A convicted felon claims NCIS framed him for murder a decade ago, so Gibbs investigates and asks Ducky to conduct a new autopsy. Meanwhile, Senior FBI agent Fornell joins the probe, since he was the lead investigator in the original joint FBI and NCIS case.

NCIS strikes a deal with convicted murderer Paul Triff, giving him a 48-hour furlough at his former residence, now McGee's home, in exchange for information that can convict his former cellmate, Gabriel Hicks, the murderer who deceived Gibbs and Fornell.