Cop

A tip from a man reporting a murder sends Sgt. Lloyd Hopkins to a grim address. He discovers a woman's mutilated, bloodied body and immediately begins collecting evidence on his own. He does this without informing his superiors, breaking department procedure.

Hopkins returns home and argues with his wife about the influence he has on their 8-year-old daughter. The conflict highlights the personal cost of his methods and reputation. The scene sets up a fragile home life alongside his police work.

Hopkins and Dutch Peltz stage a stakeout. The stakeout yields a gunfight in which Hopkins shoots and kills the suspect. Afterward, Hopkins flirts with the suspect's date and sends Dutch to stay behind; he drives the woman home, showing his reckless confidence.

Hopkins tracks down Joanie Pratt through ads found at the victim's apartment. He meets her at a cafe to press for information about the case. The meeting marks the start of his deeper, dangerous investigation.

Back at the station, Hopkins finds a poem written in blood from the victim. The taunting verse suggests the killer has murdered before and hints at a pattern. This discovery pushes him toward a broader, historical hunt.

Hopkins returns home to discover a farewell note from his wife, who has left with their daughter. The personal loss compounds the professional strain he already carries. He is suddenly more isolated in his pursuit of the case.

Pratt phones Hopkins, seeking another hookup. He goes to her apartment without realizing someone is watching. The scene underscores the danger and voyeuristic elements surrounding their connection.

Hopkins sorts through cold-case files and drags Whitey Haines into a diner for a bristly interrogation about two suicides on the same date. He later breaks into Whitey's apartment and uncovers a wiretap showing Whitey's drug dealing. The evidence tightens the net around him.

Hopkins visits Kathleen McCarthy, who shares a high-school incident in which boys sexually assaulted her. She also reveals an anonymous suitor sending her flowers and a yearly poem, suggesting a long-running pattern of harassment. Her connection to the case becomes a crucial clue.

Hopkins discovers a photo of Whitey with a male prostitute nicknamed Birdman in McCarthy's old yearbook. The name Birdman shows up in surveillance tapes at Whitey's apartment, tying him to the network. The clue widens Hopkins's suspect pool.

Birdman is found dead in a motel room, with a message written in blood that echoes the high school motto from McCarthy's school. Hopkins senses a direct link between the murders and the past years. The scene ramps up the stakes and the urgency of the pursuit.

Hopkins returns to Whitey's apartment, catching him returning with Birdman's file. Whitey claims Birdman is his snitch, but Hopkins exposes his drug and sexual-deviance entanglements and coerces a confession to raping McCarthy. Whitey pulls a shotgun; Hopkins shoots him, then learns he is suspended and under Internal Affairs investigation.

After Pratt's murder, McCarthy calls from a phone booth to warn that Hopkins might target someone. The call helps him identify Bobby Franco as the killer. He prepares for the final confrontation and to expose the long-running network.

Franco lures Hopkins into the high school gym for a shootout. Hopkins overpowers Franco and claims he will arrest him, then shoots Franco dead in cold blood as the screen cuts to black. The scene ends with Hopkins's somber, defiant stance as his fate hangs in the balance.