‘Chicago P.D.’ Season 10 Episode 9: [Spoiler] Dies in Shocking Mid-Season Finale
Hailey Upton faced off against suspected human trafficker Sean O’Neal in the Dec. 7 episode of Chicago P.D. The Intelligence Unit cop was front-and-center in season 10’s mid-season finale, “Proof of Burden.” But the case against O’Neal took a turn no one was expecting, with a shocking development in the final moments of the Dick Wolf drama.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for Chicago P.D. Season 10 Episode 9.]
Hailey Upton is obsessed with catching Sean O’Neal in the latest episode of ‘Chicago P.D.’ Season 10
Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) response to Halstead’s (Jesse Lee Soffer) absence has been to focus all her energy on work. The detective has become obsessed with nailing Sean (Jefferson White), whom she believes has been trafficking teen girls. When Upton and Burgess (Marina Squerciati.) found human remains near O’Neal’s Wisconsin cabin in last week’s episode, it became clear that his crimes went beyond sex trafficking.
Unfortunately, putting O’Neal behind bars won’t be easy. For one, there’s no physical evidence linking him to a crime. Plus, he’s the son of Intelligence Unit Chief Patrick O’Neal (Michael Gaston). The chief refuses to accept his son could be a killer.
Chief O’Neal might be throwing up roadblocks to the investigation, but Voight (Jason Beghe), Upton, and the rest of the IU aren’t backing off. They track down a young woman with a connection to Sean’s Safe Place center. Ayla reluctantly shares the details of how Sean raped and kidnapped her. But it’s not enough. The DA says it’s a “he said, she said” case, much to Upton’s frustration. Voight orders Sean’s arrest anyway. He’s banking on them getting enough evidence to charge him in the next 48 hours.
The IU doesn’t have enough evidence to hold Sean
CPD brings Sean in, and Upton questions him. O’Neal doesn’t exactly buckle under pressure. He insists he’s saved the young women who’ve crossed his path. Then, he tries to turn the tables on Upton.
“What do you think this is going to do for you, Hailey, finding these kids?” he says, asking her a question that has surely been at the back of her mind. “Do you think this is going to save you? Do you think this might stop the pain?”
Sean’s lawyer arrives, and Upton’s interview is cut short. The detectives scramble to find any evidence to keep Sean in jail, but he’s burned his files and rarely uses his personal phone. However, after combing through his call records, they find a link to a man named Joseph Collins, who has a history of trafficking and solicitation. That, in turn, leads them to a row house where O’Neal has been holding the girls. But the place is vacant.
Upton goes toe-to-toe with Sean
The IU is closing in on Sean. But Chief O’Neal is determined to see that his son isn’t charged with a crime. And for now, the law is on his side. Upton jumped the gun when arresting Collins and his statement was coerced. The evidence he provided implicating Sean is inadmissible, and the cops have no choice but to release the suspected rapist and pedophile.
Voight tries to reason with O’Neal, father-to-father. He even visits his home to drop off the file that contains the ugly details of Sean’s crimes. But the chief refuses to accept the truth. Meanwhile, Upton confronts Sean at Safe Place. He tearfully says he’s tried everything from drugs to therapy to religion to deal with his urgers. He even attempted to confess to his father, but “he didn’t understand what I was trying to tell him.”
Sean then explains the twisted logic he uses to choose his victims.
“Bad things happen, but you can control how they happen,” he says. “You can control who they happen to … you can sacrifice the ones that are already broken to save the rest.”
But even as he’s admitting his crimes (sort of), Sean can’t help but try to manipulate Upton. He draws a comparison between himself and the detective, telling her she’s “always been broken, just like me.” He also won’t tell her where the missing girls are, or if they’re already dead.
Chief O’Neal makes a devastating choice
Upton is prepared to bend the rules if that’s what it takes to put Sean behind bars. But Voight tells her the best approach is to do things by the book. Soon, some old-fashioned police work leads the team to a warehouse where they find the girls alive. The only thing that remains is to arrest Sean.
Upton and Voight move in to make the arrest. But just before they enter Chief O’Neal’s house, two shots ring out. Inside, they find the bodies of Chief O’Neal and Sean. The chief – who finally looked at the file that Voight left him – shot his son before turning the gun on himself.
At first, it seems both men are dead. But Sean is clinging to life. Both Voight and Upton hesitate. “Don’t call it in,” Upton says to her fellow officer. But Voight calls for an ambulance anyway, as an impassive Upton looks on.
Eventually, Upton relents, moving to help Voight as he tries to save Sean. Despite his serious injury, Sean is going to make it. The team at the hospital tells the cops that they saved his life. Upton’s heavy sigh upon hearing the news suggests she has some very mixed feelings about her role in preventing Sean’s death.
Upton will be dealing with ‘fallout’ from the case when ‘Chicago P.D.’ Season 10 returns in January
Chicago P.D. is heading into its mid-season break, with new episodes set to begin airing Jan. 4. Showrunner Gwen Sigan told ET that the second half of season 10 will see Upton wrestling with the “fallout” from the case. After Halstead’s sudden departure, she threw herself into the hunt for Sean O’Neal as a distraction. But with the case closed, she’ll have to deal with her feelings about her husband’s absence and what that means for her going forward.
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