it’s revealed in Season 7 who actually shot Kelton, that we can make the assumption that Voight did it speaks to what we know of his character; he lacks any sense of a moral line in favor of the pursuit of his own justice. And with him doing the same thing with the death of Reid, there needs to be a real consequence, something that rights the ship, but it’s not going to happen. We’ll see if Season 13 reverses the trend.
- Release Date
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January 8, 2014
- Network
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NBC
- Showrunner
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Derek Haas
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Marina Squerciati
Kim Burgess
