Liana Pai

The charred body of a young Asian female is found outside the upscale penthouse of Li Chen (Tzi Ma), the Deputy Counsel General to China. It takes a while to identify the victim, who is a Falon Gong follower named Helen Quan. But the Medical Examiner explains what was initially thought to be a suicide is a homicide since it's evident she was strangled before burned. Tommy Wong (Ken Leung), a driver for an elderly woman in the building is questioned. He initially claims to know nothing but when detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Green (Jesse L. Martin) figure out he knew Helen, he admits to that. They then question Chen, who mysteriously has a sculpture by a local artist from Tianjen, China, where Helen's mother is a prisoner.

Gang retaliation seems the obvious motive when a brilliant Chinese science student is shot to death; however, evidence points to the family of a student in competition for a prestigious science award. While wading through several lies today by the family suspected of the killing, Stone must also try to keep the press from labeling the murder as race related.

The investigation into a shooting spree at a posh fund-raiser seems to lead to the work of anti- Semitic fanatics, until Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) realize that the killings were far more personal in nature. When the real killer is caught, fireworks fly as Schiff (Steven Hill) and McCoy (Sam Waterston) find themselves in a battle with the Governor to keep their jobs.