Reckless

"**Reckless**" is the twenty-first episode of the second season and the forty-fourth episode overall of the legal drama series *Bull*, which was aired on May 1, 2018.

## Summary

After receiving news that his ex-wife Izzy (Benny's sister) is getting remarried, Bull takes to drinking heavily and gets arrested for public mischief. While in jail awaiting bail, Bull meets a mute man who is kind to him. Bull then learns after being released that the man is Elliott Miles, the prime suspect in a rape-murder-arson case. Bull takes Miles' risky case, and begins annoying his team with his tunnel vision. He ignores Marissa's advice on a juror, and later makes trial decisions without consulting Benny. Benny is able to refute one eyewitness's testimony, but the prosecution then brings in Elliott's pseudo-girlfriend to testify that he came home later than she originally told police. Though it is revealed the prosecution made a deal with the girlfriend, the judge refuses to call for a mistrial. Bull tells Benny and Chunk he needs a drink, ending the episode on a cliffhanger.

## Recap

Officers are outside a home. It is the night. A house has been lit on fire. A husband and wife are inside. They are dead, having been burned alive tied to a chair. The wife was raped before her death. Their daughter was not home. Their car was stolen.

Police pull over a man in a silver SVU, the same car that was stolen. The man inside gives the police a card that says “I am mute.”

Benny tells Bull that his sister, Bull’s ex-wife, is getting remarried. Bull doesn’t take the news lightly. He gets drunk and calls Marissa hours later after he lands in jail. Inside, he meets a mute man.

Marissa and Bull are in the car. She is worried about him. He tells her he found out his ex is getting remarried. She doesn’t care. He hasn’t been himself for months. He lives in his head and drinks too much. His clothes don’t fit. She wants to admire him again not worry about him. She gets out of the car. Bull sees the newspaper. The mute man is on the front page.

Bull goes to the jail to meet the man. He tells him he wants to help him after the man says he didn’t do it.

Marissa updates the team about their new case. They are all in disbelief. The man, Elliott, has a weak alibi and says he bought the SVU from a man at the bus stop.

Bull shows up the next day at work with a new suit on and a good night’s sleep. Marissa is surprised. The team meets to go over the case. They are all skeptical. But Bull knows in his heart that he is innocent. He wants to create reasonable doubt by looking for a jury pool who looks at things clinically and detached. They need to get rid of the jurors who cry.

Benny starts the jury selection. It is a lot harder than they expected. They are getting rid of jurors left and right. One woman, in particular, doesn’t seem right to Bull. Marissa pleads with him. He goes against her. The judge fills the rest of the jury pool. Benny is angry, leaving Bull in the courtroom.

Benny and Bull meet the next day in an empty courtroom. Bull has been waiting for an apology, but Benny isn’t giving one. He is angry that Bull isn’t treating them like a team anymore. He is calling the shots and they are shots none of them are comfortable with. They don’t want to see a man be put to death because of them.

Marissa meets with a therapist. Meanwhile, Chunk meets with Elliott’s girlfriend. She isn’t doing well. Elliott is all over the papers, the neighbors are staring at her funny. She wants to testify but she is unsure and scared. They don’t have the best relationship. She is a waitress and he is in construction. She’s with him for the money. Chunk tells her he will be in touch.

In court, a witness from the couple’s neighborhood points to Elliott and says she saw him coming out the burning house. Benny gets up and asks when she picked the man’s identity out of a lineup. She went a week after the incident. Benny suggests that she had already seen his face in the news. The judge will not dismiss her testimony.

Bull and Benny meet with Elliott. Bull tells them that they have received an offer. They will take the death penalty off the table if he pleads guilty. Elliott doesn’t want to do that. They ask him for additional information about the man who sold him the car. He tells them he had a limp. Benny thinks this all sounds like a bad novel.

Bull goes to his ex-wife’s house. She lets him in. He congratulates her on her engagement. He is happy for her but sad for himself. She tells him he isn’t good alone. She hopes he meets someone. He does too.

Back in court, the prosecution calls Elliott’s girlfriend to the stand. Bull and Benny cannot believe their eyes. She tries to change her mind about what time she said Elliott came home. When Benny presses her, she crumbles and admits the prosecution offered her security for the harassment she was receiving. Benny calls for a mistrial but is denied. Court wraps for the day and Bull cannot hold out anymore. He needs a drink.

To Be Continued...

## Cast

### Main

* Michael Weatherly as Dr. Jason Bull
* Freddy Rodriguez as Benjamin "Benny" Colón
* Geneva Carr as Marissa Morgan
* Jaime Lee Kirchner as Danielle "Danny" James
* Annabelle Attanasio as Cable McCrory
* Christopher Jackson as Chunk Palmer

### Recurring

* Yara Martinez as Isabella Colón
* Victor Williams as AUSA Rosenberg

### Guest

* Frank De Julio as Elliot Miles
* Murphy Guyer as Dr. Thiessen
* Abbi Snee as Grace Fisher
* Amy Staats as Molly O'Neil
* Reyna de Courcy as Lily Galloway
* Stephanie Ittleson as Judge Rogers
* Yaron Urbas as Coroner

## Trivia

* In the *NCIS* episode Family First, Michael Weatherly's character, Tony says to Ziva, "You are not alone", in Hebrew. Here his client, signs it to Bull. Sign language was also prominent in NCIS.

### Notes

* New York doesn't have the death penalty, so the most Elliot Miles would have gotten was life without parole.
* During an argument with Bull, Benny mentions the difficulty they face in proving Elliot's innocence. As both a lawyer and a former employee of the D.A.'s office, he should know that Elliot is entitled to the presumption of innocence; the burden is on the prosecution to prove he's guilty, not on TAC to prove he's innocent.
* During jury selection the judge states that both prosecution and defense have exhausted their challenges, so the jury will be completed with "the next 8 jurors, numbers 11 through 19". Actually, 11 through 19 would be 9 jurors, namely numbers 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 AND 19.

## Quotes

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