‘Law & Order’ Recap: ‘Time Will Tell’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

LAW & ORDER -- "Time Will Tell" Episode 24008 -- Pictured: Maura Tierney as Lt. Jessica Brady -- (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 2406 of ‘Law & Order’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
​
There was a time in the United States of America, where schooling was viewed in a different light. It was seen as an essential part of growth, an opportunity to enrich one’s mind, and because of that… parents made it a priority for their kids. They expected them to do well in school and work hard, so they could graduate high school with ease and go to a solid college and garner knowledge that would help them for the rest of their natural lives. But somewhere along the line, things changed, and school became something different. The student experience became the focus, not grades or hard work… and competition came into play. 

To the point where we now hear horror stories about parents and kids that make school hell for teachers and administrators because it is about their baby’s experience over anything else, and it is scary to hear about such stories. Since we worry, what could come from this? Because these days, the right circumstances and wrong desires seem to lead to bad things and well, it just so happens that this week’s episode of Law & Order explored those possibilities. A feat that ‘Time Will Tell’ accomplished, by way of a horrible crime at a prestigious school. Wherein the administrator was brutally murdered in the middle of the night. Which brought forth sorrow for her family and her passing exposed all kinds of problems within the school, since some hard truths regarding conduct came into play.

For the police learned that this school wasn’t just prestigious, but a real battleground of sorts. Where rich students and their rich parents would do anything and everything to get ahead. Which included getting false diagnoses to have their kids take part in more specialized study time. Which made life tough for students that earned their way into the school, and actually needed better care in school. Because without a proper donation, they were denied it through and through. Which brought forth, a suspect. Because the police came to discover that a girl named Emily, who was denied that opportunity and harbored great anxiety and fear over not excelling in school, crossed the line and committed this heinous crime. Which brought forth quite the wild trial. 

Because Lieutenant Brady garnered quite the ugly confession from Emily, one that was not admissible in court and that gave Emily’s mother, Lisa, a chance to step in and go the extra mile to give her child a fighting chance at an education. At a future. So, she took the fall for the whole thing, regardless of the consequences. Which sent her to prison for twenty years so her kid could have an education with a prestigious title. Because that is what school has transformed into. It’s not about the value of the work, or the knowledge… but the seal on the school’s logo and the price of tuition, and it broke a student and a family and that made for one sorrowful and tragic tale. One that truly was a no-win scenario for the police and the DA’s office.

For there was no way to close this out cleanly, and there was no way that anyone would be happy with the end result. But that’s how these cases go sometimes and that definitely led to a mostly bleak ending. In fact, the only saving grace here, was the sheer fact that Brady was inspired by Lisa to be a better mother and support her kids in a more positive light. But aside from that… we saw prestige rip people to pieces here both literally and figuratively and this episode deserves applause for going this route and giving us such a powerful story. One that said a lot about school as it stands in 2024 and how it clearly needs to get back to basics, so that pressures untold don’t bring about more violence in schools. Until next time.

---

Watch ‘Law & Order’

Powered by JustWatch