Los Angeles, 1931. On the heels of an unsavory investigation involving a famous comedian, Perry Mason--a PI struggling to make ends meet--and his right-hand man Pete Strickland are hired by attorney E.B. Jonathan, Perry's mentor, to solve a perplexing case: the brutal kidnapping of one-year-old Charlie Dodson, whose parents were targeted for a $100,000 ransom.
Set in 1932 Los Angeles, the series focuses on the origin story of famed defense lawyer Perry Mason. Living check-to-check as a low-rent private investigator, Mason is haunted by his wartime experiences in France and suffering the effects of a broken marriage. L.A. is booming while the rest of the country recovers from the Great Depression — but a kidnapping gone very wrong leads to Mason exposing a fractured city as he uncovers the truth of the crime.
Los Angeles, 1931. On the heels of an unsavory investigation involving a famous comedian, Perry Mason--a PI struggling to make ends meet--and his right-hand man Pete Strickland are hired by attorney E.B. Jonathan, Perry's mentor, to solve a perplexing case: the brutal kidnapping of one-year-old Charlie Dodson, whose parents were targeted for a $100,000 ransom.
Following one of her trademark barn-burning sermons, Evangelical preacher Sister Alice offers the Dodsons the church's full moral and financial support – much to her mother Birdy's dismay. During a routine domestic intervention, beat cop Paul Drake is rerouted to a gruesome crime scene, where he follows a confounding trail of evidence.
In order to gain an advantage over E.B. and team, wily district attorney Maynard Barnes goes public with a shocking new development. Mason and Strickland get unauthorized access to physical evidence with help from Virgil, Mason's connect at the city morgue. Later, Mason attempts to extract information from a withholding Drake, who's weary of Holcomb and Ennis' watchful eyes.
Mason and Strickland lean on Virgil, again, for extra-legal assistance. Following Sister Alice's recovery from a frightening episode, Birdy urges her daughter to renounce her claims about baby Charlie. E.B. faces the reality of his financial situation and takes his frustrations out on Della.
While Mason and Della run a solemn errand up north, Strickland tracks down the sergeant originally assigned to the Dodson case. Before returning to L.A., Mason drops in on his ex-wife Linda and son Teddy, hoping to make amends for his recent shortcomings. Della sets out to find Mrs. Dodson more capable legal representation.
As Emily's trial begins and a damning witness testimony takes center stage, Mason attempts to recover from a shaky start. Meanwhile, in their search for clues that might lead to an exoneration, Della and Strickland investigate a potential connection between Detective Ennis and Charlie's kidnappers. Later, Mason considers betraying Drake's trust to give his client an edge.
Hoping to expose the hidden link between the Radiant Assembly's staggering debt and Charlie's ransom, Mason puts Herman Baggerly on the stand. Sister Alice faces mounting pressure from the church elders about her promises for a "resurrection." Strickland loses track of a key witness, while Drake's detective work opens a new avenue in the case.
After the team receives some unvarnished critique from Hamilton Burger, Della presents an increasingly stubborn Mason with her case for putting Emily on the stand. As the sensational trial winds to a close, Mason, Strickland, Della, and Drake attempt to tie up loose ends - and set the stage for their futures.
