Crownies

As the "Bolt Cutter Babes" trial reaches a verdict, the DPP must decide whether to prosecute a child who has killed his younger brother.

With the prosecution case against Joanne Mervich coming to a close, Erin and Rhys are rattled by the Defence's decision to put her in the witness box to garner jury sympathy. However, that's not the only trouble – in the two weeks since Erin impulsively kissed Rhys, relations between them have been cool. Rhys has tried to
talk about what happened, finally forcing the conversation on her, embarrassing her and barely helping his guilt. Already conflicted over the justice of convicting a woman who has been so badly abused, Erin struggles with the task of writing Rhys' summation – a task made even harder as Joanne tells her emotional story to a sympathetic jury. Adding to Erin and Rhys' trouble are the protests of a group called "Save Joanne" who are picketing the court. Despite the tension between them, Rhys uses Erin's summation and to their surprise, Joanne is found guilty. For Rhys, victory is sweet, as he is rewarded by officially being given the role of prosecuting Attorney General Quinn. For Erin, however, it's a hollow victory, as she's verbally attacked by Joanne's supporters. Determined to rebuild her friendship with Rhys, Erin offers a platonic celebratory drink – only to be refused. Erin's natural response is to drink away her sorrows. Finding Jimmy at Gar's Bar, she hits on him, only to be refused again. Jimmy admits he likes Erin and only wants to see her when she's sober. Furious, embarrassed, Erin then sees a saviour in the bar – Ben. However when she wakes up next to him the next morning, she's even more selfloathing. Refusing to talk to Lina about Ben or, as Lina suspects, her romance with Rhys, Erin locks herself away in her room.