Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–…): Season 1, Episode 20 - Remorse - 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.

I'm Sarah Logan.

You've seen me interviewing
other people, telling their stories.

I'm not real comfortable in
the first person, but here it goes.

On January 11th, I
interviewed a refugee

from East Timor for
a special assignment.



The session ran past midnight.

Because I was only nine
blocks away from my home,

I decided to walk.

My trip home took me past
this swimming pool complex.

This is where two men grabbed
me from behind and raped me.

They put a coat over my face
and they dragged me here.

They told me they would
kill me if I made any sound.

One of them wore a running suit.

The other had a tattoo of an eye

on the underside of his wrist

and he smelled
of clove cigarettes.

For the past 12 weeks,

I've had some of New York's
finest working on my case.

In spite of all their hard work,



they had no luck
finding either man.

Maybe you know
one of these two men.

I was attacked.

And I'm going to fight back.

I'm Sarah Logan.

Operator.

Man: No, no, sweetheart.

This is no time
for a phone call.

Mark Krieger, a car-parts
rep from Cleveland.

We met a couple of
times for drinks. Where?

The hotel bar.

It was a stupid, expense-account
fling. Little did I know.

Did he force you into it?

- The guy scared
the crap out of me.
- Is that a yes?

I don't want to press
charges, okay, not on my end.

- I just wanted to help.
- Okay, so give us the key.

- Mark Krieger?
- What?!

You're under arrest
for the crime of rape.

You have the right
to remain silent.

I know, I know. The
right to remain silent.

You have the
right to an attorney.

And the damn city has to pay
for it, too, 'cause I'm flat-ass broke.

Excuse me.

Three months I'm looking for these
two pukes and the night we get the call,

I'm at a Chomsky lecture.
Tell me about Krieger.

He works construction. Priors
include a couple of possession charges,

a handful of assaults, bar
fights mostly, and kiting checks.

He's from Queens, but he told his date
that he was a car-parts rep from Cleveland.

His date? How reliable is that?

Extremely... she knows she was very
close to being a "Mr. Goodbar" victim.

He lawyered up right
away and didn't say a word.

- What did he feel like?
- It's your case, what
should he feel like?

I felt this was a
rape of opportunity.

They didn't target Sarah. They
didn't even know who she was.

She's walking home,
they see her, they grab her.

Since we only have
one of two suspects,

we could get into
a situation here

where the DA has to make
all the charges against Krieger,

"and an unapprehended other."

So just keep that in mind while
you're taking your statement.

- So let Krieger
lead us to the second guy.
- We can try that later.

I want to try to get the second rapist
before Krieger gives him a heads up.

Which he'll do the
first moment he's sober.

Then we'll get
his phone records,

we'll get his employment
records, his credit card bills.

I think we ought to be able
to track down number two.

Did anyone tell Sarah
we have a suspect?

No, I thought she ought
to hear it from you, John.

Hey, John. Did you see my piece?

I did. It was gutsy
and eloquent.

Well, I have to put that
on my epitaph someday.

"Here lies Sarah Logan,
gutsy and eloquent."

Letters of support?

The response has been amazing.

It gets better.

- You got them?
- One of them.

A woman watching your telecast

realized that the guy in her
bed matched your description...

- turned him in.
- His own girlfriend
turned him in?

Girlfriend suggests a
longer-term relationship

- than "Hi, how are you? Let's go to my room."
- Who is he?

I'd give you his baby photos
and home address if I could.

- But?
- But it would jeopardize
the line-up.

Jeopardize the line-up?
This is the man who raped me.

When can you tell me?

The minute this
ugly pageant is over.

You remind me so
much of my brother.

Well, all right,
say this is the guy,

so what does that mean?
What happens next?

- We search
the suspect's apartment.
- No, I mean for me?

After the line-up, we may not see
this guy again until we are in court.

Everything we do until then has
to anticipate any possible defense.

So, it's the business side of
innocent until proven guilty.

I wouldn't have
it any other way.

I didn't think you would.

I mean every collection
agency in town is after this guy.

No bank account?
No credit cards?

He's got a fridge magnet
for a check cashing place;

means he works as
often as he has to.

Being a rapist
is a full-time job.

Pizza take-out, liquor store,

900-me-so-horny number.

Three shirts, two
pairs of pants.

No golf clubs, no
fishing rods, no nothing.

But a man who
clearly likes to smoke.

Maybe they're souvenirs from his
one-night stands with out-of-towners?

Could be.

Every relationship...
short-term,

every friendship... expendable.

How sentimental. We've been assuming for
12 weeks that both rapists knew each other.

Maybe number two was
just someone he met.

"The White Horse Saloon."

"The Black Light."
I'm getting all nostalgic.

- Are you joking?
- Well, sort of.

But in a really dark hotel bar,

anything's possible up
until the 7th or 8th drink.

Benson: Okay, which one of
these was closest to the attack?

That would be "Shad's
Cabaret" at the Regal Inn.

- Classy.
- Yeah, there is no Shad. There is no cabaret.

Just a lot of
hard-drinking locals

and confused out-of-towners.

Let me know if
anything's changed.

Called six numbers,
all contractors.

They hardly
remember Krieger at all.

I got through to a guy
who says he knows Krieger.

I told him that we were
friends. He said to come on over.

What kind of trouble is Mark in?

- He's a suspect in a rape.
- Oh.

Oh? Doesn't that merit
a gosh or that's terrible?

No. No! That guy is
always getting into trouble.

Mark didn't know
what he was going to do

until two seconds
before he did it.

- Impulsive.
- How do you know him?

We're like second cousins.
I mean, I don't know.

My mom explained it to me once.

I think his uncle
married my great aunt.

On January 11th,
he paged you twice.

- Did you see him?
- No, no.

The last time I saw
him was Labor Day.

The Monsters of Metal
tour at the Garden.

Did you know any of his friends?

He didn't really make friends.

Like they say, "Relatives
give you an opportunity

to associate with people who
you'd otherwise never hang out with."

Yeah, that guy owes me 36 bucks.

Mark something... just a second.

You know him? Nah.

- You let him run a tab?
- He gave me a credit card.

But I ran the bill
and so did he.

Here you go.
Mark Krieger, right?

Sounds good to me. Was
he here with someone?

- How the hell would I know?
- Well, the bill.

You got 10
boilermakers on there.

It tells me either he drinks a
lot or he's with another guy.

You got five boilermakers
and five Long Island iced teas,

maybe he's with a traveling business
woman with clouded judgment?

Sorry... not an itemized bill.

- You got a date on there?
- It's on the receipt here. January 11th.

You just made my day.

Assistant DA, Erika Alden.

I'll be representing your case.

Who's he? Robert
Sorenson. I'm his attorney.

Even slimeballs get lawyers.

Just tell me how
it's going to work.

They can't see you but
you can see them, okay?

If you need any of the men
in the line-up to do anything,

you just tell me and
I'll relay it to them.

Take your time
before you answer.

If you don't know, make sure you
can't identify the man before giving up.

Hey, no coaching, okay?

Pay no attention
to the twit in the suit.

Let's go.

All the way to the end.

I didn't really get a
good look at his face.

Can you ask them to roll
up their sleeves, please?

Could you roll up your sleeves,
please, and turn your wrists out?

Wait a minute, they all have
the tattoo. Is this a trick?!

Cragen: We can only ask you if
you recognize any of the men, Sarah.

It's number three.

Number three's the
one who raped me.

Now I can tell you. His name is
Mark Krieger, a welder from Queens.

Not quite a drifter. He has some
convictions, mostly small stuff.

Did you interrogate him?

It was a one-sided... we talked,
he stared. No, he didn't say a word.

Wait a minute. What
about the other guy?

Second rapist? We're
still looking for him.

We may never find him, but
we can still prosecute Krieger.

It makes for a more complicated
trial, but it happens all the time.

Isn't there something you can do,
some way of making Krieger talk?

We tried chaining him to a radiator
and beating his feet with a rubber hose.

Come on! I mean some
legal maneuver, some deal.

His lawyer won't
let us talk to him.

I want to know who he was with,

but more importantly,
I want to know why.

Why? Sarah, I deal with guys
like Krieger all day, every day.

Most of the time, they
don't even know why.

There has got to be a
reason... a drug habit,

abused when they were children,

a withholding mother, something.

Those are the excuses
that rapists tell journalists

and judges once
they've been convicted.

They parrot the psycho-babble they've
learned in self-help books and TV movies.

That doesn't make
them what they are.

- Then what does?
- I don't know.

But I'm more comfortable
knowing that I don't know,

than I would be if I
gave an easy answer.

These guys do what they
do and we try to stop them.

And that's the world, isn't it?

I shouldn't have said that.

No, so what you're saying is that
you may never find the second guy?

True.

And that I may never
understand why they targeted me?

Also true.

You haven't soft-soaped me yet.

- Don't start now, okay?
- Okay.

I got three calls in two
days from One Police Plaza,

pointedly inquiring about
how her case is going.

We have DNA, we have a witness
who places him in the neighborhood,

and we have Logan,
who'll be great on the stand.

But we still don't have number
two, and it's been almost a month.

We showed mugshots to everyone
who ever worked with Krieger,

to his landlords, at every bar
that he ever stole an ashtray from.

- No one bit.
- Krieger didn't keep friends
longer than he needed to...

Lots of people knew who
he was but nobody knew him.

That's just great... We
don't know if his partner

is from Hoboken or
Timbuktu. Any long shots?

I got a call from a
source of mine at Rikers...

Said he heard something
from somebody.

Okay, I'll take it.

Your daughter's teacher
said she cut her some slack.

Means maybe some summer school. I've
also got the principal looking out for her.

I appreciate that, man. I do.

- Not a problem. Let's talk about Krieger.
- Krieger, all right.

Everybody knows Krieger,
'cause of that news lady and all.

What I hear, number one,

he didn't know it was
her when he did it.

And number two, he's scared
he's going down on this one.

- What about the other guy?
- What did I hear?

- Mm-hmm.
- Guy was already in Rikers.

On a DUI or
shoplifting or some trifle.

Krieger finds him,
he lets him know.

"Keep your mouth
shut, I owe you one.

Talk, you're dead."

How'd you hear about this?

We were watching some
tube in the big room, you know.

Her story came on.

I overheard some
guys talking, that's all.

This is what you're giving me?

Come on. You got to give me
details. You got to give me a name.

I wish I did, man,
but I don't, all right?

I like that news lady.

And Krieger... Krieger's
a waste of space.

Do you want everyone who was admitted
on that day, or everyone who was in?

- No, I want everyone.
- I have 16,000 detainees!

- Okay, let's forget
about women and adolescents.
- Now you're down to 12,000.

Why don't you tell me
what you're looking for?

He crossed paths
with Mark Krieger.

Krieger... was in
the main population.

You want a list,
or you want a disk?

How many names are
we talking about here?

6,204.

Can we sort them
by age, or race or...

No. Disk.

Thank you.

Krieger's lawyer
has a reputation

for scorched-earth defenses.

- He's pressing a quick trial,
hoping we'll be unprepared.
- It's open and shut.

- That's why he's got to try
to make the victim look flaky.
- Sarah's story is rock solid.

She never varies a detail.

She said she was
raped by two men.

We're only going to be
able to show the jury one.

She said she took an
unusual route home.

Sorenson's going to try to insinuate
that it was more than just a nice walk.

We got no semen
from the second rapist.

- She said he used a condom.
- I know.

I'm just letting you know what he's
gonna try to do to defend his client.

- So...
- I worked with Sarah.

She's not ready for trial yet.

She trusts you. Talk to her, let
her know it's going to get ugly.

Benson saw a similar
case fall apart last year.

She knows what can happen.

- Ask her for help.
- Thanks.

First of all, Sarah, the
good news is the defense

can no longer bring up
your past sexual history.

- That's no longer allowed.
- But they can allude to it?

If they can. They
have no obligation

to explain what
did or didn't happen.

All they have to do is
muddy the waters enough

so the jurors feel
okay voting not guilty.

They're going to want
to generate confusion.

- They're gonna try
to beat you up on the stand.
- Like how?

It's a rape case, so
they have to ask you

who put what where,
when and how.

For each charge, where
were you, your hands, Krieger?

Where was the other guy?

- How do you know it was Krieger
and not the other guy?
- Okay, I get it.

We're just trying to give you
an idea what it's going to be like.

I understand.

Is there anything else?

Just answer as specifically

and with as much detail
as you possibly can.

You've got to be direct.
Don't use euphemisms.

Say "penis." Say "vagina."

Say "intercourse."

And if these words make
you feel uncomfortable at all,

call me, call Munch,
tell us the story

a million times until you
feel totally comfortable.

If they think you're
uncomfortable, they'll use it.

They'll go over the same thing
five ways just to see you sweat.

Okay, so what happens next week?

Pre-trial maneuvering
and jury selection.

Arcane and tedious proceedings

that have mostly to do with
the rights of the accused.

Sarah, this could be ugly.

Not as ugly as what happened.

- Judge: Counselor, you're
filing three motions at once?
- Four, Your Honor.

You're challenging the
constitutionality of the arrest,

you're questioning the DNA procedure, and
you're moving to have the charges dismissed...

- That's three...
- You flipped right past it.

Okay. Oh, here it is.

"Motion to suppress
the witness ID."

This is quite the
ambitious defense.

Have the People received copies
of this blizzard of paperwork?

We just received
them, Your Honor.

Judge: And the People
are filing just one motion.

What is this?

Erika: It's to exclude
press from the courtroom.

- That should be simple enough.
- To preserve her exclusive?

No, to preserve decorum.

Your Honor, the presence
of the press helps ensure

a fair proceeding in what has
become a high-profile case.

And you think more
press will lower the profile?

I'll balance that against
the possibility that some

counselors like seeing
their names in print.

I'll rule on these
tomorrow. Adjourned.

Well, didn't know he
was gonna be here.

Rights of the accused.

Why are they challenging
my identification?

- The line-up was fair.
- He doesn't have a case.

His only hope is to prove that everyone from
the police to the victim are incompetent.

- Is it always that way?
- He's playing games.

Usually he'd cop a
plea and get on with it.

I don't what's gotten into him.

It's me, isn't it? Just tell me.

You do bring a lot of
attention to the case.

If Sorenson wins,
everybody'll know about it

and then the next time a
multimillionaire kills his mistress...

So fight fire with fire.
Come on my show.

We'll talk about
this exact view.

I don't want to withhold
anything from my audience.

- I'd have to check with Cragen.
- It's already cleared
with Cragen.

Be at my studio at 7:00.
Wear a nice coat and tie.

This is a nice coat and tie.

Nervous, are you?

I'm just concerned that
some of the complex legal

and emotional gray areas
that inform my worldview,

will get lost in your
sound-bite world.

You know, your
voice changes just

the tiniest bit when your
spinning? I know you.

Why don't you have
Alden on? She's a lawyer.

It's better to have a woman
when the subject is rape...

- I want my viewers to see you.
- Or Jeffries or Benson.

If victims see you, they may
be more likely to go to the police.

I'm just the cop who
happened to catch your case.

You're not.

Please?

What do I have to do? Bribe you?

Okay, fine.

I will take you to
dinner afterwards.

All right, I'll go,
just don't say bribe

to a cop in a
crowded courthouse.

Okay.

We're still trying
to track her down.

- Where do you think she is?
- Traffic.

I heard on the scanner that there's some
hellish gridlock up by her neighborhood.

Who's this?

What?!

- Tell me what happened!
- Man: The Captain says you
can't go in there.

- What happened?
- I need you to stay back.

- No, I'm going in.
- Nobody's getting in there till
we get the area secured.

- I can secure it.
- We don't need anybody else
getting hurt.

- Who got hurt?!
- I don't know.

Someone's hurt and the
ambulance is still here? Why?!

- We need to secure the area.
- I'm going in...

- The Captain says you can't!
- John, John.

It's Sarah...

But the ambulance is still here.

John...

- When?
- The neighbors reported
a single blast.

Bomb squad got the call at 6:46.

Arrived on the scene at 6:52.

Six minutes.

It wouldn't have mattered.

I'm sorry.

How did it happen?

Best I can tell, it was a
homemade black-powder bomb.

Anarchist cookbook crap,
concealed in a box of flowers.

So my guess is, she finds
the flower box outside her door,

- carries it inside with her.
- Flowers.

Yeah, she was
standing by the window

when the blast occurred.

Her body actually
blocked the shockwave

from the north side of the room.

It's... it's just pieces.

But I don't think
she suffered much.

- She suffered.
- I meant she was killed
instantly.

I know what you mean.

I saved those for you. I
thought you might want them.

- Great.
- How late did you stay
on scene?

Late. Benson's still
there canvassing.

Okay, what do you guys know?

My source tells me the
second perp may have been

at Rikers the day
Krieger was admitted.

One of 6000 men.

We've narrowed that
down to 207 men...

Right age, right description, who were
out on the street when the rape occurred.

On the theory that the
bomber is rapist number two?

Stabler: Right.

Which totally changes the
conception of how the rape went down.

I know, it makes number
two the alpha-male.

Which means Krieger
was along for the ride.

Which means we may not be
able to link Krieger to the bomb.

Alden said she's going to get Logan's
grand jury testimony admitted via Geraci.

We have to suggest that Krieger
masterminded the bombing,

which, by all accounts he
couldn't mastermind a church picnic.

If he didn't have a
hand in the bombing,

her statements are inadmissible.

Without her statements,
Krieger walks.

Okay, this is what
we're going to do...

Munch, Jeffries, you
pursue the rape case.

Elliot, you and Benson stay
with the bombing, all right?

Anything that points to
Krieger, you tell Munch.

But if it doesn't, you
keep it to yourself.

At least until
the trial is over.

John, you got a minute?

Did you reach the brother?

He just listened, then he said

he's not coming
back for the funeral.

I see.

You want some time
off, John, I understand.

No, I don't. But thanks.

Okay.

The device was pretty simple.

He packed it all
into a soup can.

- A soup can?
- Extra-chunky chicken
and noodle.

Pretty amateurish construction.

It was all held together
with masking tape.

What kind of explosive?

It's low-grade Chinese black
powder with a flammable liquid.

And it went off when she
pulled the lid off the flower box?

That's what I thought,
but it was by remote.

The receiver from a garage
door was hooked to a detonator.

So we got a soup-can
bomb any moron can make,

but he goes to all the trouble of putting
a remote on it? That doesn't add up.

I'm thinking, first-timer. Maybe
a hired gun, eliminate a witness.

No. He's doing a lot more
than eliminating a witness.

- I'm not following.
- Look at the risk he took.

He used a bomb, not a gun.
He put it in a box of flowers.

The essence of the
romantic gesture.

And he could have put
a simple switch on the lid.

Yeah, but instead
he rigs it to a remote.

Her life was in his hands.

There was a park across the
street from where her apartment is.

Did your guys search that area?

No, we didn't know where
he was when it went off.

What do you want to
bet that he was there?

That's why he went
to all that trouble.

He wanted to watch her die.

You can see straight into
her apartment from here.

We have throat lozenges
packages right here.

Maybe our boy has got a cold.

It was pretty
freezing last night.

This guy had to find
her home address,

find this viewing spot,

make the bomb, deliver it,

and while he was
standing right here...

Moves his thumb a quarter of
an inch and kills her. Just like that.

This guy's nothing like Krieger.

He went to incredible
lengths to pull this off.

We got two rapists, different
MOs, different motives.

Number two guy seems to
be somewhat of a planner.

Then you have Krieger, who
jumps in at the last minute.

Went along just for the ride.

Good morning, Counsel Alden.
Good morning, Counsel Sorenson.

Or should I call you Mr. Motion?

Hopefully it's the last
I'll burden you with.

I assume this grows out of
the events of last evening?

You're looking to
quash the indictment.

Without their key witness, the People
will be unable to prove their case.

- Counsel Alden?
- We have DNA, we have witnesses
who placed the defendant

in the neighborhood at
the time of the incident.

Semen without a witness to
allege force does not prove rape.

It only indicates that a
sex act has occurred.

We'd like to amend the
indictment under People vs. Geraci

to include Logan's diaries
and statements to the police.

Geraci requires the People
demonstrate the defendant's

misconduct has rendered
a witness unavailable.

- Are you able to live up
to that burden of proof?
- It's a prima facie case.

- You have
to give me something more.
- Who benefited from her death?

Maybe he did. But so did the
other suspect who wasn't caught.

And he's on the outside.

I should moot the
indictment, but I won't.

I'll give the People seven days to
link the bombing to the defendant.

If they can do that, Logan's
statements can be admitted under Geraci.

The People appreciate that.

I'd like to note for the record
that my client is being held

under de facto null
indictment which, in an appeal,

could look like favoritism.

Are you challenging
my impartiality?

We are now doubly burdened
having to prepare a rape defense,

as well as a Geraci
on the bombing.

I'd like my client bailed so that he
may adequately prepare a defense.

Fine. Bail is set at $50,000.

Happy now?

No, we're unhappy, Your
Honor. No victim, no rape?

Why not declare open season
on all women in New York?

Who are you?

Detective John Munch,
Special Victims Unit.

Well, Detective, you
are seriously out of line.

Whose pocket are you in, anyway?

What did you say?

I said, whose pocket are you in?

I'm fining you $500
for contempt of court.

Make it a thousand. It's better than
having contempt for common sense.

$1000. Say another word,
and I'll put you in the lock-up.

John, don't. Let's
just go. Let's go.

If this gets out, every rapist
in town will kill his victim.

We're going to make this guy.
Krieger's cousin just paged me.

We're not dead yet.

I saw the news coverage
about the bombing

and it reminded me
of a guy Mark knew.

A guy named Tommy.

Jeffries: Why didn't you
tell us about him before?

How to put this?

We did a little
business together?

He sold you drugs, so what?
We don't give a rat's ass about that.

- Is he still dealing?
- No, he got out of that.

He said he was going
to be a made man.

They gave him a gas
station to run in Jersey.

Big promotion. Where in Jersey?

I don... I don't know.

You got a last name for
this gas-pumping wiseguy?

Something Irish, I don't know.

There are like two million
Irish in New York, PK.

Good luck.

If he's the guy...

do I get the reward?

Yeah, go buy yourself a blunt.

McCormack, McConagh,
McCorkendale, Milligan...

Flaherty, Gleason,
Hagan, Killeen, Kilpatrick,

all late of Rikers Island.

All right, all told, 18
Tommys-something-Irish

in lock-up when
Krieger was booked.

And these are the people
that saved civilization?

You say he was
drinking with Krieger

the night Krieger stiffed me?
The night he raped that woman?

- That's right.
- Here's a picture of Krieger.

Maybe if you see them
side-by-side, it will jog your memory.

That's it.

Young, half-gray
hair, he's the one.

Tommy McConagh.

Thanks.

Hey, hey.

I can't get any gas.
The pump don't work!

My wife can't get us
gas. I have to go to work!

- What?!
- The pumps locked.

- My wife can't give us gas. I have to go to work.
- Wait a second!

Come on, man.

Put your hands on your
head where we can see them.

You sold weed to an undercover
cop about a month ago?

- That was a total set-up.
- I don't care about that.

And then they kept
you in Rikers for a week.

Man: Yeah.

And that's where
Krieger told you not to talk

about that night in January?

That night you two
went parting at Shad's?

He told you?

Why do you think he
doesn't want you to talk?

Because he's
pinning it all on you.

Now he's walking...

and you're looking
at about 10 years.

That is not how it
went down, man.

What do you want
from me, my man?

That is the way it's going down

until I hear your
side of the story.

Do you understand that?

Now's your chance. Talk to me.

All right.

We were a little high, right?

We were walking around.

We come to this pool,

it's closed for the
season, you know?

- I know.
- And Krieger says he can
pick the lock.

So, I dare him. He does.

We go in there and it's
really quiet, peaceful,

kind of weird in the
middle of winter, you know?

And Krieger says something like,

- "This'd be
the perfect place."
- What's that mean?

That's what I say. He
says, "to do a bitch."

You know, to get some without
the dining and the whining.

I'm like, he must
be joking, right?

But he's not.

- You saw him attack her?
- Yeah.

She was just walking
by. He just pops her one.

You saw him rape her?

Well...

- I tried not to watch.
- What's that mean?

Are you playing me?
What, are you too modest?

- Is that it?
- No, it's just...

He's a freak!

You're Irish.

You were raised...

to respect women.

Yeah.

Your mother teach you that?

Yeah.

Your mother...

sounds like a good woman.

Why don't you be a
good son? Just give it up.

Okay. I saw him do it.

He ripped off her pants.

Sorry Krieger, your
bail has been revoked.

He threw her down on the
ground, she's kind of whimpering.

Let's go.

He was there, not
five minutes ago.

Stop! Police! Freeze!

Krieger! Stop! Stop
where you are, now!

- Come on, let's go!
- I told him to stop. Why didn't he stop?

- Let's go!
- We got to call Cragen.

I'll call him. Come on!

It's another soup can.

Same crappy workmanship.
Same flavor soup, even.

- Could the bomb
have belonged to Krieger?
- Maybe it was an accident.

Not unless he had a death-wish,
or was incredibly stupid.

- Why so you say that?
- When the package went off,
it took off his package.

- Ouch.
- The remote, was it
a garage door opener?

Yeah. Click, boom.

- The bomber, how close?
- Within 50 feet.

Maybe a rooftop, an
adjacent apartment.

- Are your people
canvassing the area?
- Yeah, but so far, zippo.

Hey, you okay?

- I'm not going, I'm not going.
- We need to keep you here
for observation.

No, my partner can keep
me under observation.

- Who's going to watch me
when I'm watching you?
- I am.

- I'm a lot to watch.
- Yeah, you are.

Do me a favor, take a
couple of days for me.

Fine, for you.

Keep an eye on her, okay?

Take care.

All right, thanks.

They're interviewing everyone on the
scene, or who lives in the neighborhood.

No one's coming up
with anything unusual.

This isn't Beirut. A
bombing is not usual.

I'm assuming we've ruled out
any political or financial angles?

Stabler: I'm thinking
John Hinkley, Jr.

Got a guy who thinks he's got this
relationship with a woman on TV.

- She's smart, she's funny,
he thinks she understands him.
- Benson: His dream girl.

And he thinks maybe she
shouldn't be talking about this rape.

Because of his own
twisted puritanical mores?

Maybe... maybe it's not even
religious, maybe it's just selfish.

But where's the escalation?
Where are the warning signs?

If someone were threatening
her, she would have told us.

She was on TV... she didn't have
to know him for him to know her.

She got hundreds
of cards and letters

after her rape
survivor journal aired.

Let's get a look at those.

Listen, where are
you with McConagh?

He rolled on Krieger,

but he confessed
to nothing himself.

Oh great. No witness, no rape.

No Krieger, no case
against McConagh.

So it's either a confession,
or he walks out of here.

Yeah, but he doesn't
know Krieger went boom.

That's right. That's good.

It's been a while since I tried

the "disappointed
father figure."

All right, nap
time's over, Tommy.

Come on. Sit up
straight, all right?!

I want you to tell me what happened
the night Sarah Logan was raped.

- I told the other guy.
- No, no, you lied to him.

But you don't want to lie to me.

You leave the bar together and
you break into the pool, all right.

We got that. Now,
what happened next?

- It was all Krieger's fault.
- I didn't ask you whose
fault it was, did I?

Did I, Tommy? No.

Now I want you to tell
me what happened next.

Okay? All right?

Just take it easy.

All right. Close your eyes.

Close your eyes, Tommy.
Come on, come on.

That a boy. All right.

I want you to picture it

and then I want you to
tell me what happened.

Okay.

Krieger did her
first, while I held her.

And she says,
"Please don't hurt me."

Krieger wants to hit her

and I say, "You better not."

So you wanted to protect her.

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

I even used a rubber
when it came to my turn.

But she doesn't stop crying.

I'm like, "I put the rubber on,

why are you still crying?"

"Dear Sarah, may
time heal your suffering.

Yours in God, the
Sisters of Saint Joseph."

Rape victims,
families of victims,

different ages, different races.

- All the same denominator.
- With one exception.

Where's the guy who's cooking
up bombs in the kitchen sink

while he's writing
his insipid missives?

- They can test for that.
- Insipid writing?

No, powder residue.

This is it.

- Sort of sulfury.
- Nothing smells like
black powder.

"I'm not clowning around.
Please don't make me frown.

Won't you be mine,
My sweet Valentine?

If this isn't you, don't know what
I'll do." Of course it isn't signed.

He did us one better.

Bingo.

No match in the NYPD
fingerprint database.

No match from either
of the FBI databases.

Nothing in the registered
sex offender database.

Parolees? Already tried.

Nothing in the bomb
squad watch list either.

This guy had access to explosives.
Have you tried city employees?

- Fire, police,
that kind of thing?
- Negative.

Hopefully the psyche evaluation
weeds out someone that extreme.

All right. Let's
look at the weeds.

Stabler: Name is William Lexner.

Graduated Queens College, 1984.

Rejected from the fire
department six times...

Last time in '99.

"Candidate's high test scores
are eclipsed by his narcissism,

his disregard for teamwork,
and his hostility toward

unnamed quote unquote enemies

whom he believes
are preventing him

from being hired by the fire
department. Application denied."

Narcissistic, paranoid,
fascinated with fire.

We've hit the trifecta.

Let's see if we can pick
him up without incident.

We'll take the bomb squad
along because this could get ugly.

Come on, partner. Let's go.

This way. Let's go.

- That's all three floors?
- Yeah.

- You want suits?
- I'm wearing a suit.

Smart man. Bomb suits only make
you a better looking corpse, anyway.

That's comforting. We all set?

Let's do it.

Man: Who's there?

I got a certified check
for a Mr. William Lexner.

Check? Who sent me a check?

Look, sir, all I know is it's for
$419 and I need a signature.

Sir, you can get it from me now
or get it from me in two months.

Re-delivery takes
six to eight weeks.

Okay, have a nice day...

- How you doing?
- What check?

Police! Down!

- I said get down, damn it!
- John! John! We got him.

The bomb squad
swept his apartment.

And?

They found powder residue
on some of his clothes. But?

But I don't think we're going to be
able to make the case on forensics alone.

We need a confession, John.

The guy loves this.

I hate it.

- Will?
- Don't see anyone
else here.

Detective John Munch.

You were the detective
who handled Sarah's case.

I was.

- You want to get
to know me.
- Yes.

Why? You're interesting.

Most of what I
do, sex offenders,

they're all the same.

You don't get the "Nietzschean
Superman" every day.

Sex crimes.

Rape's the worst
crime that there is.

Do you know why?

Tell me.

Let's look at twin sisters.

Both beautiful, both smart,

and a man is going to
ask one out on a date.

The only difference is,
one of them was raped.

So who's the man
going to ask out?

- I don't think it matters.
- Oh, but it does.

Once you know, you know.

It doesn't matter if you care.

Really?

You looked at Sarah
differently after the rape.

She never smiled the same.

The rape, the assault.

- I saw it in her face.
- Saw what?

You don't think
she changed after?

I'm sure she did, but
not the way you mean.

She grew, changed, used her
misfortune to help other women.

She was the perfect woman.

She was a good woman
who did good deeds.

- Mitzvahs.
- Mitzvahs.

What was she like?

Why are you asking me?

William: She
mentioned you twice.

Once on April 15th
and again on April 19th.

You have a good memory.

What was she like...

behind the camera?

You two seemed to click,

like you could have
been something together.

What about you?

Me and Sarah? Yeah.

You brought her flowers.

We're both romantics.

Scratch the
surface of a cynic...

You wanted to be together.

- Yes.
- You knew what she liked.

I wanted her to be happy,

again... like before.

You picked out the
flowers yourself?

Down in Chinatown.

White roses.

She would've wanted that.

And the box had a gold band.

She would've wanted that too.

I left it out in front
of her building.

But you didn't leave.

No, I wanted to see her smile.

That moment when they
open the florist's box...

it's magic.

Where were you
when you set it off?

The park.

I watched the 5:00 news
on a portable television.

Then I watched her come home.

I watched her turn on the
lights like she always does,

take the box up
into her apartment

and then I waited for her smile.

Did she?

For a moment.

Yes, first time all night.

She didn't seem happy
when she signed off.

"I'm Sarah Logan. Good night."

Do you know what I'd
always say back to her?

"Good night, Sarah"?