The 4th episode of “Accused” shows a father whose one wrong choice snatches his fatherhood away. When Kendall Gomillion’s young daughter is sexually assaulted, he becomes hellbent on finding the one responsible and gets restless, waiting for the police’s response. Will Kendall give in to his friend’s persuasion and track down the man himself? If yes, what will he do after that? This is Kendall’s story.
Spoilers Ahead
The Accused
Mr. Kendal Gomillion is being held in a cell at the Hamilton County Courthouse in Cincinnati, Ohio. A guard opens the door and asks him to join him and head to the courtroom. On the mirror inside the cell are the words “Daddy loves Ingy” written with a bar of soap. Kendall’s trial is about to begin.
The Assault
Kendall, his wife Alisa, and his childhood friends Lamar and David are having a fun karaoke time at a pub. During one such moment, Alisa gets a call, picks it up, and what she hears stops her cold. Kendall senses something is wrong. Kendall and Alisa rush to the hospital, where they find their daughter Ingy, short for Ingrid, in the exam room, and her babysitter Amber waiting outside. Also present is Detective Trent Douglas. He informs them that their daughter had been sexually assaulted by a man [he touched her private parts] after Amber and Ingy got separated for about 5 minutes. But after hearing a woman (Amber) call out Ingy’s name, the man fled from the scene. Thankfully, the police were able to get the description of the man and put out an all-points bulletin (APB) [a message to all the police officers in the area]. Douglas assures Kendall and Alisa that they will be the first to know when the criminal gets caught.
The Breach Of Privacy
It is late at night when Kendall and Alisa drive back home with Ingy. Outside their house, they find Lamar, David, and a handful of other neighbors waiting. Kendall tells Alisa to take Ingy inside and then requests some privacy from all those standing, especially Lamar, who tells him that they have all come to show their support. But the best support for Kendall is some privacy that they need. Lamar follows Kendall inside the house, where Alisa asks Lamar why he spread the word about the incident. Kendall mentions that there are laws against making the name of an assaulted child public. Alisa is agonized and infuriated, but before she can snap at Lamar, Kendall asks her to go inside and bathe Ingy. Then, Lamar sees the sketch of the assaulter and tells Kendall that the police will do nothing about it because the guy is white. Kendall has better things to do than listen to Lamar’s speech on racism and tells him that they will meet again in the morning. In other words, he asks Lamar to leave. Later, Kendall texts Douglas for updates. With Ingy sleeping, Alisa tells Kendall that it might be a good idea to postpone Ingy’s catechism until next year. However, Kendall thinks otherwise and doesn’t want their little girl to miss getting her First Communion, for which she needs to pass her final catechism test.
The First Witness
During the trial of Mr. Kendall Gomillion, the first person inside the witness box is Detective Douglas himself. The prosecutor asks him about Kendall’s behavior during his investigation and whether he was ever concerned that Kendall would do something that would land him as an accused in a case of aggravated homicide. Aggravated homicide; so did Kendall kill someone?
The Wait For Justice
Kendall comes to work the next day, and Lamar, who also works there along with David [both work under Kendall], yet again tries to persuade him to find the man on their own without waiting for the police and especially Detective Douglas who, Lamar reminds Kendall, looked away when a white policeman beat Omar Keelings (a black guy) to death. It’s been only 12 hours, but there’s no telling how long it will take the authorities to find the guy. So all that they have to do is gather some of Lamar’s guys, and they can find the assaulter. All this is too much for Kendall, who mentions how he is reminded of the same Lamar from their childhood, who was always looking for a fight and went to prison once for the same. Lamar, too, reminds Kendall that he is still the guy who looked for the good in others, even if it wasn’t there. After Lamar leaves, Kendall calls Douglas, but the call goes to his voicemail. He then decides to visit the Cincinnati Police Department.
At the station, Douglas tells Kendall that they are canvassing Winton Park, where Ingy was assaulted, as well as the whole neighborhood, along with scanning the CCTV footage. But all that Kendall says he wants is for Douglas not to look away from Ingy the way he did from Oman Keelings. Douglas ignores this accusation, saying he doesn’t want to waste time justifying himself, and promises Kendall to do whatever he can to find the assaulter.
Catastrophism And Death
Kendall returns home and is helping Ingy learn her catechism notes when Alisa takes him aside to talk. She tells him that the reason Ingy is taking the catechism test is that she wants to please him and not because she is ready. Kendall assures Alisa that all he wants is to help Ingy get through this tough time. That’s when Ingy comes and tells them that her uncle Lamar is at the door. Kendall meets Lamar, who tells him that he has found the culprit at Winton Park. Kendall tries to call Douglas, but Lamar forces him to disconnect the call, saying that they should first check to see if it is the right guy or if David’s men are wrong. As much as Kendall thinks that it is wrong, he decides to give it a shot. But he has to hurry because Ingy’s catechism is in two hours.
Kendall and Lamar arrive at Winton Park, where David is already waiting for them. But he has lost the guy. He was wearing a green sweatshirt. They decide to split up and find him. Kendall is still searching when he gets a call from Alisa. The catechism test is in 20 minutes. He tells her that he will be there on time and tells her to take Ingy to church. Kendall almost decides to get back when David spots the guy. All three rush after him into a public toilet, where the guy has locked himself. Kendall decides to call Douglas, but Lamar still uses his justice card. Then, Lamar and David cover their faces with face masks, break in, and start beating the guy brutally. In a fit of rage, Kendall, too, starts hitting him until he is almost unconscious. Then, the three guys decide to leave, but when Lamar notices the guy dialing someone on his phone, he returns and beats him unconscious. Back at the church, Alisa gets a message from Kendall saying he cannot make it to Ingy’s catechism due to emergency work. When Alisa returns home with Ingy, she finds Kendall at home. He manages to convince Alisa and Ingy that he wouldn’t have missed the catechism had it not been an emergency. He finds out from Alisa that Ingy did well in the catechism test.
The Lie
The next day, as all three members of the Gomillion family are enjoying breakfast, the bell rings. Kendall opens the door and finds that it’s Detective Douglas, who tells him that the man who assaulted Ingy was found heavily injured and unconscious by a jogger late the previous night. By the time the emergency services reached the spot, Clyde Ellman was dead. Douglas can tell how angry Kendall is at Clyde. So there’s a clear motive here. Also, he found out that Kendall missed his daughter’s catechism the previous night. But Kendall kept on stressing that he was at work. He gives Douglas the names of Lamar and David to cross-check what he is saying. After this, Douglas leaves.
At work, Kendall tells David and Lamar that the guy they assaulted is dead and that Douglas will reach out to them both as well to confirm everything Kendall told him. Kendall tells them that they should tell Douglas the truth—that they didn’t mean to kill Clyde. Kendall blames Lamar’s continuous rant about justice for leading them to this situation. Be that as it may, all they need to do now is stick to their stories and wait.
Douglas finds Kendall at church, the same church where Ingrid gave her catechism test. He has spoken to Lamar and David, both of whom told him that the three of them were together at work. However, Douglas isn’t convinced by either Lamar’s or David’s behavior. He makes it clear to Kendall that just because all three of them are telling the same story doesn’t mean it’s true. He believes that Kendall is a good man who has found himself in a very bad situation. The forensic report will come the next day, and it will shine a light on the people who assaulted Clyde. So before it gets too late, Kendall should tell him the truth. And yet, Kendall stick to the same story i.e., he had a work emergency. Douglas stares at him for a moment, shakes his head, and leaves. As Douglas comes out of the church, we see David and Lamar looking at him from inside their car. David asks Lamar if he thinks that Kendall told Douglas the truth. Lamar says nothing.
The Confession
It’s late when Kendall returns home and finds Alisa awake and waiting for him. She had been calling him for three hours, but he didn’t answer. Kendall ultimately tells her everything that happened on the night of Ingy’s catechism. He breaks into tears as he explains what he and his friends did to Clyde Ellman. Alias tells him to open up to Detective Douglas. Kendall tries to defend Lamar, saying that going back to prison will kill him. But Alisa knows better and makes him understand how Lamar has made him an accessory to murder and that he is not worth Ingy growing up without her father.
The next day, Kendall and Alisa arrive at the Cincinnati Police Station. Kendall is about to confess what he did to Douglas, but before he can begin, he is arrested and put in cuffs for the murder of Clyde Ellman. Kendall then sees Lamar and David walking out of a room behind Douglas.
‘Accused’ Episode 4: Ending Explained – Is Kendall Gomillion Acquitted Of The Charge Against Him?
David is inside the witness box as he explains how Kendall spoke of taking control of things and ultimately beating Clyde Ellman to death. After the hearing, Douglas speaks to David and Lamar about how hard it must be for them to turn on their childhood friends. Lamar acknowledges this. After Douglas leaves, David tells Lamar how he feels that what they are doing is wrong, but Lamar is headstrong and replies that it was either Kendall or them. And they made the choice they had to. At the next hearing, it is Lamar’s turn inside the witness box. He tells the prosecutor that Kendall ran after Clyde like a “pit bull.” Kendall, who was present, tells the judge that Lamar is lying. He is told to keep quiet. Lamar continues to say that the reason he agreed to protect Kendall is that he was scared after finding out what he was capable of. Kendall cannot take it anymore and almost pounces toward Lamar, yelling that he will kill him, thus making his actions, as addressed by Lamar, justified. He is grabbed by the guards. The judge adjourns the proceedings of the court until there is decorum. After the chaos settles, Douglas approaches Kendall, who is about to be taken back to his cell, and tells him that he knows that Lamar and David are lying. And he won’t stop until he finds out the truth and makes it right.
The way Lamar and David turned against Kendall without a second thought is just bizarre. This episode seems to prove that it is better to stand by what’s right when the time comes. If time runs out, even the truth doesn’t protect you. Kendall paid the price for not confessing what he did to Detective Douglas, just like he paid the price for not calling Douglas when he found Clyde. Now, no one knows how long it will be before Kendall Gomillion sees his Ingy again.
