Hill Street Blues, The Complete Series

Captain Frank Furillo of the Hill Street police station has his hands full handling his ex-wife, an explosive hostage standoff, and a shooting that involves two of his best cops.

Captain Furillo summons the heads of the various local gangs in an attempt to ensure their peaceful "cooperation" during a visit by the President of the United States.

As the gang negotiations continue, cop Johnny LaRue gets in trouble after accepting a bribe from a drug-dealing fellow cop, and Furillo's ex-wife is busted for possession of marijuana.

The cops on the Hill face the possibility of an all-out assault from the local gangs after the President cancels his visit and then the electricity goes out and the phones go dead.

As Furillo continues to try to exonerate Johnny LaRue, Officer Hill and Officer Belker go undercover in drag in order to catch a rapist terrorizing a local park.

Furillo continues to search for the suspect who wounded Hill and Renko even as the two officers deal with a voodoo-spouting woman, and Belker confronts a man who claims he's a vampire.

Furillo not only has to deal with a gang leader who has hostages, but he must also rein in the trigger-happy commander of the precinct's EATers (Emergency Action Team) squad.

As Furillo tries to calm angry storeowners who feel the police haven't done enough to keep their businesses safe, Sgt. Esterhaus receives a cryptic note from a menacing ex-con.

LaRue gets in trouble for putting the moves on a beautiful television reporter while Furillo deals with the aftermath of a deadly shootout between the vigilante storeowners and a local gang.

As rumor circulates on the Hill that Furillo will be promoted to division commander, LaRue and Washington decide to liven up the precinct’s annual search for alligators in the city sewers.

Furillo jeopardizes his promotion with an investigation that may tie the death of a 15-year-old prostitute to a local councilman, and LaRue tries to fund his proposed "saloondromat."

Hunter finally convinces the department to purchase a new flame-throwing attack tank for his EATers squad only to have it stolen after he leaves the keys in the ignition.

Furillo angrily strikes a deal with a dirty cop in order to clear LaRue while Sgt. Esterhaus has second thoughts about his upcoming marriage after his ex-girlfriend shows up.

Hill and Renko arrest a young mother who regularly abandons her two young toddlers and everyone at the station watches with interest as a brutal vice cop is investigated for a fourth time.

LaRue's excessive drinking on the job catches up with him, and Goldblume considers retiring as his son's health deteriorates and his thankless job finally gets to him.

Washington unearths evidence to clear a bigoted narcotics cop, unaware that the police brass plan to let the officer "fry" in order to placate the outraged black community.

Furillo and Davenport's plans for a romantic getaway have to be cancelled after a tragic shooting involving Officers Bates and Officer Coffey.

Captain Furillo parlays with Jesse John Hudson, a powerful ex-gang leader whose dubious rhetoric of community involvement and self-help seems to mask more sinister intentions.

Detective Washington investigates the murder of a prostitute, and when a huge cache of weapons is stolen, Furillo suspects that Hudson is behind it.

A distraught Belker blames Furillo when an undercover cop is killed, while hostage negotiator Goldblume has his hands full with a man who has barricaded himself in his house after killing a neighborhood youth.

Against her better judgment, Officer Bates allows a drug-addicted prostitute to shoot up before hauling her in, but when the prostitute overdoses and nearly dies, Bates is subject to condescension and derision from her fellow officers.

Washington and La Rue are accused of entrapment, and a major gang war seems imminent when a ten-year-old girl is accidentally killed in a drive-by shooting.

Hill is caught in the middle of a cover-up when his old friend Officer Nash uses excessive force during an arrest, and emotions run high when contract negotiations between the police union and the city council come to a standstill.

Furillo confronts Hill, Coffey, and Renko about the Nash cover-up, and a good samaritan faces arrest on an out-of-state warrant after saving Renko. Meanwhile, Belker goes undercover as a Hasidic rabbi to catch a gang of ATM robbers.

An enraged Frank rounds up a veritable rogues' gallery of gang leaders after a bloody massacre at a sleazy night club, and Belker is confounded by Captain Freedom, a self-styled superhero who unintentionally interferes with an arrest.

Furillo risks perjury when he's subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury that is probing police corruption. Renko fumes when his service revolver is stolen, and Captain Freedom reappears to help thwart a robbery.

Frank considers hiring an attorney when the grand jury investigation heats up. Renko, Hill and Belker go undercover at a popular restaurant, and Lt. Calletano is suspicious of a beautiful civilian clerk who comes to work at the station.

After testifying for a second time, a fed-up Furillo threatens to resign, and Captain Freedom meets with an untimely end when he shows up in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Joyce is devastated when she learns that her friend, Public Defender Pam Gillian, has been slain, and Hill's election as vice-president of the Black Officers Coalition places a strain on his partnership with Renko.

Due to a minor technicality, the murder weapon in the Gillian case must be thrown out as evidence, and La Rue falls off the wagon, jeopardizing Washington's life by showing up drunk at a drug bust.

Bogus witnesses scurry to collect the reward offered for information leading to the arrest of Pam Gillian's killer, and Belker laments the loss of his youth after losing a suspect in a foot chase. Meanwhile, La Rue's alcoholic transgression gets him demoted to the motor pool.

Outraged by the injustice of the Gillian case, Joyce threatens to quit the Public Defender's Office, while Belker and Washington bust a ring of car thieves.

Fists, elbows, and tempers fly, both on the court and in the bleachers, when the Hill Streeters take on a team of gang bangers in a charity basketball game. Belker stakes out a seedy X-rated theater.

An investigation reveals that the gun used to murder a street cop was stolen from the police property department, and Renko learns that his cancer-stricken father has been hospitalized.

The hearse containing the corpse of Renko's father is bizarrely commandeered, while Belker goes undercover as a derelict to catch a slasher. Joyce's faith in her job is renewed as she defends a young man accused of rape.

Furillo throws away the rule book when two young men rape and murder a nun during a church robbery; Belker befriends gay prostitute Eddie Gregg; Calletano faces a tax audit; and Joyce feels helpless as public opinion works to destroy her client.

Belker forgets his mother's birthday; Hill and Renko look into urban cattle rustling; LaRue and Washington apply for jobs in the Bahamas; and Furillo sits on a board of rights for a fellow captain accused of neglecting his duties.

Hill and Renko arrest councilman Detweiler for drunken driving; Belker is joined by actor Jon Gennaro on his undercover job; Fay goes to work as a crime reporter for an advertising weekly; and Furillo looks into the charges made against his men by a bitter Lou Hogan.

Gennaro accompanies Belker on a drug buy; LaRue and Washington set up two patrolmen accused by Hogan of stealing from burglary victims; Renko's birthday is less than happy; and Furillo uses his favor to Detweiler to save Goldblume's job when Hogan's accusations prove partially correct.

Joyce humiliates an unprepared Bates on the witness stand; Renko pushes an assault victim to press charges; Furillo's son is missing; and Calletano expresses his true feelings at a luncheon honoring him as the Hispanic Officer of the Year.

At a condemned building site, Hill and Renko try to persuade a black grandmother that she has to move while Goldblume tries to keep an old man afraid of his new living arrangements from jumping off; Belker thwarts a robbery while applying for a bank loan; and LaRue and Washington butt heads with a special narcotics undercover cop dealing with the same cocaine peddler.

Belker goes undercover to investigate a scam using bums to collect injury insurance benefits; Coffey tries to relate to a Vietnam vet suffering from traumatic stress; and Daniels orders Furillo to cut off Fuchs from the Maizel homicide investigation.

LaRue and Washington open Maizel's safety deposit box and find evidence of his corruption; Bates and Coffey try to help an abused child with her baby; Belker ends his insurance scam investigation with a visit to Hill's doctor; and Daniels pressures Furillo to keep quiet about Maizel.

The governor's dog is stolen; Renko and Theresa quarrel at a party; six rookies face hazing; LaRue and Washington try to chase down an autopsy report; and Eddie Gregg becomes Belker's snitch.

Belker makes a bust while picking up a ring at a jewelry store; Furillo tries to make a murder case without a body or autopsy report; Renko gets dumped; the Phantom strikes one final time; and a terrified Eddie implicates his lover in a vicious drug murder.

The governor's dog is found; Eddie's role as an informant is revealed; Furillo tries to stop Nydorf the coroner from testifying; Crawford decides on his future course as a policeman.

Washington's guilt over shooting a bystander resurfaces; Hill's vagabond father pays a visit; Belker goes undercover as Santa Claus; and Bates spends the holiday in the hospital.

An armored-car robbery nets a long sought political radical and everyone tries a new takeout Chinese restaurant.

A veteran cop's daughter is raped; a terrified woman asks Goldblume for help with her vindictive ex-boyfriend; Hunter looks for the rat that bit Daniels; Bates and Coffey answer a call about a survivalist; and Renko gets busted down to a moped and traffic ticket duty.

Furillo clashes with Daniels over a new crime sweep; Renko rescues people from a burning building; Goldblume feels helpless to help the sad young woman threatened by her boyfriend; Hill puts Benedetto in his place; and Joyce has an interview with the Justice Department.

The courts settle Daniels' crime operation; a jealous Furillo questions Joyce about her interview at the Justice Department; LaRue imports a surplus tank; Fay gets herself arrested so she can confront Judge Grogan about the paternity of her expected child; and Goldblume outthinks some gang members threatening a stand up young man who turned in their friends.

LaRue makes a fool of himself with some high school girls; Belker endangers his relationship with Robin by trying to protect her; a talkative comic is brought in on numerous parking tickets; Goldblume and Calletano clash over seniority and rank; Coffey is forced to deal roughly with a man tripping on PCP.

Coroner Nydorf offers to fix things when Coffey is accused of killing a prisoner in custody; LaRue develops another scheme to make money out of a comic named Vic Hitler; Joyce decides her future.

Bates poses as a bus driver; LaRue continues to groom Vic Hitler for his debut; Daniels is ready to sacrifice Coffey to quiet public opinion; and Furillo and Davenport take a major step in their lives.

The brutal Benedetto comes to the Hill on a loan sharking assignment; Furillo and Goldblume question a murder suspect who may have multiple personalities.

Washington goes undercover on Benedetto's loan shark scheme; Hill and Renko, desperate for cash since the payroll talks are stalled, find a suitcase full of temptation; and LaRue tries to clean up in the body parts pool for the missing Buddy Genett.

Belker and LaRue learn that Washington was set up by someone in the station house; the long overdue cash payroll is hijacked; Joyce meets a really nice purse snatcher; and Furillo finds Jesus Martinez behind bars.

A multiple slaying in a gay bar has the homosexual community clamoring to furillo for more protection. And an off-Duty cop who was an eye witness is afraid to identify the psychopath responsible since it will expose his private life. With six slain victims, furillo casts about for any shred of evidence. Meanwhile, bates and coffey try to lasso a caballero who thinks he's duncan renaldo before the galloping hotspur harms someone on his stolen pinto, diablo. However, when a power blackout brings traffic to a halt and the two officers are surrounded by a crowd of hostile looters, cisco rides to their rescue. Fay searches for a surrogate father for her unborn child; A testy calletano waits to pass a kidney stone and doesn't take kindly to cisco's insistence that calletano is his long-Lost acting partner, leo carillo; And the power outage has hill and renko soothing frayed tempers and relieving a drunk of his voluntary traffic-Direction duties.

In the absence of former cheiftain jesus martinez (Now incarcerated), a power vacuum develops in the ranks of los diablos. Into the breach steps goldblume, who's anxious to intervene on behalf of a more favorable gang leader and thereby end the deadly civil war -- Until he's outmaneuvered by an unlikely source. Also concerned about the infighting is chief daniels. The arch politico's campaign for mayor may be jeopardized if he can't provide for the security of his publicity-Seeking opponent who has decided to move into the hellish dante projects -- Located right in the middle of the disputed turf. Meanwhile, it's business as usual for belker, who reels in a notorious waterfront armbreaker, only to incur the wrath of the pompous deputy chief, who demands the detective's badge. In other tales of the city: Hill is stupefied when his lottery ticket pays off in 100,000 smackeroos and he soon becomes the most popular buddy in the precinct; Coffey and bates hose down the ba-Bing sisters, a pair of slippery mud wrestlers suspected of filching a patron's wallet; And a beaming esterhaus is the proud godfather-To-Be of fay's expected child as he continues to assemble a "Progressive ensemble" of clothes.

Sweltering temperatures intensify the already sticky situation facing the blues when hector, a diablo member who was promised the leadership of the gang by goldblume (And inadvertently betrayed), seizes fisk, a prime mayoral candidate, as a hostage. Hector means business unless the cops can produce jesus martinez, the former chieftain who was reinstated after furillo arranged his early release from prison. Hill arranges a benefit for a cash-Poor cop at the infamous club como and begins a self-Destructive course of gambling and giving away his $100,000 lottery windfall. Other items of interest: Davenport sympathizes with a panicky nigerian college student who fears he may be deported for defending himself; Washington and larue gingerly lend more than a hand to an injured man; The buxom ba-Bing sisters show their appreciation to the male cops; And goldblume and a pregnant fay try to re-Define their relationship.

The hill street force sees the dark side of the normally controlled hill. Captain furillo notices hill's downward path as he and a dogged renko try to offer help before the street cop is canned for good. After a hostage siege in which daniels' principal opponent is taken prisoner and rescued, the chief sees his own lead in the polls evaporate overnight. However, the top cop could take solace in the old proverb, "Whenever god closes one door, he leaves another open..." davenport is almost at wit's end as she tries to represent kiki, a bewildered and fearful nigerian student, who insists on proving his self-Defense in an assault case by conducting his own clumsy investigation. In other tales of the city: Fay finally delivers a bouncing baby girl via natural childbirth, assisted by her new intimate friend, goldblume, and makes esterhaus a happy godfather; A rabid belker chafes under the confines of an internal affairs investigation as he yearns to leave his desk assignment and be unleashed on the street; A jealous coffey resents bates' higher placement on the sergeant's exam, and furillo deftly maneuvers while hoping to get the petty deputy chief off his precinct's collective back.

Furillo is caught in the middle when chief daniels tries to put the squeeze on a new rival mayoral candidate, a black commander in another precinct. Meanwhile, a distraught officer perez accidentally kills a child when he mistakes his toy pistol in the dark for a real weapon during a search for prowlers. His abject dispair runs so deep that his fellow cops fear that, if left alone, he will harm himself. Heaping more grief on the dead boy's single mother is deputy chief mahoney, who malevolently seeks to divert public attention away from the police shooting by charging her with felony endangerment and welfare violations -- Much to everyone else's disgust. Calletano must come to grips with his conscience when daniels dangles a tantalizing captaincy before him; And an angel-Dusted suspect delivers a painful blow to bates' ribs, resulting in a trip to the hospital, where she is tended by an appreciative, handsome doctor.

Relying on a useful tip, the hill street blues finally nam nicky casner, a notorious bandit whose courteous modus operandi earns him their gruding admiration and the name "Emily post bandit." although mindful of his primary challenger's recent rise in the polls, an unctuous daniels breezes through his television debate with ozzie cleveland until he must explain why his department pressed charges against the mother of a boy mistakenly slain by a cop. Bates is pleased when her partner, coffey, approves of her new boyfriend, a young doctor who tends to her broken ribs; And renko turns green with frenzy when he opens a cash-Filled, booby-Trapped attache case and receives a haphazard dye job.

Early trends indicate a bustling election day on the hill as a confident chief daniels dangles before captain furillo the prospect of making him the new chief. Meanwhile, scripps -- A seemingly harmless chap in a boater -- Draws police attention all day as he persists in buttonholing prospective voters in front of polling areas while spewing forth rambling political rhetoric. However, his earnestness only cloaks a more disturbing side of his view of the democratic process. The formerly sleazy attorney alan wachtel continues on his gender-Bender while representing the interests of a late porno parlor purveyor. Furillo has more personal problems as he tries to console the young, withdrawn son of perez, a cop who mistakenly killed a child armed with a toy pistol. His task is not made easier by the father who is hospitalized with serious physical and psychological wounds. On other beats, a vulnerable, samaritan-Like hunter gets his comeuppance when he does a good deed; And hill and renko have the unsettling task of delivering the trust fund money collected from their fellow blues to the mother of the boy who was slain by officer perez.

Officers Bates and Coffey do their best to help a vengeful man whose brother was killed in a taxi operated by the seedy Top Hat cab company. Gaffney, a bitter man in a wheelchair, gives Belker all he can handle when he exacts justice by brazenly spray-painting non-stickered cars parked in handicapped spaces, nimbly speeding away. A shamed Hunter must confront some private demons stemming from a 15-year-old incident involving some cops on the take, and he becomes deeply depressed. In lighter news: The two-fisted Hill goes crusin' for a bruisin' when he is set to fight the pride of the police athletic league during the annual bouts, and despite Renko's coaching, his buddies ponder how much they'll win if they bet against him; And Fay and Henry try to keep their increasingly passionate romance under wraps.

Detective belker tries to go undercover as a disabled person to snag an automatic bank teller thief, but his every move is dogged by a gritty wheelchair hotshot. Detectives larue and washington must avoid entrapment as they try to set up "Heads'll roll" cole, a tough judge they suspect of receiving payoffs that could involve widespread police corrpution. Hill, buoyed by his previous pugilistic encounter, enters the square circle again to take on vince "Butt ugly" stafford in the p.A.L. Finals. As renko helps him train, they are saddened by the pitiful sight of a punch-Drunk fighter and ex-Con who has lost too many marbles to stay in the game. Also, goldblume and fay make plans for a private weekend -- With her new baby -- At the shore; And an all-Points bulletin goes out for honky, a mean-Spirited guard goose that's loose and continues to terrorize local merchants as the cops struggle to reunite him with his vengeful master.

Three touring russian journalists -- Two men and a woman -- Are very curious to observe the law-And-Order procedures as practiced on the hill. However, when the female comrade is unfaithful to him, tcherchenko decides to break up the cozy troika by defecting at the station and occupying a cell. Davenport does her job only too well when she prevails upon a judge's pre-Holiday good cheer to arrange the discharge of a mentally disturbed young man who seems bent on revenge for imagined slights against his mongrel dog. Belker, undercover as an ambulance attendant to lure out a gang of teenagers who have been stealing drugs from the vehicle, gets and gives a lesson in pedal-To-The-Metal motoring. In other tales of the precinct: A delighted larue, savoring the moment as his despised brother-In-Law rob is arrested for soliciting, seizes the chance to score a set of fine wheels from rob's auto-Lease fleet; Bates' progression to sergeant is dealt a temporary setback; And davenport's mother makes an early yuletide descent on the furillo household.

A quiet fear grips the police as one by one -- And sometimes by twos -- Cops are gunned down on the street with no apparent motive. Even so, furillo's attention is focused on the ongoing but tight-Lipped departmental probe into what seems to be a widespread network of cops on the take -- And no one is necessarily considered innocent. Furillo is confronted by a persistent goldblume concerning the captain's subtle resentment over the lieutenant's new romance with his ex-Wife, fay. Meanwhile, furillo and joyce (His current wife) go househunting, but she reveals a regrettable secret that may change their lives forever. In other action: An accordion-Playing, tuxedo-Clad exterminator is asked to rid the station of its increasingly restless rodent invaders; An unshaven belker becomes an unlikely bag lady as he tries to lure out a murderous back-Alley slasher; Hunter surprises himself and his colleagues when he volunteers to help a potential suicide victim; And renko is crushed when he entrusts his newly purchased motorcycle to his well-Intentioned but dim-Witted girlfriend.

A maniacal cop killer continues to reap more victims as paranoia slowly creeps in among the shaken blues. A pensive goldblume, who fills in at roll call for sergeant esterhaus while he undergoes some hospital tests, instructs the troops to guard their backs while on patrol in the wake of the indiscriminate kililngs. Meanwhile, larue and washington coerce orsini -- A slimy associate of a trio of cops they suspect of heading the secret organization -- Into setting up a meeting with the renegade officers. Their mission is to get the hard-Nosed marino and his henchmen, fox and goldblum, recorded on tape for prosecution. Joyce tries to get a battered mother who fears for the safety of herself and her child to sign a complaint against her abusive husband; And a typically irate fay jousts with a drug-Addled pimp when his vehicle blocks her car.

Furillo does some house cleaning when he orders the arrest of fellow cops for running a ring of corruption. He reveals a secret investigation into byzantine departmental corruption by hauling in marino and some other cops on the take. Other happenings: Two male cops draw guns over the love of a female officer who has fallen hard for the younger of the pair; Coffey becomes the latest target for the city's cop-Hating assassin when he tries to help an injured child; A pimp with a penchant for illegally parking his cruiser is busted on more substantial charges; Hunter looks death in the face and earns furillo's admiration for "Grace under pressure."

Sergeant esterhaus dies suddenly in the arms of grace gardner and the entire station is grief stricken, with each officer trying to cope with the death by remembering good times. Furillo is named executor of esterhaus' death, and the sarge's legend grows as rumors abound about who will take his position. One likely candidate is lucy bates, who recently qualified on her sergeant's exam, but she is reluctant to accept furillo's offer to move up to roll-Call officer. Meanwhile, life goes on: Diablo gang warlord jesus martinez strikes a deal with furillo to release two young diablos in exchange for a tip on the next in a series of truck hijackings. Belker is dispatched to pose as the driver of a refrigerated rig, but his career as a trucker comes to a halt with chaotic results. Also in the post-Esterhaus era: A standoffish coffey is chastised by his emotional girlfriend for his lack of comfort after she is raped; A sobbing leo, the khaki booking officer, doesn't want any sympathy from those who think his tears are for the fallen sarge; Bates and other female cops slip undercover as hookers during a street sweep; And fay is arrested for soliciting by a neophyte cop.

The two teenage diablos that furillo recently set free -- In exchange for information from their leader, jesus martinez -- Rob and slay an old man. The captain is aghast and well aware of the approaching firestorm of controversy. Not only is he angry with himself, but also with martinez, with whom he struck a fruitless deal. Whitney barnes, a prostitute held on murder charges, intrigues goldblume when videotapes surface showing her in compromising clutches with government and business big shots. One with a special interest is chief daniels, who temporarily confiscates the tapes. Also: Bates finally takes furillo's offer of roll-Call sargeant, thereby sending partner coffey into a blue funk; Coffey tries to resume his romantic relationship with his recently raped girlfriend, sandy; A saffron-Robed religious fanatic is busted for forcing his beliefs on others; And a mousy bureaucrat from general accounting investigates the petty thefts of office supplies at the station, leveling his finger at one officer.

Hill street station's zoo-Like conditions are even more chaotic when extra prisoners are temporarily transferred to the precinct. A tense sergeant bates has a rocky start in her first roll call and finds that she must earn new respect among her fellow cops. The murder of a call girl -- Whose sexual escapades with prominent figures were videotaped -- Leads to another professional slaying, a hit made right in front of the stunned hill streeters. In other tales of the city: A weary furillo must find the best way to follow esterhaus' instructions to have his ashes scattered at the hill's epicenter; Coffey arrests a suspect wanted for kililng a 14-Year-Old prostitute who lived wtih other youths in the seedy hotel hell; And fay and a dispassionate goldblume drift apart.

When joyce is assigned to defend william mullins for murder, she notices the effect that his threatening brother timothy has on the prosecution's witness. Later, after seeing timothy leave the scene of another slaying, she is so rattled that she proves worthless in a police lineup. Belker and others begin undercover surveillance of the stop 'n cop, a major drug emporium, to fulfill mayor cleveland's campaign promise -- Though a world-Weary furillo sounds off to a reporter to underscore the futility of the gesture. Elsewhere: Belker withdraws even further when an old but amiable adversary dies pathetically; After her promotion, bates feels unintentionally excluded by her former patrol mates; Goldblume and gay agree to remain friends; And the passionate former attorney wachtel returns in an elevated position of authority.

A horrendous day has capt. Furillo slowly caving in to pressure when the mayor relieves him of his command. The mounting problems begin when furillo blows his chance to square things with an angry mayor cleveland by refusing to eat his words, spoken at a press conference, concerning drug enforcement. He is stunned when chief daniels is compelled to reassign him to a meaningless federal task force pending further notice. In addition, furillo's personal life is rocked when joyce's conscience motivates her to come forward as the sole witness in the slaying of a man who was to testify against one of the dangerous mullins brothers, and the other brother brazenly promises furillo that joyce will die. With all this and more, the shaken captain considers an old crutch he swore he'd never use again. In other activities: Davenport can't convince another witness to clear her client in a stabbing case; Renko is blue when a pregnant daryl ann asks him to marry her; An amiable census taker goes down for the count; Hunter stalks a new female prey -- Fay; And coffey and his new female partner, pilsky, break up a domestic spat when a disappointed husband folds up his wife in a murphy bed.

The disgruntled blues try to sort things out in the wake of furillo's departure, while the harried captain is tempted to take his first drink in seven years. Meanwhile, calletano resorts to a daring strategy to restore furillo to the hill. Goldblume quietly improvises a team of detectives to dog william mullins, hoping to provoke the junkie who threatened to slay davenport into making one false step. Upset over his girlfriend daryl ann's pregnancy and the possibility of unheralded matrimony, renko makes an unlikely ally of gang leader jesus martinez, who presses charges against his pregnant girlfriend for "Shooting up my place of business." also, an edgy davenport tries to occupy her mind with the bizarre case of a man who struck out in anger when he suffered damage to a sensitive area.

The mayor's handpicked head of the youth corps summer job program is marcus peabody, an ex-Member of the blood gang. His style and administration draw more than just resentment from the other gangs. One particular diablo swears to kill peabody, and even diablo kingpin jesus martinez cannot stop what follows. Washington's temporary pairing with garibaldi (An ambitious but inexperienced detective) gets sticky when the latter tries to help out a man whose car he struck in exchange for a dismissal of the accident claim. Joyce knocks the wind out of furillo when she disappears for a day and reluctantly asks for a few weeks to herself to sort things out after she has been threatened with murder. Also: In operation straight flush, belker is dealt an undercover assignment to gain the confidence of thugs who strong-Arm bar owners to install electronic gambling devices; And hunter, hoping to save the police equine unit, mounst a noble discourse on the history of the horse to the bored city council.

The biggest gang war in six years threatens to explode on the hill. Death is in the air when the rival diablo and blood gangs -- The latter headed by recent mayoral appointee marcus peabody -- Stage pitched battles and count their casualties. Their struggle affects belker's undercover gig as a loan shark when peabody pops in asking for $25,000 to finance the conflict. Renko and some of his hill street friends meet the cowboy's future in-Laws after a fracas with some disgruntled youths has left the prospective groom with a few extra vents in his tuxedo. Other happenings: The recently separated furillo and davenport meet to discuss her growing disaffection for both career and the man she loves; The nervous calletano takes aim at winning the big duck blind on the game show "Lucky ducks"; And hunter is shaken when apollo, his noble steed, is striken with a serious illness.

Renko thinks that open window in church looks mighty good just minutes before his wedding to daryl ann, especially after a day that's seen him and partner hill lose their patrol car with its expensive fitted computer. On the other hand, the cowboy's wedding bells afford furillo and joyce a chance to show off solidarity in the wake of their amicable separation just before she jets off to paris. Coffee feels lucky enough to place all of renko's wedding gift on the nose of a nag that will mean instant cash or crash. Three murderous loan sharks that belker buster commandeer a jail bus and demand belker in exchange for thier prisoners. Other blues work feverishly to stall them until they can find out who hired the cons and what the rest of their plan entails. Other happenings on the hill: When diablo gang leader jesus martinez resigns, furillo tries to install him as a police / Gang liaison, with painful results for jesus; And goldblume's reluctant fling at video-Dating becomes an arresting experience when he encounters a teutonic terror.

A new, no-Nonsense roll call sergeant takes over the podium at the hill street station. Sgt. Stan jablonski is a by-The-Book, 29-Year veteran who immediately sets out to clear the air about a dubious skirmish with another cop at his previous post. In other happenings on the hill: A convicted killer's death is imminent as davenport maneuvers to get a stay of execution; An attractive female detective makes a tempting pass at furillo; Renko becomes a daddy; And hill and renko deal with a deranged ice cream salesman.

An enraged Goldblume takes the law into his own hands when his ex-wife is sexually assaulted and refuses to testify against the suspect.

After his ex-Wife is assaulted by a rape suspect, lt. Goldblume roughs up the would-Be attacker, only to have him walk away and commit murder. Sergeant jablonski gingerly tries to coax a distraught woman to leave the men's restroom where she's encamped, and a fuming belker is fit to be tied when he is upstaged while masquerading undercover as a chicken. Also: Davenport is brought to justice for a minor infraction of the law, which may also bring her to her senses regarding her marital situation; An obnoxious rookie cop antagonizes everyone, especially bates; And the lathered-Up larue has a strange encounter with a mysterious and atypically classy lady.

A rookie officer -- Who was the victim of some sexual hijinks at an off-Duty cop party the night before -- Hangs himself. Larue admits that he was with a beautiful woman the night her husband was slain, and belker's masquerade as a chicken-And-Egg mascot hatches some bigger prey. The repugnant rookie, officer buttman, is suspected of being the organizer of a sordid party that resulted in the young patrolman's suicide, but a third rookie cop's testimony is needed to indict him. Hill and renko are secretly tailed by an investigative TV news reporter. A special $6,000 federal study grant leads three lieutenants to angle greedily for furillo's favor.

A lovestruck larue is still treading water as he wonders how an attractive woman implicated him in her husband's murder. This latest brush with disaster has him figured as a possible accomplice in the crafty lady's plans to do away with both her husband and her lover to collect a huge insurance claim. Washington resigns when a rookie he encouraged to provide information in a policeman's suicide is dismissed, and the betrayed washington is livid enough to threaten the chief. Also: A new indian restaurant has everyone talking (Until the purrfect ingredient in some of its dishes is revealed); A television newswoman does a hatchet job on renko and his porcine eating habits.

A respected community leader is slain, and furillo is under pressure to find the killer; He strikes a deal that may coincidentally deliver the marauding colombians who are responsible for a wave of murders in an ongoing drug war. His ploy to charge a suspect with first-Degree murder is undercut when fay blurts out confidential information. Also: Seeking legitimacy, former gang leader jesus martinez-Jimenez resurfaces in court with a hyphenated surname, a new look and a new scam as a paralegal; While undercover, belker and larue almost shoot each other during an impromptu raid.

The blues maintain a special alert for floyd green, a callous, teenaged murderer who's just been released and creates more mayhem. Bates finds a soft spot in her heart for a beguiling but abandoned street urchin and offers to take him home with her. Belker, terrified of flying, must catch a plane to las vegas to extradite a prisoner over thanksgiving. He is joined by larue, who cashes in on stolen air tickets and sells some to a few grateful fellow cops. A tense hill is audited by the irs and learns a new word -- Disallow.

Davenport's life is endangered when she learns from a would-Be assassin about a byzantine plot to kill the mayor, which involves some high ranking cops. Belker's trip to las vegas to extradite a prisoner unexpectedly lands him in the winner's circle (And the fast lane). His $5,000 windfall, courtesy of a slot MacHine, causes trouble with some of the blues who accompany him and are having a tougher time with lady luck. Also: Hill and renko are in deep trouble when their solomonic judgment backfires and leads to a man's death; Jablonski is pestered by a female lieutenant's obscene phonecalls and nude pictures.

Furillo puts pressure on a preppy business associate to set up a pair of contractors who conspired to have the mayor assassinated. And a pseudo-American indian -- Last year's cisco kid -- Mounts his moped and goes on the warpath, making hill and renko's thanksgiving miserable. An angry belker, originally in las vegas to extradite a prisoner, must watch a pathetic coffey risk his fortune at the gaming table. They and four other blues are later stranded because of larue's bounced check and, what's more, a seething furillo awaits them when he hears about it.

Furillo bucks public opinion when he arrests a crafty old woman who set a trap for a hispanic thief -- And then shot him to death. He soon feels the heat when he books the woman, the mother of a powerful and antagonistic city councilman, for the coldblooded slaying. Also: The blues are confronted with the weighty problem of extricating a grossly corpulent hood who expired in a downstairs holding cell; While undercover, belker is taken prisoner, beaten and humiliated by a band of bums; And davenport argues for psychiatric lock-Up on behalf of a deranged man who tried to set his wife on fire.

Darwin's survival theory is tested as an old and weakened gang vows to make one final desperate stand when a stronger tribe invades its turf. In the meantime, belker is ready to pull out his hair while posing as an unlikely beauty operator in a shop that also distributes drugs. An austerity program means a darker shade of blue for the cops when overtime hours are virtually disallowed -- Just as a gang war between the blood and the shamrocks is imminent. Garibaldi takes an unusually patronizing interest in a 16-Year-Old junkie / Hooker headed for more trouble, while he struggles to stay afloat with his workload and demanding law school studies. And belker cannot contain his hurt when his girlfriend tearfully ends their relationship.

Detectives belker, washington and larue get down and dirty when they pose as independent garbage men to lay waste to another disposal company which is muscling out rivals. Meanwhile, a furious furillo must release a rape suspect because of a technicality in his miranda briefing. Also: Fledgling politico renko launches his campaign for the new p.B.A. Representative; Davenport is flattered when she is offered a position as an assistant district attorney; The blues secretly stash a government witness wanted by the mob; And a desperate hill seeks financial counseling for his mounting i.R.S. Back payments.

An officer formerly under media scrutiny is lionized when he rescues a family from a burning house, but furillo senses something fishy in the story. Belker, washington and larue infiltrate an extortionary garbage company that dumps more bodies than trash. Other happenings: Davenport has her ego massaged as she makes a decision whether to accept the new assistant district attorney job; Belker inadvertently spots the corpus delecti of a kidnapped gangster on its way to the dump; Furillo asks mayo to make an appointment with a dentist fay claims manhandled her; And everyone awaits the p.B.A. Election results.

The agony grows for a distraught man who just lost his family in a hit-And-Run car accident when he's arrested for outstanding warrants. Meanwhile, a nimble-Fingered dentist is hauled in when he takes advantage of mayo, and a lascivious larue has the videotapes to prove it. Also: Bates is hurt and vows to contest in court a dissolute mother's attempt to regain custody of her young son who's now living with the sergeant; A beaming hunter is on the road again as the captain of his own motor home, which draws a persistent admirer; And furillo targets an uptown man with a history of prior alcohol-Induced auto mishaps as the main suspect in the hit-And-Run tragedy, and the captain smells a payoff.

New assistant district attorney joyce davenport must decide whether to pursue a case with flimsy evidence involving a star black athlete crippled by white youths. Also, a man whose family was killed in a hit-And-Run accident makes a u-Turn and decides to give a statement against the affluent driver. In addition: A pretty face from the past blows garibaldi's undercover gig; Hunter has second thoughts about pegasus, his newly purchased motor home; Fay wants to sue the city after she suffers whiplash in a fender-Bender with ex-Hubby frank at the wheel; Mayo goes on a date with the chief; And belker puts the arm on a hulking pro wrestler.

The blues are in search of "Melon man," a maniac who's killing prostitutes. Meanwhile, the diplomatic furillo intercedes between a spurned daniels and mayo in a nasty public scene that could cost mayo her badge. Also: While mayo begs off going undercover for mr. Melon, bates poses as a prostitute and winds up with a knife at her throat; An incorrigible larue plays a joke that finally backfires during a sweep of corrupt city inspectors; A jinxed hill and renko go through more vehicles than a rent-A-Car agency; And a downtrodden belker receives a tearful birthday surprise.

Lt. Goldblume is the unlikely heartthrob hero of an attractive young woman when he saves her life during an undercover investigation into international weapons sales. In addition: Fay risks perjuring herself when she encourages a suspicious young woman to press charges against her abusive lover; The disenchanted hunter tries to peddle his lemon of a motorcoach with embarrassing results; Larue and washington try to put a nagging, paper-Clogged case to rest; Belker moves in with a woman for the first time in his life; And a one-Man band who's continually being busted draws the diminuitive detective's wrath.

When captain furillo attends a one-Day encounter session for police brass, an eager lt. Calletano assumes command and immediately faces unusual problems, such as what substance is suddenly turning some of the cops a lighter shade of blue. Also: Furillo joins a no-Holds-Barred rap session designed to allow a free flow of ideas, and tempers soon flare; Hunter's stolen winnebago is the focus of a siege when an armed man camps inside it with his young son and a captured policewoman; A beaming goldblume blows in on cloud nine after spending the night with an enraptured woman half his age; And, after being reunited with his girlfriend, belker senses jablonski's hurt and resentment.

The irony of a delicate moral issue slams home when a militant pro-life advocate accidentally injures a pregnant woman (causing Davenport to prepare murder charges related to the premature birth), and a black family moves into an otherwise white housing project, instigating a riot.

Davenport angers her bosses when she ruins her case against a ghetto youth who was framed by housing authority cops. Bates and coffey have to transform a stench-Ridden bum into a stunning fashion plate to testify against a cop killer. Also: The estranged hill and renko seek new partners in the wake of a shooting that has everyone whispering that the "Cowboy" is a coward; Larue's ready to bare his soul to prove he wasn't in a porno movie; Jablonski's upset over an accusation that he torched a bowling alley; And a jilted gay and garibaldi take solace in one another's misery.

A reassigned renko works undercover with a resentful belker to infiltrate a heavily fortified house and set up a drug buy; And a pattonesque hunter sends a modified tank with a battering ram to break into the "Rock house" where drugs are being sold. Also: An unhappy coffey, posing as a male prostitute, must arrest an old high school mentor; Furillo scrambles to buy joyce something he can't afford for their anniversary; And hill, after taking on a new partner, learns how it feels to freeze under pressure.

A department regulation requiring urine samples for drug testing makes coffey, washington and garibaldi nervous. Renko and hill take an interest in a man they arrested whose family lives in a cardboard box. Hunter and calletano are spit-And-Polish as they take the captain's exam. Also: With an injured bates on the bench, a rusty but eager jablonski hits the streets with coffey on their own cannonball run; Goldblume is bound on a vendetta-Like crusade to find out who shot his lover; Belker spots some dirty cops on a routine undercover case at a dry cleaning establishment; And a new detective tries to reignite the torch mayo carried for him.

Hill and renko are assigned to the department's goodwill ambassador, a senile bear with a fondness for hand-To-Paw combat. Meanwhile, the results of the recent urinalysis tests fail three cops, including furillo, whose sample show traces of alcohol. Mayo succumbs to the amorous advances of a charming detective who may be a mole sent to spy from midtown (A precinct with its own hit squad); Furillo refuses to make a deal for immunity with a bad cop who offers to identify big names downtown; And a fearful jablonski ignores his doctor's orders following his angina attack and returns to the station.

A surprising sneak peak at the private lives of the blues ensues as Furillo tries to prevent the bombing of a self-proclaimed messiah out of his squalid tenement. Belker gets some bad news while undercover in a trash bin. Larue and Renko connive to beat each other for $100 in a wild car race.

Furillo is asked by a desperate chief daniels to head a police inquiry into departmental corruption while calletano preps himself to take over as the new captain of the ferry precinct -- And his replacement is the rules bending, conniving lt. Norman buntz. In addition: Hill and renko wearily comply with a merchant's demand to arrest a man for swiping fruit; Garibaldi is in danger while in debt to loan sharks; Belker, washington and larue pose as gypsy cab drivers; And a queasy coffey and bates bust the mayor's son for stealing a car.

A courageous runner, suffering with cancer, continues his cross-Country run despite the theft of his belongings. Larue is obsessed with finding out who viciously stabbed a fellow detective, and hunter is double-Crossed by his husky-Voiced date, maura. Also: The mayor's bitter son (Now a fugitive) is finally found, ready to do battle with the blues; Larue and Washington roust a nest of bookies and get help from an old parolee friend; And fay chains herself to a squad room desk when her victim's aid program is cut back.

Furillo bucks public opinion when he arrests a crafty old woman who set a trap for a hispanic thief -- And then shot him to death. He soon feels the heat when he books the woman, the mother of a powerful and antagonistic city councilman, for the coldblooded slaying. Also: The blues are confronted with the weighty problem of extricating a grossly corpulent hood who expired in a downstairs holding cell; While undercover, belker is taken prisoner, beaten and humiliated by a band of bums; And davenport argues for psychiatric lock-Up on behalf of a deranged man who tried to set his wife on fire.

Furillo's star shines before the media when he discloses the findings of his police-Corruption commission, angering a jealous chief daniels. Also: A lunatic, attired like rambo, takes hostages with a fearsome automatic weapon (Which squirts water); A patrol cop is in trouble for shooting a promising black college student; Buntz rubs his hands in glee in anticipation of "Screening" new female office personnel; Hunter's kindness in sheltering a brood of pound-Bound shar-Pei puppies leads to domestic chaos; And larue approves of washington's classy new lady friend.

Washington tries to sort out his budding relationship with his anxious girlfriend and her adoring son. A brutal buntz butts heads with a thief. And an artist takes refuge aboard his controversial sculpture. Renko consults a therapist to divine his past lives as a grunt soldier through history; Belker goes slumming to find out who's been tossing derelicts off buildings; Goldblume ignores his shyster lawyer and settles for a chunk of his late girlfriend's estate; And buntz is rapped for using excessive force in arresting a thug.

Reports of heavy bum infestation on the hill prompt renko and hill to take pity on one poor soul who might provide some answers. In the meantime, belker risks double jeopardy when he tries to sort out which rabinowitz twin brother filched a pair of diamonds. Also: A prideful captain calletano makes one mistake and considers resignation at another precinct; Jablonski, on a rare undercover case, eagerly volunteers to use $1,800 of his own money to bait some bunco artists; A recovering washington stonily turns aside his devoted girlfriend's attempts to extend their relationship; Hunter finds an admirer at his dog's obedience school; And a MacHo plumber likes what he sees in bates as a "Tall drink of water."

On the verge of an open drug war, furillo is opposed by davenport and the police brass when he persists in obtaining evidence on a major drug supplier. Goldblume relishes the irony of his assignment -- Protecting a neo-Nazi group on parade. In addition: With furillo in hot pursuit, a narcotics kingpin cuts back on his cocaine distribution, sending desperate street junkies into frenzies; Hill's indigent daddy returns, claiming health disorders; Belker, undercover in a bookie joint, fears for his pregnant girlfriend's safety; And jablonski listens as a priest confesses to assault and battery.

An escapee from a mental institution hopes to make buntz (Who sent him away) break down and beg for his life. However, even with a shotgun at his head, the trussed-Up buntz refuses to cower, and instead it's he who promises to "Eat this guy." while buntz wages psychological warfare, larue and washington nab a former big-Time baseball player for cocaine possession; Hunter busts his buttons when urban warrior magazine chooses him as their cover boy; Furillo fumes when a faulty credit check sabotages the mortgage insurance on his dream house; And a growling belker goes undercover at a dog pound where it is suspected that strays are being sold to research labs.

Captain furillo returns home for a brief holiday visit for the first time in five years (With davenport in tow) and tries to bind old wounds with his conservative parents, who can't seem to forgive their son or accept their "New" daughter-In-Law. Also: Buntz is full of christmas cheer when he convinces a drug dealer that he has a cocaine-Sniffing "Attack" turkey under his arm; Coffey must deal with an excitable man who believes that the toilet water stain in his apartment is the outline of the blessed virgin; Bates' relationship with a handsome ceramics teacher takes a climactic turn; And larue recruits a behemoth-Like ringer to help in the police-Firman benefit olympics.

It's belker's wedding day and larue scrambles for gifts just as the services are ready to begin -- Without the groom. Also: Hill, renko and buntz look for a stolen human heart that has a "Shelf life" of only four hours; A new cop on the hill inadvertently is framed by his veteran partner who plants his backup weapon on a dead assailant when the original gun cannot be found; An angry bates encounters the mother of a ghetto youth she intended to adopt but who has now been rearrested for prostitution and drug use; And laure, ever the joker, gets a taste of his own medicine.

Captain furillo lobbies to help a rookie cop during an internal affairs shooting investigation which is tilted in favor of a veteran who accuses him of placing a weapon in a dead suspect's hand. As young officer garfield waits for a decision, belker continues his undercover gig as a pcp cook for two big-Talking dealers. In addition: When health workers strike, hill and renko pitch in to bagging bodies until hill recognizes a face on a cold slab; Deposed coroner wally nydorf, now pressed back into service, happily resorts to his usual bureaucratic shortcuts; And a wounded bates lashes out at a former lover.

A political kingmaker sweet-Talks furillo about a career advancement beyond the station house. Cold warrior hunter blacks out in a basement and fancies himself a prisoner on a russian freighter -- And uses guerilla tactics to fight back. Also: Renko re-Encounters bobby angel, his recently busted country-Western music idol, who helps "Hisself" to a little down-Home renko hospitality; Bates is overjoyed when street urchin fabian comes to roost on her sofa; Hill takes his daddy home; And larue gets intimate with a boa constrictor on a narcotics bust.

Lieutenant buntz angers goldblume when he bends the rules by setting up two dealers who are peddling highly toxic dope around town. In addition: Larue falls hard for a snake-Wielding tattoo artist who's cooperating in a bust; A new no-Smoking ordinance sends some cops and office personnel into nicotine fits; While back home to bury his daddy, hill is attracted to a young woman he once new as a child; A wary bates makes a pact with fabian's junkie mother; And chief daniels makes furillo an offer he can refuse.

The hill is alive with the sound of a music video production that has set up shop in the station; The director recruits a disapproving jablonski and borrows hunter's shar-Pei puppy for atmosphere in the bizarre, fog-Shrouded epic. Also: An unscrupulous developer forces a group of elderly people to take drastic measures to forestall their eviction from a condemned tenement; Belker poses as the stooge of a shady parole officer; A hesitant bates gambles that $2,000 will pay off fabian's mother, leaving fabian legally in bates' custody; Hill and renko come to grips with the weighty matter of dudley hicks, a refrigerator-Like mau mau gang member who extorts money from victims by sitting on them.

Furillo is shot, and it is revealed for the first time how he and davenport began their rocky courtship -- Including her initial resistance to his advances. A shaken davenport maintains her vigil and recalls how she met het husband seven years before. Alternately cutting between the present and the past, she remembers how she tried to ignore furillo until her car accidentally struck his one winter's night and she had to give him a lift home. The shocked blues donate blood and comb the town for the assassin -- A strange little man with a record of political violence -- Who shot furillo in front of the court house shortly after the captain was rumored to be a mayoral candidate. Meanwhile, belker agonizes over his captain's condition, and a police charity talent show continues preparations.

Tragedy hits the hill again as another cop goes down just as the blues adjust to station life without furillo. In addition: Larue's blind ambition lands him in the soup with three other blues when they find a courier satchel full of cash and try to take up the chase from there; A calculating buntz outrages everyone when he appears on a television courtroom program and finagles to win tidily from "Your day in court"; Belker's undercover gig in a pawn shop sours when an elderly woman butts in; And coffey intercedes on bates' behalf to stop her never-Ending payments to fabian's shiftless mother.

An all-out search for the murderer of a beloved cop has Buntz pressing a harassed Bates for a positive I.D. Of a suspect. Bates nurses doubts about her recollection of the officer's shooting and seeks succor from a priest.

Furillo tries to soothe the excitable ex-Gang leader jesus martinez to get his cooperation in baiting a corrupt judge suspected of accepting payoffs. Also: Buntz is torn between his loyalty to a troubled former partner and his duty as a cop; A bemused hunter underestimates the pounding drums of jagga, a friendly samoan lava-Lava clad lad who claims to have wed the lieutenant's lovely lady love, prunella, in a distant tribal ceremony; Goldblume's helpful plans for tenants in his new building are undermined by a real estate speculator; Belker's latest undercover gig is as a half-Baked fry cook in a "Roach coach"; And bates gets a new, and female, partner.

Bates defends her new female partner who's accused of sexually harrassing an arrested female prostitute. Also: Buntz faces down his freaked-Out ex-Partner (Also an ex-Buddy) who he believes killed another cop; An enraged goldblume, the designated negotiating officer, excoriates a young officer lipsky whose reverse psychology backfired when he encouraged a potential suicide victim to jump from a building; Furillo is wooed even more strongly for mayor and receives a pledge from departing mayor cleveland; And a black-Hooded ninja warrior invades the station house.

Buntz is on the hot seat again when internal affairs grills him regarding his fatal shooting of a fellow detective, prompting him to take matters into his own hands. In addition: A guarded belker gingerly renders assistance to a favorite snitch who's now dying of aids; Furillo makes his long-Awaited decision about his embryonic mayoral bid; Hill and renko tussle with a slippery slum landlord who tries to escape a judge's ruling; And jabbo' jablonski gets his dander up (Not to mention his fists) when some fellow desk sergeants gather to revise the ponderous rule book and manual.

The media-Hyped capture of a mass murderer known as "The creeper" causes an uproar on the hill as citizens who helped aprehend the suspect squabble over the reward money, and davenport gets chills at the thought of representing the eerie man. Amid the glare of press attention, other people stream through the station, hoping for a glimpse of the creeper, while one vengeful man falsely identifies the suspect. Davenport resists the maneuvering of dignan, a famous and high-Powered attorney who tries to wrest the case from her for his own self-Serving interests. Even renko sees dollar signs stemming from his arrest of the creeper. Meanwhile, an edgy belker awaits word from his pregnant wife during her labor.

When a private plane carrying a massive stash of cocaine crashes, avaricious sid the snitch tries to coax buntz into stealing it as a down payment on an uptown life, a scheme that leaves them praying for their lives. Also: A poisoned aspirin scare has merchants up in arms; Hill and renko help a tired young woman saddled with the care of her senile grandparents; Belker poses as a street dullard to investigate a boardinghouse scam that preys on bums and illegal aliens; And larue attends a wedding where everyone compares notes on the bride.

Buntz tries to help hunter, who's under fire when his off-Duty shooting of an armed teenager marks him as a department scapegoat. In addition: The city council proposes to cut the public defenders' work force by a third, and a conscience-Wracked davenport devises a way to slow down the judicial process, creating a zoo-Like backlog of defendants; Jablonski fears for his career and his life on the eve of bypass surgery; Belker is concerned about the safety of some oldtimers who are being robbed of their social security checks; And larue is up to his eyeballs in trouble during a stakeout.

The blues use discretion in making borderline arrests when the jails overflow with perpetrators because of the public defenders' walkout. Also: In the midst of the strike, the enterprising paralegal jesus martinez saunters into the breach, offering the services of two wheezing senior attorneys; Hunter manfully accepts his demotion to calling roll; Rookie officer flaherty teams with bates, while the equally new tina russo stirs larue's embers; And "Professor explosion," a yammering, elderly demolitions expert, straps on some dynamite and lights up the lives of hill and renko.

Furillo is asked to help a proud calletano head off a mutiny when his precinct officers are on the verge of a racial war among themselves, while the hill street captain has to set a powerful criminal free as the result of female undercover cop russo's actions. Also: Again, the notorious buntz is under suspicion when his prime snitch, sid, unintentionally feeds him bad information which ultimately requires buntz to babysit for the squeamish sid; Hill makes a spectacular catch of a falling baby, prompting renko to act as his press agent; And wimpy a.D.A. Bernstein stands in harm's way for davenport and then manfully declares his unrequited love for her.

It's the "Odd couple" revisited when a grumbling buntz lets oily sid the snitch bunk in his fleabag apartment to hide from a vengeful ex-Con; And hill resents his temporary assignment with a white cop who refused to help a black officer in distress. Meanwhile: Renko sweats bullets when his car is stolen and he is unwittingly sucked into an auto insurance scam; A wounded calletano, his career hopes dashed, bitterly assails furillo and considers airing his gripes in the hispanic media; Goldblume reaches out to his friend, stever merker, a writer who may be sketching his own violent demise; And a hostile buntz is ready to fight with new cop flaherty over their former partners.

Renko worries all day when a gypsy accidentally places the "Hundred-Demon curse" on him, and larue is giddy about the glory he will get when a suspect he arrests admits to more than a dozen unsolved murders. Also: Several blues are assigned to protect "Uncle john" petruzzi, a cagey old mobster whose last day of freedom before he surrenders to begin his prison term is filled with death threats from crime associates and from a grieving young man who holds him responsible for his sister's overdose death; Undercover cop tina russo is forced to submit to a criminal's sexual advances; Furillo helps a demoted calletano; And goldblume is invited to discuss a friend's death on a TV talk show.

Grace gardner, the highly sexual former flame of sgt. Esterhaus, returns to the police station as sister chastity, a nun who now seeks furillo's aid in establishing a counseling center; Her return stirs passionate embers in unsuspecting officer flaherty. Also: The captain seethes when a showboating councilman ruins a drug crackdown; Buntz has a close shave while undercover with a vindictive shylock who's determined to get his money -- And more; Hill and renko arrest parker jones, a teen-Aged pusher suspected of causing the death of his 10-Year-Old brother with an overdose; And a retired jablonski gets pumped up at the thought of returning to his old job.

While sid the snitch plays mother hen to him, a pained buntz licks his wounds as he waits to bust the loan shark who clipped his finger the night before. A grandstanding city councilman turns up the heat in his war with furillo over drug arrests after killing a would-Be thief; And, when he announces that washington, the arresting officer, has a record of codeine use, the accused detective and his partner, larue, go "Mouse" hunting for a witness to the shooting. Also: Young flaherty is horrified when worldly sister chastity surrenders to passions of the flesh, namely his; Belker poses as a growling parking-Lot attendant while investigating a car theft ring; And goldlblume tries his hand at writing the great american cop novel.

Furillo's conscience is in knots when he learns that his father's shooting death resulted not from robbery but suicide, and he considers disposing of the handgun. A kaleidoscope of memories washes over furillo as he and davenport hurry to his parents, too late to help his father, but not too late to preserve his memory. Also: Belker is concerned about how a nuclear holocaust would affect his nuclear family, and he lobbies on the job for an ex-Felon to keep his abandoned baby; When his car is towed, larue visits rodent pestilence on the offending korean restaurant owner; And hunter pushes "First strike estates," an underground condo for nuclear survival.

Furillo is sworn to silence and puts his word on the line in an attempt to placate his restive black officers -- especially Washington -- when a white cop kills his black partner under questionable circumstances while both are under secret investigation.

Public defender davenport must plea-Bargain for her life when she is taken hostage by a desperate suspect who holes up in a market with her and a wounded victim; And furillo dies a little himself while waiting to see if negotiator goldblume can save her life. Inexperienced a.D.A. Sharon fein, carrying a gun in her purse for protection, is overcome and disarmed by diaz, an angry client who thinks davenport betrayed his confidence and intends to use her as his ticket out of jail. In addition, fein puzzles washington by asking him out to meet her parents; And belker is snared in bureaucratic red tape when he test drives and wrecks an uninsured used car while chasing a suspect.

Some blues pack their gear for a long-Awaited weekend of hunting bear and deer. However, goldblume's plans to join them fall through when he is kidnapped and forced to dig his own remote grave. After leaving late and getting lost, the would-Be nimrods (Led by jablonski) head for the hills and suffer misadventures at every step. And while goldblume is reduced to begging for his life, buntz stays home and goes fishing for a female cop to run an undercover gig for him. He finds an unusual soulmate in officer McBride, who's just killed a suspect.

Hill and renko get down and dirty when they have to pitch in during a sanitation workers' strike -- Until an emotional hill loses control and nearly causes a riot during an infamous drug dealer's funeral. After his outburst, he receives an anonymous death threat which unifies his brother cops in his defense. Also: Newcomers russo and flaherty become bosom buddies off the job; Ballantine comes unglued, takes a hostage and wants to draw a bead on former mentor hunter; Larue and washington enlist smarmy sid the snitch as a bogus chemist to gain the evidence they need to convict a drug dealer.

Goldblume is branded a "Subversive" by the press when he appears on television and blames the department's bureaucratic new regulations for allowing a murderer to go free and kill again. In addition: When buntz learns that davenport is stepping out on furillo, he starts checking up on her activities; While goldblume agonizes over accidentally cutting loose the slayer rivera, hunter believes he is to blame, and coming clean will cost him his reinstatement as lieutenant; Larue checks out his own roach motel to bag a cockroach big enough to win a radio contest; And a growling belker pursues a purse-Snatching pooch.

Buntz is king of the hill for a day when furillo is away on business and, when the officers' overtime pay hinges on how much dope they can confiscate that day, he turns them loose in a wild spree to ring up $130,000 worth of contraband -- Even if it means illegal seizures. As the blustery buntz bluffs his way through his day of command, things sour when davenport begins to see through his scheme. Also: Ever-Helpful sid the snitch hatches a dubious alternative plan for meeting the confiscation quota; An inspector orders buntz to assist a buxom female "Friend" who only has eyes for the big, bad lieutenant; Belker finds a kinship with a street urchin; And renko spies his stolen souped-Up chopper wheeling around town.

The mass slaying of a sleeping family forces an uneasy goldblume to ask a young snitch to risk his life by setting up a lethal gang suspect. In addition: An agitated renko is flushed with frustration when he becomes a human commode; Flaherty holsters his schoolboy infatuation with russo long enough to arrest ramon, a young latin gigolo who's been selling off his jealous older lover's personal property; Belker and russo team up to bust a drug dealer high on "Positive thinking"; And a modern, heat-Sensitive pastry dispensing MacHine warms to russo's form.

After a tragic shooting, former captain calletano returns, heading a hispanic coalition threatening to file a civil suit, and the blame may fall on furillo. Also: Bates is knifed when backups flaherty and russo are too busy nuzzling each other to help; Renko is agitated with wife daryl ann's preoccupation with her new business partner just before they take an overnight trip; Larue feels his age when he strikes out with a bevy of high school cheerleaders; Buntz lavishes praise on officer McBride for her heroism medal; Hill and renko prevent an angry musician from blowing away a noisy plastic clown at a fast-Food stand; And goldblume and belker are at opposite ends of separate shooting incidents.

Buntz is a blur as he tries to link a credit card scam to the ambushing of belker, who lies unconscious with a bullet lodged inoperably close to his spine. While the wounded belker struggles for his life, the hill teems with cops eager to find the shooter responsible, and buntz leads the charge. When buntz brutalizes a snitch, the captain tries to bench him, but he continues searching for a female accomplice who got away. Meanwhile, renko is blackmailed by a prostitute, and hunter sweats bullets waiting for reinstatement as a lieutenant.

Poor renko only makes matters worse when he tries to reconcile with his wife, from whom he is separated, while a lonely jablonski loses more than his pride in a moment of sexual temptation. In addition: A still-Recovering belker returns for the first time since his shooting; Washington and larue try to help reunite an abusive young man on medication with his resentful family; Hunter gathers the troops for a hostage siege but then encounters an unexpected hitch; Buntz makes scheming sid the snitch sell a prized possession to pay a debt; And renko has more bad luck when he accidentally blacks out the city by tampering with his new unit's computer.

The blues are empathetic toward thomas jackson, a famous pro football star who stands to lose lucrative commercial endorsements when he is arrested for soliciting. Also: A stir-Crazy belker returns to active duty and promptly gets a cake in the face when he goes undercover at a bakery; Furillo doesn't hesitate to lend $20,000 to his financially troubled brother; Larue and washington convince sid the snitch that trafficing in stolen merchandise is not nice; When hunter is declared awol, one of his former lovers returns from samoa to join the hunt; And larue importunes the sharpshooting buntz to enter the annual marksmanship contest.

After being buried alive for eleven days, hunter is finally rescued -- And is advised by furillo to avoid any references to the donner party. Meanwhile: Buntz is in dire trouble when internal affairs finds a pound of cocaine missing and a $17,000 stash in his apartment; Gang leader emeritus jesus martinez risks a city-Wide war when his little sister opts to marry a rival gang member; Everybody's a critic when goldblume publishes his "Fictitious" short story about a police precinct; A defrocked grace gardner returns to dispense birth-Control devices and indulge a flabbergasted flaherty; And larue sees the light after staring down the barrel of a MacHine gun.

A nighttime fire sweeps through the station. And buntz knows fear for the first time when he is suspended on charges of stealing cocaine. He must learn who framed him for swiping evidence or lose the only thing that matters to him -- His job. Also: Goldblume investigates a serial killer preying on prostitutes; Larue, shifty as ever, plots to steal the spotlight from a headline grabbing TV journalist who opens a gangster's private vault on live television; Hill is touched by a poor woman who remembers him from her childhood; And bates finds true love in the unlikely form of sal the plumber. And elsewhere on the hill, the beat goes on.