Malloy and Reed are on the lookout for the "Mulholland Mauler," who has raped six female hitchhikers and left them for dead. They quickly make an arrest of a likely suspect and take him to the location of an abandoned vehicle, after learning its owner never made it to her destination.

Reed's wife is in the hospital expecting their first child, and Reed soon regrets his decision to report for work as usual. Out on patrol, they encounter a drunken man directing traffic, chase down a robbery suspect, investigate the theft of money from washing machines and become involved in a minor traffic accident that results in a major delay.

As Malloy and Reed's patrol begins, an uneventful traffic stop becomes more interesting when something catches Malloy's eye. Later, they discover an unusual situation responding to a break-in at a hospital supply warehouse, which becomes even more odd when the warehouse owner and a group of revenge-seeking thugs show up at the scene. The shift ends in a fitting way when they are called to an apartment where a baby has been left unattended with a pet lion.

Malloy and Reed become envious of officer wells, who has been given a coveted assignment in the newly established astro helicopter division. Out on patrol, they require assistance saving a wealthy elderly couple who get locked in their heavily fortified basement safe, and then use air support to track down robbery suspects who escape on a motorcycle.

Malloy and Reed spend a night shift on desk duty after Malloy breaks his wrist and another office worker calls in sick. With the assistance of a new female recruit, they deal with a homesick elderly woman who refuses to identify herself, help a lenient father bail out his son and become suspicious of a man who walks in looking for a wanted fugitive.