Chicago PD season 13 continues its elevated storytelling this year with an unexpected reveal about Hank Voight. The One Chicago franchise has become one of the most successful weeknight blocks on TV thanks to its cohesive but still different storytelling. While crossovers have become a rarity in the last few years, the universe has made a more active attempt to re-establish the connection among the three shows.
Now 13 years later in Chicago PD season 13, the cop show drops an unexpected revelation about Voight that fully reframes his villainous debut. It also shines a light on some of his more nefarious behavior in the last decade.
Chicago PD Season 13, Episode 4 Reveals That Voight Was Abused As A Kid
“Root Cause” starts with Voight getting an unexpected image slotted in his windshield. The photo is of a tender-aged boy all bloodied and bruised sitting in a hospital bed. The mystery looms large throughout the outing, with Eva Imani asking him about it. Voight has been mum about it, although it’s clear that he is off-balance because of it. He even asks Trudy to track down who left the image on his car.
As Intelligence Unit solves the case of a man who is clearly disturbed, which ends with new suspicion on his father’s involvement in his spiral, Imani asks her boss again about the image. Apparently, it’s Voight in the ’70s. Chicago PD season 13, episode 4 ends with that bombshell. There hasn’t been any mention of this in the past, even when his childhood was brought up a few times before.
Voight’s Childhood Explains Why He Would Do Anything For Justin
There’s no confirmation on what happened to Voight in his childhood. It looks like he was beaten, and considering the parallel case in “Root Cause,” it’s possible that it was his own father who did it. The photo even featured a partial shot of a police officer with him in the hospital. To be clear, however, while Voight’s father was mentioned a few times, there was no indication that he was abusive.
Whatever the case may be, Voight being willing to do anything for Justin — even pressuring Casey in Chicago Fire season 1 to cover up his son’s drunk-driving accident that left someone paralyzed. This was viewers’ first encounter with the Intelligence leader, and he was really seen as a villain, considering how beloved Firehouse 51 was already at that time.
Even when Chicago PD started, Voight continued to protect his son at all cost. Justin, unfortunately, had always struggled, so he was usually involved with something shady that put his dad in a tough spot. Until now, Voight’s worst crime came after Justin’s horrendous death, which is still a relatively well-kept secret in the series.
