The Lawn Chair

The Lawn Chair

Air Date: March 5, 2015 — Writer: Zahir McGhee — Director: Tom Verica
Previous Episode: "No More Blood" — Next Episode: "The Testimony of Diego Muñoz"

The Lawn Chair is the fourteenth episode of the fourth season of Scandal, and is the sixty-first overall.

Plot

A tragedy in D.C. gains national attention and the White House must deal with their problematic Vice President.

Recap

Olivia lies to Jake about resting instead of working. In reality, she’s at a police scene where 17-year-old Brandon Parker was shot dead by a white police officer. The kid was a suspected shoplifter who allegedly pulled a knife. BANG! A shotgun blast echoes in the night. Brandon’s father, Clarence, pulled the trigger. He wants the cop who killed his son.

Olivia advises Police Chief Connors to not have his officers shoot the armed man. It will bring him the kind of worldwide fame no one wants. Olivia promises to get the Attorney General of the U.S. down there to oversee the investigation. Too bad David has a meeting with the president to figure out a way to solve their vice presidency problem. Fitz has a few ideas for a replacement. Neighborhood activist Marcus Walker gets into the mix at the shooting scene. Olivia tries to get him out the area. That doesn’t happen. Marcus convinces Clarence to ignore Olivia. He gives him a beach chair. Clarence places it over his dead son’s body. He takes a seat. He’s not going anywhere. This brings cheers from the ever-growing crowd. Marcus does his best to stir up their emotions.

Jeff Newton, the officer who shot Brandon, tells Olivia the story of what happened. The first officer on the scene says the cop was pretty shaken up afterwards. He believes the knife must still be on the victim’s body. Back at the scene, Marcus wants the name of the shooter cop. He gets into a debate with Olivia about intentions. Newton’s name is eventually released. Olivia knows Marcus is behind it.

Clarence has a heartfelt talk with Olivia about his son. He’s hurting. Olivia vows to get to the bottom of this. Clarence knows that all this only ends with him either locked up or dead. When the police chief blacks out the press, Olivia joins in the protest. She learns the cops have been sitting on footage of the shooting. She turns to David for help. She wants a subpoena for the surveillance video.

The governor of New Mexico goes public about her feelings on the Brandon Parker shooting. Cyrus thinks she would be a good vice presidential candidate. Elsewhere, Senator Susan Ross of Virginia pushes herself on Mellie to talk about issues such as vaccination and booster shots. Later, Mellie gets wind of the fact that Fitz may be grooming the charismatic New Mexico governor for the vice presidency. This would hurt her chances of becoming president. This is not the deal they made. That’s why Fitz sabotages the governor’s chances. They need someone who won’t get in Mellie’s way. Introducing Senator Susan Ross of Virginia.

The video footage of the shooting shows Brandon reaching into his pocket in an aggressive manner. It’s hard to see if there’s a knife. Olivia tells Clarence they can check for one. That means moving Brandon. Clarence removes his chair. Marcus helps him check the body. There’s a knife underneath. An angry Clarence turns his gun on Olivia. He eventually lowers it screaming that his son doesn’t carry a knife. He retakes his seat. A shaken Olivia walks away. The crowd grows in size and in level of frustration. Back at the office, the team finds evidence that there a suspect already in Officer Newton’s patrol car. This individual had a knife. It’s the same one that was planted on Brandon Parker. Olivia tracks down the real suspect. She also exposes Officer Newton for the truly enraged individual that he is. David announces to the world that the cop has been arrested.

Olivia lets Clarence know that his son was reaching for a receipt for the cell phone he was accused of stealing. The young man’s father lowers his gun. He steps away with Olivia, who assures him that no one is going to arrest him. The two of them then head over to the White House where the President of the United States offers his condolences. Clarence lets Fitz know that his son’s name was Brandon just before breaking down in his arms.

Cast

Notes & Trivia

This episode marks the first appearance of Cornelius Smith Jr. as Marcus Walker.
The episode resembles the real-life events that unfolded in Ferguson, Missouri in August 2014, when a police officer shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown.