8 Burning Questions We Need Answered in ‘Ballard’ Season 2
[Warning: The following article contains major spoilers for Season 1 of Ballard.]
“Finding a killer is like finding a needle in a haystack, except in a cold case, the haystack has been blown all over the field.” Wise words from Harry Bosch (Titus Welliver), but not necessarily comforting words. Thus is the dilemma of Detective Renée Ballard (Maggie Q), whose job it is to solve the murders that the police have pushed to the side.
As the head of LAPD’s new cold case division, Ballard had all the odds stacked against her: no funding, no trained staff, and a tarnished reputation with the department. Armed with only gumption and a ragtag staff of volunteers and reserves, she was able to get the new division off the ground.
After a series of major setbacks and the death of one of their own, the department began to regain its footing by cracking a long-cold serial killer case and watching the DA drop charges against Detective Robert Olivas (Ricardo Chavira) so he flipped on his crew. But just as things started to look up, the season delivered a jaw-dropping twist in which Ballard was arrested for the murder of Olivas and ended on a cliffhanger, leaving audiences clamoring for more.
Scroll down for a closer look at the questions we’d like to see answered if Ballard returns for Season 2.
Ballard, Season 1, Prime Video
Why was Ballard arrested?
That is the big question. In the final moments of the show, Detective Ballard was arrested for the murder of Olivas, the man who sexually assaulted both her and Samira Parker (Courtney Taylor), whom Ballard had been mentoring throughout the season.
Olivas was about to snitch on his fellow officers and testify against them in a massive LAPD conspiracy that exposed police working with the cartel. Angry that he was about to get away with his bad actions yet again, Ballard went to his house to confront him, screaming and hitting him. “You think the world is fair, but it’s not,” he told her with a smirk. They had a heated exchange in which he attempted to strike her, but she pulled a gun on him.
Given this interaction, this places her high on the suspect list, but those he turned on and the cartel should probably be on the list as well. We also have a few other suggestions…
Who killed Robert Olivas?
The obvious answer is most likely someone else in the LAPD, considering Olivas was about to turn on his fellow boys in blue and expose the other conspirators. Olivas flipped on his six co-conspirators to save himself from prison time, a move that proved fatal. The next time audiences heard about Olivas, he was dead, and Ballard was blamed for the murder.
Due to her personal history with him, having accused him of sexual assault, and her connection to the cartel case he was involved in, Ballard became the top suspect in his murder, or so it seems.
The other likely answer is the cartel, who were working closely with the dirty cops. They would have no interest in seeing their operation exposed and could be looking to eliminate any loose ends, including Olivas, to protect themselves and their business.
A third possibility is that one of Olivas’s other victims sought revenge, given his history as a predator. A fourth possibility is his long-suffering wife, who might have known more about his actions than she let on, despite playing the role of the faithful partner and innocent bystander.
How was Olivas murdered?
This was left unclear in the finale of Ballard. It is part of the mystery of Season 1 and added to the cliffhanger. In the show’s final moments, the cops rolled up to Ballard’s grandmother’s beach house and arrested her with no other details given, including why she was a suspect or how Olivas was murdered. How the cops came to suspect Ballard and how Olivas met his maker will probably be the first mysteries tackled in a Season 2.
Can the conspiracy charges move forward without testimony from Olivas?
With Robert Olivas dead, it’s clear someone wanted to silence him before he could testify against the six corrupt officers, led by Anthony Driscoll (Brendan Sexton III), who were arrested for colluding with the cartel. While former mole Manny Santos (Colin McCalla) was willing to cooperate, authorities determined he wasn’t deep enough in the conspiracy to provide meaningful evidence and ultimately dismissed him. Now, without Olivas’ testimony, the crooked cops may walk free.
Which books will the show follow next?
Season 1 of Ballard was primarily based on the first novel featuring Renée Ballard, The Late Show by Michael Connelly. In it, the character of Robert Olivas is very much present and lives. His death is a complete deviation from the books. He later makes appearances in the novels Dark Sacred Night and The Night Fire, which means whatever happens in the upcoming seasons, they will have to be Olivas-free.
Will the cold case division continue without Ballard?
Detective Renée Ballard was the heart and soul of the team and Samira was her right-hand, but that’s not to say the others didn’t pull their weight. Laffont (John Carroll Lynch) was the seasoned vet with years of experience, Martina Castro (Victoria Moroles) was the student go-getter, and Colleen Hatteras (Rebecca Field) was the compassionate, slightly kooky glue that held the group together. Together, this team cracked a decades-old serial murder case. The department isn’t likely to shut down a unit that just delivered that kind of public good, especially one that made headlines.
Their leader might have been arrested for murder, but that does not mean the team cannot weather the storm, perhaps with someone new at the helm.
Will Parker lead the team now?
“Who’s watching the watchmen?”
When Samira Parker first met Ballard, she wanted nothing to do with her cold case unit. Given her traumatic history with the LAPD and her abusive ex-partner Robert Olivas, it was no surprise she walked away from the force completely.
By Episode 5, Samira’s buried rage finally boiled over. In a raw and emotional moment, she destroyed her room while sobbing, a desperate attempt to regain control over a life that had been taken from her. She lost her career, her independence, and her mental health because of Olivas. Here, she was finally taking steps to reclaim it.
Earlier in the season, during a quiet conversation with her grandfather (Frankie Faison), he told her that while the system may be broken, it can be fixed — but only if good people are willing to fight for what’s right. That moment, combined with her growing resolve to take back her power, lit a new fire in Samira.
With Ballard under arrest, Samira seems ready to step up and lead the team. For now.
Will the truth ever come out about Olivas?
The late Robert Olivas was a predatory lowlife who assaulted both Ballard and Parker, and likely many others. His pattern was disturbingly clear: get women drunk, isolate them, and exploit them when they were at their most vulnerable. By the end of Season 1, there was no justice, not even in his death, as an innocent woman was taken away for his murder. The only path to redemption for Ballard, both personally and professionally, is for the truth about Olivas to finally come to light.
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