Cliff Burrell is the father of Johnny Burrell and the husband of Linda Burrell. When his neighbors and friends, Mitch and Tara Hathaway's six-year-old son Clayton went missing from their thought-to-be-safe neighborhood in 1987, he offered to help him them find their son. Sadly, when Clay was found murdered, he could only offer them support. He is spared by Mitch and arrested. However, the case returned to haunt Scotty when Internal Affairs investigated his conduct following the Ed Marteson incident, citing his handling of the affair as possible evidence why he was unfit for the job.