| Mystery of the Corrupt Judge | |
|---|---|
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| Mister T: The Animated Series | |
| Details | |
| Episode | Mystery of the Corrupt Judge |
| Airdate | {{{airdate}}} |
| Directed By | {{{directedby}}} |
| Chronology | |
| Previous Episode | Mystery of the Dance Troupe |
| Next Episode | Mystery of the Dirty Cop |
Mystery of the Corrupt Judge is the eighty-fifth episode of Mister T: The Animated Series. It is inspired by Law and Order with elements of Homicide: Life on the Street and guest stars Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels.
Premise
When a mistrial occurs in the trial of one of the villains Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels caught, Mr. T and the team uncover a corruption scandal. Why did the judge commit a mistrial?
Plot
At a seminar on relations between police and the community hosted by Anderson Cooper, Mr. T and his team explain that sometimes the law can be manipulated by the very criminals that it is supposed to put away, allowing them to get off the hook. He then explains about an incident he had witnessed of such an incident. He calls it the Mystery of the Corrupt Judge.
At the New York State Supreme Court Building, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels are watching the trial of Vincenzo Scatino, a member of the Italian Mafia who they had helped put away for the murder of a member of the city council for New York City. Despite the open-and-shut case, the jury ends up being dead-locked, resulting in Judge Chapman committing a mis-trial. Later, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels are sitting on the steps of the courthouse wondering what went wrong. Just then, they are joined by the two cops that assisted them in Scatino's arrest, Sergeant Lincoln and Detective Torrance, as well as the two attorneys for the prosecution, William Keller and Jordan Skyes, the latter of whom is Dee-Dee's older brother. They inform them that a new trial will be scheduled soon, while Torrance notes that something seems suspicious about how seven members of the jury would vote against a guilty verdict even though the evidence was clear and suggests that they might have been bought. They then head to a gymnastics meet where Mr. T and the team are performing. Jordan notes that he knows that Mr. T can help with solving the mystery.
After the meet ends, Jordan Skyes walks up to Mr. T and asks for his help in investigating whether members of the jury might have been bought, leading to a deadlock and a mistrial. Mr. T agrees to help, and they soon find a clue. Looking at the surveillance cameras, Robin, Kim, Dee-Dee, and Brenda catch Judge Chapman paying off seven of the jurors. The other five refused to be bought. They alert the others. A further investigation reveals that the judge is under federal investigation for suspected corruption. Scatino reveals to the police that Chapman is on the payroll of his boss Antonio Corleone. Scatino then reveals that there are others on Corleone's payroll. The team decides to look into Corleone's activities. Just then, a man attacks the police station and kills Scatino.
Taffy has a picture of the man who killed Scatino. Jordan keeps Cavey from eating it. Mr. T threatens to turn Captain Caveman into a pair of boots if he does not stop eating the clues. The man is identified by the two cops as Jake Landon, the deputy police chief. Jeff and Woody spy on Landon and see him meeting with two others, who turn out to be Councilman Vargas and Deputy Mayor Daniels (no relation to Woody). They overhear the three planning to meet at a restaurant on the Lower East Side and tell the others. Detective Torrance notes that all three men are suspected of having ties to Corleone. While taking a break, the heroes are ambushed by a professional hitman, Benjamin Hanson. Hanson is arrested and is convinced to wear a wire by Sergeant Lincoln. Hanson meets with the three men and Corleone, as well as another man named Joseph Russell, who turns out to be a union leader. Our heroes get the evidence caught on tape and move to arrest the men. Corleone kills Hanson before he tries run away while the others are arrested. Cavey and Mr. T catch him and arrest him. The police then raid the home of Judge Chapman and arrest him.
Mr. T notes that those men ended up not being the only ones involved in the corruption scandal, but all of them were arrested. Those that snitched were given reduced sentences. Antonio Corleone was convicted, but just as he left the courthouse, he was shot and killed by hitmen working for a rival crime family. This is all goes to show how the law can be manipulated by criminals.
Cast and Characters
| Actor | Character |
|---|---|
| Mr. T | Himself |
| Tia Carrere | Priscilla Bisby |
| Grey DeLisle | Robin O'Neill |
| Frank Welker | Jeff Harris |
| Brenda Song | Kim Nakamura |
| Corbin Bleu | Woody Daniels |
| Reese Hartwig | Spike O'Neill |
| Vernee Watson-Johnson | Dee-Dee Skyes |
| Laurel Page | Taffy Dare |
| Kate Micucci | Brenda Chance |
| Jim Cummings | Captain Caveman |
| Anderson Cooper | Himself |
| Chris Noth | Detective Torrance |
| Paul Sorvino | Sergeant Lincoln |
| Richard Brooks | Jordan Skyes |
| Michael Moriarty | William Keller |
| Christian Bale | Judge Chapman |
| Jason David Frank | Vincenzo Scatino |
| Al Pacino | Antonio Corleone |
| Peter Cullen | Deputy Mayor Daniels |
| David Yost | Joseph Russell |
| Rob Paulson | Benjamin Hanson |
| Walter Emanuel Jones | Jake Landon |
| John Erwin | Councilman Vargas |
Suspects
| Suspect | Motive |
|---|---|
| Judge Chapman | He is under a federal investigation for corruption. |
| Antonio Corleone | He is a mob boss and Vincenzo's superior. Corleone might have also bought members of the jury. |
Culprits
| Culprit | Motive |
|---|---|
| Antonio Corleone, Deputy Mayor Daniels, Councilman Vargas, Jake Landon, Benjamin Hanson, Joseph Russell, and Judge Chapman | They were trying to keep Vincenzo Scatino out of jail in order to avoid being exposed for a major corruption scandal. When that did not work, they killed him. |
Songs
| Song | Credits | Performed by |
|---|---|---|
| Bad Boys | Ian Lewis | Inner Circle |
Locations
- New York City, NY
Trivia
- This episode is one of those episodes that generated controversy for its content.
- Some of the characters bare resemblance to characters from Law and Order.
- Though Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels are billed as the guest stars, Anderson Cooper also makes an appearance. He only appears in the opening and closing segments of the episode.
- The last name of Al Pacino's character, Antonio Corleone, is a reference to the character he played in The Godfather, Michael Corleone. The first name is a reference to Antonio Montana, the character Pacino played in Scarface.