‘Law & Order’ Recap: ‘In Harm’s Way’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

LAW & ORDER -- "In Harm's Way" Episode 23013 -- Pictured: Tony Goldwyn as DA Nicholas Baxter -- (Photo by: Ralph Bavaro/NBC)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the Season 23 Finale of ‘Law & Order’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
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One would like to believe, that becoming a public servant and serving the public trust in a high-profile position within the framework of the judicial system… would bring peace to one’s life. After all, that person is doing good in the world and making sure that people can rest easy at night, ergo… they should be adored by the public and feel as safe as those they work for. But alas, that simply is not the case. For every move that person takes part in, in that position, harbors incredible scrutiny and disagreements on end results since others have their own idea of how things should go. Not to mention, enemies will be made, the kind that could possibly seek revenge and well, that’s not an easy life to reckon with, one that most of us avoid. 

But some, hear that call and go for it and suffer through the consequences of sacrificing for the greater good, as evidenced by last night’s season 23 finale of Law & Order on NBC. For ‘In Harm’s Way’ focused squarely on District Attorney Nicholas Baxter, who faced quite the surprise. For while he was out with his family and preparing to enjoy an evening downtown, a shot rang out. One that put down a beloved baseball player, and scared everyone in the area, and more so scared Baxter when he came to learn… that he was the target of that bullet, and he only survived this assassination attempt because he leaned down at just the right moment and well, a crime this heinous put the entire city on alert and through the efforts of Shaw and Riley, a suspect came to light.

Because they quickly came to discover, that a member of the notorious Cobra 10 Gang was the one who had his sights set on killing the District Attorney. In part because the gang and Baxter had tangled years ago, and the top boss wanted revenge, and well, the trail of evidence made it seem as though this was going to be an open and shut case. Since they had motive, evidence that lined up with the weapon used in the attack and even a witness to place the accused, a Hector Canseco, at the crime scene. But alas, the death of that witness put the case in jeopardy and forced Baxter… to not only reflect upon his career and his choices made, including the reality that he was hated and marked for death, but tasked him with how much he was willing to sacrifice for the job he had chosen.

For there was a person he could lean upon to end this, and swiftly, his daughter Carrie. For she had seen Canseco outside of her parent’s house, casing the joint, and he even used Carrie to confirm that the house in question was the Baxter residence. But doing so, would expose some skeletons in his closet and potentially derail his re-election campaign, and potentially cost him his marriage. Since Julia made it clear he’d given too much in the name of justice and putting his daughter on the stand crossed a line. But it happened nevertheless, and exposed so much and did indeed seem to cost him his marriage. But Canseco did go down for his crime and likely spent ages in jail, and well… that really was the perfect way to examine the central theme of this episode.

Since it truly spoke to how much sacrifice goes into a job such as this, and the roadblocks and clap back a civil servant will face in the name of justice and a better tomorrow, and this finale deserves a round of applause for exploring that and for also… adding a little personal twist to it as well. Since Baxter did have other options for putting the case away, but really dug deep and sacrificed so much in the name of justice, and for the chance to prove to the people of New York, that he genuinely wants to be their District Attorney and work for them. All of which added some humanity to a cerebral and engaging finale. One that truly informed us, that there is no glamor or glitz to be found in leading the charge for justice, and to be prepared for that if any of us feel the call to chase such matters. Until next season.

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