Sounds of Silence

CSI EPISODE
Sounds of Silence
Season	1
Number	20
Writer	Josh Berman Andrew Lipsitz
Director	Peter Markle
Original Airdate	April 29, 2001

Sounds of Silence is the twentieth episode of season one of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

Summary

Grissom, Warrick and Sara investigate the death of a deaf man who was run over by a car. However, more investigation shows that he died before the car even struck him. The team's encounters with the dean of the deaf man's school reveals a secret about Grissom. Meanwhile, Catherine and Nick investigate an apparent mob hit that leaves five dead in a coffee shop and discover that the victim they thought was the target may only have been collateral damage.

Plot

When a car runs over a body, the team discover it was not the car that killed him as he was already dead. The investigation reveals personal information about Grissom, which surprises Warrick and Sara. Catherine, meanwhile, investigate what appears to be a mob hit in a coffee store that leaves five dead.

After tracing the hit-and-run victim's mother, Grissom discovers that he was a student at a school for the deaf. The school's principal, Dr. Gilbert, becomes uncooperative when Warrick and Sara question her via an interpreter; she is able to read lips and takes offense. When Grissom interrogates her in sign language, she opens up and helps Grissom track down the killers, a pair of teenagers who asked the victim to buy beer for them and flew into a rage when he did not respond.

At the end of the episode, Grissom talks to Dr. Gilbert in American Sign Language. What he is saying is that his mother lost her hearing when she was eight years old. He once asked her, "What is it like to be deaf?" and she told Grissom, who loved to swim, that it was like being underwater. She also taught him that being deaf does not make one inferior and that deafness can be a blessing. The camera pulls back to reveal a fountain as the two continue signing, and the sound of the fountain becomes dominant as the scene fades to the closing credit slide.

Main Cast

(Credit order)

• 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
• Paul Guilfoyle as Jim Brass

Recurring Roles

• Eric Szmanda as Greg Sanders
• Tom Gallop as Attorney Randy Painter
• Robert David Hall as Dr. Al Robbins
• Skip O'Brien as Detective Ray O'Riley
• David Berman as David Phillips
• Gerald McCullouch as Bobby Dawson
• Joseph Patrick Kelly as Officer Joe Metcalf

Guest Star

• Deanne Bray as Dr. Gilbert
• Mario Schugel as Brad Kendall
• Elaine Kagan as Mrs. Clemonds
• Jonah Rooney as Mark Rucker
• Austin Nichols as Adam Walkey
• Arlene Malinowski as Halley the Interpreter
• Greg Anderson as Brian Clemonds
• Scott Caudill as Paul Arrington (credited as Scott 'Jesic' Caudill)
• Caroline Barba as Lisa
• Samantha Harris as Charlotte
• Joannah Portman as Erin McCarty
• Mark Ginther as Al Robson
• Kanin Howell as Roy Hinton (credited as Kanan Howell)
• Bonnie Morgan as Alice Neely
• Jeff Podgurski as Frankie Flynn
• Kelli McNeil as Deaf Girl (uncredited)
• William Wantland as Extra (uncredited)

Major Event

• Officer Joe Metcalf is introduced for the first time.

Note

• This is the first occasion we see Grissom use American Sign Language, although he refuses to discuss the reasons for his proficiency (a deaf mother) and it is only later in the series that the scene in which he wears earplugs takes on a deeper significance (his fears that he will lose his own hearing).

See Also

• List of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episodes
• CSI:Crime Scene Investigation Season 1
• Category:Images from Sounds of Silence