Criminal Minds Series Rewrite: Season Three

Tabula Rasa: Part Two

Since court is adjourned until tomorrow, there is no need for you to be at the courthouse. You and Hotch leave the court and head back to the main office since it's only twenty-minutes away from the BAU.

"The negative results in the brain fingerprinting may have just killed any chance we have of putting Matloff away," Hotch says to the group.

"The DA isn't required to enter it into evidence."

"No, but he can get it on discovery, and you can bet he's gonna use it."

"That's why I distrust all technology," Rossi says confidently.

"How did he fail? I thought nobody could beat that test," Derek sighs.

"The damage to his parietal lobe must have been more extensive than previously thought. The brain injury could have literally deleted his memories."

"I don't think that's what's happening here. He suffered something tragic like falling from a roof, and his brain is protecting those memories from him. They're there, and it's our job to unlock them for him."

"She's right," Rossi has your back. "What he does or doesn't remember doesn't matter."

"Doesn't it?" Emily asks. "I mean, if those experiences are gone forever, doesn't that sort of make him a different person?"

"No, not at all. Not to me," Derek shakes his head.

"It's actually interesting," you and Spencer say at the same time. "Sorry, go ahead."

"I was just going to say, igoes to core arguments about the nature of identity. There's a western philosophical concept, Causal Dependence, that says that a psychological connection to the past plays a key role in defining who we are. What were you going to say?"

"This guy committed these murders, we all know that. If he was capable of doing it before and acted on those impulses, that behavior is locked into his head. Whether he remembers or not doesn't make him a new person, it's just giving him a do-over. If he did it once, he'll do it again whether he wants to or not."

"What are you saying, Reid? That the guy shouldn't be tried?"

"I'm not saying that."

"But one could make the argument that in his current condition he's no longer a danger to society," Emily argues

"Not until he gets his memory back," you point out. "Even if he never does, he still has those instincts in him. He will hurt another person, I know it."

"She's right. It's not just about this guy being a danger. It's about making sure somebody pays for what happened to those girls," Derek backs you up.

"Well, it's not up to us to decide to what extent he should be punished. That's for the courts. Where are we with Matloff's mystery visitor?" Hotch asks JJ.

"Prentiss and I contacted every recorded Nina Moore within five hundred miles of the hospital. There are seventy-one in total, but no takers."

"Matloff's a textbook loner. No meaningful relationships, no family, and no girlfriends. Anyone who would visit a coma patient--"

"A triple murderer coma patient," Derek corrects."

"We're talking about somebody who feels connected to him. Whoever this person is wouldn't visit a random man in a coma."

"The truth could be she's just a fan. Every serial killer's got them," Rossi shrugs.

"Let's go back to the hospital and interview the staff. We need to build a profile and help locate this woman."