Frank Tancredi

Frank Tancredi (March 7, 1945 - July 1, 2005), played by John Heard, is a fictional character from the American television series, Prison Break. He is a main recurring character that made selected appearances throughout the series.

Born on March 7, 1945,Tancredi was introduced to the series as the governor of the state of Illinois and the father of Dr. Sara Tancredi (Sarah Wayne Callies). His strict policies on crime earned him the nickname "Frontier Justice Frank". He disapproved of his daughter's decision to work at Fox River State Penitentiary. The character plays a major role in both the escape plot of the first season and the conspiracy plot of the second season due to his involvement in the death sentence of the protagonist, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell).

Appearances

The character, Frank Tancredi, made his first appearance in the series in the episode, "Riots, Drills and the Devil". After the character was killed off in episode, "Buried", he appeared again in the episode, "Bolshoi Booze" via a flashback sequence.

Season 1

He travelled to Fox River when his daughter's life was threatened during a prison riot. After the crisis had passed, Tancredi seemed more interested in reminding her how unsafe work in a prison could be than expressing relief at her safety. This incident further strained their relationship.

When Sara asked him to review Lincoln Burrows' case on the scheduled day of his execution, he ultimately decided not to grant clemency, apparently at the request of the Vice President. Tancredi later revealed to his daughter that he did not review the information she gave him from Lincoln Burrows' attorneys. His reason for his refusal to grant clemency was linked to Vice President Caroline Reynolds (Patricia Wettig). Tancredi has since been suggested by several press sources as a potential Vice Presidential candidate when Vice President Reynolds ran for the Presidency.

Soon after, Reynolds was sworn in as the President after the sudden death of President Mills.

Season 2

After paying for his daughter's bail for release, Tancredi reveals her that he would soon be sworn in as the next Vice President of the United States. Later, Tancredi is encouraged by a political strategist to distance himself from his daughter, which he refuses to do. He visits her at her apartment, and she apologizes for the problems she has caused for him, but also reasserts her belief that Lincoln Burrows is innocent. This prompts Tancredi to take a second look at the Burrows case, and he is shocked to learn of the deaths of Nick Savrinn (Frank Grillo) and Veronica Donovan (Robin Tunney). The political strategist suggests he let it go.

In a later episode, while discussing his forthcoming Senate confirmation hearing with the strategist, Tancredi sees Agent Kellerman (Paul Adelstein), who he recognizes from Sara's apartment. This encounter convinces him that Sara may be right about the conspiracy after all, and calls Sara to warn her that her new "friend" is not to be trusted. Soon after, President Reynolds abruptly withdraws the nomination, despite sufficient support in the Senate for his confirmation. Sara found her father dead shortly afterward in the governor's residence. Although Agent Kim's men made it look like he had hanged himself, Sara refuses to believe that her father could have committed suicide. According to Agent Kim, he had become a liability to the Conspiracy by getting too close to Kellerman's secret, and thus could not be left alive. Tancredi died on June 1, 2005.

The reason for Kim's decision to kill Frank Tancredi was explained in later episodes, where it is revealed that the late governor had acquired an important telephone recording between Caroline Reynolds and Terrence Steadman that took place two weeks after Steadman's reported death. Tancredi hid the USB flash drive that contained the recorded conversation in his private humidor at a Chicago cigar club called "Corona del Oro". After his death, Sara found the key to his humidor and aided Michael and Lincoln in recovering potential evidence that could exonerate Lincoln.