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Laurel Hitchin was a character on The Blacklist.

Background[]

In the past, Hitchin was the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs.

Season 3[]

Arioch Cain[]

Laurel Hitchin is the chairwoman of the presidential commission.

Sir Crispin Crandall[]

She likely was the person who added Peter Kotsiopulos to the task force to aid Ressler and the others to find Elizabeth Keen.

Zal Bin Hasaan[]

Laurel removes Peter Kotsiopulos from the task force.

Kings of the Highway[]

Laurel kills Reven Wright after Reven inquires into Laurel's assignment in Africa and her connections with Matias Solomon.

The Director[]

Laurel explains to Peter Kotsiopulos that Reven Wright put protocols in place before she died, meaning that Elizabeth will be transferred within 3 hours to a federal courthouse to testify. Without knowing that Laurel is part of the Cabal, Donald Ressler reveals where Karakurt is being held. Laurel informs Peter Kotsiopulos who sends Matias Solomon to kill Karakurt. When Donald Ressler returns to escort Keen he tells Laurel that he knows she killed Reven Wright.

The Director: Conclusion[]

Laurel meets with Kotsiopulos and insists on having Liz assassinated the next morning rather than that night. She hires an assassin to target Liz, posing as a warden. Awaiting Liz' death, Laurel is called by Red, who tells her that unless Liz is exonerated, he that he will turn Kotsiopulos over to Venezuelan authorities, who in turn will have him brought before the Hague on war crimes charges. Knowing the disaster that will ensue if an American official is tried for war crimes, Laurel desperately attempts to terminate the assassination, but fails, instead, calling Ressler in time to warn him. Red demands that Hitchin publicly exonerate Liz, sending Marvin Gerard to negotiate a deal with her. Hitchin agrees to exonerate Liz on all charges except the Thomas Connolly murder, as that Liz killed him in front of witnesses and he was unarmed. Instead, Laurel offers to let Liz plead to involuntary manslaughter and serve three years probation. While it would end Liz' FBI career, she would be a free woman. Laurel refuses to compromise any further, stating that she struggled to sell that much to the Acting Attorney General. With Gerard's encouragement, Red reluctantly accepts the deal, as does Liz. Red demands that Liz remain on the task force as an asset, to which Hitchin agrees. In return, she asks Red to execute Kotsiopulos as he has become a liability to the Cabal. At a press conference, Laurel publicly exonerates Liz, issuing her an apology on behalf of the government for the ordeal. She also reveals the Cabal's existence, as well as Connolly and Kotsiopulos' involvement in it.

Susan Hargrave[]

After visiting Laurel, Red tells her that she owes him one after the Kabul incident. He wants Solomon. Red tells Laurel to call Halcyon and tell them that she wants to hire Solomon for a job. Laurel follows Red’s orders, she sets up a meeting with Halcyon, and Bradley comes for a sitdown. Red crashes Laurel and Bradley’s meeting, he tells Bradley that he needs to send Scottie a message and get her attention, because she ignored the first one (killing her guards at the gun warehouse). Brad says he would be happy to pass on the message, then Red pulls out his gun and shoots and kills him.

Season 4[]

The Lindquist Concern[]

Laurel Hitchins demands the USB key in the name of national security which angers Ressler as she killed Reven Wright. Later Laurel hands Red 1 of the patents for the USB key, she then sells the other discoveries for 45 percent of the profits.

Dr. Bogdan Krilov[]

Ressler is manipulated by Dr. Bogdan Krilov into thinking an eye witness had come forward about Reven Wright's Murder. Krilov implanted a false memory into Ressler that Laurel Hitchin had kidnapped the witness. Ressler confronts Hitchin at her home. Elizabeth Keen arrives and manages to calm Ressler down by tell him that his memory was manipulated. As Ressler is led out in handcuffs, Elizabeth confronts Hitchin that one day Hitchin will one day be dragged out in handcuffs and Hitchin laughs and says “never gonna happen”.

Mr. Kaplan: Conclusion[]

In order to stop the grand jury investigation into the taskforce, Reddington and Donald Ressler force Hitchin's cleaner Mitchell Hatley, better known as Henry Prescott, to lead them to the body of Reven Wright. From Reven's body, they are able to recover the bullet that killed her which will match Hitchin's gun. Using Reven's murder as blackmail, Reddington and Ressler force Hitchin to use her position as National Security Advisor to dismiss the grand jury. In return, Hitchin demands that Ressler agree to never mention her and Reven Wright in the same sentence ever again, something that he only reluctantly agrees to.

After Kaplan's suicide, Hitchin personally returns Ressler's badge and states that he will do what she wants when she wants it. Ressler rejects this and takes his badge away from her. Hitchin angrily goes after Ressler who strikes her across the face, causing her to trip over a chair and fall to the floor. As she falls, Hitchin hits her head on her counter and dies. Ressler subsequently calls Hatley to help cover up Hitchin's death.

Season 5[]

Smokey Putnum[]

Hitchin is found dead at her house and Cooper sends the taskforce to investigate as he believes that Reddington is behind her murder. The agent at the scene reports that it looks like it was an accident as there is no sign of forced entry, but Hitchin has a security camera system. Ressler orders the agent to keep him updated in real time while Samar recognizes that Hitchin's death is no accident.

Ressler later confronts Mitchell Hatley about leaving Hitchin's body behind after he becomes a suspect in her murder as Ressler was one of the last people known to have seen Hitchin alive. Hatley reassures him that the investigation will reveal that Hitchin slipped and fell and hit her head. Though Ressler is concerned about the implications of Hitchin's death, Hatley insists that all of the evidence tying him to the murder has been removed and Ressler is in the clear.

Cooper subsequently reports that the medical examiner declared Hitchin's death accidental with no signs of foul play on her surveillance system. However, Hatley became suspisous of Ressler's knowledge of information only the police should know and uses his fingerprints to identify him. Hatley reveals that he only hid the evidence tying Ressler to Hitchin's murder and will be using it to blackmail him.

"Miss Rebecca Thrall"[]

Mitchell Hatley uses Hitchin's murder to blackmail Ressler into recovering a car from impound for one of his clients containing a dismembered body in the trunk.

The Informant[]

Following another attempt to blackmail him with Hitchin's murder by Mitchell Hatley, Ressler instead decides to do the right thing and arrest the client despite Hatley providing him with photos of Hitchin's crime scene. Hatley subsequently begins framing Ressler for the murder of an internal affairs officer who was supposedly investigating Ressler as a crooked cop in order to get back at Ressler. However, Ressler is able to find Hatley's real identity and arrests him with the help of Reddington.

In the aftermath of Hatley's arrest, Ressler prepares a signed confession for Harold Cooper in regards to Hitchin's death. Cooper, who has already figured out the truth, holds onto the confession, stating that he won't turn it in until the task force's work is done. He requests of Donald that he do the same with Cooper's own confession.

Reddington kills Hatley and removes his file on Ressler and Hitchin's death before the FBI seizes Hatley's records keeping Ressler's murder of Hitchin from being exposed. Reddington reassures Ressler that he won't use the information to blackmail Ressler himself in turn.

Unanswered Questions[]

  1. What is Laurel's position? She held the rank of Assistant Secretary of State and has worked with the intelligence agencies, but her presidential commission and interactions with the task force seem to be a senate job.
    1. A: Reven introduced her to Ressler as the National Security Advisor in “Arioch Cain”. She is consistently referred to as such in subsequent episodes.

Trivia[]

  • Hitchens's razor: “What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.” Another translation is: “Quod gratis asseritur, gratis negatur” (“what is freely asserted is freely dismissed”). This describes Hitchin's ability to survive since any allegation and/or accusation concerning the Cabal can be labelled a conspiracy theory, it is nearly impossible to locate hard evidence.

Gallery[]

External Links[]

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