Spoilers ahead for Episode 12 of Chicago P.D. Season 8, called "Due Process."
Chicago P.D. delved into one of its darkest cases of Season 8 in "Due Process" as Intelligence had to track a rapist and murderer who had been behind bars before winning his freedom in a lawsuit, and the result was an intense investigation that led to some conflict within Intelligence, particularly between Voight and Halstead. The two have clashed over Voight's willingness to cross lines and hide the particulars of his plans in the past, so let's take a look at what the latest conflict could mean for Voight's future.
Voight tried to tackle this case by the book throughout the episode, just as he did in the gruesome first look, but none of the cops were feeling any kind of sympathy for Caleb, the rapist/murderer who clearly shouldn't have been on the streets at all. Voight was running out of patience as Caleb struck again and again while they were steps behind, which led to him ordering the rest of the unit other than Ruzek out of a house for them to handle a meth dealer with info.
Halstead, having worked the past eight years under Hank Voight, had some immediate concerns about what Voight was going to do, and the scene got pretty ugly before Halstead ultimately left Voight and Ruzek to do whatever Voight had in mind. It's hard to blame Halstead for having concerns, since it's really never a sign that things are happening by the book if somebody dismisses Halstead in favor of Ruzek. (Sorry, Ruzek, but I said what I said!)
The good news is that Voight only kinda sorta snapped in "Due Process," attacking a truck rather than anybody's face and holding back from shooting Caleb when he had the chance. He did lie about who was present when he captured Caleb, but he took the suspicions that he'd thrown the man from a second story with surprising grace. The episode ended without indicating that the conflict between Voight and Halstead is going to be an ongoing issue, but I can see it advancing a story that could mean big things for both characters.
On the Voight side, "Due Process" is proof that he didn't magically erase his violent tendencies just because Samantha Miller came on board to push for police reform, but he is trying. The question to come out of this episode is: will he continue to succeed more than fail? It makes sense that Caleb is the one in Season 8 who really pushed Voight to the brink, as a serial rapist and murderer who escaped a prison sentence on the Chicago P.D. equivalent of a technicality.
Voight's future will either have to involve continuing to do things Miller's way or crossing a big line one too many times and losing his place at CPD. "Due Process" showed that he has been learning, and it was no drug dealer of the week who pushed him to the edge, so viewers probably don't have to worry that this will be an issue for Voight on a weekly basis, but his struggles in conjunction with Halstead's arc may point toward the fall of Voight and rise of Halstead.
Not for the first time this season or recent years, Halstead took a leadership position and stood against Voight. In fact, he even took a stand against Upton in "Due Process," although the exchange with Upton was unsurprisingly missing the anger of the exchange with Voight. And Halstead had a very good point about not wanting to leave Voight to his own devices, considering that Voight had to beat the hell out of a truck to vent his frustrations. If the downfall of Voight is on the way thanks to his instincts clashing with reform, then Season 8 could be setting up Halstead to take his place or at least assume more of a leadership position.
All of this said, I'm not really expecting Voight's definitive downfall or Halstead getting a promotion to sergeant unless the day comes when Jason Beghe wants to leave Chicago P.D. and Jesse Lee Soffer stays, or the series finale, but there are certainly reasons to speculate about what the events of "Due Process" mean for Voight's future. See what's next for both Voight and Halstead with the next new episode of Chicago P.D. on Wednesday, May 5 at 10 p.m. ET as the third our of NBC's One Chicago primetime block, with Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. and Chicago Med at 8 p.m.
