Malloy and Reed are on the lookout for the "Mulholland Mauler," who has raped six female hitchhikers and left them for dead. They quickly make an arrest of a likely suspect and take him to the location of an abandoned vehicle, after learning its owner never made it to her destination.

Malloy and Reed see a man passed out in an alley and stop to lend assistance, deliver bad news to a young wife, apprehend a mentally ill man who then becomes uncontrollably violent in their patrol car, and respond to a robbery that needlessly becomes a tragedy. All along the way the officers have their every move second guessed by a pair of young, unethical freelance journalists who are determined to document police brutality.

An older husband complains about his wife and friend's noisy karate practice. A hit and run traffic accident looks looks like a homicide. The officers use their investigative skills to locate the suspect and arrest him.

As Malloy and Reed's patrol begins, an uneventful traffic stop becomes more interesting when something catches Malloy's eye. Later, they discover an unusual situation responding to a break-in at a hospital supply warehouse, which becomes even more odd when the warehouse owner and a group of revenge-seeking thugs show up at the scene. The shift ends in a fitting way when they are called to an apartment where a baby has been left unattended with a pet lion.

Malloy and Reed become envious of officer wells, who has been given a coveted assignment in the newly established astro helicopter division. Out on patrol, they require assistance saving a wealthy elderly couple who get locked in their heavily fortified basement safe, and then use air support to track down robbery suspects who escape on a motorcycle.

Malloy spends a weekend afternoon attending a barbecue at Reed's home, where Reed lets him hold his newborn son for the first time and tries to set him up with his wife's friend. However, their relaxation is interrupted when they have to deal with a young neighbor who overdoses on drugs and becomes the target of his dealer.