Emily’s Dilemma
The latest episode of All Rise digs deeper into Emily’s struggles as she has to face her past when defending a client potentially responsible for domestic abuse. Jessica Camacho does an excellent job portraying the torn lawyer as she tries to do the right thing, while the show carries on developing its other characters’ story lines quite well. Episode 19 of All Rise begins with Emily letting off some steam in the gym while Lola talks to her husband about his job interview. Their relationship is a little strained due to the long distance. Meanwhile, Amy and Mark talk about their upcoming cases. Amy is working with Rachel in a case with motion to suppress as the client is on felony probation and a gun was found in his house. They are planning to use this case to attract bigger ones. Mark has been given a last minute case about domestic abuse and the trial starts today. Lola heads to meet Sherry for breakfast where they talk about Sherry’s new relationship while Emily is now getting ready for her day but is very tense as she is the defence lawyer of the boyfriend, Aiden, in the domestic abuse case. As she heads into work, she meets with Aiden who claims that he was acting in self defence. Mark and Luke prepare for the trial too while Sam has her first day in court that same day for the arraignment case Amy is the defence lawyer in. As the trial starts, Sam struggles while Amy interrogates the police officer who conducted the search of the house. She manages to prove that the officer was harassing him while Sam is unable to oppose her findings. Meanwhile, Emily and Mark clash in the hallway about their domestic abuse case. During trial, Emily seems to struggle to stay calm and acts quite harshly. After harshly interrogating a witness, Judge Benner gives her a warning. Mark then asks for a recess as the victim, Molly, is missing. Luke finally finds Emily and as he tries talking to her, dismisses him as she wants to concentrate on her case. Lola discusses the case and how Amy is acting with Sherry just as Rachel comes to her office. She tries to defend her firm and what they do before offering her support with anything she needs to talk about. Mark decides to show up unannounced in Amy’s flat, complaining about his day. She confronts him about how he has been acting as she feels he is taking over her life too much. Mark storms out and heads to find Molly. She starts talking about her relationship with Aiden and its decline. She admits that she had a part in the argument and that she swung at him first, which is why she didn’t show up in court. He tries to convince her that if she takes the stand, he promises that she won’t have to lie. The next day, they play the 911 recording in court when Molly is on the stand. She admits to attacking him first and recalls the argument about him not liking her going out. She explains that she walked away but he pushed her from behind. Emily gets up to start her interrogation but she stumbles and almost collapses. Later on, Lola meets with Amy and Sam. She warns Amy about how she has been acting but Amy defends her client. At the same time, Aiden admits to Emily that he pushed Molly. This angers her and she asks him if he’ll plead guilty as she storms out. Lola and Mark meet on the stairs to discuss their day and cases. They talk about Amy and Rachel working together before moving to Mark’s argument with Amy. Lola then heads to give her ruling and decides that the search was harassment and grants the motion to suppress. The case is dismissed and the man is free to go. Lola then speaks to Sam and tells her she did well. In the evening, Lola calls her husband and tells him she misses him and wants him to come home. Unfortunately, he tells her he didn’t get the LA job. The next day, we find out that the jury of the domestic abuse case is in deadlock and Judge Benner declares a mistrial. Mark promises Molly they will do a retrial while Emily decides to remove herself from the case. Mark then apologizes to Amy and they make up. The episode ends with Emily returning home and breaking down completely. Thankfully, Sara is there to comfort her. Luke later joins them and they eat, which is where the episode ends. While All Rise might not be the most original drama out there, the actors all do a great job with their roles as they deliver some decent performances. The cases remain interesting too and the dilemma Emily had to face this week was quite harrowing to witness. She is still struggling to come to terms with the abuse she had to endure which made it very difficult for her to be impartial in her case. The different story lines are advancing at decent speed too and with Lola’s relationship starting to dwindle, it will be interesting to see what will happen next. All Rise may not be wholly original but for anyone looking for a compelling legal drama, All Rise remains a decent option to watch.
