Chief Gillespie reluctantly accepts visiting Sparta native Virgil Tibbs as his new Chief of Detectives in the midst of a high-profile murder investigation.

Gillespie and Tibbs learn to get used to each other's working habits and bond as workers and friends to solve the murder.

Despite compelling evidence, Gillespie refuses to believe that his best friend used another person's playful gunfire to cover up for the murder of his alcoholic wife.

Racial tensions boil over in Sparta when a married, white woman has an extramarital affair with a black businessman.

When two local locksmiths uncover a cocaine fencing operation, all evidence points to the personal staff of Virgil Tibbs' former high school rival.

Tibbs gets a long overdue dose of self-satisfaction when the Sparta Police close in on the masterminds of the drug trafficking operation.

Gillespie and Tibb's reluctant investigation of a bigamy case becomes absurd with the accused's half dozen wives, and serious when he is found dead in his cell.

Althea Tibbs is kidnapped and taken hostage by the prime suspect in a serial murder investigation.

A young woman is murdered in the exact same manner to a notorious murder Chief Gillespie investigated 20 years ago and he is threatened as well.

Tension is created between Tibbs & Gillespie when Tibbs is nominated to be the new Chief of Police. The party responsible for the murder is found to be surprisingly close.

After a prominent businessman is mysteriously murdered, evidence of incestuous relationships with his daughter and granddaughter are uncovered.

Virgil's ex-partner, who was also Althea's ex-lover, comes to Sparta for a reunion nobody will forget.

When Officer Sweet's first bust, his best friend from childhood, dies in the Newman County Jail under mysterious circumstances, he presses Gillespie to investigate the matter.

Bubba Skinner enters into a whirlwind romance with a seductive author passing through Sparta.

Virgil Tibbs shoots and kills a robbery suspect during a foot pursuit, unaware that it was a girl.

Bubba's nephew and Virgil's visiting niece become friendly and are chased by a dangerous criminal thought to have died in an explosion.

The investigation of a prostitute's murder is complicated when a traveling cook comes to Sparta and starts working at the Magnolia Cafe.

A skeleton in the closet of a local pastor surfaces after he mysteriously drops dead during a church service.

Gillespie is asked by a condemned prisoner to be present at his execution.

Joanne must reveal a painful part of her past to Gillespie after a long lost acquaintance escapes from prison.

Tibbs tries to help a teenage mother who was abandoned by her baby's father.

The son of a city councilwoman is accused of a string of robbery/murders.

Virgil is disturbed by the investigation of a battered woman.

Sibling rivalry between two sisters intensifies when their bedridden father dies.

Sparta becomes a battleground in the midst of a violent union strike.

Bubba and Virgil bond as friends and coworkers is tested when Bubba is accused of rape by two different women.

The town of Sparta grieves when a horrific drunk driving accident claims the lives of the entire Sparta High School cheerleading squad.

A handicapped woman tricks her boyfriend into murdering her husband.

A crabby and reclusive woman shoots and kills anyone who sets foot onto her property.

Chief Gillespie returns from a convention, only to be kidnapped and presumed dead.

When Althea is raped by a colleague, Gillespie and the Sparta PD must solve the case before a furious Virgil gets revenge on his own.

Murder takes center stage when the Sparta PD discover that the death of a beauty pageant contestant was no accident.

A young man stands accused of his abusive father's murder.

The Sparta Police Department welcome their first female officer.

Wilson Sweet puts his job on the line when he takes a personal stake in the case of a 13-year-old drug addict.

Chief Gillespie recounts the events surrounding his kidnapping and the killing of his temporary replacement.

Parker puts himself in a compromising position when he becomes protective of a friend who is accused of the murder of a private investigator.

Bubba Skinner is trailed by the family of a man he killed during an armed robbery attempt.

A Vietnamese teenager comes to town, claiming to be the son of one of Chief Gillespie's GI friends. The Chief must help the boy when he gets himself accused of the murder of a comvienence store owner.

A former prize fighter chooses blackmail over testimony when he is called upon by the FBI to testify against an old mob boss.

Chief Gillespie's close friend stands accused of the murder of the doctor who misdiagnosed his wife's terminal cancer.

A local man, thought to be quiet and reserved, murders his wife and her lover when he walks in on them, then holds his daughter hostage.

A young boy refuses to speak after he witnesses his father's murder.

When Chief Gillespie investigates a death at a nursing home, he receives assistance from another resident there who is a former cop.

The Sparta Police uncover the shocking living conditions of a high school student, after Althea Tibbs asks them to investigate the residence after the girl's fifth truancy.

Bubba's former acquaintance leaves a baby on his doorstep.

A minister is killed when he attempts to close down a brothel in Sparta.

Althea grieves when an impoverished coworker dies in a hit-and-run accident, while the Police investigate the incident.

Althea's friend comes to town and becomes attracted to Officer Sweet while she is on the run for murdering her married lover.

Gillespie and Tibbs clash over who the guilty party is in the murder of a cab driver, until a local informant provides some vital information.

Harriet Delong's sister is killed in a murder ordered by her married lover, the wealthiest man in Sparta. Harriet accuses the police department of not properly bringing the mam to justice.

Through a search of the killer's house, the smoking gun is found to pin the guilty party. Bill Gillespie and Harriet Delong are asked to be godparents to the Tibbs' expectant child.

Virgil Tibbs returns to Philadelphia to investigate his best man's death and uncovers police corruption within his friend's precinct.

When Gillespie travels to Philadelphia to assist Virgil in his investigation, they are able to bring down the vigilante cops and clear his friend's name. The two return to Sparta just in time for Virgil to welcome his children, William & Sarah, into the world.

A father is overcome with guilt when his daughter is killed after he disowned her.

Tempers flare in Sparta when an elementary school teacher is accused of molesting one of his students.

Virgil's young neighbor is badly injured in a hit-and-run accident caused by a cocky drug trafficker.

Bubba Skinner rekindles an old romance, then finds himself hurt and confused when she stands accused of murder.

While spending his day off fishing, Bubba's dog unearths a dead infant, found to have been born to a mentally-challenged teenager.

When a paroled man returns to Sparta, the whole town becomes a suspect when the man is murdered.

Harriet Delong's son is implicated in the investigation of an armed robbery committed by her ex-husband.

Wilson Sweet has a hard time believing that his good friend murdered his wife, who had been diagnosed with cancer.

Virgil's cousin is accused of a string of robberies in the midst of him trying to bring some peace back to the family.

Bubba's friend is put in danger when a bounty hunter is on the trail of her brother.

During the Christmas season, a flirtatious newspaper reporter prints an unflattering story about the Sparta Police Department.

A teenage girl is killed and her boyfriend blinded in a car accident caused by spiked moonshine.

A psychiatrist, bound by her own rule of confidentiality, holds information proving that a man about to be executed for murder may actually be innocent.

A promising high school student is determined to encourage his younger brother to make positive choices in his life.

Virgil puts himself in a compromising position when he uses inside information to inform a friend that he was cheated when he invested in a building project.

Parker finds himself attracted to the main witness of a murder investigation, a beautiful blind girl who overheard her neighbor's murder.

Althea's colleague is the latest victim of a serial rapist who preys on single, blonde women.

Bubba travels to Los Angeles to extradite a prisoner to Sparta to stand trial and finds himself the target of the man's accusers.

Harriet's son tries to have his father's death row conviction overturned.

Althea is starting to feel the strain of being the wife of one police officer and the daughter of another.

Gillespie receives a life altering shock when an old flame comes for a visit and is later murdered.

Bubba discovers that his cousins have adopted their baby under questionable circumstances.

A promiscuous high school teacher is stalked by her dangerous ex-boyfriend.

A man hosting his annual high stakes poker game is murdered.

When Virgil's estranged aunt is eyewitness to a teenager killed in a botched arrest, her resentment for Virgil clouds her better judgement as to what really happened.

Bubba returns to Los Angeles to tie up some loose ends from his last trip there.

Cyrus Chambers threatens to sell his business and leave for an extended trip with his wife Irene, to the dismay of his junior partner, Tom Dalton, who is having a torrid affair with Irene. Chambers also has financial problems with his illegitimate African-American daughter, Faith Todd. Subsequent events bring disaster and redemption.

A local jazz musician reveals information about the murder of Officer Sweet's grandfather, which reopens the 40-year-old case.

Bubba stumbles upon a marijuana growing operation, later found to be led by a Sheriff's Office deputy.

D.A. Darnell's daughter is kidnapped by the father of a man Darnelle sent to prison, who committed suicide.

Lonnie Jamison is saddened to discover that his high school girlfriend is now an impoverished, single mother.

When a slumlord is mysteriously murdered, it is implied that he had dealings with dope pushers. Until informant Jimmy Dawes provides some vital information.

When a doctor's disabled wife discovers his affair with one of his patients, he takes matters into his own hands to correct the situation.

Parker's friend takes matters into her own hands when she is fed up with her husband's physical abuse.

Sparta Police is on guard to control racial tension when a ceremony is held to honor the first black woman who registered to vote in Sparta.

The stepfather of one of Althea's students is implicated in a drug trafficking investigation.

When a woman plots to kill her husband in order to continue her torrid love affair, things don't go exactly as planned.

The wife of Harriet's sister's lover seeks custody of Harriet's nephew, the product of her late husband's affair.

The son of a local electrical contractor resents the fact that his father is always bailing his younger brother out of financial messes.

A paroled robber returns to Sparta in search of a $750,000 stash.

Gillespie & Tibbs, along with the abbot of a local monastery, stand accused of harboring a fugitive who escaped from a chain gang.

The trio receives an outpouring of support from the town and the police department in the days leading up to their trial. Romance is in the air for Bill Gillespie and Harriet DeLong.

While Sparta's police chief William O. 'Bill' Gillespie celebrates a mis-trial with Harriet DeLong, they worry about her son Eugene Glendon, who is out on probation. He was tricked into waiting in his friend Byron's car while Byron bought cocaine from dealer Clay Wilson. The crack pusher gang 'the Crew' from Jackson kills both by shooting through the wall. Sparta's police investigates and tries to keep the drug pests from spreading from the city. The Crew returns to spread free drug samples, soon causing an OD wave.

Despite his disdain for Bill Gillespie, Harriet's son Eugene helps the Sparta Police bring down the crack house after he is an eyewitness to his best friend's drug-related murder.

Luann is furious when her slacker brother returns and is immediately accused of robbing a shady sports bar. Her mother is in denial and insists her son has changed.

A troubled high school student murders his ex-girlfriend's lover, then fixes it so her stepfather is blamed for the crime. Althea suffers a nervous breakdown after witnessing the student's suicide.

Virgil enlists the help of Dr. Levi Atwill to help bring Althea out of her funk and return to her teaching job. The murder investigation is complicated when the dead student's ex-girlfriend acquires yet another boyfriend who murders her stepfather and seriously injured one of Gillespie's good friends.

Bill Gillespie makes peace with his estranged daughter after she comes to Sparta to settle her deceased mother's affairs.

Computer thieves provide a man with a window of opportunity to cover up for his wife's violent retaliation against her abusive boss.

The doctor treating Virgil's dying aunt is the chief suspect in a series of mercy killings.

A washed up country singer, whose biggest fan is Bubba Skinner, is accused of the murder of his former road manager.

Bubba is first on the scene of a carjacking and first in the heart of the victim, a city council woman with a history of "man problems".

When a young woman takes her life by jumping off a bridge, her boyfriend, who is also Virgil's law school classmate, stands accused of her murder.

A prominent judge's wife threatens to reveal a skeleton in his closet unless he grants her a lucrative divorce.

Wilson Sweet's job is put on the line when he is accused of soliciting a bribe from a shady used car salesman.

A threat made in anger makes Parker's stepfather the prime suspect in the murder of his former boss.

A single mother is harassed by her landlord, who also happens to be her ex-boyfriend.

When a racist politician visits Sparta during his political rally, a staged assassination attempt intended to make him look better to his perspective voters goes horribly wrong.

The Sparta Police investigate when it is discovered that the murder attempt may not have been staged after all.

When an embezzler returns to Sparta after serving a prison sentence, quite a few people become suspects when the man is killed.

A man is determined to make sure a young woman does not receive her inheritance, promised by his grandfather 3 decades earlier.

Shady real estate developers try to drive Gillespie's daughter out of her property, in order to make way for a new development project.

The common-law husband of Lana's mother returns to Sparta and tries to extort money from the land developers, who are eventually driven out of town.

Sparta Police investigate the possibility of a prison bishop being forced off the road being racially motivated. Bill Gillespie and Harriet Delong discuss taking their relationship to the next level.

Many changes come to Sparta. Virgil Tibbs has left the Sparta Police Department and he, Althea and their twins have returned to Philadelphia, PA so Virgil can complete his law school studies. Bill Gillespie has been voted out as chief and is replaced by FBI Agent Hampton Forbes from Memphis, TN. Forbes inherits the case of a reclusive man who is murdered as he is awaiting trial for manslaughter.

Gillespie gets the last laugh against the city council when he is named Newman County Sheriff to replace an ailing Will McComb, who has suffered a heart attack. As county sheriff, Gillespie's first case is that of a triple murder, where the investigation points to a good natured, mentally challenged teenage boy.

Gillespie and Forbes become fast friends when both police forces team up and solve the triple murder. Attorney Wade Hatton returns to Sparta and hopes to rekindle a romance from the past with Sarah Hallisey.

Bubba Skinner is determined to have a womanizing real estate agent charged with attempted murder after the man knowingly infected Bubba's friend with HIV.

A local drunk kills the man he believed was having an affair with his wife.

When Lana's ex-boyfriend comes to Sparta, dim-witted Randy Calhoun stumbles upon the real reason for his visit: an illegal gun running operation.

Luann moonlights as a singer at her boyfriend's new nightclub and she unwittingly uncovers a drug dealing operation run by the bartender.

Virgil Tibbs returns to Sparta with a law degree, news of his failed marriage and a murder suspect to defend.

Bubba travels to Atlanta, GA in an attempt to improve his drug addicted nephew's quality of life.

Luann tries desperately to adopt a baby that was abandoned in a crack house raid.

A hit-and-run accident caused by an alcoholic teenager claims the life of a 10-year-old girl.

An interracial high school couple is the target of a racist sniper on the Sparta High School field.

Virgil defends Parker Williams when he is accused of police brutality during an arrest involving Parker's ex-fiance.

Former madam Maybelle Chesboro returns to Sparta and opens up a phone sex operation disguised as a communications business.

Angela Dolphy, Chief Forbes's fiancée, is in Sparta from Memphis for a week to entice Forbes to change professions before they get married. The chief arranges a dinner with Bill Gillespie and Harriet DeLong to coax Angela to relocate to Sparta. An example of Forbes's work is the new boxing program for at risk young men. Unfortunately, the finest boxer, African-American Kevin "Cat" Brooks, is involved with a professional burglar, Caucasian Dennis Cantrell, in a series of home invasions and robberies. Forbes and Angela must come to terms with their personal goals and the impact on their relationship.

Jazz musician Ches Collins returns to Sparta and it is soon evident that he has a history with Cordelia, the grande dame of Sparta. Cordelia's nephew, Raoul, will stop at nothing to put an end to any hope of a union between the two. It is up to Cordelia's other nephew, Lonnie Jameson, to put an end to Raoul's antics.

Virgil Tibbs finds himself on both sides of the law when he is asked to handle the probate of a verbally abusive alcoholic woman, whose death may not have been an accident.

A synagogue comes to Sparta and is quickly vandalized and robbed. The Rabbi does not believe Sheriff Gillespie is worthy of investigating the incident.

Eugene Glendon is accused of committing a robbery after he tries to persuade the real suspect not to go through with it.

Womanizer Frank Davenport is the general contractor on a large residential project in Sparta that threatens an area of slave artifacts. He is also having a torrid affair with his new secretary, Cindy Jenk, whose father Gus is a protective hot head. There are hard feelings, even fights, among the townspeople who either support or oppose stopping the construction project to save the antiquities. It is a toss-up who will get to Davenport first.

In a somewhat comical episode, Parker's stepfather returns to Sparta with his new wife and runs Parker out of house and home. Among Roy's possessions is an ornate painting, the value of which Roy is unaware.

A newspaper misprint makes Bill Gillespie the target of an escaped killer in the days leading up to he and Harriet's wedding. Bill and Harriet are married in a beautiful, simple ceremony with Chief Forbes serving as best man.

Sparta Police and the Newman County Sheriff's Department join forces to investigate the antics of a religious cult that has taken up residence in an abandoned school building.

The investigation uncovers evidence of statutory rape and drug dealing within the cult. It is further complicated by the actions of an overly aggressive newspaper reporter, as well as the discovery of school age children being members of the cult. But in the end, teamwork pays off and everyone is driven out.

An local retired judge's depraved grandson goes on a serial killing spree in Sparta.

A former resident of the bottoms, who is now a famous movie star, returns to Sparta to try to persuaded her sister to go after a better quality of life.

When Gillespie runs for a permanent position as county sheriff, his running mate is investigated for allegations of insurance fraud, corruption and murder.

When a former cop marries a wealthy widow, his ex-girlfriend sees an opportunity for blackmail. But their plan to keep her quiet and out of their lives does not exactly go as planned.

Murder takes center stage when the Sparta PD discover that the death of a beauty pageant contestant was no accident.

Bubba's former acquaintance leaves a baby on his doorstep.

Bubba Skinner is determined to have a womanizing real estate agent charged with attempted murder after the man knowingly infected Bubba's friend with HIV.

A washed up country singer, whose biggest fan is Bubba Skinner, is accused of the murder of his former road manager.

Bubba and Virgil bond as friends and coworkers is tested when Bubba is accused of rape by two different women.

Bubba travels to Los Angeles to extradite a prisoner to Sparta to stand trial and finds himself the target of the man's accusers.

Bubba travels to Atlanta, GA in an attempt to improve his drug addicted nephew's quality of life.

A young boy refuses to speak after he witnesses his father's murder.

Bubba Skinner is trailed by the family of a man he killed during an armed robbery attempt.

Bubba is first on the scene of a carjacking and first in the heart of the victim, a city council woman with a history of "man problems".