Directed by Sam Hill
Written by Dean Widenmann
"Collision" is the 17th episode of Season 4, and the 89th overall. It originally aired March 6, 2006.
Synopsis:
A horrible car accident that claims the life of a woman turns out to be a murder case. The evidence turns up more information and another body. During the investigation Natalia confesses a secret history of marital abuse in order to help the case to be solved.Tropes for the episode:
- Car Fu: The episode opens with a woman driving frantically, trying to escape a car pursuing her. She's unsuccessful—her car is rammed, spins out of control and careens off the road, crashing into a cement barrier and coming to rest in the grass by the side of the road.
- Forgotten Fingerprint: The CSIs recover the murder weapon from a pawn shop, where it had been cleaned. However, they are able to recover the killer's fingerprint from the clip, which he had checked when the gun failed to fire.
- It Works Better with Bullets: The killer picked up the Victim of the Week's own gun and attempted to shoot her with it, only to discover it was not loaded. He then beat her to death with it.
- Pistol-Whipping: The killer beat the Victim of the Week to death with an empty pistol.
- Punk in the Trunk: At the scene of the crash, Tripp notices blood coming out of the trunk and pops it open to reveal the body of a man.
- Robbing the Dead: The first person to come across Barbara's body after the murders stole a diamond necklace and a gun—the murder weapon—off her and sold them to a pawn shop.