There’s a rather neat space currently occupied by Chicago PD in Dick Wolf’s TV universe, in that Chicago PD spotlights its characters’ more questionable moral decisions with almost zero apology. But Voight’s finally crossed a line that can’t be ignored. And with Toya Turner leaving Chicago PD this season, he’ll have one less ally to help him avoid the fallout.
Reid’s Death In Chicago PD Season 12 Explained
Everyone Seems To Know Voight Has Blood On His Hands
In many ways, Charlie Reid’s tenure as Chicago PD season 12’s main villain highlights everything that makes the procedural one of the best cop shows on TV right now. Reid and Voight are both willing to blur the lines of right and wrong in order to clean up Chicago, but Reid’s aggression in dropping actual bodies took things too far.
The Chicago PD season 12 finale gave Voight the chance to end Reid’s reign of terror for good. After Voight’s investigation was stymied by the death of a drug dealer, Reid gives the dealer’s son Reid’s whereabouts just before a hearing to shut down the Intelligence Unit. But, even with the unit saved, Voight’s troubles were clearly far from over.
Although Chapman can’t legally accept Voight’s silence at the wedding as a confession of guilt, she has a duty as an ADA to uphold the law. By abetting Reid’s murder, Voight reopened Intelligence to the same scrutiny that Reid attempted subjecting them to under false pretenses. They now appear more corrupt than ever, and it seems that hasn’t gone overlooked.
Voight’s Intelligence Will Continue To Suffer The Consequences Of Reid’s Mandate Against Them In Season 13
The Unit’s Still At Risk Of Being Disbanded After Reid’s Death
While hyping viewers up for NBC’s 2025 fall schedule, the network released a trailer for all three series in the One Chicago franchise that contains some subtle reveals. Concerning Chicago PD, Voight is seen telling a superior that there will be consequences for benching the Intelligence Unit, including the deaths of innocents that Voight and his team might have saved.
This seems like something of a reversal from the previous season. Since Reid called for the hearing regarding the future of the unit, the deputy chief’s death initially saved the unit because there was nobody to speak on Reid’s behalf. If the unit still faces the threat of disbanding, it suggests somebody else is picking up where Reid left off.
It’s obviously concerning to have active law enforcement taking orders from a potential criminal, so even investigating Voight may require shutting down the Intelligence Unit on at least a temporary basis. But that doesn’t mean the end of the unit altogether, nor would it necessarily be a particularly unfortunate turn if the series actually were to disband them a while.
How Intelligence Can Reassemble In Chicago PD Season 13
The CPD May Have To Make Some Changes To The Unit
Voight losing to Reid in Chicago PD would have arguably been a more interesting way to end the season, as Reid’s victory would have set up compelling obstacles for Intelligence to reclaim their badges. Now, with the team at risk of disbanding anyway, there’s still a chance to tell the intriguing story of how they fight to reassemble.
Although she poses the greatest threat to Voight right now, Chapman could also be the key to saving the unit. Nina’s worked with Voight long enough to know a bit about his team’s moral values, so she’s unlikely to suggest that they knew what Voight had in store for Reid. She could easily argue for keeping the Intelligence Unit active.
Hank could then somehow “prove” himself innocent in order to lead Intelligence again, but a change of leadership makes the most sense for the story Chicago PD is telling. The possibility of Jesse Lee Soffer’s return as Jay Halstead could make that change doubly exciting, but time will tell if Voight has to relinquish his seat when the dust settles.
