Previously, “Presumed Innocent” on Apple TV+ followed Rusty’s life after he got arrested for Carolyn’s murder. Tommy seemed determined to get Rusty convicted under these charges for a long prison time. Meanwhile, Carolyn’s son claimed to have seen Rusty at Carolyn’s house on the night of her murder. He also clicked some photos from that night, which served as evidence for the case. Through those photos, Rusty realized something shocking. His son, Kyle, was riding his bike past Carolyn’s house on the night of her murder. Now, “Presumed Innocent” episode 4 shows Rusty & Barbara concerned about proving Kyle’s innocence. Meanwhile, Tommy & Nico find a new piece of evidence that can be used against Rusty.
Spoilers Ahead
Presumed Innocent Episode 4 “The Burden” Recap:
Earlier, we saw Rusty (Jake Gyllenhaal) receive photographic evidence from the night of Carolyn’s (Renate Reinsve) murder. Rusty went through the photos Michael (Tate Birchmore) clicked to realize that Kyle (Kingston Rumi Southwick) was riding his bike outside Carolyn’s house. Rusty gets worried thinking about whether Kyle killed Carolyn as revenge for the affair. Until then, he or Barbara (Ruth Negga) had not spoken to Kyle about this affair. So, they are surprised to learn that Kyle knew about it. Kyle reveals that he overheard Rusty & Barbara speak about it. So, he rode around Carolyn’s house to see what she looked like.
While Barbara takes a calm and patient approach to talking with their son, Rusty gets too aggressive. He asks why Kyle needed to be there in person and if he could have just looked up what Carolyn looked like online. It almost feels like Rusty is interrogating Kyle. Barbara realizes that and stops Rusty from terrifying Kyle. While Rusty walks out of the room, Barbara has a word with Kyle. She tries to understand why Kyle rode his bike outside Carolyn’s house. Since Kyle knew about the affair for months, Barbara wants him to go through some therapy sessions. Rusty believes they should talk with him and not a therapist, perhaps because Rusty doesn’t want to be blamed for his actions.
Rusty’s Anger Issues
Rusty keeps taking out his anger at the wrong places. He also gets angry at Barbara even though she has stayed with him despite knowing about his affair with Carolyn. Now that he doesn’t show any compassion for Kyle, Barbara says she is done with him. The next day, in the office, Rusty remains worried, thinking about it. Raymond (Bill Camp) points out how Rusty’s betrayal of their children is behind Barbara’s stance. He understands that Rusty is wrong in this matter since he let his sexual impulses get the better of him. Only now, Rusty feels ashamed and regrets his choices. Nevertheless, Raymond thinks Barbara won’t leave him since she stayed with him despite all he did.
Tommy’s Ruthless Approach
Tommy (Peter Sarsgaard) wants their department’s medical doctor, Herbert Kumagai (James Hiroyuki Liao), to help him as a witness on Rusty’s case. He tries to micromanage Kumagai’s words and demands he speak a certain way to benefit the prosecutors. It doesn’t go down well with Kumagai, who quickly gets frustrated by Tommy’s drill. Later, in the office, their HR officer Eugenia (Virginia Kull) asks him about being put on the witness list. She realizes that Tommy is just out to get Rusty and finds that miserable. Tommy claims he is doing this just for Carolyn.
Meanwhile, Carolyn’s ex-husband, Dalton (Matthew Alan), arrives at their office with Michael to speak about the photos. Tommy asks Michael the specifics about the night of Carolyn’s murder. He wants to convict Rusty by any means necessary. So, he also questions Michael about his meeting with Rusty, where he accused Rusty of Carolyn’s murder. Michael recalls his mother telling him about a male coworker that she is afraid of. Although she didn’t specify the name, she said she had cases with this man. That’s why he assumed Rusty was behind her murder.
Alana’s Revelation
Barbara goes day drinking at a bar she visited before to meet the bartender, Clifton (Sarunas J Jackson). While they have a meandering conversation, Det. Alana Rodriguez (Nana Mensah) finds out that Brian Ratzer (Marco Rodriguez) was at Bunny Davis’s house, besides Liam Reynolds, before her murder. So, she and Rusty go meet this man for questioning. Brian quickly gets upset for being asked about the day of Bunny’s death. He denies ever being on the street she lived on and mentions he works night shifts. Since Brian doesn’t cooperate, Rusty tries to intimidate him. So, Brian tells them to leave his house immediately.
Later that night, Rusty wakes up to realize that Barbara is not next to him. He walks out to find her in the garage, trying to clean Kyle’s bike to avoid any chance of him getting caught. She understands that Kyle’s racial identity as a black man would make him a soft target for the authorities. The next day, Barbara & Rusty’s therapist, Dr Liz Rush (Lily Rabe), has a session with Kyle but cannot make him open up about his father’s affair. After the session, Liz tells Barbara that she, Rusty, and Kyle should have different therapists. Then, she indirectly suggests Barbara consider the option of leaving Rusty.
Presumed Innocent Episode 4 “The Burden” Ending Explained:
Mya Winslow (Gabby Beans) asks Rusty about the events from the night he met Carolyn. Rusty recalls being ghosted by Carolyn, which troubled his ego. Subsequently, he went to a bar and got drunk. That’s when he received a response from Carolyn. Then he drove to her house. But his memories after that are blurry and unreliable. So he cannot tell Mya the exact details. He just says he & Carolyn argued about the future of their relationship. Mya still wonders why he was there for over 50 minutes. She understands that Rusty’s 51 minutes of stay in Carolyn’s house further helps the prosecution. Considering his blurry memories from the night, she thinks they must not let Rusty get on the witness stand.
What new evidence do the prosecutors bring to light?
At the court, Dr Kumagai shares a new piece of evidence with Tommy. Later, Raymond confidently enters their office to confront Tommy & Nico (O-T Fagbenle) about their lack of evidence. That’s when Nico shares a surprising discovery: Rusty’s skin was found under Carolyn’s fingernails. Back home, Rusty tries to find evidence against Brian. Overcome with regret about his behavior, he apologizes to Barbara and has sex with her. Soon after, he receives a call from Raymond, who informs him about the new turn in their case. Rusty thinks it is Tommy, Nico, and Kumagai’s conspiracy against him.
Right after, someone starts knocking on their front door. Outside, Rusty sees Brian trying to seek revenge for how Rusty’s behavior at his house. Since Brian refuses to stop, Rusty walks out and starts violently beating Brian while Barbara looks at him from a distance. It seems like this is the first time she has seen this side of him. Right before this incident, she and Rusty were talking about the future of their relationship. She thought the sex they had was a way to get back the connection they had lost. However, Rusty wasn’t sure. Perhaps, after seeing Rusty’s violent side, she might reconsider her stance about their marriage. Let’s wait for the next episode to know the future of Rusty’s case & his marriage with Barbara.
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