The catalyst for the homicide that Dennis Farina and Jesse Martin investigate here is the burning of a Torah at a synagogue. Zach Grenier one of the movers and shakers in the congregation catches the perpetrator and beats him with a candle holder.
Given the nature of the crime Sam Waterston is ready to cut him a nice deal, still there is why was this done? The Torah was not only a sacred book on its own, but one that was saved from the Nazis during the early days of World War II.
Zach Grenier is not just important for his devotion, but in fact he and his Mark Feuerstein are the synagogue's landlords. They rent their lower east side building to them at an unbelievable rate and that's some of the most expensive real estate on the planet. The cousins are named Speicher and their fathers had a real estate business started post World War II. The cousins have differing views on the zeal of their beliefs.
This story has quite a few twists and turns. Rabbi Allan Miller tells the story of the Torah and depending on how devout you are, you wonder if justice is done.