Law & Order - Season 4

Season 4 of Law & Order saw yet more changes to the cast. Finally bowing to pressure from the network to add females to what was an all-male cast, Dann Florek and Richard Brooks were let go in between seasons and replaced with S. Epatha Merkerson and Jill Hennessy, respectively. (Carolyn McCormick had been tacked onto the end of the opening credits starting in Season 3, but she didn't fit into either the Law or Order side and didn't appear in every episode.) Like Jerry Orbach, S. Epatha Merkerson had previously appeared in the series as a different character, portraying a grieving mother in Season 1's "Mushrooms". Merkerson would end up staying with the show until its cancellation seventeen years later, starring in 390 out of a possible 456 episodes, more than any other cast member. Hennessy would be the first in a long line of (somewhat unrealistically) attractive female ADAs that the show would be eventually famous (or infamous) for. Florek and Brooks understood the reasons for their firing and were good sports about it, with both reprising their roles in guest spots in later seasons, with Florek even directing some episodes in Season 4. Florek and Captain Donald Cragen would eventually return to the Law & Order universe, first in the 1998 television film Exiled: A Law & Order Movie and then full-time as a regular on the show's first spin-off, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a role he portrayed for nearly 15 seasons until his character was seen retiring in an episode that aired in January of 2014.
Season 4 would also mark the final season for Michael Moriarty, with EADA Ben Stone resigning at the end of the season finale. The reasons for Moriarty's departure have been disputed, with some claiming he quit while others claiming he was fired. Either way, Moriarty, who had scored an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for every season he was on the show, remains one of the few former cast members with living characters who never returned for a guest spot in a later season. Although Moriarty never reappears, the character of Ben Stone was mentioned in a Season 6 episode, "Custody" (S06E14), and two decades later, he appeared offscreen conversing over the phone with his son Peter (Philip Winchester) in Dick Wolf's short-lived Chicago Justice. He is finally killed off in Season 19 of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, with his onetime replacement Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) given the eulogy at his funeral.
Cast:
:Law
*Detective Lennie Briscoe - Jerry Orbach
*Detective Mike Logan - Chris Noth
*Lieutenant Anita Van Buren - S. Epatha Merkerson
:Order
*Executive Assistant District Attorney Ben Stone - Michael Moriarty
*Assistant District Attorney Claire Kincaid - Jill Hennessy
*District Attorney Adam Schiff - Steven Hill
__TOC__
=Revolvers=
==Smith & Wesson Model 36==
Detective Lennie Brisco (Jerry Orbach) and Detective Mike Logan (Chris Noth) are armed with Smith & Wesson Model 36 revolvers. Lieutenant Anita Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson) appears to be armed with one as well, but never draws it. 
==Smith & Wesson Model 10HB==
Smith & Wesson Model 10s are carried by the NYPD Officers in the initial seasons of the series. The Smith & Wesson Model 10 was an authorized weapon for all NYPD officers who had entered onto the job on or prior to 1993. In '93 the NYPD went to semi-automatic pistols. 
==Colt Python==
A uniformed officer draws a Colt Python as he nears a suspicious vehicle in "Snatched" (S04E12). This is the first time on the show where NYPD officers are seen using firearms not actually approved for use by the real NYPD. A stainless Python is seen in a box of guns in "Kids" (S04E15), although it is erroneously referred to as a "Colt Anaconda" in that episode.
==Smith & Wesson Model 64==
A Smith & Wesson Model 64 is seen in the hands of an ESU officer in "Kids" (S04E15). The S&W Model 64 was modified to meet NYPD requirements and designated as the Model NY-1 by the NYPD and was the authorized issued revolver for all officers of the NYPD who entered on to "the Job" after 1986 until the department stopped issuing revolvers and began issuing semi-automatic 9mm pistols starting around 1992.
==Ruger GP100==
Logan finds a stainless Ruger GP100 in "Mayhem" (S04E17). According to the cops, it's chambered in .38.
=Pistols=
==Tanfoglio Titan II==
The killer is stopped by an armed citizen with a nickel-plated or stainless Tanfoglio Titan II in "Profile" (S04E04). Another Titan II (probably the same prop) is seen in a stash of guns in "Kids" (S04E15).
==Browning Hi-Power==
The murder weapon in "The Pursuit of Happiness" (S04E10) is a Browning Hi-Power. Forensics experts call it a "Browning" and Logan remarks that it's worth $500.
==Glock 19==
The murder weapon in "Kids" (S04E15) is a Glock 19. The police identify it as a Glock chambered in 9mm.
==Unknown pistol==
Sid Fisher (Steve Ryan) shoots Dr. Joseph Vinton with an unknown pistol in the teaser of "Sweeps" (S04E01). Since the entire teaser was shot as a show within a show on a handheld camera, this is the best shot available. 
==SIG-Sauer P226==
A two-tone SIG-Sauer P226 is seen in a box of guns in "Kids" (S04E15).
==Browning BDA 380==
A two-tone Browning BDA 380 is seen in a box of guns in "Kids" (S04E15). It is also seen in another stash of guns in the same episode.
==Colt Woodsman==
Det. Briscoe finds a Colt Woodsman 3rd Series Target in a suspect's apartment in "Mayhem" (S04E17). Logan immediately identifies it as a ".22."
==Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammerless==
The murder weapon in the season finale "Old Friends" (S04E22) is a Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammerless. According to the dialogue, it is chambered in .32, with a box of .32 ammo found in the suspect's apartment.
=Shotguns=
==Sawn-off Double Barreled Shotgun==
The murder weapon in "Profile" (S04E04) is a Sawn-off Double Barreled Shotgun. The police deduce this from examining the spread of the shot as well as the fact that no shell casings were found.
==Ithaca 37==
An ESU officer is seen with a Ithaca 37 with an extended magazine tube in "Kids" (S04E15).
=Submachine Guns=
==MAC-10==
A MAC-10 is seen in a box of guns in "Kids" (S04E15).
==TEC-9==
A TEC-9 is seen in a box of guns in "Kids" (S04E15).
=Rifles=
==M1 Garand==
An M1 Garand is seen hanging in a suspect's room in "Mayhem" (S04E17). Briscoe refers to it as "an antique."
Category:Television
Category:Crime
Category:Detective