Jon Kavanaugh
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh is a fictional
Lieutenant in the Los Angeles Police Department
on the FX television show The Shield
. He was portrayed by method actor
Forest Whitaker
.
officer determined to take down Detective Vic Mackey
and his Strike Team using any means at his disposal. He has been described as the toughest adversary the Team ever faced, and his investigation led to their ultimate downfall. Before he was promoted to Lieutenant, Kavanaugh took a spot in IAD after breaking the blue code of silence on his former partner. He has degrees in both criminology
and psychology
, and frequently played mind games with people under surveillance to find out whether "they'll crack under pressure." It is implied that his reasons for taking the case revolved around Chief Phillips's belief that it was an expedient time to prosecute police corruption
and spin the news to his advantage. Egotistical and ambitious, Kavanaugh hoped to advance his own career by building a case against Mackey and his men.
), but the two were divorced as a result of her severe mental illness
and his own unwillingness to continue taking care of her. Despite this, he continued to wear his wedding ring and, for a long time, was still in love with her. At one point, Sadie faked a rape incident as a means of bringing her and Kavanaugh back together. When Kavanaugh learned the truth, she pleaded with him to bend the rules for her, saying that she loved him and wanted to come home. Kavanaugh refused, revealing that he had long ago chosen his career over his marriage. He arranged for her to be charged with filing a false police report and remanded to a State psychiatric ward. An enraged Sadie later killed whatever hopes of reconciliation still remained by engaging in a torrid sexual encounter with Vic Mackey
and lewdly taunting her ex-husband with the details.
, caught stealing heroin during a bust, reluctantly agreed to wear a wire
to uncover evidence on Vic. Through this, Kavanaugh discovered a plot to traffic pharmaceutical drugs to the Russian Mafia
and take money under the table. When it appeared the deal had gone through and that Vic murders someone, Kavanaugh's task force swooped in and handcuffed the team, only to discover that they had unwittingly destroyed a top secret sting operation
. He later learned that his bugging of the Strike Team was discovered, and used to feed him false information.
Now even more determined to put the team away, Kavanaugh set up shop in "The Barn", commandeering the Captain's office and plastering it with graphic photos of the Terry Crowley murder scene. He tried to guilt Vic into confessing by forcing him to revisit the scene and describe what happened to Terry's weeping brother. Vic was unfazed, however, and calmly stuck to his original story.
In addition, Kavanaugh approached imprisoned drug lord and cop killer
Antwon Mitchell
. Antwon offered Kavanugh more than enough information to destroy the Strike Team, but only if Vic, Lem, Ronnie, and Shane were sent to "his" prison so he could murder them. Disgusted, Kavanaugh refused his offer.
Kavanaugh then widened the investigation to include Councilman David Aceveda
for alleged collusion with Mackey and The Strike Team. During a raid on a Salvadoran
hand grenade
factory, Lem heroically saved Kavanaugh from an active grenade tossed in his direction by throwing it away seconds before it exploded. Kavanaugh responded by continuing to pressure Lem into testifying against Vic Mackey. Lem indignantly refused to turn against his surrogate father. Later, Vic angrily confronted Kavanaugh about his treatment of Lem.
However, the raid had come shortly before Kavanaugh's meeting with his wife. Vic and Lem entered the security monitor room after noticing the Lieutenant's obvious distress, and watched the ensuing conversation between Kavanaugh and Sadie, the Lieutenant's distraught, mentally ill ex-wife. Viewing their disturbing confrontation via closed-circuit television
, Vic remarked that they had found Kavanaugh's weakness. Kavanaugh eventually noticed that the security camera in the room was turned on. Realizing that his conversation with his wife was being observed by his enemies led him to rush out of the interrogation room in a rage. Vic simply looked him in the eyes and smiled smugly. The now outraged Kavanaugh decided to leave Lem with no choice other than testifying against Vic. He ordered Detective Lemansky to be arrested for possession of heroin with intent to distribute. As Vic and his fellow officers watched in horror, Lem was handcuffed by Julien Lowe
, placed in lockup with other criminals, processed, and sent to a detention center.
That same evening, Kavanaugh visited Antwon and told the drug lord that his terms were acceptable.
Horrified, Kavanaugh rushed to his ex-wife's house and demanded to know whether it was true, only to have Sadie respond,
her, but could not bring himself to go through with it.
Also determined to prevent the Team from paying Lem's bail
, Kavanaugh froze all their assets and those of their dependents, including those of Corrine Mackey. This was intended to force Lem to testify against the Team.
Vic, however, was still determined and waited for the next search warrant
to be executed on a drug dealer's house. Instead of allowing the search to go through, the Strike Team broke into the house, stole the drug dealer's money, and left seconds before their fellow cops arrived. Knowing that paying the bail himself would attract Kavanaugh's attention, Vic arranged for it to be paid by the Team's old friend, Smitty.
a fugitive
. He had the Team followed at all times and even persuaded Aceveda to leak to false information to Vic, saying that Lem had revealed the Strike Team's involvement in the Armenian Money Train Robbery.
Kavanaugh also deliberately sabotaged Vic's arrangement with Antwon Mitchell
, which was meant to keep Lem alive while serving his prison term. He confronted the imprisoned drug lord, enraging him to the point that Antwon vowed to kill Lem no matter which prison he was sent to.
Kavanaugh also had the Team trailed when they were to meet Lem, but was unable to follow all three of them. His tails were easily shaken, but Kavanaugh soon received a phone call that Lem had been blown apart by a hand grenade
, presumably by the Salvadoran drug cartel led by Guardo Lima. When the body was discovered, Kavanaugh and Mackey were face to face once more. Kavanaugh was certain that Vic had again murdered a fellow officer and felt that all his hatred of his nemesis was completely justified. He looked at Vic demanded to know,
. Kavanaugh was ordered to leave the Barn immediately, his investigation apparently over.
Nothing now mattered to Kavanaugh except destroying the object of his hate. Changing tactics, Kavanaugh informed Claudette and Chief Phillips that Vic had hired the Salvadoran drug dealers who murdered Lem, using Emolia Melendez as a go-between. This granted him a temporary reprieve.
After Emolia agreed to follow the story in exchange for witness protection
, she testified to Claudette and Phillips about the false details of Vic's involvement. Kavanaugh was authorized to investigate Vic's involvement, and began by ordering officers to await Vic at his home to take him in for questioning.
However, Vic paid a visit to the Lieutenant's residence, taunting him by saying,
.
Then, however, Corrine Mackey learned of the charges against her ex-husband and angrily confronted Kavanaugh, formally accusing him of sexual assault
. When Claudette asked Dutch for his opinion, he expressed skepticisim about Corrine's allegations, suggesting that the rape attempt only happened in her own mind. He further spoke of his growing doubts about Kavanaugh's case, questioning whether Vic would murder a close friend under any circumstances. Claudette told him of her belief that "only the truth can save this place." Together, they began to take a good hard look at Emolia's story.
Claudette tore into Emolia in the interrogation room, saying that she should feel ashamed of letting herself become a pawn
in the war between Vic and Kavanaugh. Meanwhile, Kavanaugh realized what he had become. He stopped Claudette and confessed to planting the evidence.
Kavanaugh was immediately stripped of his badge and imprisoned for the many crimes he had committed. He later pled guilty in exchange for a lesser sentence.
Taking a break from his mission to wreak bloody revenge on Lem's killer, Vic paid Kavanaugh a visit in prison. Although Vic taunted him about having lost both his moral compass
and their private war, Kavanaugh remained unfazed. He responded that he was now at peace and finally free of Vic's corrupting influence. He added,
Vic smiled and responded,
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
Lieutenant in the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
on the FX television show The Shield
The Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
. He was portrayed by method actor
Method Actor
Method Actor is an eponymous album released in 1988 featuring American singer Eva Cassidy. It was re-released on CD in 2002, six years after her death.- Track listing :# "Getting Out" – 4:19# "Look in to My Eyes" – 4:16...
Forest Whitaker
Forest Whitaker
Forest Steven Whitaker is an American actor, producer, and director. He has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as Bird and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, and for his recurring role as ex-LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh on the gritty, award-winning television...
.
Kavanaugh's career before the investigation
Kavanaugh was an internal affairsInternal affairs (law enforcement)
The internal affairs division of a law enforcement agency investigates incidents and plausible suspicions of lawbreaking and professional misconduct attributed to officers on the force...
officer determined to take down Detective Vic Mackey
Vic Mackey
Detective Victor Samuel "Vic" Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis, was the antihero and main protagonist of the FX crime drama series The Shield. Mackey was a corrupt and brutal Detective in the Los Angeles Police Department; he stole from drug dealers, routinely beat suspects and committed murder...
and his Strike Team using any means at his disposal. He has been described as the toughest adversary the Team ever faced, and his investigation led to their ultimate downfall. Before he was promoted to Lieutenant, Kavanaugh took a spot in IAD after breaking the blue code of silence on his former partner. He has degrees in both criminology
Criminology
Criminology is the scientific study of the nature, extent, causes, and control of criminal behavior in both the individual and in society...
and psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, and frequently played mind games with people under surveillance to find out whether "they'll crack under pressure." It is implied that his reasons for taking the case revolved around Chief Phillips's belief that it was an expedient time to prosecute police corruption
Police corruption
Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct designed to obtain financial benefits, other personal gain, or career advancement for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest....
and spin the news to his advantage. Egotistical and ambitious, Kavanaugh hoped to advance his own career by building a case against Mackey and his men.
Family
Kavanaugh was once married to a woman named Sadie (Gina TorresGina Torres
Gina Torres is an American television and movie actress. She is known for her roles in science fiction and fantasy. She has appeared in many television series, including Hercules: The Legendary Journeys , Xena: Warrior Princess , the short-lived Cleopatra 2525, as well as Alias , Firefly Gina...
), but the two were divorced as a result of her severe mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
and his own unwillingness to continue taking care of her. Despite this, he continued to wear his wedding ring and, for a long time, was still in love with her. At one point, Sadie faked a rape incident as a means of bringing her and Kavanaugh back together. When Kavanaugh learned the truth, she pleaded with him to bend the rules for her, saying that she loved him and wanted to come home. Kavanaugh refused, revealing that he had long ago chosen his career over his marriage. He arranged for her to be charged with filing a false police report and remanded to a State psychiatric ward. An enraged Sadie later killed whatever hopes of reconciliation still remained by engaging in a torrid sexual encounter with Vic Mackey
Vic Mackey
Detective Victor Samuel "Vic" Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis, was the antihero and main protagonist of the FX crime drama series The Shield. Mackey was a corrupt and brutal Detective in the Los Angeles Police Department; he stole from drug dealers, routinely beat suspects and committed murder...
and lewdly taunting her ex-husband with the details.
Investigation of the Strike Team
Kavanaugh began his investigation by targeting Mackey's ex-wife, Corrine. However, she became suspicious of his behavior and later identified him as a police officer. She would assist him in his investigation as per instructions from Vic. LemCurtis Lemansky
Curtis Lemansky, more commonly known as "Lem" or "Lemonhead", is a fictional police detective on the FX original drama The Shield, played by actor Kenny Johnson.-Personal life:Little is known about Lemansky's personal life...
, caught stealing heroin during a bust, reluctantly agreed to wear a wire
Covert listening device
A covert listening device, more commonly known as a bug or a wire, is usually a combination of a miniature radio transmitter with a microphone. The use of bugs, called bugging, is a common technique in surveillance, espionage and in police investigations.A bug does not have to be a device...
to uncover evidence on Vic. Through this, Kavanaugh discovered a plot to traffic pharmaceutical drugs to the Russian Mafia
Russian Mafia
The Russian Mafia is a name applied to organized crime syndicates in Russia and Ukraine. The mafia in various countries take the name of the country, as for example the Ukrainian mafia....
and take money under the table. When it appeared the deal had gone through and that Vic murders someone, Kavanaugh's task force swooped in and handcuffed the team, only to discover that they had unwittingly destroyed a top secret sting operation
Sting operation
In law enforcement, a sting operation is a deceptive operation designed to catch a person committing a crime. A typical sting will have a law-enforcement officer or cooperative member of the public play a role as criminal partner or potential victim and go along with a suspect's actions to gather...
. He later learned that his bugging of the Strike Team was discovered, and used to feed him false information.
Now even more determined to put the team away, Kavanaugh set up shop in "The Barn", commandeering the Captain's office and plastering it with graphic photos of the Terry Crowley murder scene. He tried to guilt Vic into confessing by forcing him to revisit the scene and describe what happened to Terry's weeping brother. Vic was unfazed, however, and calmly stuck to his original story.
In addition, Kavanaugh approached imprisoned drug lord and cop killer
Cop Killer
Cop Killer or cop killer may refer to:*A person who kills a police officer*"Cop Killer" , a 1992 song by Body Count*Cop Killer , the English translation of the ninth book in the detective series written by Sjöwall and Wahlöö...
Antwon Mitchell
Antwon Mitchell
Antwon Mitchell is a fictional character from the FX television show The Shield, portrayed by Anthony Anderson.-Character overview:Mitchell is a former drug lord who, having been released from prison after a lengthy sentence, tried to reinvent himself as an upstanding community activist...
. Antwon offered Kavanugh more than enough information to destroy the Strike Team, but only if Vic, Lem, Ronnie, and Shane were sent to "his" prison so he could murder them. Disgusted, Kavanaugh refused his offer.
Kavanaugh then widened the investigation to include Councilman David Aceveda
David Aceveda
David Segovia Aceveda, played by Benito Martinez, is a character on FX's television crime drama The Shield.Originally, he was the captain of "the Barn", a fictional LAPD precinct in the also-fictional Farmington district of Los Angeles, California...
for alleged collusion with Mackey and The Strike Team. During a raid on a Salvadoran
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
hand grenade
Hand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
factory, Lem heroically saved Kavanaugh from an active grenade tossed in his direction by throwing it away seconds before it exploded. Kavanaugh responded by continuing to pressure Lem into testifying against Vic Mackey. Lem indignantly refused to turn against his surrogate father. Later, Vic angrily confronted Kavanaugh about his treatment of Lem.
However, the raid had come shortly before Kavanaugh's meeting with his wife. Vic and Lem entered the security monitor room after noticing the Lieutenant's obvious distress, and watched the ensuing conversation between Kavanaugh and Sadie, the Lieutenant's distraught, mentally ill ex-wife. Viewing their disturbing confrontation via closed-circuit television
Closed-circuit television
Closed-circuit television is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors....
, Vic remarked that they had found Kavanaugh's weakness. Kavanaugh eventually noticed that the security camera in the room was turned on. Realizing that his conversation with his wife was being observed by his enemies led him to rush out of the interrogation room in a rage. Vic simply looked him in the eyes and smiled smugly. The now outraged Kavanaugh decided to leave Lem with no choice other than testifying against Vic. He ordered Detective Lemansky to be arrested for possession of heroin with intent to distribute. As Vic and his fellow officers watched in horror, Lem was handcuffed by Julien Lowe
Julien Lowe
Detective Julien Lowe is a fictional Los Angeles Police Department officer and a new member of the Strike Team, a four-man anti-gang unit in the television drama series The Shield. Lowe is played by Michael Jace.-Rookie:...
, placed in lockup with other criminals, processed, and sent to a detention center.
That same evening, Kavanaugh visited Antwon and told the drug lord that his terms were acceptable.
The Incident
Shortly thereafter, Vic paid a visit to Sadie's residence. Originally intending to milk her for information, he changed his plans after Sadie sexually propositioned him. Vic waited until the next time Kavanaugh taunted him with his coming downfall and quipped,"Allow me to remind you of a few things you may have forgotten: I didn't kill Terry, you've lost your leverage over Lem, and your ex-wife's pussy tastes like sweet butterButterButter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
."
Horrified, Kavanaugh rushed to his ex-wife's house and demanded to know whether it was true, only to have Sadie respond,
"What did Vic MackeyVic MackeyDetective Victor Samuel "Vic" Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis, was the antihero and main protagonist of the FX crime drama series The Shield. Mackey was a corrupt and brutal Detective in the Los Angeles Police Department; he stole from drug dealers, routinely beat suspects and committed murder...
do? He made me cumOrgasmOrgasm is the peak of the plateau phase of the sexual response cycle, characterized by an intense sensation of pleasure...
... Twice."
Lem's Bail and a Rape Attempt
Enraged, Kavanaugh tried to take vengeance by seducing Vic's ex-wife Corrine. However, she rejected him, disgusted by his treatment of her in the past. Kavanaugh then tried to rapeRape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
her, but could not bring himself to go through with it.
Also determined to prevent the Team from paying Lem's bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
, Kavanaugh froze all their assets and those of their dependents, including those of Corrine Mackey. This was intended to force Lem to testify against the Team.
Vic, however, was still determined and waited for the next search warrant
Search warrant
A search warrant is a court order issued by a Magistrate, judge or Supreme Court Official that authorizes law enforcement officers to conduct a search of a person or location for evidence of a crime and to confiscate evidence if it is found....
to be executed on a drug dealer's house. Instead of allowing the search to go through, the Strike Team broke into the house, stole the drug dealer's money, and left seconds before their fellow cops arrived. Knowing that paying the bail himself would attract Kavanaugh's attention, Vic arranged for it to be paid by the Team's old friend, Smitty.
Deadline
Despite all of his maneuvering, Kavanaugh's investigation was destroyed by external factors. In a move to seal the other three members of the Strike Team off from prosecution, Lem plead guilty to theft under color of authority, agreeing to serve 18 months before parole of a 5 year sentence. The Department Brass and the District Attorney, who had both lost their patience with Kavanaugh due to rising complaints from the Barn, the expense of paying for his task force, and the lack of progress in the case, decided to accept. Lieutenant Kavanaugh, stressed out and humiliated, instantly came apart at the seams. He angrily protested to Chief Johnson, who told him,"It's over, Jon. Sending Lemansky to jail sends a message and we all move on."Seething with hatred, Kavanaugh snarled,
"Mackey skates clean? This guy is pissing all over us. And we just smile, and lick it up?"Assistant Chief Roy Phillips interrupted him, saying "That's enough." However, the Chief of Police bristled as Kavanaugh dramatically pointed to the crime scene photos of Terry Crowley and screamed,
"Vic MackeyChief Johnson icily responded,Vic MackeyDetective Victor Samuel "Vic" Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis, was the antihero and main protagonist of the FX crime drama series The Shield. Mackey was a corrupt and brutal Detective in the Los Angeles Police Department; he stole from drug dealers, routinely beat suspects and committed murder...
kills cops! He... he deals drugs! He beats suspects! You know what he did yesterday? He... he screwed my ex-wife with the sole purpose of making this investigation seem like a personal vendettaFeudA feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight between parties—often groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one party perceives itself to have been attacked, insulted or wronged by another...
. He may have assassinated a gang leader. And that's just all in one day. I wonder what he's going to do today. I wonder what he's going to do tomorrow. This guy... this guy is just pissing... he's pissing all over us. He's pissing on you. What does it taste like? Chief, what does it taste like, 'cause you know what, it tastes like piss to me!"
"You have forty-eight hours to tie up the loose ends, and find someplace else to do the paperwork. Captain Wyms needs her office."
Investigation collapse
Then, however, Lem did not report for processing, and Kavanaugh was overjoyed to be given one final chance to crush his nemesis. Correctly presuming that Vic was harboring Lem, he attempted to have the Strike Team arrested for aiding and abettingAccomplice
At law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even though they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the teller and asks for the money is guilty of armed robbery...
a fugitive
Fugitive
A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...
. He had the Team followed at all times and even persuaded Aceveda to leak to false information to Vic, saying that Lem had revealed the Strike Team's involvement in the Armenian Money Train Robbery.
Kavanaugh also deliberately sabotaged Vic's arrangement with Antwon Mitchell
Antwon Mitchell
Antwon Mitchell is a fictional character from the FX television show The Shield, portrayed by Anthony Anderson.-Character overview:Mitchell is a former drug lord who, having been released from prison after a lengthy sentence, tried to reinvent himself as an upstanding community activist...
, which was meant to keep Lem alive while serving his prison term. He confronted the imprisoned drug lord, enraging him to the point that Antwon vowed to kill Lem no matter which prison he was sent to.
Kavanaugh also had the Team trailed when they were to meet Lem, but was unable to follow all three of them. His tails were easily shaken, but Kavanaugh soon received a phone call that Lem had been blown apart by a hand grenade
Hand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
, presumably by the Salvadoran drug cartel led by Guardo Lima. When the body was discovered, Kavanaugh and Mackey were face to face once more. Kavanaugh was certain that Vic had again murdered a fellow officer and felt that all his hatred of his nemesis was completely justified. He looked at Vic demanded to know,
"Are you happy now, Detective Mackey?"Vic, however, was completely devastated by a murder he had nothing to do with and tackled Kavanaugh with a scream of outraged fury. The two enemies brawled across the crime scene, with Vic getting the upper hand, until their fellow officers pulled them apart. As Kavanaugh watched Vic Mackey walk away, his eyes burned with a pure hate. Meanwhile, Vic gestured toward Lem's body and snarled,
"We're gonna find whoever did this, and we're gonna kill 'em."
Kavanaugh's final charge
With Lem now dead and his career and reputation soiled, Kavanaugh was ordered by Chief Johnson to leave the Barn and allow the investigation into Lem's murder to proceed. Kavanaugh pleaded for time to look into Vic's possible involvement, as part of a potential motive for Lem's murder. Assistant Chief Phillips grudgingly granted him 24 hours to write a report for consideration. However, upon arriving at the Barn, he immediately told Vic,"You cannot deny that you murdered two of your own Team members!"This instantly set off another brawl. The fight was broken up, but was witnessed by Phillips and Captain Wyms
Claudette Wyms
Captain Claudette Wyms is a fictional Los Angeles Police Department captain in the television drama series The Shield. Claudette is played by CCH Pounder.-Personal:Claudette has been divorced twice and raised two daughters, Bonnie and Rebecca...
. Kavanaugh was ordered to leave the Barn immediately, his investigation apparently over.
Nothing now mattered to Kavanaugh except destroying the object of his hate. Changing tactics, Kavanaugh informed Claudette and Chief Phillips that Vic had hired the Salvadoran drug dealers who murdered Lem, using Emolia Melendez as a go-between. This granted him a temporary reprieve.
After Emolia agreed to follow the story in exchange for witness protection
Witness protection
Witness protection is protection of a threatened witness or any person involved in the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during and after a trial, usually by police...
, she testified to Claudette and Phillips about the false details of Vic's involvement. Kavanaugh was authorized to investigate Vic's involvement, and began by ordering officers to await Vic at his home to take him in for questioning.
However, Vic paid a visit to the Lieutenant's residence, taunting him by saying,
"You are entering a whole new playing field, my friend. I hope you know the rules."Kavanaugh responded by breaking into Vic's house and planting several pieces of "evidence" to further solidify the murder charge.
Kavanaugh's downfall
However, Kavanaugh soon sensed that not everyone believed his story. After hearing Emolia's testimony, Dutch expressed skepticism about her story and requested further corroborating evidence. He later suggested that the "evidence" found in Vic's house was simply too good to be true. In an attempt to protect his case, Kavanaugh requested that Dutch be removed from the investigation, citing that Dutch's past relationship with Vic's ex-wife may have resulted in a conflict of interestConflict of interest
A conflict of interest occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other....
.
Then, however, Corrine Mackey learned of the charges against her ex-husband and angrily confronted Kavanaugh, formally accusing him of sexual assault
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
. When Claudette asked Dutch for his opinion, he expressed skepticisim about Corrine's allegations, suggesting that the rape attempt only happened in her own mind. He further spoke of his growing doubts about Kavanaugh's case, questioning whether Vic would murder a close friend under any circumstances. Claudette told him of her belief that "only the truth can save this place." Together, they began to take a good hard look at Emolia's story.
Claudette tore into Emolia in the interrogation room, saying that she should feel ashamed of letting herself become a pawn
Pawn
Pawn may refer to:* Pawn , the weakest and most numerous piece in the game* Pawn, another name for a pledge in certain jurisdictions ** Pawnshop/pawnbroker* Pawn , an embeddable programming language...
in the war between Vic and Kavanaugh. Meanwhile, Kavanaugh realized what he had become. He stopped Claudette and confessed to planting the evidence.
"I framehe said, laughing at the irony of it all.FrameupA frame-up or setup is an American term referring to the act of framing someone, that is, providing false evidence or false testimony in order to falsely prove someone guilty of a crime....
d a guilty man,"
Kavanaugh was immediately stripped of his badge and imprisoned for the many crimes he had committed. He later pled guilty in exchange for a lesser sentence.
Taking a break from his mission to wreak bloody revenge on Lem's killer, Vic paid Kavanaugh a visit in prison. Although Vic taunted him about having lost both his moral compass
Morality
Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...
and their private war, Kavanaugh remained unfazed. He responded that he was now at peace and finally free of Vic's corrupting influence. He added,
"One day the UniverseUniverseThe Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
will take out its trash."
Vic smiled and responded,
"Looks like it already has."