DISCLAIMER: This recap of Criminal Record Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected,” contains spoilers. Proceed at your peril.
Criminal Record blessed us with its best episode yet this week. “Protected” is a propulsive, high-octane, edge-of-your-seat ride from beginning to end. Peter Capaldi and Cush Jumbo are sensational. Both actors put their versatility on display. Capaldi showcases Dan Hegarty’s complexities as we see his softer side with Patrick Burrowes while reminding us why he’s absolutely terrifying. Meanwhile, Jumbo puts on a masterclass as June Lenker, digging into her vulnerability and tenderness. My heart broke for her in “Protected.” The episode should be retitled “June and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.”
The narrative really gains momentum in this outing, with plenty of fun twists and tense scenes. At the heart of this tension are June and Dan, and that lid is blown off entirely by the episode’s end. These two will be on the warpath now.
CRIMINAL RECORD Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected.” Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
I find Dan and Patrick’s relationship fascinating, and I hope we get more context soon. Sure, Dan could’ve initiated this to keep Errol in line, and perhaps he’s still doing it for that reason, but why go so far as to protect Patrick? Regardless, there’s enough intrigue and questions to keep me invested.
The series continues delving into relevant issues like racism in the justice system and how deeply entrenched racism is in the UK. The microaggressions are awful but executed well within the story.
RELATED: Check out our recap of Criminal Record Season 1 Episode 3, “Kid in the Park”
Press Conference
We open with June (Jumbo) delivering a speech at the press conference regarding the Isaac Whitlow shooting at Rowntree Park. Leo (Stephen Campbell Moore) is in the kitchen when June arrives home. She overhears her voice on TV. Maureen (Zoë Wanamaker), her mom, watches the press conference with her son, Jacob (Jordan Nash). Jacob asks Maureen why she loathes the police.
Maureen touches on what transpired with his grandfather, June’s dad, and how the cops hounded him. She couldn’t believe June decided to join the force. She tells her daughter that she’ll never change the corrupt system from the inside. Ouch. Meanwhile, Dan (Capaldi) appears onscreen during the televised conference to state that they believe they’ve found Isaac’s shooter, Jason Reeve.
A Confession
Later, Dan sits with 17-year-old Jason (Francis Lovehall), who confesses to inadvertently shooting Isaac. It was an accident — collateral damage. Dan asks if this is a gang-related issue. Perhaps Jason’s gang is warring with another gang. Regardless, something smells here.
RELATED: Best 5 Episodes of Chicago P.D. to Watch Before Season 11 Premieres
Then, Dan announces to June, Kim (Shaun Dooley), Chloe (Dionne Brown), DC Jed Stanning (Steffan Cennydd) and the others that they got a confession from Jason. Dan inquires what they should do next. Kim responds promptly, but Dan brushes it off, claiming he wants to hear from June.
CRIMINAL RECORD Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected.” Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
June offers a standard answer regarding what happens. He asks her if she believes Jason’s confession. He offered it up so quickly. Dan mentions that after the shooting, Jason called a now-disconnected number. He also carried the gun with him instead of discarding it. Perhaps he’s taking the fall for the actual shooter. To me, this smacks of Dan intentionally putting June under a microscope. His dissection or “detective work” regarding Jason’s confession and his conclusion that Jason didn’t shoot Isaac also feel like he’s trying to appeal to June. It’s a way to throw her off his scent. Like, “See? I’m doing good work.”
Carla
Next, Folasade Odinaka (Remi Fadare) spies the missing person flyer for Carla. She contacts Latisha (Janet Kumah), who reaches out to June and Sonya (Aysha Kala). They question Folasade regarding her knowledge of Carla. She reveals that Carla was a cleaner. Carla enjoyed her profession because she could improve her English. She was also dating an Englishman. However, he made her give up her job when she moved in with him.
RELATED: Top 10 British TV Comedies
Then, Folasade pulls up a photo of Carla at a barbecue on her phone. June compares her coat to the one she’s wearing in the flyer. It’s a match. Elsewhere, one woman calls the inquiry team and speaks to an operator about the Rowntree Park shooting. She reveals she saw two people involved — one Black man driving the getaway vehicle while the other, a white man, shot Isaac. So, Jason didn’t pull the trigger.
Dan asks Jed to accompany him to another round of questioning with Jason. Dan knows Jason is covering for someone else. He encourages Jason to disclose a name. He vows to protect the teen. Jason merely states that some men overtook their gang and that they’re “ruthless.” Dan asks if the man is Albanian, Algerian or Turkish. Jason reacts to Dan saying “Turkish.”
What Does She Want?
Later, June, Chloe, Kim and the others hand out flyers in a busy market area, asking passersby to keep their eyes peeled for a Turkish man who may be involved in the Rowntree Park shooting. Afterward, Kim chats with Dan, asking what June wants. What’s her angle? He refers to her as Dan’s “Meghan Markle,” which is such a loaded comparison given how abhorrently the racist UK tabloids treated Meghan.
RELATED: Law & Order: Exploring 5 Crucial Benson and Stabler Moments
Dan urges Kim to get off his back. Why? Because the Errol Mathis situation is resolved. While Dan pumps gas, he spots one man watching him before the latter hops into his vehicle and peels out of the gas station. Hmm. Meanwhile, June questions Hasad (Sia Alipour), who operates a food cart, if he’s seen anyone that matches the description of Isaac’s shooter. She takes down Hasad’s info should anything pop up. He’s surprised she spelled his name correctly, as, in his words, Turkish names trip people up.
Later, June stops by Sonya’s office. So, Mustafa Demir from the barbershop is Errol’s alibi. What if whoever took down Mustafa’s name misspelled it? Perhaps he didn’t move back to Turkey. He could still be here in London.
CRIMINAL RECORD Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected.” Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
Adelaide’s Birthday
Then, Patrick (Rasaq Kukoyi) purchases flowers from Lisa (Maisie Ayres) before visiting his mother Adelaide’s grave. It’s her birthday. He reunites with Doris (Cathy Tyson). They reminisce for a spell before Doris eagerly discloses a lead in Errol’s case. They’re searching for Carla, who might have information that could exonerate him. Patrick looks surprised.
RELATED: GGA’s 6 Favorite Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Episodes of 2023
Next, Patrick returns to his lodgings, looking up articles about Doris’ campaign to save her son. It causes PTSD flashbacks to his mom’s murder. He sees Errol (Tom Moutchi) scoop him up and flee. This new information regarding Errol’s case collides with his PTSD and trauma, so much so that he gets into a fight with a neighbor over his complaining about the noise.
Patrick winds up on none other than Dan’s doorstep. While Patrick pets Dan’s dog, Dan gives Patrick orange juice and a frozen pack of food for his black eye. Patrick doesn’t delve into why he fought with his neighbor and what set it off. Dan assumes a “police officer” was giving him grief about his late mother. Patrick asks Dan to recount the night of his mom’s murder again. Dan claims Errol had Adelaide’s blood all over him, not his own. Then, he wrecked the car with Patrick in it while attempting to flee. Patrick seems convinced that Errol is the real murderer.
Searching for the Alibi
Meanwhile, June looks up all the Mustafas in London on social media (a Facebook-type platform). She zeroes in on one who owns a barbershop like Errol’s alibi. She notices that, indeed, the police station misspelled his name. June locates Mostapha (Bamshad Abedi-Amin), who tries to ignore her. She asks him to confirm that Errol was inquiring about work at the barbershop at the time of Adelaide’s murder. When confronted, Mostapha admits he was asked to select Errol from multiple photos of Black men. He claims he couldn’t tell them apart but that he’s not racist.
RELATED: Law & Order: SVU Takes a Hit in Diversity
So, he picked the wrong man, and now Errol is serving a life sentence. June asks why Mostapha didn’t go to the station to correct his mistake. He reminds her that these cops have friends in far-right groups. Nothing would’ve been done to remedy the situation. Well, he’s not wrong about corruption in the force. Mostapha seems genuinely remorseful. He asks June to relay how sorry he is to Errol before she departs.
June calls Sonya, revealing they can’t use Mostapha as an alibi now. Suddenly, June sees her car is on fire. Oh, sh*t. This results in June getting saddled with round-the-clock security. Someone could be threatening her life. I wonder who that might be…
CRIMINAL RECORD Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected.” Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
Arson
Dan visits June at her home, where she hunkers down after the incident. He reveals the arson was the culmination of online harassment levied toward the police. It’s also gang-related. Dan reassures June that they’re in the process of removing the incendiary posts. That evening, Jason is beaten up by two men, who put him in the hospital. Dan visits Jason. It’s at this moment that Jason decides to divulge the name of the Turkish man who shot Isaac. Dan will do anything to get his way, eh? Including hiring men to harm a Black teenager. Shameful.
RELATED: GGA’s 11 Most Anticipated TV Dramas of 2024
June meets with DI Markham (Carolina Main) in Chambers’ (Ian Bonar) office the following day. Someone has filed a complaint about workplace bullying … against June. She departs Chambers’ office and heads into the stairwell, where she voices her concerns that Dan might be trying to sabotage her career. Everything piling up against her feels entirely too convenient when adding Dan into the equation. Chambers dismisses her theory, claiming that Dan is the best of them. Plus, he has too many connections to get caught.
Then, Patrick brings Dan some lasagna from his work. However, Dan states they can’t continue meeting like this. Lisa appears. Dan introduces her as his daughter. Uh-oh. Patrick is dating Dan’s daughter. Before he departs, Dan tells Patrick they’ll get him out of his current lodgings. Lisa texts Patrick, telling him if Dan finds out they’re dating, he’ll blow a gasket.
Workplace Bullying
Later, Chloe admits she filed the complaint against June. That said, she didn’t word it as “bullying.” Chambers was questioning Chloe about the path report from the Adelaide/Clive case. Chloe claims June was pretty forceful when she asked for said report.
RELATED: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Guest Stars Who Appeared More Than Once
June heads into the bathroom for a good cry. Aw, my poor girl. This has not been her week (or month or even her year). There’s nothing like a bathroom sob session at your workplace. She receives a call from one of the women’s shelters regarding Carla. Someone, an unidentified officer, was inquiring about her whereabouts. Thinking it strange, the shelter thought to reach out to June.
CRIMINAL RECORD Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected.” Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
Then, June contacts Sonya. Could this be Doris’ doing? Maybe she confided in the wrong person? Sonya wonders if perhaps one of Doris’ contacts spilled the beans. June looks them up in the system. She lands on Latisha, who had a previous theft charge. The arresting officer was Tony Gilfoyle, one of The Sixty-Twos. June chats with Latisha, who admits that Tony got her on a list for a flat. Doris also ensured she could keep her kids.
Quit Your Job
In exchange for the flat, Tony used Latisha as a confidante. So, she’s told him about Carla and June reopening Errol’s case. Uh-oh. June urges Latisha to call Doris and end her employment. She has to quit. Sure enough, Latisha calls Doris and quits her job.
RELATED: Catch up on the murder and mayhem with our Death and Other Details recaps
Later, Tony (Charlie Creed-Miles) informs Dan about June meeting with Latisha. Then, Dan chats with June. He defends Tony, stating the job is his life and that he’s had MS for a decade. June fights back, wishing him luck conveying that to the IOPC (Independent Office for Police Conduct). Dan insists that Tony’s harmless. However, June believes that a man running covert ops on a defenseless woman for eight years is the opposite of harmless. June mentions Dan and his “old boys,” aka The Sixty-Twos. We see Kim and Tony are with Dan. Dan puts the conversation on speakerphone.
Dan asks June if her friends know about “certain claims made on that emergency call.” He threatens June, declaring if he ever finds out that June shared any part of that call, he won’t hold back. “I will f*cking have you,” he says. Admittedly, this moment gave me goosebumps. Capaldi is a formidable beast.
CRIMINAL RECORD Season 1 Episode 4, “Protected.” Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
It’s On
June tells Leo about her chilling phone conversation with Dan. He supports her regardless of what she chooses to do. She has his support if she wishes to dig deeper and go above their heads. June embraces her partner before she leaves. Later, she reunites with Sonya. Carla (Joana Borja) finds the flyer with her picture on it. She calls Sonya and June, ordering them to back off. Meanwhile, we see someone snapping photos of Dan as he withdraws money from the ATM. Then, he enters that mysterious establishment again. The man taking pics could be the same person from the gas station. Anyway, Carla insists that he’s done this before. He’s too dangerous. They should stop before she gets killed.
I’m assuming she means Dan…
RELATED: Keep up on the case with our Criminal Record recaps
Do you think Carla is talking about Dan or her abusive boyfriend? What other skeletons are in Dan’s closet? How many times has he sabotaged June during this investigation? Will we see Errol freed by the season’s end? Only time (and more episodes) will tell.
Criminal Record streams new episodes every Wednesday on Apple TV+.
Melody.McCune@geekgirlauthority.com
What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet.
Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium.
Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
- BEACON 23 Recap: (S02E07) Free - May 19, 2024
- DOCTOR WHO Recap: (S01E03) Boom - May 17, 2024
- 15 Song Covers We Want to Hear on BRIDGERTON - May 17, 2024
