Question B

[Jonetta]

Since Amy and Mark’s murder scene was too similar to Kim & Mikey’s to ignore, Woody doesn’t remove Kim from the case but installs profiler Alison Lowe on the team to watch out for her. Should he have handled this differently or was it a clever move on his part?

[Sharon]

It is a cleaver move. Taking Kim off the case would be demoralizing as well as damage the relationship she has with Woody. Putting Alison in place to monitor Kim, will allow Woody to step in quickly if Kim has problems before it gets out of hand.

Also, Alison is a security blanket or touchstone for Kim. Alison doesn't sugar coat anything; that is the best way to work with Kim.

[Jonetta]

I thought it was clever, too. It was a way for Woody to keep her on the case and answer to others about the appropriateness of someone tied to a case being in charge of it. And, he needed eyes and ears on Kim beyond Bryant.

[Robin]

Kim is the only person with personal knowledge about what happened in her childhood. She can tell her team if she sees something that isn't right about the murder scene. Woody knew this and didn't want to remove Kim from the investigation. He was worried about Kim, so he brought Alison Lowe in to keep an eye on the situation.

[Lynn]

I'm sure Woody realized that Kim would have investigated even if she was taken off the case, so by keeping her on the case, he could keep track of what she was doing.

In addition, I think Alison was assigned not only for Kim's benefit but I think Woody also suspected that Kim's team would help Alison with the situation she was in regarding her previous case.

[Sharon]

Good point that Kim would have continued to investigate even if she were taken off the case.

[Lisa - (Aussie Girl)]

IRL I'm imagining she would have been taken off the case as totally a conflict of interest. But in book world it worked really well, Woody employing Allison to keep an eye on Kim's mental health although Kim has locked it up so tight its pretty clear no one would be getting though. But know one except Kim herself would have the exact insight to work out who was tormenting her so in that way it makes sense for Kim to lead the case.