Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–…): Season 11, Episode 1 - Unstable - full transcript

In the criminal
justice system,

sexually based offenses
are considered
especially heinous.

In New York City,

the dedicated detectives
who investigate
these vicious felonies

are members
of an elite squad known
as the Special Victims Unit.

These are their stories.

Let's face it.
You are not the type
to off yourself.

Don't know why

since you're just a waste
of skin, a lousy pus sac.

So you know
what's coming.

What I can't figure
is why the hell
you're crying about it.



Hey,
we got fives waiting.

So quit playing
with this douche.

What's that smell?

Suspect vacated
his bowels, Sarge.

It couldn't be helped.

Please. You have to...

What's it
look like?

COD's blunt
force trauma.

That's what happens
when a meth head

mistakes
his three-month-old
for a basketball.

The girlfriend claims
it wasn't her fault.

As soon as I get
a warrant for blood,

I'll be charging
her ass, too.

Call a bus.



Hey!

Let me go!
Leave me alone!

Nate Kendall.
I'm a cop. All right?

He raped me.
He raped me.
He raped me.

Let's get you
some help.

No, please!
Please don't leave me.

Please don't leave me.
Please help me.

Please. Please.

You SVU?

Stabler. Benson.

Nate Kendall, the 24.
Your victim ran
into my crime scene.

Get any info from her?

Rena West, 35.
Raped in her apartment.

Superficial knife wounds
and wrist restraints.

Doc says no semen,
but evidence of tearing.

Everything was
bagged, tagged
and sent to forensics.

Great. We'll take it
from here.

Miss West?

Don't come near me.
Get out.

We're Sex Crimes
detectives.

We just want to
hear what happened.

I can't. No.
No. Not again.

Where's Nate?
Where's Nate?

I already told him.
No, I can't take this.

Try to calm down.
Listen to me.

We're here
to help you. Rena?

Rena? Rena,
you're safe now.
Where's Nate?

I need Nate.

Try to take
a deep breath.

Don't touch me!
Never touch me!

Where's Nate?

Nate, where are you?

Hey, CSU get anything from
Rena West's apartment?

No forced entry, no foreign
prints, and no semen.

Just bloody sheets
and green fibers.

In other words,
a whole lot of nothing.

Well, he's got skills, so this
can't be his first party.

Do you mind checking the
database for any open rapes?

Yeah, I'm on it.

You get a description of
your perp from Rena West?

We haven't had a chance
to talk to her yet.

She had to be sedated.

Then why aren't you
back in the hospital

waiting for her
to come to?

We set her off.

She bonded with
the first responder,

Nate Kendall,
out of the 24.

Her hero.

He saved her,
so she feels safe with him.

She basically
told us to get lost.

Where's Kendall now?

We left a message on his
cell phone, at the precinct.

He could be
out in the field.

Hey, Paul.
It's Don, Don Cragen.

Listen, we need to talk to one
of your guys, a Nate Kendall.

Yeah, thanks.

He's on loan to
Street Narcotics.

Pinching
small time dealers.

Latina runner.
Neck tat, orange top.
Be advised.

Her lookout's on wheels.

Move in.
Go, go, go.

Freeze!
Get down on the ground!

Don't move!

Right now!
Do it now!

What the hell?
Remember us?

Yeah, I got your messages.

But as you can see,
I don't have time.

They'll be fine without you.
Rena West won't.

It's not my problem.

You saw what
this guy did to her.

Now we've got to get
him off the street now.

You saved
a woman's life, Kendall.
Help us save another one.

I don't like victims.
They cling.

Not after you bag the trash
that assaulted them.

Vic's hands were
loaded with groceries,

and the doer offered help.

Told her, "Don't be afraid
of the black guy, lady."

Only truth he told was when he
said he didn't want her purse.

She remember
what he looks like?

Average black guy.

You don't believe her.

I think her focus was on
the knife at her throat.

Perp got her inside,
checked her mail and closets.

Make sure
she lived alone.

Means he probably
didn't stalk her.

Bound her wrists, raped her
with his clothes on,

then flushed the wrapper.

So how did she get away?

He went to cut more cord
from the blinds.

My hands were already tied,
so I just figured...

It's okay.
Take your time.

I knew he was gonna kill me.

So when he went
in the other room,

I just got up,
and I was out the door

and running
for blocks.

First smart thing you did.

It's not your fault.

The hell it's not.

Her gut was churning
the second he approached
her on the street.

You're in the way.
Leave.

No. No.
Nate's right.

The guy was
wearing a nice suit,

and he was polite,
but I knew...

I knew that
something was off.

Only a racist acts
afraid of a black guy.

That's what
you told yourself,
and he read you.

Rena, you survived.
That's the only thing
that matters.

Can you give us
a description?

I only want
to talk to Nate.

I don't catch rapists.

They do.
It's you or no one.

Rena, that's just
not how it works.

See, you're going to have to
repeat your story

over and over
to lawyers,

a jury, a judge.
I can't.

The guy who raped you
will rape another woman,

and another, and another.

I don't care. I'm alive.

You said that
that's all that matters.

So just take me home.

You aren't going anywhere.

The bastard who did you
is out hunting his next mark.

You gonna
let her get screwed
because you're fragile?

Park it.

I don't think I can do this.

There's only one way
to find out.

Give us a minute.

This was a mistake.

Not if it helps us
catch our rapist.

And then what?

You think Kendall's
gonna hold her hand
through the trial?

Well, your victim
is not connecting
with either one of you.

At least he's
got her talking.

Did you hear him?

He has no
experience dealing with
sexual assault victims.

If he
works this case,

we are gonna have
to watch him every second.

We're out of options.

Either work with him,
or I'll find somebody
who will.

Average height,
weight, and build.

Round up
the usual suspects.

If you knew
how to talk to victims,
you'd get more facts.

Here's one.

Victims make
lousy witnesses.

Hope you catch your man.

You're not done yet,
Detective.

I need you to stay
with Miss West.

I'm not a babysitter.

You talk like
you have a choice.

Sounds like you
already boned me
with my Captain.

You're mine until
I don't need you anymore.

So what next?

We know our guy's
opportunistic,
prepared, controlled.

He didn't stalk her,
so he picked her up
off the street.

Or at the local market.
That was her last stop.

This the man
who attacked Rena?

You recognize him?

Maybe. I just
can't place him.

You think she was
followed from my store?

It's a possibility.

Any chance
we can take a look
at that footage?

Oh, sorry.
That camera's
just for show.

Talk to Spencer.

Okay. He works here?

No, he's the
neighborhood spy.

He's always watching.

Spencer?
These are Detectives
Benson and Stabler.

They want to
see your footage
from yesterday.

I know you.
You were in the store.

Yes, I was.
We just came
from there.

Two years ago.

Uh-huh. It's possible,
but I think
I would remember.

No, trust me.
My brother never
forgets a face.

You have an awful lot
of surveillance equipment
in here.

Spencer's autistic,
Detective.

Loud noises
and human contact
unnerve him.

This is his way
of being social.

April 12th, 2007,
5:28 a.m.

Late night?

I did good, Tommy?

You did great, buddy.

Spencer, I'd like
to show you a sketch.

Maybe you can help us
find the man
we're looking for.

It was 7:54 p.m.
He was pretending
to read the paper.

I just want to be sure.

Take all the time
you need.

That's him, Nate.

You sure?

Yes.

Facial recognition
software got a hit.
Mark Foster, 32.

He liked beating up
his ex-wife.

He did time for
aggravated assault,

and when he got out,
she filed an RO.

No rapes, though.
Isn't that unusual?

Well, he already
abused his wife.

Wouldn't be surprised
if he sexually assaulted
her, too.

We have
a current address
on this creep?

He was evicted
from his Midtown condo

after he lost his job
as a trader.

His recent W-2s
show him working
in the Meatpacking District.

Trading cattle futures
to cutting steaks?
That's a long fall.

But a short jump
to carving up women.

Let's pick up
the butcher.

I'm riding with you.

We got it.

Mark Foster.
Police. Stop!

What the hell
was that?

You trying
to kill him?

I hate to run.

Hey, you.

Excessive force
with a car.

Are you
out of your mind?

You lD'd yourself,
he ran. Period.
No.

Your stunt could
have damaged our case.

You don't have
a case yet.

Rena West picked Foster
out of a photo array.

And it took her
15 minutes to do it.

Memory
recall's immediate.

You saying she's lying?

I'm saying Rena
thinks it's true

so this whole mess
will be over.

Badly enough to
pick out the wrong perp.

She's white.
He's black.

Cross-race identification
isn't reliable.

You know, not all
black people look alike.

Thanks. But you're
not a victim.

Mistaken lDs
happen all the time.

Rena didn't get a glimpse
of some guy in the dark.

This was a prolonged,
physical attack.

With a big knife
he used to cut her.

Was she focused
on the weapon
or his face?

She saw his face.
How can you be sure?

Because she told us.

And I'm not gonna put
her through any more
than I have to.

Oh, no.

Four's a crowd.

You cops make a habit
of hitting people
with your cars?

You make a habit
out of running

every time a cop
orders you to stop?

Just ask my lawyer
when she gets here.

So, you're refusing
to cooperate.

You're wasting your time.
I didn't rape anyone.

Who said anything
about rape?

A white woman gets attacked
in my old neighborhood.

Every brother
within 20 blocks

is just waiting
to get hauled in
for questioning.

Well, you could play
the race card

if we were rounding up
all the brothers.

But right now,
it's just you.

So where were you
two days ago, Mr. Foster?

I was working
in the morning.

I went on job interviews
in the afternoon.

Where?
Sorry.

You start asking questions,
I won't get hired.

Well, you were seen
in the same market
where the victim shops.

So what?

I used to live there
when I had a real job.

My ex still has
a place in the area.

The ex that had to file
a restraining order
against you?

You got a short fuse.

My fuse is plenty long.
You should see it.

What for?
You couldn't keep
your wife happy with it.

Is that why
you beat her up?

Which bought you
six months in Rikers.

Now, you can't
trade stocks with
a record, huh? Right?

Cost you your job,
your home, your freedom.

Somebody had to pay.

So you whipped
out your big knife,

and you carved up
Rena West.

I don't know that woman,
and I didn't touch her.

Prove it.

Give us an alibi.

Fine.

I violated my RO
when I went to see that
bitch I was married to.

That's smart.

Confess to a misdemeanor
when you're guilty
of a felony? Good one.

She's got custody of my kid,
and she's a damn crackhead.

What the hell
am I supposed to do?

Ninety-three seconds.

Excuse me?

The suspect asked
for his lawyer,

and you kept
questioning him
for 93 seconds.

That's a violation of
his right to counsel.

We'll leave you to
your client, Counselor.

No, no, no, no,
I may be wearing couture,

but I don't
represent scumbags.

So who exactly
do you represent?

The People.

Sonya Paxton,
your new ADA.
How's it going?

Where's Alex Cabot?
Training in Albany.

When she's finished,
she'll take my spot
in Appeals.

Appeals.

Well, no disrespect,

but we do things
a little differently
down here in New York City.

Oh, really?

I was trying homicides
when you were fresh
out of the Academy,

walking a beat
and trying not
to piss yourself.

Executive ADA Paxton
got the first
capital conviction

when Pataki brought
back the death penalty.

Yes, I did.

So when I say
stop playing fast and loose
with defendants' rights,

that's what you'll do,
or you won't
be working here.

That is the
Commissioner's decision,
Sonya, not yours.

That's where
you're wrong, Don.

There have been far too many
overturned convictions,

especially in the
"He said, she said" unit.

So, Jack McCoy
sent me here
to clean house.

Oh, and One PP thinks
it's a really swell idea.

So why don't you
walk me through it?

The victim lD'd Mark Foster
from a photo array.

Was it sequential?

That's not procedure.
A photo array's
by the book.

Yeah, well,
your book's out of date.

Presenting photos
one at a time
is more accurate.

Studies show that
traumatized victims

can't take in
a lot of detail
all at once.

Okay. What else
have you got?

We don't need
anything else.

Seventy-five percent
of wrongful convictions

came from witness
misidentification.

We're supposed to be
victims' advocates.

We start doubting them,
they stop reporting.

Putting innocent men in jail
costs taxpayers money,

and leaves the real perps
on the street to hit again.

Now, barring that,
is there any
forensic evidence?

A few green fibers
that CSU says

are mass-produced
carpeting for vans.

They were discontinued
in the late '80s.

Does Foster own a van
with green carpet?

No, but he could
have borrowed one
or stolen one.

Look, he was careful.
He kept his clothes on.
He wore gloves, a condom.

He wasn't stupid enough to
show up at the crime scene
with his own car.

What we're saying is
he's no first-timer.

He's got his rape
routine down pat.

Wait, wait. I thought
there were no open rape cases
matching this MO.

There aren't.
Maybe the victims
didn't report it.

My gut is telling me
that he's done it before.

Or maybe it's
your acid reflux.

We'll widen the search.
Find his priors.

Yeah. Call me
when you get them.

Break Foster's alibi.
Go talk to his ex.

It's so hard.
You're no good.

Come on, you whore.

Please!
Pull yourself together.

What's the matter with you?

Pull yourself together!

Get off me!
Get off me!

Calm down.
Calm down.

Mrs. Foster,
are you hurt?

Real bad.
I need my medicine.

Okay, honey.
It's okay, sweetheart.
Are you okay?

What the hell
are you doing here?

Came to get Foster's alibi.
Stupid bitch is useless.

She was sucking
on that pipe
when I got here.

The kid's filthy.
There's no food
in the fridge.

That doesn't
give you the right
to rough her up.

She's lucky
I didn't shoot her.

If you need
something to do,

why don't you
take the little girl
to Social Services?

Now.

My little girl
likes cheeseburgers.
How about you?

Okay, sweetie.
It's all right.
You're okay.

Okay.

Mrs. Foster?

I need to ask
you some questions
about your ex-husband.

Was he here?

That's what we
need you to tell us.

I need some rock.

Listen to me.
Look at me.
Look at me.

Benson.

You're not
getting anything

until you answer
the question.

Help me out.
I'll say whatever
you want me to say.

El, that was Fin.
We've got
another problem.

NClC pinged a rape
that matches your MO,

right down
to the green fibers.

I thought there weren't
any open rapes.

There aren't.
It's a 10-year-old case.

Bought the perp
a 25-year bid.

Whose case was it?

Yours.

In '98 I collared
Victor Tate

for the rape
of Katie Harris.

He threatened her
with a knife,
tried to rape her.

When he couldn't perform,
he beat the crap out of her.

And left
the same green fibers
at the crime scene

that you found
on Rena West.

Vans are the vehicle
of choice for perverts.

Hundreds of thousands
have the same carpet.

Or maybe you got
the wrong guy.

Is that your
professional opinion?

Just test the old fibers
against the new ones.
See if they match.

We can't.
The lab used up the whole
sample 10 years ago.

Wait, wait, wait.
What are you telling me?

There's no way to
forensically link

the Harris case
to Rena West's?

No, I'm telling you
they're not connected.

Victor Tate didn't
con his way in.

He didn't tie her up.
He didn't try to kill her.

These guys adapt.
He's had a decade to
improve his technique.

Tate gave a detailed alibi.
It turned out to be false.

He had bloody knuckles.

The victim lD'd him
in a photo array
and a line-up.

And yet, 10 years later,

someone's attacking women
with remarkable similarity.

Well, you're
basing Tate's innocence

on green fibers
that we don't have.

Not at all.
I'm just saying we need
to take a second look.

Fifty-three convictions
have been overturned
in this state, Don.

Even one is too many.

Those men were
exonerated through DNA.
There's a difference.

Falsely imprisoned
for decades,
I might add, because...

Oh, yeah, detectives
didn't do their jobs
in the first place.

Well, that isn't
the case here,
Ms. Paxton.

Tate is guilty.

Really? Oh.
Well, that's great then.

You don't mind calling me
after you re-interview
Katie Harris

and show her
a sequential photo array.

Take Fin with you.

I don't understand.
Why do I have to do this?

This is just
a more accurate way to
identify your attacker.

Victor Tate.

That's the same man
I pointed out
in the courtroom.

Why are you making me
go through it again?

There's a very
slim possibility that
we caught the wrong guy.

What the hell are
you talking about?
That man raped my wife.

He's been
sitting in prison
for 10 years.

A recent victim
makes it look like
Tate could be innocent.

I don't believe it.
That man attacked me.

You think after
what he did to my face,
I wouldn't know his?

Katie, a lot of
victims mistake lD's.

They'll be
absolutely positive,

and then DNA evidence will
prove the guy's innocence.

Is that what
happened here?

No.

But there's other
forensic evidence
we need to check out.

How can you
do this to me?

I wouldn't be here
if I had a choice.

Do you think
he's innocent?

I'm not sure.

Don't come back
until you are.

You all right?

I'm going over
the case in my head.

I read the file.
You did your job,
and his alibi sucked.

No, see,
that's the point.

Tate's alibi checked out
for the weekend before.

He's always said that
it was my questioning
that mixed him up.

That's why he got
the dates wrong.

Come on, man.
Don't beat yourself up.

What if Tate
is innocent?

The man had
a fair trial.

If he's not the rapist,
the entire system failed.
Not just you.

Stabler.

We're coming in.
Liv found
two more victims.

Twelve years ago,
two women reported

being raped
at knifepoint.

Let me guess.
More green fibers
at the crime scenes.

Yep.

And you think
I'm the screw-up.

These cases never
hit our desks.

Why?

Because both
of these victims
are prostitutes.

They gave phony names.

So when no one
believed them,
they took a powder.

We need to find
these two women.

And how should we do that
with 12-year-old aliases?

If you want
to find a whore,
you ask a pimp.

If you need any food,
just come to me, okay?

This guy will
have you in lycra

and plastic heels
before you know it.

Get lost.

Detectives.
What do you need?

You were a baller
back in the day.

Probably knew every
skirt in the city.

If they was any good.

We need a name
with the face.

What's the pay?

Not having me come
back here, Willie.

Heard the rumors,
Kendall.

Don't want to
be your bitch

with a pistol
down my throat.

Honey pot's deceased.

Hey, you remember how?

Strangled by some trick.

What about her?

She wasn't hooking
long before she got
the beat down.

Disappeared after that.

I need a name.

I need to make a call.

Better make it fast.

Hey, you don't get
to knock heads,

even when
it's about a kid.

It's no surprise
we don't see eye to eye.

It's more than that.
You slapped a mother
over her 6-year-old.

Now, you're threatening him
over a girl recruit.

What's the matter
with you?

She reminded me of
my daughter, Kelly.

How old is she?

10.

Only got to
see her two weeks
out of the year.

Never enough time,
but we always
had a blast.

She live out of state?

My ex ran to Seattle
to get away.

And my kid ends up
dead because...

Because I wasn't there.

I'm sorry.

My ex, too.
Got herself involved
with a meth dealer.

Blew them up cooking it.

Kendall.
I got you a name.

Beverly Neal?

Where did you get this?
Who are you?

Special Victims Unit.

We're investigating
another rape that
matched your case file.

There is no case.
Didn't you hear?

I made up
the whole thing.

Look, your rapist
is still out there,

and we can't
catch him without you.

I'm a court
reporter now.

I've seen what goes
on in rape trials.

There are laws
to shield victims.

And tactics to
get around them.

You just don't
want anyone to know
what you used to be.

You've got balls.

I dropped that
baggage long ago.

And now, you expect me
to pick it back up.

What you used to be
shouldn't have mattered.

The way you were
treated was wrong.

And because you say so,
I'm supposed to bend over.

That's how pimps talk.

Women are being raped.

Don't make me
subpoena you.

Fat chance.

You don't know cops
if you think that's
an empty threat.

I am not a whore
or a victim, Detective.

And I sure as hell
won't let you
treat me like one.

How did it go?

One victim's dead,
and the other
won't cooperate.

Then we force her hand.
I'm calling Paxton
to get that subpoena.

You don't call
the ADA without
clearing it with me.

Look, either Beverly Neal
clears Foster,

or she'll put him
in a cage.

And what makes you think
that she'll be able to
make a positive lD

after more
than a decade?

We won't know until
we twist her arm.

Yeah,
but why trust her
and not Rena West?

They were both
attacked with a knife.

Black on black crime.

If Neal picks Foster,
he can't claim
cross-race lD.

Race shouldn't
make a difference.

Research studies
says it does.

Well,
it doesn't matter now.
Foster's in the Tombs.

There's been
another rape.

Where?
Vacant lot Midtown.

Victim is a minor.
Everybody goes.

Checking up on us?

Get used to it.

Standing order at
Central Dispatch says
I get called when you do.

She's just a baby.

Lynn Rivers, sixteen.

Her parents were
out of town.

Preliminary COD
is exsanguination.

She's got several slashes
to her throat and chest.

Carotid's severed.

Well, she wasn't
killed here.

There's not
enough blood.

No fluids either.

Victim's cell phone
shows 14 missed calls
from an Angelina Lupino.

Any forensics?

More green fibers.

She's practically
covered with them.

She was raped
in the van,
then dumped here.

If Foster wasn't
sitting in a cell,

I'd put him right
back in the box.

Foster isn't in
the Tombs anymore.

He made bail.

What? It's his right.

He violated an RO,
and Rena West lD'd him.

Yeah, well,
like I told you

that isn't
enough evidence.

Certainly not enough
to argue remand
without bail.

How much?

Judge set it at 50,000.

So, he throws five grand
at a bondsman,
and he's free to murder.

You know what? Blame
the Constitution, okay?

You want to
be a prosecutor?
Go to law school.

Or better yet,
just do your jobs, guys.

Find me something
I can use to
put him away.

Lynn Rivers suffered
cuts to the sternum,

two stab wounds
to the chest,

and a fatal blow
to the neck.

The blade you're
looking for will be
long and tapered.

Any evidence of
sexual assault?

Tearing in
the vaginal vault,

and she's missing
both areola.

Did he take
her nipples
post-mortem?

Poor kid finally
caught a break.

Foster never took
trophies before.

This was
his first kill.

We stressed him.
He's decompensating.

Makes him more dangerous
if he thinks
he has nothing to lose.

Your victim's tox screens
came back positive
for THC and alcohol.

Weed and booze.

What 16-year-old
doesn't party

when Mom and Dad
are out of town?

Well, we've got
Angelina Lupino
who blew up her cell.

Maybe she can tell us
what happened last night.

Wasn't really a party.

More like
a make-out session.

With alcohol
and joints.

We were having fun.

My mom didn't
know Lynn's parents
were out of town.

Okay. So, this
make-out marathon
was at Lynn's house.

No, Tommy Porter's.
He lives on Riverton.

That's Rena West's
neighborhood.

Did anyone come over
and pick Lynn up?

No. She got elected
to get more beer.

Why her?

Lynn had a fake lD.
She was glad to go
but never came back.

Store manager
said he turned
Lynn Rivers away.

Well, if he sold
beer to a minor,
he wouldn't admit it.

Trust me. He was
telling the truth.

Did anybody see Foster
in the area last night?

No hits on the canvass.

Do we even know
where he is?

If we'd known
he was being released,

we could have
tailed him.

You want to play
the blame game?

Because if Foster's
your guy,

you put an innocent man
in prison for 10 years.

Yeah, I know that now,
and I'll make that right.

Oh, that's
really comforting.

But meanwhile, you have
brought me nothing
to put him in chains.

So, what do you
think he does?

Just cruise around
looking for victims?

He's a predator.
That's what they do.

And how does
he manage that
without a car?

He borrows it
from his old man.

I just ran background
on Foster's family
and close associates.

Turns out his ailing dad
lives in The Bronx

and let
the registration lapse
on his late '80s van.

You satisfied,
Counselor?

No sign of Foster or
the knife upstairs.

Why is my house
full of cops?

We're looking for
your son, Mr. Foster.

Do you know
where he is?

Mark was here when
I left for the store.

Says you want a knife.

You don't
sound surprised.

My son is
a disappointment.

El, the knives.

Test these for blood.

Stevens,
check that out.

That's a lot of steel.

I was a butcher
for 40 years.
Had my own shop.

Sorry, Detective.

Murder weapon's
not here.

He killed someone.

Mr. Foster, we need
to find your son now.
Did he take your van?

Nobody drives
that gas guzzler.

Where is it?

In my neighbor's
garage next door.

Fire.
I'll cut across
the neighbor's yard.

Meet you
in the middle.

Please. Don't kill him!

He's trying to
destroy the evidence.

Bet the knife is
in the van, too.

Police!
Show us your hands.

It's gasoline.
Liv, fall back.

I'm not leaving.
Oh, how sweet.

Don't move, Foster.

You pull that trigger,
we all going to
blow to flames.

Retreat.

We can't.
The evidence is
about to blow.

Kendall? We need
him alive, Kendall.

You know
I want to kill you.

Go ahead.

Sounds like
you want to die.

So do you.

Don't do it.

You should have
taken your shot.

There's always tomorrow.

What are you offering?

How's life
without parole sound?

Overconfidence.

Really?
For second degree murder
and four counts of rape?

Believe me.
If I could, l'd...

I'd mix
the cocktail myself.

Your sentence also comes
with free cable
and a gym membership.

What's this?

It's the murder weapon
that we found

in your client's van.

Leniency depends
on what he tells us
about his crimes.

And it better
be the truth,

or I'm gonna
take it personally.

Stick a fork in me.

You are so lucky
it's not a needle.

Two whores.

Figured they'd be easy.

What's the world coming to
when a ho yells rape?

Made me mad.

So I played the John,
and I choked the bitch.

Guess one of them
ran scared.

And I looked hard
for her, too.

That was one lucky whore.

I had plans to gut her.

What do you remember
about Katie Harris?

Everything.

I put my knife
in her side,

and I forced her
to take me upstairs.

I had to slug her
because she fought.

You hit her
because you couldn't
get it up.

That's a lie.
I put a hole
in her mattress.

You couldn't perform,
so you got angry.

That's why
you cut her face.

That's a boning knife,
sweetheart.

I just wanted to
see how it handled
on human flesh.

I don't recognize him.

Take it easy.
Take it easy.

He's going to prison
for what he did to you.

What about Victor Tate?

We gotta get him out.

I didn't feel the urge
for a long time.

Until I lost my job.

I was off my game
when that bitch got away.

Should have tied
her ass to the bed
from the start.

The little girl...

She wanted to pay me
to buy her beer.

Easiest mark I ever saw.

Figured you'd move on
thinking I was the wrong guy.

Just like before.

You cops just love to brag
when you pinch the bad guy.

You ever wonder
how many times
you get it wrong?

You're the last person
I expected to see.

What horrible thing
did I do this time,
Detective Stabler?

I made a mistake,
Victor.

I wanted to
tell you myself.

We arrested Katie Harris'
rapist today.

Never thought
I'd hear those words
coming from you.

Makes two of us.

Another man
confessed to the crime.
We've got it on tape.

You'll be
a free man soon.

Does she know?

Katie?

She heard him describe
her attack in detail.

There's no doubt.

We finally
got the right man.

I told you
I didn't rape her!

Many times.

Nobody believed me
10 years ago!

And then,
my life just stopped!

Lost my woman,
my friends!

Hell, my mother
barely knows me!

We'll fix that.

Victor, I owe you a debt,
and I can't pay it.

I'm going to get you
out of here
as soon as I can.

I promise.

Is this really
happening?

Believe it.

Yuk it up, fish.
You won't be
laughing for long.

Like that sap
you pinched
in my place.

Mmm-hmm.

An innocent man doing
hard time is so cruel,
don't you think?

Sloppy work, Elliot.
I'm surprised they
let you carry a badge.

Hey. Why don't you
give yourself a break?

Let me haul his ass
to the Tombs.

Take me
to the can first.

Just hold it.
You can go later.

Either let me piss or
clean it out your car.

You are begging
for a beat down.

I need to
take a leak.

Let's go.

Is Nate here?

He doesn't work
this precinct, Rena.

Tell me where he is.

Nate can't prop
you up forever.

If you want
your life back,

you're going to
need counseling.

Why don't you
give them a call?

What happened?

What the hell
did you do?

Nothing.
The guy just...

The guy just
took a header
out the window.

Did he jump,
or did you toss him?

His neck's broken.

Was that before or
after he grew wings?

There's no way
to tell.

You think I killed him.

I wouldn't
put it past you.

I didn't touch the hump.

I'll wait upstairs
for lAB.

He did it.

Who gives a damn?
At least Foster won't
be able to rape again.

Stabler, he also can't
testify in court now,

which leaves Victor Tate
stuck in prison.

What are you talking about?
We've got new evidence.

No, it's hearsay.

We have Foster's
confession on tape.

A dead man's confession
doesn't meet the rules
of evidence

or allow cross
in front of a jury.
It's inadmissible.

What about
early parole?

We can appear
on Tate's behalf.

No, an inmate
has to admit guilt

before a parole board
will let him go.

I just told
an innocent man
he's getting released.

Yeah, you jumped the gun.

I'm getting him
out of there

if I have to hire
a lawyer myself.

You can do that,
but it's not gonna
change anything.

He's still gonna
end up serving
the whole bid.

That's another
15 years, Sonya.

Look...

I don't know
what to say. I'm sorry.

Tell me what to do.

Unless you know
the governor,

there's not a single
thing you can do.