Don Lamb
Encyclopedia
Sheriff of Balboa County Don Lamb is a fictional character played by Michael Muhney
Michael Muhney
Michael Muhney is an American actor, known for his role as Sheriff Don Lamb on Veronica Mars, as well as his role as Adam Newman on The Young and the Restless...

 on the UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...

/The CW television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...

 Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...

, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...

.

The character, considered by many to be the character fans "love to hate", is one of Veronica
Veronica Mars (character)
Veronica Mars is a fictional character in UPN/The CW the television series, Veronica Mars, which aired on the UPN and CW networks from 2004 to 2007. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell.- Background and details of plot :...

's main enemies, and one of the most prominent adult characters, after Keith Mars
Keith Mars
Keith Mars is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He is portrayed by Enrico Colantoni....

. He was a recurring character during the first two seasons, and was promoted to series regular status for the third season.

Background

Very little is known about the background of Sheriff Don Lamb. What little is known includes cryptic comments that hint towards Lamb being physically and/or emotionally abused by his father while growing up and that Lamb attending college on an athletic scholarship for a year before a knee injury resulted in his scholarship being revoked, forcing Lamb to drop out. On his office wall was a wooden United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 Eagle, Globe and Anchor plaque, suggesting that Lamb once served as a Marine. Lamb is 34, a Cancer and his hometown is Neptune, California http://www.myspace.com/vmarslamb.

Relationship with Keith Mars

What is known is that Lamb joined the Balboa County Sheriff's Department and quickly rose through the ranks through the patronage of then Sheriff Keith Mars
Keith Mars
Keith Mars is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He is portrayed by Enrico Colantoni....

. Little is known about the specifics regarding the mentor/apprentice relationship between the two men, but what is known is that the two had a rather violent falling out over Keith Mars accusing software mogul Jake Kane of murdering his daughter Lilly. When Keith Mars was forced out of office due to an emergency recall election, Lamb quickly maneuvered himself into the job as Sheriff with the support of various members of the 09er community, who felt that Lamb would be a much more controllable figure than Keith Mars.

Arrest of Abel Koontz

Lamb's tenure as Sheriff was quickly solidified when he arrested Abel Koontz, a disgruntled former employee of Jake Kane, for the murder of Lilly. Unknown to Lamb at the time, the arrest was secretly manipulated by the Kane family themselves, as they believed that Lilly's younger brother Duncan
Duncan Kane
Duncan Kane is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He was a series regular during seasons one and two. He is portrayed by Teddy Dunn. He is Veronica's ex-boyfriend, and the brother to her dead best friend, Lilly...

 had murdered Lilly. The Kane family paid Abel to confess to the crime, planted evidence at his home (evidence that would later be revealed to have been photographed to look like it was inside Lilly's room the night of her death), and had their head of security Clarence Wiedman anonymously call in the information regarding Abel Koontz being the murderer, information that was crucial in leading the oblivious Sheriff Lamb directly to the Kane family's patsy and his arrest.

The arrest of Koontz helped raise Lamb's profile and standing in the community as Keith Mars' reputation fell drastically. It also caused Lamb to develop an oversized ego. His relationship with Keith Mars further worsened, with Lamb taunting Keith over how he caught the man who murdered Lilly Kane.

The Incident

But Lamb's biggest action of controversy would be several months after the arrest of Abel Koontz, when Keith's daughter Veronica arrived one morning at the sheriff's office. Veronica had been drugged and raped and sought to report the crime. Sheriff Lamb agreed to take Veronica's statement personally regarding her rape, but Veronica quickly found that Lamb had ulterior motives, in what has become one of the most controversial scenes in the series:
Lamb: [sarcastically] Is there anyone in particular you'd like me to arrest, or should I just round up the sons of the most important families in town?
[Cut to Veronica, who's absolutely speechless.]
Lamb: [dead seriously] I've got not a shred of evidence to work with here, but that really doesn't matter to your family, now does it?
[Veronica starts to cry.]
Lamb: [mockingly] Look at this! She cries! I'll tell you what, Veronica Mars — why don't you go see the Wizard. Ask for a little backbone.


Veronica was then forced to leave.

Tenure as Sheriff

Portrayed as a stereotypical bureaucrat, Lamb is shown to care more about the fact that he is Sheriff of Balboa County than he does with actually carrying out his responsibilities as sheriff. His actual competence as sheriff is generally very poor because Lamb is a firm believer in the notion that, in any criminal matter, the obvious suspect is always the person who committed the crime. Whenever an obvious suspect appears, Sheriff Lamb will quickly arrest the suspect with little to no effort spent trying to confirm said suspect's alibi.

Indeed, it has been implied on numerous occasions that his record at solving crimes without the aid of Keith and Veronica Mars is rather abysmal. However, it has been argued that statistically, crime has dropped in Neptune since Lamb assumed the position of Sheriff. While Lamb himself was the one who made that statement, it was not refuted by his chief critics Veronica and Keith Mars.

In spite of his flaws, Lamb does at his core attempt to be a good police officer. This was made most evident at the end of season one, when, without any arm-twisting from the Mars family, Lamb arrested Jake Kane for obstruction of justice
Obstruction of justice
The crime of obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, refers to the crime of interfering with the work of police, investigators, regulatory agencies, prosecutors, or other officials...

 after it was revealed that his manipulation of Lamb regarding Abel Koontz allowed the true murderer, Aaron Echolls, to avoid arrest.

Another example was the situation involving the Manning family and their abuse of their daughter, Grace. When Veronica Mars and Duncan Kane were caught in the Manning family home, after discovering the hidden prison cell that the Mannings locked their youngest daughter Grace in to punish her, Lamb was called in to arrest the two. As Lamb dragged the two out of the house, Veronica pleaded with her arch-rival to listen to her as she described the location of the hidden prison cell. After placing the two in his police vehicle, Lamb returned to the Manning home and following Veronica's information, discovered the cell. As he walked out, Lamb responded coldly towards Mr. Manning's claims of being a victim of Veronica and Duncan and left the house again. He then gets into his vehicle and after driving several blocks down the road, silently pulls over to the sidewalk and releases Veronica and Duncan from the car. He then returns to the Manning family's home and ominously parks his car outside their house, as if to scare the abusive Mannings with the fact that Lamb knows their secret, even if he was powerless to officially arrest them for child abuse, due to Veronica and Duncan's involvement in revealing the abuse tainting any sort of investigation of them.

'09er connection

A large amount of Sheriff Lamb's power base comes from the wealthy '09er community, who arranged for his rise to power after Keith Mars was forced out of office. As such, Lamb often shows favoritism towards the wealthy citizens of Neptune and is often reluctant to arrest people of power and wealth without concrete evidence and even then will only do so with a general amount of arm-twisting.

Lamb does privately harbor a great deal of contempt for the wealthy 09er community. In season one it was shown that Lamb was prone to breaking up parties thrown by teenage members of the 09er community, confiscating the kegs of beer from the party which Lamb would then serve to his fellow police officers via impromptu parties he would throw at his place.

In season two, Lamb's relationship with the 09er community took a more complex turn. Lamb was revealed to be carrying on a secret relationship with the barely legal 09er Madison Sinclair, an affair that both Veronica and Keith Mars ultimately discovered. It was also shown that Lamb had blackmailed Terrence Cook, a retired '09er baseball player, who had thrown an ALCS
American League Championship Series
In Major League Baseball, the American League Championship Series , played in October, is a round in the postseason that determines the winner of the American League pennant...

 game to help pay off a rather large gambling debt he had owed.

The Wizard

With regards to Sheriff Lamb's general disdain for the people of Neptune, the Sheriff's anger is most visible when dealing with those who Lamb feels are cowardly, weak-willed, or who generally wallow in a sense of victimization in terms of being unwilling to stand up for themselves. This was established in the pilot episode, through the establishment of the catchphrase "You need to go see the Wizard..." (a reference to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a children's novel written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. Originally published by the George M. Hill Company in Chicago on May 17, 1900, it has since been reprinted numerous times, most often under the name The Wizard of Oz, which is the name of...

). The phrase was used by Lamb to show his contempt for those who he feels wallows in their own helplessness and self-pity.

In the third season episode "Mars, Bars", Wallace reminds Lamb of a time when Lamb told Wallace to ask the Wizard for courage. Wallace replies that the Wizard considers Lamb the only true Friend of Dorothy
Friend of Dorothy
In gay slang, a "friend of Dorothy" is a term for a gay man. The phrase dates back to at least World War II, when homosexual acts were illegal in the United States. Stating that, or asking if, someone was a "friend of Dorothy" was a euphemism used for discussing sexual orientation without others...

.

Relationship with Veronica Mars

Out of all of the characters of the series, Sheriff Lamb is one of the few characters whose relationship with Veronica Mars is firmly planted on the side of rivalry. Lamb's public displays of contempt for her father and his treatment of her when she tried to report being raped has resulted in Veronica hating Lamb with a passion unmatched by any of her other enemies on the show. Sheriff Lamb meanwhile sees Veronica as a troublemaker of the highest order and while he won't openly admit to it, is one of the few people in Neptune who recognizes the depth of her skill as an investigator. Indeed, Lamb considers Veronica to be a continuous threat towards him and his standing as Sheriff of Balboa County though he is not above taking credit for Veronica's investigation work if he can.

In spite of their hatred for each other, their sparring is kept on a strictly verbal level. Veronica often taunts Lamb by mocking his inability to close big cases and the foolish way that he jumps upon the first suspect he sees in an investigation as the guilty party. Lamb meanwhile often responds by verbally attacking Veronica's father or Veronica's friends (all of which Lamb has had run-ins with in his capacity as Sheriff).

However, their rivalry does serve its purpose, as it was Sheriff Lamb who was responsible for saving Veronica's beloved father from a violent death at the hands of Cassidy "Beaver" Casablancas. In the season 2 finale, Beaver blew up the plane containing Keith Mars and the pedophilic Woody Goodman as it flew over Neptune during his final confrontation with Veronica. It wasn't until the next morning, when Veronica awoke to find her father alive and well in their home that she learned how he was alive. Before take-off, Sheriff Lamb had arranged for Keith Mars to be taken off the plane transporting Woody Goodman back to Neptune, so as to keep the media from giving full credit for the arrest to Keith. As a result, Lamb's act of pettiness towards his rival inadvertently saved Keith's life.

Ironically, the central issue of why the two characters hate each other (Lamb's refusal to believe Veronica when she attempted to report being raped) has generally been sidestepped in their verbal sparring. During seasons one and two, Lamb does not bring up Veronica's sexual assault claims in attacking her, but, with season three, Lamb cruelly mocked Veronica when she called the police when a new friend of hers from college fell victim to the serial rapist that was terrorizing Hearst College. Lamb villainously asked if Veronica was the rape victim in question and further twisted the knife by implying Veronica "cried wolf" when she told Lamb that she had been raped in the pilot. While Veronica showed no visible reaction to Lamb's taunting, she did break down in front of Lamb when she confessed that she had walked in on her friend while she was being raped and could have stopped the rapist had she fully realized what was happening inside the darkened room.

Death

In the episode "Mars, Bars", Lamb and Deputy Sacks answered a domestic disturbance call at the home of Mindy O'Dell. Lamb confronted Mindy's former husband and suspect in the Dean O'Dell murder case Steve Botando, who fatally struck him with a baseball bat and who was in turn shot by Sacks. The county commissioner informed Keith Mars that Lamb had died in the hospital and asked him to become interim sheriff. Lamb's last known words were "I smell bread" (a reference to an episode of the television series M*A*S*H).http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2007/02/holy_sweeps_ver.html

Interests

Lamb enjoyed hitting the gym, weight training and "Wild Wednesdays at El Torito". His favorite musicians were Devo
Devo
Devo is an American band formed in 1973 consisting of members from Kent and Akron, Ohio. The classic line-up of the band includes two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs and the Casales . The band had a #14 Billboard chart hit in 1980 with the single "Whip It", and has maintained a cult...

, Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...

, Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...

 and Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...

. His favorite films were Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry is a 1971 American crime thriller produced and directed by Don Siegel, the first in the Dirty Harry series. Clint Eastwood plays the title role, in his first outing as San Francisco Police Department Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan....

, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas is a musical with a book by Texas author Larry L. King and Peter Masterson and music and lyrics by Carol Hall...

, The Terminator
The Terminator
The Terminator is a 1984 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, co-written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr., and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton. The film was produced by Hemdale Film Corporation and distributed by Orion Pictures, and filmed in Los...

and Terminator 2
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a 1991 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron and written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr.. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, and Edward Furlong...

. He enjoyed watching 24
24 (TV series)
24 is an American television series produced for the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration...

and COPS
COPS (TV series)
Cops is an American documentary/reality television series that follows police officers, constables, and sheriff's deputies during patrols and other police activities...

. His favorite books were Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...

 and his hero was Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...

.http://www.myspace.com/vmarslamb

Quotes

  • "Is there anyone in particular you'd like me to arrest or should I just round up the sons of the most important families in town?" (to Veronica, after her rape)

  • "So, what, this is blackmail? She's 18. That's legal." (upon being caught with Madison)

  • "Before we go in there, you should probably know something about Veronica Mars. We need to be careful with this one. She's...slippery."

  • "Veronica Mars is.....smarter than me." (after reading aloud what Veronica asked him to read what she had written on a $50 bill she used to help catch the guy who framed her for selling fake IDs)

Season 1

  • 1x01 Pilot
  • 1x02 Credit Where Credit's Due
  • 1x11 Silence of the Lamb
  • 1x12 Clash of the Tritons
  • 1x22 Leave It to Beaver

Season 2

  • 2x02 Driver Ed
  • 2x03 Cheatty Cheatty Bang Bang
  • 2x04 Green-Eyed Monster
  • 2x05 Blast from the Past
  • 2x06 Rat Saw God
  • 2x07 Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner
  • 2x10 One Angry Veronica
  • 2x11 Donut Run
  • 2x12 Rashard and Wallace Go to White Castle
  • 2x14 Versatile Toppings
  • 2x15 The Quick and the Wed
  • 2x16 The Rapes of Graff
  • 2x17 Plan B
  • 2x20 Look Who’s Stalking
  • 2x21 Happy Go Lucky
    Happy Go Lucky (Veronica Mars episode)
    "Happy Go Lucky" is episode 21 of season 2 of the television show Veronica Mars. It had an estimated audience size of 2.33 million US viewers on its first airing.- Plot :...

  • 2x22 Not Pictured

Season 3

  • 3x02 My Big Fat Greek Rush Week
  • 3x05 President Evil
  • 3x06 Hi, Infidelity
  • 3x07 Of Vice and Men
  • 3x08 Lord of the Pi’s
  • 3x11 Poughkeepsie, Tramps and Thieves
  • 3x13 Postgame Mortem
  • 3x14 Mars, Bars
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