'The Lincoln Lawyer' Season 3 Ending Explained - What Happened to Gloria Dayton?

1 day ago 2

TV Features

Manuel Garcia Rulfo in front of a cityscape on the Season 3 poster for The Lincoln Lawyer

In Season 3 of Netflix's The Lincoln Lawyer, Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) is faced with one of the most challenging cases of his career, professionally and personally, when he accepts the responsibility of defending Julian La Cosse (Devon Graye), a techie who has been accused of killing returning character Gloria Dayton (Fiona Rene). To Mickey, Gloria Dayton was a sex worker who went by the name of Glory Days, and she helped Mickey with a case previously by informing on cartel boss Hector Moya (Arturo Del Puerto).

Employing his tech skills to his benefit, Julian helped Glory with finding clients and scheduling appointments securely. Knowing that his association with Glory may have resulted in her death at the hands of the cartel, Mickey picks up the challenging task of finding the identity of Gloria's killer — which would prove to be the best way to clear Julian's name. Despite his best attempts, by the end of Season 3, Mickey finds himself in a more precarious situation than ever, thanks to the final twist that comes the Lincoln Lawyer's way.

Mickey Haller Discovers a New Secret About an Old Friend

Mickey quickly realizes that Gloria didn't intend to return to Hawaii after his last meeting with her. Instead, Gloria was already` involved with the cartel. Mickey's investigation into Gloria's activities resulted in the revelation that Gloria was already tasked by Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent James DeMarco (Michael Irby) with leaking information on Hector Moya. Hence, it was not Mickey's insistence that landed Gloria in trouble because she was already being held in a chokehold by DeMarco. Mickey's investigation is complicated when the investigator at the District Attorney's office turns out to be Neil Bishop (Holt McCallany), who had crossed paths with Mickey earlier when Mickey used a legal loophole to bail out a criminal despite being aware of his guilt. The security footage from the hotel where Gloria was supposed to meet one of the clients on the day of her death reveals that Gloria was being tailed by Detective Bishop. The possibility of a strong link between Detective Bishop and Agent DeMarco becomes the turning point in the mystery behind Gloria Dayton's death in The Lincoln Lawyer Season 3. Before the finale, Mickey realizes that Agent DeMarco is the one responsible for Gloria's death and not Hector Moya, who was wrongfully imprisoned after Agent DeMarco helped plant evidence against him.

The finale of The Lincoln Lawyer Season 3 reveals the background of Detective Bishop and Agent DeMarco's longstanding relationship. Ten years ago, Agent DeMarco approached Detective Bishop in relation to a double homicide, related to cartel killings, at Lake Balboa. In a bid to stop Detective Bishop from pursuing the case further, Agent DeMarco offered a good amount of money to Bishop, who needed the incentive considering his impending divorce. Knowing that only Bishop's testimony could expose DeMarco's involvement in Gloria's death, Mickey shows Detective Bishop the video, which captures him and Agent DeMarco planting drugs at a witness's house. Although Detective Bishop seems to be unaware of Agent DeMarco's actions inside the house, it becomes clear that the evidence is enough to implicate him. In return for not releasing the video to the public, Mickey demands Detective Bishop give the testimony that will eventually expose Agent DeMarco's direct role in Gloria Dayton's brutal killing.

'The Lincoln Lawyer' Holt McCallany in court

Once Detective Bishop takes the stand, he starts spilling the beans on the exact events that led to the death of Gloria. It is revealed that he was tasked by Agent DeMarco to get involved in the case of Gloria's death. Agent DeMarco has been blackmailing Detective Bishop to do his dirty work ever since Detective Bishop accepted the money for covering up the cartel-linked killings ten years ago. On Agent DeMarco's instructions, Detective Bishop booked an appointment with Gloria using the name of a real guest. He then pursued Gloria to her residence where he rang up Agent DeMarco to give him the location. Before Agent DeMarco arrived, Julian visited Gloria and left 15 minutes later. Upon his arrival, Agent DeMarco asked Detective Bishop to leave and entered Gloria's building from the side to avoid the security camera in the front. According to Detective Bishop's testimony, when he asked Agent DeMarco about Gloria's death, Agent DeMarco told him that Gloria was dead before he arrived, and he set the place on fire to destroy any evidence that may link Gloria to him. However, by this point, it's clear that everyone knows Agent DeMarco was the one responsible for Gloria's death.

Detective Bishop's confession leaves everyone in the court awestruck, including prosecutor Bill Forsythe (John Pirruccello) and Judge Regina Turner (Merrin Dungey). With his secrets out for the law and the public to scrutinize, Detective Bishop takes out his hidden second weapon and shoots himself in the middle of the courtroom. Later, Mickey's constant love interest in Season 3, Andrea Freeman (Yaya DaCosta), suggests to Mickey that it was not his mistake that Detective Bishop committed suicide. The connections between the LAPD and the feds run so deep that one cannot exist without the other. Mickey then meets Julian and his boyfriend David (Wole Parks) to break the news that the trial has been dropped and Julian can now walk free. On the other hand, Andrea informs her boss, the new District Attorney Adam Suarez (Philip Anthony-Rodriguez), that she's done doing calendar duty as a punishment for the mistake she made earlier with Deborah Glass (Rebekah Kennedy). She demands either to be put in the Scott Glass case or fired.

What Happened to Agent DeMarco at the End of Season 3?

Mickey Haller at court in The Lincoln Lawyer

With Mickey helping Julian get the justice he deserves, The Lincoln Lawyer starts focusing on the events that will eventually shape its future. To Mickey's good luck, his daughter Hayley (Krista Warner) forgives Mickey for his past actions after he helped save Julian. Beaten up pretty badly by the recent events, Mickey decides not to quit, considering he now realizes the good he can do through his profession if he helps the right people. Throughout the season, Mickey can be seen hallucinating and fighting an internal emotional battle. By the end of Season 3, Mickey realizes that becoming a top lawyer in Los Angeles comes at a great price that has to be paid with his conscience.

At the end of The Lincoln Lawyer Season 3, Mickey grabs another win for himself and Julian by negotiating a big monetary compensation with the DA's office. With the help of his investigator Cisco (Angus Sampson), Mickey proves that Agent DeMarco was secretly working for the Juárez Cartel while only taking up cases against the rival Tijuana Cartel. After being last seen in the chase sequence when Cisco was following Agent DeMarco, his next appearance turns out to be quite grim as Hector Moya sends Mickey a photograph of Agent DeMarco's dead body hanging with a rattlesnake around him. With Agent DeMarco's cover exposed, it was only a matter of time before Hector Moya, who is now released, got back to him for all the pain Agent DeMarco caused him. Hector also assures Mickey that he can relax peacefully without any worries about the Juárez Cartel that Agent DeMarco served.

Season 3’s Final Twist Sets Up Season 4 of 'The Lincoln Lawyer'

Toward the final moments of The Lincoln Lawyer's latest season, it appears that Mickey is all set to pursue his path of goodness, considering that past mistakes have been amended. With the burdens of his past behind him, Mickey finally appears to be enjoying a well-deserved breather until a police officer stops his car. It appears that the missing number plate on his car, which might have been stolen according to Mickey, must have attracted the police officer's attention. However, things take a much more serious turn in the setup for Season 4 when the police officer brings Mickey's attention to the blood dripping from his car's trunk. Despite Mickey's attempts at avoiding a search, the officer opens the trunk to expose the lifeless body of Sam Scales (Christopher Thornton), a recurring character and a fraudster who was originally the client of Jerry Vincent (Paul Urcioli).

With this final twist, The Lincoln Lawyer sets itself up for the fourth season that will focus on Michael Connelly's "The Law of Innocence" in the Lincoln Lawyer book series. It is clear that somebody is trying to frame Mickey Haller - which seems natural considering how many enemies Mickey's actions have attracted. In a potential fourth season, Mickey will need to defend himself against all odds, considering he has managed to anger some real serious people, including deadly cartels, with his actions in Season 3.

All episodes of The Lincoln Lawyer Season 3 are available to stream on Netflix.

The Lincoln Lawyer

Release Date May 13, 2022

Cast Manuel Garcia-Rulfo , Becki Newton , Angus Sampson , Jazz Raycole , Neve Campbell , Krista Warner , Lana Parrilla , Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine , Yaya DaCosta , Marlene Forte , Chris Browning , Matt Angel , Elliott Gould , Katrina Rosita , LisaGay Hamilton , Heather Mazur , Reggie Lee , Shenita Moore , Kim Hawthorne , Mikal Vega , Mike McColl , Saul Huezo , Ryan W. Garcia , La'Charles Trask , Christine Horn , Shwayze , Jeff Francisco , David Clayton Rogers , Fiona Rene , Douglas Bennett , Clint Carmichael , Darien Sills-Evans , Adam J. Harrington

Main Genre Drama

Seasons 3