Synopsis:
Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson (series star KYRA SEDGWICK) possesses an offbeat personality, a tough-as-nails approach and a track record as one of the country's leading investigators. The CIA-trained detective heads up the Priority Murder Squad (whose name she later changes to Priority Homicide Division), a special unit of the LAPD that handles sensitive, high-profile murder cases. Brenda was chosen to lead the team because she is a world-class interrogator and an expert at obtaining confessions. When Brenda arrives in Los Angeles from Atlanta, Georgia, she immediately finds herself thrust into a very different way of life. She struggles to get over her past problems while dealing with co-workers who resent the fact that she leapfrogged over many veteran cops to the elevated position of deputy police chief. Her quirky personality and hard-nosed approach to her job immediately irritate her colleagues, as does the fact that she is a tough-minded Southern woman in a department dominated by men. Although focused on her career, she's also trying (somewhat unsuccessfully) to overcome her love of doughnuts, chocolate bars and other snacks and to reignite a personal life that has fallen by the wayside. On the job, Brenda has a great talent for knowing a person's secrets and obtaining confessions, with skills that stem from understanding her own imperfections and experiences. She does whatever it takes to find out the truth, no matter the personal costs. Although she gets some support from her boss, Assistant Police Chief Will Pope (series star J.K. SIMMONS), for the most part she must fend for herself, working alongside her partner, Detective Sergeant David Gabriel (series star COREY REYNOLDS); FBI Special Agent Fritz Howard (series star JON TENNEY), a close friend of Brenda's now living in L.A.; Captain Taylor (series star ROBERT GOSSETT), head of the robbery homicide division; Detective Lieutenant Provenza (series star G.W. BAILEY); and Detective Lieutenant Andy Flynn (series star TONY DENISON). In her first case since arriving in Los Angeles, Brenda is called upon to investigate a murder at the home of a multimillionaire computer company executive. Brenda pursues leads in her case, eventually focusing on what may be a love affair gone wrong. When forensic evidence uncovers the truth about the victim's mysterious past, Brenda puts her skills to the test and proves to her critics that she is indeed the right woman for the job.