Criminal Minds (TV Series)

Final Shot (2013)

Jeanne Tripplehorn: Alex Blake

Quotes 

• Dr. Spencer Reid : We have to hope Maya follows the rules. The shelter says the women are supposed to remain in hiding for at least two months. They're supposed to stay behind closed windows, closed doors. Volunteers bring supplies and food to them.

  Agent Tanya Mays : Maya left her husband six weeks ago, so the killer's gotta wait another two weeks for her to come out. There's a good chance he'll give up. He can't wait forever.

  Aaron Hotchner : Well, a sniper can wait up to seventy-two hours without sleeping.

  Agent Tanya Mays : Seriously?

  David Rossi : That's part of their training. They can stay awake for seventy-two hours and reamin completely focused on their target.

  Agent Tanya Mays : How?

  Aaron Hotchner : By using a mental exercise called fantasy integration. The sniper creates a scenario involving the target that keeps that person at the forefront of their mind.

  Derek Morgan : Often, they'll imagine a place where they're with the target doing something together that takes time; for example, building a car.

  Jennifer Jareau : For some, the fantasy begins the minute they're assigned a target, and nothing will distract them.

  Agent Tanya Mays : So as long as she stays inside, she should be safe, right?

  Alex Blake : The problem is staying cooped up for a couple months without a breath of fresh air is hard to do.

  David Rossi : It's what the sniper's counting on, and she has no idea he's waiting for her.

• Dr. Spencer Reid : You know, the fact is, this is an experienced sniper who can account for timing. After the first shot, no one moves. People are puzzled. Everyone's reaction is to look for a source of the sound. After the second shot, it takes the average person one and a half seconds to cognitively process that they're in a potentially life-threatening situation. It takes another .7 seconds for a physical response to kick in, by which time the third shot has already been fired.

  Jennifer Jareau : So the unsub wanted victim number three.

  Alex Blake : Well, anyone after number three had a chance of getting away, and the unsub wouldn't have taken that risk.

• Aaron Hotchner : We're looking for an LDSK, or a long-distance serial killer. He's a very skilled marksman with a god complex.

  Derek Morgan : He derives pleasure out of remaining unseen and determining the fates of people from afar.

  Jennifer Jareau : He's criminally sophisticated and methodical, concealing his method of ingress and egress, leaving little evidence behind in the sniper perches.

  Alex Blake : This suggests a great deal of experience, so this unsub has a military or a law enforcement background, possibly even Special Forces.

  Dr. Spencer Reid : His victims at first to be targets of opportunity, but it now appears that one or more of them are targets of choice. The remaining victims were collateral damage to be used as a forensic countermeasure; similar to what John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo did with the D.C. sniper case in 2002.

  Derek Morgan : This means there's some unknown connection between one or more victims at the first and second crime scenes.

  Agent Tanya Mays : What about the Caucasian male that an eyewitness saw at the plaza?

  Derek Morgan : It's something to consider, but we can't rule out others. We know that the unsub is likely in his late thirties to forties, in order to have the means and patience to plan and execute these attacks.

  Aaron Hotchner : If he still has specific targets, it's likely he won't wait long to attack, so the public needs to remain vigilant.