General Hospital: Sonny's Truth Is The Key To A Real Truce With Taggert
It's no secret that Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) and Marcus Taggert (Réal Andrews) have been at odds for decades on "General Hospital." Recently, mayor Laura Collins (Genie Francis) promoted police commissioner Jordan Ashford (currently played by actress Tanisha Harper) to deputy mayor, so she's been pulling double duty. When Marcus Taggert asked her for a job, she offered him her position as commissioner. While he hasn't officially said yes, odds are he'll jump at the chance.
When Taggert came to town in 1996, he was harboring a vendetta against the mobster. Although Sonny is the most powerful crime boss in the northeastern U.S., many in law enforcement agents have learned to co-exist with him, including former commissioners Anna Devane (Finola Hughes) and Mac Scorpio (John J. York). Even former spy and commissioner Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers) has worked with Sonny when it suited him, mainly due to his policy of no drugs and no prostitution, which keeps a healthy balance in the territory and keeps the citizens relatively safe. Sonny and Anna have even become good friends. Recently he paid her a visit because he could relate to the hard times she's going through, where he told her that no matter what they'll always be friends.
Surprisingly, Sonny has helped Taggert in recent years, and the two have brokered something of a truce. But there's one unresolved issue between them that Taggert's going to have to understand if he is also going to achieve a level of coexistence with Sonny as commissioner.
Taggert's mentor abused Sonny and his mother
Marcus Taggert's hatred for Sonny goes back to when they were much younger. When Sonny was a child in Bensonhurst, his mother Adela Corinthos (Iris Almario) married police officer Deke Woods, who soon showed his true colors by psychologically and physically abusing them. As punishment, he would lock Sonny in a closet — the trauma of which made the young boy claustrophobic. Adela ended up dying from one of Deke's beatings, and his cop buddies covered it up. As a teen, Sonny was taken under the wing of local mobster Joe Scully (Robert Miano), and when he learned what Deke had done to Sonny's family, Scully had him killed and provided an alibi for Sonny.
Meanwhile, when Taggert was a troubled youth, Deke became his mentor, leading Taggert to become a cop himself. When Deke was murdered, Taggert blamed Sonny, even though there was no proof that he was involved. So when he transferred to the Port Charles police department after Sonny had taken over the criminal organization, Taggert's one goal was to take the mobster down. However, despite his best efforts, Sonny remained a Teflon don and Taggert failed in his mission. But Sonny never once revealed what kind of man Deke truly was, and to this day Taggert believes his former mentor was a good guy.
If Taggert knew the harsh truth about Deke, it would definitely soften his opinion of Sonny.
Taggert needs to learn the awful truth about Deke
Taggert is motivated by upholding the law, but he currently has a truce with Sonny, especially after the don helped fake his death in order to protect his daughter, Trina Robinson (then Sydney Mikayla). Sonny first hid him in a safe house, then later in a mansion next to his own. The two even had a heart-to-heart about things while Taggert was hiding out, and Sonny opened up about the death of his late fiancée, Connie Falconeri (Kelly Sullivan). Taggert felt sorry for Sonny, but if he becomes police commissioner, all bets are off, and he'll most likely do his best to put him away.
If Sonny would just finally come out and tell Taggert why Deke was killed, the circumstances around it, and what kind of person Deke was, the new commissioner's stance on him could change. Sonny didn't ask Scully to kill Deke, so it really wasn't his fault. It might take a situation where the two are trapped together and have a moment to talk for Sonny to once and for all tell Taggert the truth. If Taggert hears what really went down in the past, he might back off Sonny and work with him instead of against him.
The fans love Sonny and are also on team Taggert, so true peace would be a nice change of pace.