When Trish makes an undercover phone call to the Barn, Claudette discovers that she and Walon are in serious danger. As Claudette enlists the Strike Team's help and Walon is recovered, he reveals that there is a mole in the system that led to him and Trish getting made. Walon claims Claudette is responsible because she failed to read about the mole on a report he filed. With Trish still out there and Claudette at fault, Vic uses the opportunity to create a wedge between Claudette and the Decoy Squad. Meanwhile Dutch works with Danny to make some headway in the "Cuddler" rape case, but the case takes a turn for the worse when an elderly woman turns up cuddled. Vic and his team finally uncover Trish and bring her to safety, but not before she takes drastic measures to keep herself alive on the job. When Tommy realizes David's not going to help him get his job back, he makes a grave decision no one expected. Ronnie reveals that there is $7k missing from the Money Train stash, causing each member of the Strike Team to question one another.
The Shield breaks the conventional formula of the cop genre. It plays out in a tough, morally ambiguous world in which the line between good and bad is crossed ever day. The series focuses on the tension between a group of corrupt but effective cops and a captain torn between bringing them down and advancing his own political ambitions.
The Shield stars rogue cop "Det. Vic Mackey", leader of the elite Strike Team unit, who is effective at eliminating crime but who operates under his own set of rules. "Captain David Aceveda", the young precinct head who doesn't like Mackey's tactics and wants to bust him off the force. And "Det. Claudette Wyms", a veteran detective who understands Mackey and knows how to play both sides of the fence.