Spin Doctor

S1, E15: After freelance reporter Gilbert Reeves is found electrocuted in his hotel bathtub, Nick comes across notes indicating Reeves was investigating mayoral candidate Clifford Hiatt. Learning that Reeves spoke with tabloid newspaper editor Frank Titus about a political scandal before his death, Nick then discovers that Reeve's girlfriend has also been killed. Natalie agrees to test a suspicious fingernail fragment found at the crime scene, and Nick cautions her against working on the mayoral campaign of Barbara Norton, while giving Schanke a similar warning about his work for Hiatt. Meanwhile, Nick recalls his own trial by the press while teaching in Chicago during the communist witch hunts of the 1950's. When Norton is pressed to answer questions about the killings, Natalie rushes to her aid and, when questioned by reporters, inadvertently implicates Hiatt in the case. After admitting that she didn't do the tests he requested, Natalie and Nick barely escape death when her car explodes after being forced off the the road. Even though Natalie suspects Hiatt of the attempt on their lives, when she finds that the fingernail found at the murder scene actually belonged to a woman, Natalie is forced to admit that Hiatt wasn't responsible. Meanwhile, after finding an old phone number for Norton among Reeves' belongings, Schanke suspects she may have once had an affair with the reporter. After proving the notes from Reeves' investigation were planted after his death and that the killer is trying to implicate Hiatt, Nick discovers a videotape of Laura Neal wearing an unusual medallion he found in Reeves' room and sporting a broken fingernail. When Norton surprises everyone by publicly announcing her affair with Reeves, Laura accuses her of betraying the campaign and abducts the candidate at gunpoint. As Schanke pursues them in a cab, Nick flies to City Hall where he finds Laura threatening to kill Norton. However, distracted by Schanke's crashing into a police car, Nick intervenes and apprehends Laura, taking her into custody.