Picket Fences

A local girl disappears and Sherriff Brock suspects her boyfriend, Brian Latham, is involved. Meanwhile, Jill opposes a grade school teacher who is teaching creationism.

District Attorney Littleton and defense lawyer Douglas Wambaugh prepare for the upcoming murder trial of Brian Latham. Littleton is concerned that his case will be hampered by the absence of hard evidence.

A Wisconsin Federal judge orders that 400 black students from the Green Bay ghetto be bused to Rome's schools, prompting panic among Sheriff Brock and the parents, knowing that a good number of them are lowlifes and drug dealers that come from that neighborhood. Meanwhile, Wambaugh gets a surprising response to his appeal of the Brian Latham murder conviction to go the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington DC. Also, Maxine makes a mess of her relationship with Littleton.

Jill and Judge Nance air their feelings in a heated face-to-face exchange after she is arrested when she reveals that she performed surgery on the Christian Science man. Meanwhile, Kimberly has a run-in with one of Green Bay's transfer students, named Aisha, who initially responds with hostility. Also, Littleton asks Maxine out on a date.

After a young girl spray paints a pentacle on a wall at school, Sheriff Brock removes her from the custody of her mother, a practicing Wiccan, and a court custody battle ensues. Max and Kenny discover Ginny frozen to death in her own freezer. Her brother (played by Paul Williams) holds a memorial service at which he sings "The Rainbow Connection" (a song written by Williams for The Muppet Movie).

Jill's mayoral campaign is damaged when Zach writes a school report filled with racist content, which he copied from an out-of-date book. Kimberly befriends Aisha when her classmate is bullied over good grades.

Wambaugh accompanies Jill Brock to Chicago where he receives a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis at Chicago Hope Hospital in this series crossover episode. Jill clashes with Dr. Jeffrey Geiger (Mandy Patinkin) who, she feels, looks down on her as a small-town doctor.

Wambaugh realizes the dream of a lifetime when he presents oral arguments before the Supreme Court.

While Brian Latham continues to proclaim his innocence, Kenny and Max review the evidence of the case and begin to believe he is telling the truth. Jimmy turns 55 and suffers a midlife crisis.

Carter Pike suspects that bizarre genetic experiments are being carried out on cows at a remote farm. This episode was originally planned as a crossover with The X-Files.

A masseur known for giving erotic massages to many female residents of the town is found dead in his freezer. Jimmy Brock is upset when he learns that his wife, Jill, was one of the masseur's clients.

The Frog Man's son tires of his father and goes to court for emancipation. Meanwhile, Zach is injured in a terrible accident and Jill overreacts, striking Matthew for accidentally hurting Zach.

Jimmy Brock's ex-wife, Lydia, visits unexpectedly and brings with her an unusual request — she wants to have another baby, and she wants Jimmy to father it.

Carter pronounces a woman dead after she collapses while singing, but she later "wakes up" in the morgue and sees Carter as her soulmate. Meanwhile, Kenny and Max take their relationship to the next level.

When a child molester moves to Rome after spending 16 years in prison it causes big problems for the local residents, especially with Jill and Jimmy, who are struggling to reconcile parental concerns with their professional duties.

The hearing impaired Dancing Bandit is arrested when she visits Zach on his birthday. Federal authorities want her trial to be set in Rome, where the jury reaches a surprising verdict.

Jimmy goes outside of his department to get the help he needs to find Ed Lawson, who is wanted for murder. Meanwhile, the town launches its own search to find a new mayor, and Kenny and Max are caught kissing on the job.

Jimmy consults Jill when a terminal cancer patient dies of a morphine overdose.

When Jill is found guilty of physician-assisted suicide, Wambaugh insists that Judge Bone put the issue of euthanasia on trial. Meanwhile, Kenny and Carter discover that Zack has been killing swans in a nearby pond.

When Zach develops stigmata-like sores on his hands, his friends believe he has healing powers, and a classmate asks him to cure his brother of leukemia.

Jimmy's father, Walter Brock (played by James Coburn), pays an unexpected visit and asks Jimmy to take over his law firm. This offer provokes long-standing father-son animosities, with Jimmy finally admitting that he dropped out of law school because he believed he would never measure up to his father's expectations of him.

After Father Gary Barrett is shot and killed during a robbery at the church, Mayor Bey proposes holding a spring musical pageant to help pull the community out of its somber mood