In the previous episode of Reasonable Doubt season 2, Shanelle felt like she was trapped in an abusive marriage with JT, and she couldn’t free herself from his shackles until and unless she gathered enough courage to kill the man responsible for the worst nightmares of her life. However, in this week’s episode, i.e., episode 5, Jax started to entertain the possibility that Shanelle might not have killed JT after all. Jax believed that Shanelle might be trying to cover up for her new lover, Adrian, and it was Adrian who actually killed JT. Meanwhile, the first trial was underway, and with that pressure, Jax got into a professional clash with Corey, which took a toll on her work. Both were extremely headstrong and had different opinions of strategies. On top of everything, Jax didn’t even realize that her husband Lewis was hiding something big from her, which could ruin their marriage again. So, it were all these conflicts that were covered in the fifth episode, and therefore, without further ado, let’s jump straight into the recap.
Spoilers Ahead
What happened during the first trial?
In Episode 5, Jax began to suspect Adrian even more after she found out that he might be connected to Evan Gerrard, Jamarion’s business partner and sponsor, because it was revealed that Adrian had tried to flee to Mexico with Shanelle after he stole some $30 million from Jamarion’s account. So naturally, this did not look very good for Adrian, and Jax thought he might have been the one who killed Jamarion and pretended to fall in love with Shanelle to manipulate her. So, Jax decided to confront Shanelle about her suspicions, but Shanelle was deeply hurt, as she couldn’t believe Jax would think she was so weak that she would let someone else control her or that she would take the blame for a murder she didn’t commit. Thus, Shanelle made it clear that she took full responsibility for Jamarion’s murder, even if it meant people thought it was premeditated, for which she was ready to face life in prison if it came to that. Jax tried to talk to Corey about her doubts, but he brushed them off and warned her again to treat the case professionally, not personally, as Jax got too wrapped up in her own ideas and theories. Corey knew the case had to be handled carefully, especially since public opinion started to shift after Shanelle’s interview, as many Black women stood up for her and had shown their support due to the countless cases where Black women were abused and received no help from society or the law. On the other hand, football fans organized a rally behind Jamarion.
As the trial started, Detective Jose Martinez testified about the crime scene, and he described the blood everywhere and explained how, although Shanelle didn’t call the police right away and instead washed her clothes to clean the blood, he’d seen this in many cases—how fear and shock often make people hesitate to call the police, not because they’re guilty, but because they’re scared and unsure of what to do. On the other hand, the medical examiner, Dr. Archie Golden, testified that Jamarion was likely struck on the back of his head, which suggests he might have been trying to walk away; however, the skin under his fingernails showed he also attacked Shanelle, either to defend himself or purposely to harm her. Jamarion’s mother also came to court and was openly against Shanelle, as she demanded punishment for what she believed Shanelle had done to her son. Despite knowing about the abuse, she never supported Shanelle, possibly because she herself had abused Jamarion when he was a child, and she might have seen it as part of a pattern. This was how the first day of trial ended, which left us with more questions than answers.
Why did Corey and Jax have a disagreement?
The tension between Jax and Corey escalated, not just because of their differences in opinion but also because of how Jax handled things. While Corey was busy strategizing to win the case, Jax gave interviews to the media to answer their questions, even though she was supposed to be the second chair. Naturally, this frustrated Corey, as it felt like Jax took the spotlight from him. Corey took his concerns to their senior officers, Stephen and Vince, as he hoped they would remind Jax that Corey, as first chair, should be in the spotlight and get credit for leading the case. Jax felt the pressure and tried to address this directly with Corey and promised to respect the boundaries and let him take the lead. But given Jax’s stubborn nature and her personal involvement in this case, it is hard to say how long she would keep that promise.
Why did Lewis want to talk to Tony?
Another thing came to light during the investigation: Jamarion had an affair with a woman named Tony, and to make things worse, Tony was also romantically involved with Lewis, Jax’s husband, at the same time. Now, Tony is pregnant and doesn’t know who the father is. Jax had had no idea about this affair, as she’d trusted Lewis completely and believed he was the most honest and loyal husband. Things in their marriage had been improving, so Jax felt confident that their relationship was on the right path. But, in reality, Lewis hadn’t told her about Tony or the affair, and to keep the peace in the marriage, he wasn’t interested in finding out who the father of Tony’s child was either. Lewis even made it clear to Tony during one of their secret meetings that he didn’t want to know. However, later he started to realize he needed the truth for his own peace of mind, and hence he told Tony he wanted to know who the father of her child was, possibly because he was tired of pretending his marriage with Jax was getting better. It seemed like Lewis knew he had to take responsibility for his actions, and maybe, after finding out the truth, he planned to come clean to Jax to try and genuinely work on their marriage.
At the end of Reasonable Doubt episode 5, Adrian called Jax to meet him at Jamarion’s house, maybe because he wanted to talk to her, but the fact that he hid a gun behind his back raised a lot of red flags. Maybe he wanted to kill her for the investigation she’d been conducting with Evan or Shanelle. But it wouldn’t make sense for Adrian to try and kill Jax, especially if he wasn’t the one who killed Jamarion. If Adrian wanted to clear his name, he might have had to try to come clean to Jax about his involvement, especially now that Evan has revealed to Shanelle that Adrian planned to take the $30 million from her to pay Evan back. Jax, on the other hand, did not want to take any risks, so she asked Daniel to come with her and wait outside while she went in to meet Adrian. What happens next will be revealed in the next episode, but it looks like things are definitely getting more dangerous.
