How Many Episodes Of "Life" Have You Seen?

Exonerated after serving 12 years in prison for murders he didn't commit, policeman Charlie Crews is restored to duty as a detective. As an imprisoned policeman, Crews had a very difficult time and was regularly and severely beaten by fellow prisoners. Now out of prison and the beneficiary of a large financial settlement, Crews has a different, some would say odd, outlook on life. His new partner, Det. Dani Reese, doesn't quite get him and feels she has been saddled with a loser. In their first case together, they investigate the murder of a young boy who was shot to death. He was a member of a Boy Scout troop whose members all have fathers in prison so they have an obvious starting point for their investigation. Crews is also investigating the crime for which he was wrongly convicted and is searching for those who framed him.

The husband of a murdered carjacking victim won't identify a suspect, leaving Crews and Reese to determine the truth behind the killing. Elsewhere, Crews confronts the detective who put him in jail.

Crews and Reese investigate the murder of a young woman who was thrown from a window. Oddly, she was wearing wings at the time and the case immediately becomes a media sensation. The detectives learn that she is a Russian mail order-type bride and that a Russian mobster, Roman Novikov, was blackmailing her unsuspecting husband. What they don't realize is that prosecuting Novikov will be a much bigger task than anticipated. Still investigating the crime for which he was falsely convicted, Crews is told to question his old partner about the Bank of Los Angeles robbery some 15 years previously and the missing $18 million.

The police investigate the murder of two Iranian-American college students who were killed in a convenience store. The shootings have all the earmarks of a hate crime as nothing was stolen and "Go Home" was written above them. The police soon realize that they have a kidnapping on their hands when they learn a third person was with them. The ransom demanded by the kidnapper - and his relationship to the kidnapped man - comes as a surprise. Crews also learns that Dani Reese, who was only 12-years old at the time of the Bank of LA robbery, also has a connection to that crime.

Charlie and Dani investigate the murder of a teenage girl found in the woods with her throat slit. The investigation leads them not only the girl's murder but to a second crime involving a young boy who was kidnapped as a child. Internal Affairs and the District Attorney's office still consider Charlie to be their prime suspect in the murder of retired Detective Carl Ames. Jack Reese, Dani's father and the former head of the SWAT team involved in the Bank of Los Angeles robbery, warns Charlie to stay away.

Crews and Reese investigate a shooting during a family dispute and discover that the couple was also running a marijuana grow-op in their apartment. What they can't find however is the gun the woman used to shoot her husband. They do however find evidence that a rather large snake may also inhabit the premises. Crews sets off to find the man who killed his friends and finds that the man is now a born-again Christian. Does Crews bring him in or does he take care of the problem himself. One thing he does realize is that whatever he chooses to do with the murderer, the central question of who set him up remains unanswered.

Charlie and Dani investigate the murder of Max Horta who is found tied to a chair at the deep end of a drained out swimming pool. The autopsy reveals that the man was beaten to death and the scene has all the signs of a gang killing. They trace his murder to a phone call he received immediately prior to his death and find the culprits are a group of high school friends led by Patrick Bridger who seems to be ready to go to any lengths to be leader of the pack. Jack Reese starts to harass and threaten Ted Early but Charlie puts a stop to it. Charlie has an interesting encounter with his ex-wife.

Crews and Reese investigate the murder of a university student who was killed during a social science experiment. In the sociology study, 20 students are divided into two groups, prison guards and prisoners and they are to play their roles for 5 days. In the closed environment of the simulated prison, it is evident that the killer is one of the students. What they learn however is that the professor in charge of the study hasn't quite followed the protocol for this type of experiment. Charlie also learns that the professor has been looking into his own background as well. As for his own investigation, Charlie focuses on a close-knit group of five police officers.

Following a major earthquake in Los Angeles, the detectives find themselves looking for an escaped prisoner they put away last year. Their main concern is that the escapee, Arthur Tins, is more likely to be a victim because the man whose child he killed was released on parole three months ago. Tins has learned a lot in prison however and takes care of the situation himself. At home, meanwhile, Ted Earley has an accident and calls on someone to help him.

On the busiest shopping day in the USA - the Friday after Thanksgiving - Charlie and Dani investigate the death of a man in America's largest shopping mall. Before they can remove the body however, it disappears. While searching the mall, they find two teenage siblings who, it turns out, have been living there for over a year. Their discovery ties directly to the murder and a lucrative scam some of the mall employees have going on. Meanwhile, Capt. Tidwell finally manages to get Dani to go out on a date with him, but things don't quite go as planned.

When a Deputy Sheriff is found murdered on sovereign tribal lands, the LAPD is called in to investigate as a neutral third party between the tribal police and the county Sheriff. The Deputy in question, John Hawes, was well-known but maybe not so well-liked. Tribal police say nearly everyone wanted him dead. Reese and Crews are certain that a new casino and the riches that flow from it are central to the murder. Meanwhile, Charlie continues to meet Mickey Rayborn but doesn't make much headway on the conspirators who framed him. Rachel Seybolt is starting to demand more independence. Charlie also becomes aware that Dani and Capt. Tidwell are having a fling.

Crews and Reese investigate the execution style killing of three men, two of whom are suspected of being Russian mobsters. The third victim doesn't fit the pattern however and the police start to look at missing persons reports. They identify him as Paul, a Russian engineer and conclude the three victims were building something. Gangster Roman Nevikov claims not to know them but they are convinced the three worked for Nevikov. Dani decides to write the Lieutenants exam but also starts drinking again. Meanwhile, Charlie shoots an intruder in his house who turns out to be his father. Ted Earley is still in prison but Charlie makes sure he is protected.

Reese and Crews investigate the murder of the lead singer of a rock cover band. The man was obviously suffocated with a piece of clear plastic, leaving a strange death mask at the scene. The band had developed quite a following and regularly packed the venue where they played. The detectives soon learn that the dead man had only been with the group for a year and that the three other musicians had fired his predecessor. In a strange world of groupies, imitators and wannabes, the detectives sift through the evidence. Photographs taken at various concerts provide the necessary clue. Meanwhile, Charlie's father shows up with the news that his beautiful young fiance has left him. When Ted Earley blurts out that he is in love with the woman, Charlie has yet another problem to contend with.

With Dani Reese away working on a joint LAPD-FBI team, Charlie Crews recruits his friend Officer Bobby Stark to investigate the murder of Jerome Rafts. The dead man was by all accounts a derivatives trader but according to Ted Early, that market imploded some time ago so the man, who lived a lavish lifestyle, must have had another source of income. He also spent most of his time with paid escorts leading the police to focus on his most recent favorite, a girl named Alexa who, like Rafts, had an interest in pigeons. Turns out that Rafts and Alexa also shared the same profession. The investigator looking into Mickey Rayborn's disappearance signs up for Ted's class and gets access to Charlie's house. As for Reese, she begins to wonder just what this special task force is all about as she undergoes a security interview.

Charlie tries to figure out the photo that shows Reese meeting Raybourne a few days before his apparent death. He then gets assigned a new partner, Jane Seever, who is nothing like Reese. They catch an ex-con fleeing a murder scene. The victim was a young woman with whom the man, John, had been writing letters when he was in prison. The man claims the girl was dead when he got there. They started dating when he got out. John confesses that he had been writing to another woman as well, but stopped doing it when he got out. The woman had become upset. At FBI, Reese is shown more and more material featuring both Raybourne and Charlie, who turn out to be part of the Organized Crime Task Force Investigation she has been brought into. John's other pen pal turns out to be a religious woman who has forgiven him and actually worships him as a saint. John, however, made his one post-arrest phone call to a third woman, Nina Fiske. She turns out to be a playwright and yet another pen pal of John's. Then John manages to escape.

An LA councilwoman is found shot in their family's outdoor jacuzzi. She was working to get Initiative 38, a comprehensive ban on handguns, passed. Was the murder committed by gun-nuts or is there more to the case than meets the eye?