After Mike Kellerman executes Mahoney in cold blood, the two of them and fellow detective Meldrick Lewis report the incident as a justified self-defense shooting.

Stivers immediately expresses her unease about Kellerman's actions, while Lewis takes a more circuitous route in dealing with his own mixed emotions about the incident.

In Season 6, she serves brief stints in the burglary and sex crime units before transferring to homicide.

After Stivers admits to Giardello that the reports on Mahoney's death were not accurate, the truth about the shooting comes out and Giardello brokers a deal for Kellerman to resign immediately so that Lewis and Stivers will not be fired for submitting false reports.

Stivers remains in the homicide unit, but when she encounters Kellerman (now a private investigator) in Season 7, she criticizes him for the effect his actions have had on the department.