The two cases in this episode: a murder of a prostitute in West Palm Beach, Fla., and a murder of a woman in her house in Ft. Collins, Colo.
In the first case, that of Lucie Pate, it's more of story of a compassionate detective, who not only tries to solve the Pate case but those of other prostitutes in the area. He feels these women are degraded enough, don't really want to be in this profession, and deserve the same justice as other murder victims. He is Det. Robinson, who re-opens the Pate "cold case" once he becomes a detective in 1994. He also works on 34 similar cases, once he gets started.
Robinson states it isn't easy finding killers of street-walkers because the suspects could be anybody. Other prostitutes aren't good witnesses because half the time, he said, they're either stoned and drunk and don't remember much. In the Pate case, the killer handcuffed the women before killing them and Robinson takes that MO and uses it to find his man. It takes a lot of time and patience but he thinks the killer might be a cop or someone imitating one.
The second case, "The Doll Murder," refers the woman's last name: Doll. This is a very troubling, bizarre case where the killer is mainly a thief.....and late teen who robs women's panties and then ejaculates and defecates all over the house, among other things. It's pretty disgusting. It takes a number years but two determined female law officers (Reed and Hurst) track down the "kid," who is now in his mid-20s.
Both of these stories were very interesting, although somewhat sordid in parts. This is well worth watching, though, and we're taught a few interesting clues on how to determine certain criminals.