The New Centurions

Three rookie cops, Roy Fehler, Gus Plebesly, and Sergio Duran, report for duty at the LAPD and are assigned veteran partners: Roy with Andy Kilvinski and Gus with Whitey Duncan. Sergio also gets a seasoned partner to guide him as they begin their patrols. They start to learn the daily pressures and dangers of policing in Los Angeles.

During an early patrol, Gus and Whitey take a burglary call at a market. In a dark alley, Gus fires at an armed suspect and, to everyone's horror, kills the market owner who was pursuing the robber. The tragedy reveals how quickly a routine call can turn deadly and haunt officers afterward.

Roy becomes obsessed with police work, often neglecting his wife Dorothy and delaying his law studies. He prefers the adrenaline of the street to quiet home life, creating tension at home and driving a wedge between him and his family.

During a routine call at a convenience store holdup, Roy inadvertently exposes the getaway crew by instructing a couple in a parked car to move. The robbers shoot Roy with a sawed-off shotgun, leaving him gravely wounded on the sidewalk as their getaway crew escapes.

Roy slowly recovers from his injuries, but his personal life continues to crumble as Dorothy leaves for San Francisco, taking their daughter Becky with her. The separation marks a turning point in Roy's pursuit of balance between duty and family.

Sergio temporarily partners with Andy on a call involving a slumlord exploiting tenants. Andy's anger over the harsh treatment of residents surfaces, revealing the moral complexities and biases that can burn within veteran officers during tough calls.

Roy, on the comeback trail, returns to car patrol and encounters another shootout. He remains focused and unflinching under fire, earning respect from his partners as he proves he can endure the dangers of the street.

As the rookies reach a full year on the force, Andy celebrates his 25th anniversary and mandatory retirement. He reflects on the long, difficult road of policing and shares the hardships of the job with the younger officers.

Roy is reassigned to the vice squad, a far from glamorous assignment that mostly targets public homosexual activity in parks. At the same time, Dorothy declares she no longer cares about him and leaves for San Francisco, taking Becky with her.

Sometime later, Andy, now retired in Florida, makes an unexpected visit to the LAPD and confesses that he misses the force. He laments not spending more time with his family and his personal life while he was still on the job.

After the phone call with Roy, Andy places his service revolver in his mouth and commits suicide. The act is driven by a lifetime of regrets and the sense that personal life was sacrificed for the badge.

Depression takes hold and Roy begins drinking on the job. On a burglary call he meets Lorrie Hunt, a nurse who once helped him after his injury, and later he starts seeing her socially. He also earns a three-week suspension for drunken conduct but finds support in Lorrie's presence.

Roy, Gus, and Sergio respond to a large street brawl and chase suspects through car and foot pursuits. In the climactic moment, a threatening husband shoots Roy, and he dies in Gus's arms with Sergio at their side.