Burn Out

Burn Out
Season	7
Number	6
Writer	Jacqueline Hoyt
Director	Alec Smight
Original Airdate	November 2, 2006
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"Burn Out" is the sixth episode in the seventh season of the American crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, set in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Summary

Two young boys, a Caucasian and a Black, go missing. Later, a known pedophile (played by Alan Tudyk) who lives in the neighborhood is found to be an arson victim. In an attempt to extract his confession, Brass and Grissom ask for the Pedophile's help in catching the boys' abductor. Meanwhile, Brass questions the boys' families and is left to sift through their complicated family backgrounds. However, the case turns out to be much more complicated than Grissom or the rest of the CSI team ever expected.

Awards

William Petersen submitted this episode for consideration in the category of "Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series" on his behalf for the 2007 Emmy Awards.

Main Cast

• William Petersen as Gil Grissom
• Marg Helgenberger as Catherine Willows
• Gary Dourdan as Warrick Brown
• George Eads as Nick Stokes
• Jorja Fox as Sara Sidle
• Eric Szmanda as Greg Sanders
• Paul Guilfoyle as Jim Brass

Recurring Roles

• Robert David Hall as Dr. Al Robbins
• Louise Lombard as Detective Sofia Curtis
• Wallace Langham as David Hodges
• David Berman as David Phillips
• Terry Bozeman as Attorney Brad Lewis
• Palmer Davis as Attorney Margaret Finn
• Paula Francis as News Anchor
• Joseph Patrick Kelly as Officer Metcalf
• Larry M. Mitchell as Officer Mitchell

Guest Stars

• Alan Tudyk as Carl Fisher
• Clifton Powell as Terrance Crowley
• David Ramsey as Gerald Crowley
• Betsy Brandt as Dawn Hanson
• Seth Peterson as Perry Haber
• Ridge Canipe as Lucas Hanson
• Drew Matthews as Jason Crowley
• Tom Pattern as Craig Russell

Quotes

Grissom (to Carl): Are you familiar with Lucas Hanson or Jason Crowley?

Carl: No, sir. I'm a convicted pedophile and that would be a violation of my parole.

Grissom: Which is it, boys or girls?

Carl: Boys. Pre-teen. (pauses) I know what you're thinking.

Grissom: No, you don't.

---

(Grissom walks in and shuts off the loud music that is playing from a stereo)

Grissom: Didn't we talk about this once before, Greg?

Sara: I'm the one who turned the music on.

(Grissom and Sara stare at each other for a moment while Greg looks between them)

---

Carl: I've been livin' right the past five years. I haven't gone near a child. I go to a support group every week, I've even lectured social workers on how to recognize sexual predators. Ask my parole officer. Doesn't that count for something?

Grissom: I don't know, but it doesn't change anything, does it?

---

Terrance Crowley: I was defending myself.

Sofia: Against a pair of sixth-graders?

Terrance Crowley: You damn right.

---

Grissom (to Carl): Okay, then. What would you do (pause) if you were going to take those boys?

Carl: I would be studying them. Did they like sports, comic books; do they skip school, have any friends? Good parents, or are they neglected, unhappy, angry?

Grissom: And then?

Carl: What do you do when you like a woman? It's a game of seduction. Once you know what they like, you make contact. You start slowly, play it cool, especially with boys. It's about building trust. (pause) Like you're doing with me.

Grissom: Do you like mushrooms, Carl?

Carl: I like all the nightshade vegetables, are you going to buy me dinner?

Grissom: We found mushrooms in the backseat of your car.

Carl: Is this turning into an interrogation?

Grissom: You're free to leave. On the night the boys disappeared, witnesses said that they saw them sitting in a car with a man, eating pizza.

Carl: You'd take a date out to a nice steak dinner. Kids would rather have hamburgers or pizza.

Grissom: Did you take the kids out for pizza?

Carl: No. I'm talking hypothetically. You must be desperate for a suspect, or a scapegoat. Do you need to give the press something to chew on?

Grissom: We just found Lucas Hanson's dead body. They're chewing on that.

Carl (pause): What about the other boy?

Grissom: Still missing.

Carl: In my opinion, if someone killed one boy, he'd kill them both.

---

Warrick (while talking about Lucas Hanson's tox report which shows he was drunk and took aspirin): He probably took the aspirin after he hit his head.

Nick: I wonder who gave him that?

Warrick: Probably the same responsible adult that gave him the whiskey.

---

Grissom: Okay, Carl, just tell me what happened.

Carl: Lucas and Jason had gotten into it with Jason's grandfather, he'd knock the boys around, they ran to Lucas' house but couldn't get in. So they came to me. I explained to them that hitting wasn't okay, I said: "Jason needed to call his father and tell him what was going on."

Grissom: Did you let them use your phone?

Carl: They were too upset. When the grandfather pushed Lucas, he hit his head, I gave him a couple of aspirin.

Grissom: Well, if he didn't wanna call his mother, why didn't you call?

Carl: I couldn't risk it. She might've turned me in.

Grissom: So instead, you took them from pizza?

Carl: I didn't touch him. I didn't wanna hurt 'em.

Grissom: You gave him liquor.

Carl: I stopped and bought some whiskey before we picked up the pizza, I was nervous about them being in the car with me, I didn't wanna go back to prison.

Grissom: And you wanted to get them drunk.

Carl: They... they just wanted to try it. I gave them a taste.

Grissom: It was more than just a taste, Carl. Lucas' blood alcohol level was .16, that's twice the legal limit for an adult. Why didn't you take them home?

Carl: They didn't wanna go home, they wanted an adventure. (shows a flashback of them at the golf course) I promised them a dollar for every golf ball that they brought back, Lucas wasn't feeling well, so he stayed in the car with me.

Grissom: And you knew that Jason wanted money so he could go to Texas to see his dad, so you bribed him in order to be alone with Lucas.

Carl: I didn't molest him!

Grissom: Who took his shirt off?

Carl: He was hot.

Grissom: What were you going to do him once his shirt was off?

Carl: It was innocent, he wasn't feeling well. He laid his head in my lap. I touched his hair... I didn't wanna... I loved him. I loved Lucas and he loved me.

Grissom: Is that what you think? Then why didn't you help him? He told you that he hit his head, he was in pain, he had a concussion, Carl. You must've known that. I'm sure he was dizzy, had no appetite, maybe he was even slurring his words, but you didn't care about that because you wanted what you wanted. His brain was bleeding. Now most kids don't die from that because someone who really loves them takes them to the hospital, but instead, you gave him alcohol and aspirin, a lethal combination for his head injury. It prevented his blood from clotting. (pauses) You killed him, Carl and you would've killed Jason too except he ran away from you and out of your reach.

Carl: You're not listening to me. I didn't wanna hurt anyone. I need you to believe me.

Grissom: I don't. You had choices, you made the wrong ones and now this little boy is gone.

---

See also

• List of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episodes