Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–…): Season 16, Episode 18 - Devastating Story - full transcript

NARRATOR: 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.

Tonight, on America's
Worst Crimes.

We've heard these
stories before.

A vicious rape on campus,
an unresponsive university...

And yet, the details
of this particular story

are even more
horrifying than usual.



Just steps away from the
hectic heart of New York City

stands Hudson University, a
venerable institution of higher learning.

A sanctuary of the mind.

For a freshman,
we'll call her Jane,

away from her small mid-western
hometown for the first time,

New York City and Hudson
were a dream come true.

But Jane's dream was
about to turn into a nightmare.

It started out
innocently enough.

Bill was a popular athlete who
seemed like real boyfriend material.

I thought he was
one of the good guys.

But you were wrong.

About everything.

SKIP: They went back to his room

in one of the most popular
fraternities on campus.



(GIGGLING)

What started as a romantic
moment quickly took a terrifying turn.

Jane suddenly found herself
outnumbered by four men twice her size,

all with malicious intentions.

I could not believe
he'd do this to me.

SKIP: But he did, didn't he?

He set the whole attack up.

And he gave his three friends
permission to do whatever they wanted?

JANE: At some
point I just went numb.

SKIP: She was viciously
gang-raped for hours.

Her anguished cries for
help went unanswered.

I could tell I wasn't
even human to them.

They took turns raping you?

Yes.

Sodomizing you?

Yes.

When they were done, they...

Okay, Noah, just to be clear, you are
not going to Hudson University. No? No?

What do you want? Hold on.
SKIP: I know this is difficult.

Here you go, sweet.

They called me a whore.
They called me a slut.

JANE: They shoved me out
of the door like I was garbage.

Did you call the police
or campus security?

When I was up to it,
I went to the school.

They asked me if I
had been drinking,

if anyone could corroborate.

(PHONE RINGING)
Milk? Whatever you want.

Oh. Chief Dodds.

SKIP: Brutalized by
the big men on campus...

America's Worst Crimes,
I'm actually just watching it.

Uh, no, I... I hadn't
heard about it.

The Mayor's wife was watching?

Well, that's just terrific.

(SCOFFING) Yep. We're on it.

But for Jane, her ordeal
had only just begun.

More from this nightmare
on campus, when we return.

(SIGHING)

(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)

But for Jane, her ordeal
had only just begun.

More from this...

This is what you do
with your Sundays off?

Me and Gracie
Mansion, apparently.

And now, 1PP is pissed because they
got caught flat-footed on national TV.

America's Worst Crimes has a
huge following. This is gonna go viral.

CARISI: Yeah, I looked into it.

The report says the attack
happened in December,

but NYPD's got no record of a
complaint from the vic or Hudson U.

She did say that Hudson
University ignored her

and God knows we've
been down that road before.

I know that the
tail wags the dog,

but these TV shows
are in it for the ratings.

We don't know that any
of this even happened.

Yeah, I'm all for overtime, but
don't we have enough work to do?

Guys, this isn't LMZ. It is a
legitimate national news magazine.

They interviewed
her. She disclosed.

And I got a call from Dodds,
who got a call from the Mayor.

So, we are going to investigate.

KIM: We don't even
know who this girl is.

America's Worst Crimes does.

Don't make me talk to reporters.

Detectives. I'm guessing you're
here about the Hudson story.

Well, you got everybody
talking. Including our bosses.

Well, it's gratifying. And
not just the Peabody buzz,

but for AWC to be in
a position to amplify

what's going on
behind those ivy walls.

No, you amplify, we investigate.

So we're gonna
need to talk to "Jane."

Well, I'd love to help. Especially
with what that girl had to suffer through.

But I can't give you her name.

Your report said
she was gang-raped.

Now is not the time to hide
behind the First Amendment.

I'm not falling on
my journalistic sword.

The only way Jane would talk
was if I promised her anonymity.

She's scared to death
of those fraternity boys.

We can find a judge who'll compel you to
hand over your sources and raw footage.

All right, look, I'll kick the footage
request upstairs. That's not my call.

As for Jane, I can put you in touch with
the woman who shopped me the story.

Maybe she can convince
Jane to talk to NYPD.

Come on.

DILLON: Really
insightful work, Emma.

Professor Dillon, hey. Uh,
Detectives Rollins, and Detective Carisi.

We're from SVU. How can I help?

We just, um... We wanted
to talk to you for a minute,

about the AWC
segment last night?

Sure. I thought it was
important what they did.

I'm glad they
started the dialogue.

Hey, listen we were hoping that you
can get us in touch with, with "Jane."

The reporter said
you introduced them.

I thought it was crucial
her story be heard.

But Jane already tried to
disclose once, to the school.

You heard how that turned out.

Look, whatever happened
between the victim...

Survivor.

Okay, the survivor and the university,
that's got nothing to do with us.

You have to understand, this
woman is still extremely fragile.

To subject her to harsh
scrutiny, the legal system...

All due respect, Professor,
obviously we'd like to go through you,

but if you're just gonna get in the
way, we'll go over or around you.

Interesting phallocentric
choice of language, Detective.

My, uh, my partner is
still a work in progress.

Listen, we all know that
something terrible happened to Jane.

We don't want these
guys to get away with it.

I hear you. I do.

I just don't think that Jane
wants to deal with any of this.

DILLON: But I'll
give her a call.

I see.

All right, thank you very much.

(GROANING) That
was Professor Dillon.

Jane said she's not
going to talk to us.

That she'll come forward
when and where she wants.

What does that mean?

KIM: She's scared to
make an official complaint.

And knowing what we
know, we can't blame her.

So that leaves us where?

Back at square one.

Dillon's no help.

Hey, speaking of which,
what was that crack about me

"still being a
work in progress?"

Oh, come on, Carisi! The
lady's a rape advocate.

She's got a chip
about male detectives,

I figured I could earn her
trust if I aligned myself with her.

Hmm. Rape advocate. I
don't even get what that is.

I mean, there's no burglary advocate.
There's no carjacking advocate.

Yeah, when's the last time
a carjacking victim got asked,

"Are you sure you didn't
want your car to get stolen?"

Okay, I get that.

Hmm. All right.

But still, she's just
getting in our way.

Yeah, that's SVU.
Get used to it.

Where you going? Back to campus.

I don't want to tell the Sarge
we came up empty-handed.

Solamente adesso
la investigazione.

No comment.

Yes.

Okay, good. Grazie, ciao.

No comment to the Italian
press? They're on this already?

I gotta tell you, bad news
in New York travels fast.

I mean there are already Twitter
campaigns, calls for campus rallies

and revoking the frat's charter.

Which explains why the Mayor
and the D.A. are all over this. And me.

So have you managed
to ID Jane yet?

Look, Carisi's still trying, but the
closest he and Rollins have gotten is

Jane's self-proclaimed
advocate, Professor Dillon.

And she's gonna produce Jane?

No. Look, Jane is scared of
fraternity retribution if she goes public.

And she doesn't
trust the police.

So she's not gonna talk?

I could subpoena the
show, or this professor.

There's gotta be an easier way.

Now Jane said on the AWC piece
that she disclosed to the university.

But they didn't specify to whom.

So let's go to the
top and find out.

Okay. Do you want me to
come with? Not necessary.

President Roberts
and I have history.

I'm assuming this is
about that broadcast.

It is.

So the victim said that she
was shut down by the university.

Do you know who she spoke to?

I do. She spoke to me.

Oh. I followed the
Department of Education

sexual assault
protocols to the letter.

And yet, here we are

investigating an unreported
gang-rape that occurred on your watch.

First I heard of any
"gang" was on that show.

When she came to me, she
mentioned only one individual.

And who was that?
I'm not at liberty to say.

These reports are
confidential. It's university policy.

That anonymity ceases to exist
when a crime has been committed.

What exactly did she say?

What she described was
regrettable, drunken sex. Not rape.

With four men? Holding her down?

She mentioned one student only.

She admitted she
was intoxicated,

she went willingly back to
the fraternity with her date.

I asked her whether she was
sure the sex wasn't consensual.

She proceeded to become
defensive. And then she left my office.

And you didn't bother
to talk to her "date."

Actually, I did. He said
the sex was consensual.

He seemed credible, he's
well-regarded, and has no prior complaints.

That was that. The
next I heard of this was

last night when we were
blindsided on national television.

Well, now that these
allegations have been made,

I will need her name and the name of
the student that she claims attacked her.

Hm. STUDENTS:
(CHANTING) We are all Jane!

So she hasn't come to you?

Which means, whatever happened,
she hasn't filed a criminal complaint.

Which means my
responsibility remains protecting

the confidentiality
of both students.

(CHANTING CONTINUES)

We are all Jane!
We are all Jane!

We are all Jane!
We are all Jane!

Excuse me, I have a
firestorm on my hands.

Hey, Sarge. Hey.

So far on campus
nobody's been any help.

Get anywhere with
President Roberts?

You know, it's the usual.
First she blames the victim

a little bit, and then she
hides behind the cloak

of protecting the
students' confidentiality.

So we still don't even
know who this girl is?

No idea.

I was told that if my rapist
made me feel uncomfortable,

I could switch classes
or move to another dorm.

I kept my mouth shut, and he
graduated with honors last June.

Now, for the first time, I'm
speaking my truth because of Jane.

(CHEERING)

Thank you.

All of your stories
have been so powerful.

There is one last survivor
who wants to share her story.

She's someone you already know.

(APPLAUSE)

Hi. Um...

My name is Heather Manning.

(STUTTERING) I am the real Jane.

I want to tell you my story.

So much for anonymity. Yeah.

Heather, thank you
so much for coming in.

Uh, I hope you realize this does
not mean we're pressing charges.

We? You know, Professor Dillon,

we think it's probably best if
we speak with Heather alone.

Actually, Sergeant,
could you and I talk?

Um, sure. Okay.

This way. We just... We just want
to get Heather's side of the story.

I was worried about bringing Heather
to the police, being re-traumatized.

But I've spoken to
others in the community,

and they've all said that if anyone
is going to protect a survivor, it's you.

Mm-hmm. I will. And I promise
you that I will look after her.

Heather was clear about wanting me
to sit in with her. She doesn't know you,

she trusts me.

December 12th, I was on a date
with an Alpha Zeta Pi hockey player.

Brian Mackey.

He's the team captain.

And the date was at his frat?

No, no. First we went to a bar,
and then we went back to the house.

We were making out in the hallway
when he pulled me into his room.

Three guys were waiting.

And they jumped me.

Like a pack.

And Brian led you in?

He was in charge.

He had two guys hold my
legs while he held my arms.

And did you know the others?

His buddies from
the hockey team.

I'm not sure I want
to tell you their names.

Okay. Okay, well, we can
get back to that. No problem.

Um, and you were sure
that there were four men?

Yes.

Okay. Because President Roberts
told us that you only mentioned one.

Professor Roberts
blamed Heather.

She didn't feel safe
disclosing to her.

Well, you're safe here, Heather.

Okay? All right. So
what happened next?

Umm...

Then they took turns raping me.

Sodomizing me.

(CRYING) Um, sorry.

Go ahead. We didn't
talk about this part on TV.

HEATHER: They used an object,

the handle of a hockey stick.

And then... (SNIFFLING) And then they
high-fived each other and they left me there.

When I tried to pull
myself together and leave,

the other guys in the
frat threw beer cans at me

and they yelled at
me to go to church,

they said that I should call my
dad and apologize for ruining his life.

It was so horrible.

Did you tell anyone? Did you, did
you tell your parents or your roommate?

Uh, my parents still don't know.

Why is that?

They're in the Central African
Republic, fighting malaria.

Did you go to the doctor?

Is there anyone to corroborate?

Show them the text, Heather.

Oh, um. Brian sent me a text.

His attempt at an apology. Here.

"Sorry about last night.
My boys were out of control.

"But you deserve better
than what they did."

This is great, Heather.

So, uh, is there any
other physical evidence?

Like, maybe the clothes you
were wearing. Anything like that?

Um, actually, one of the guys handed me
my panties back before class that Monday,

just to humiliate me.

And you kept them?

I shoved them in my backpack, and then I
threw them in my drawer when I got home.

They might still be there.

Okay, good. So, if you decide
to give us the other boys' names,

that will be enough
to get a DNA sample.

It still won't be easy.

No. It's okay.

I want to.

After the rally, all those other women
need to know they can do this, too.

Okay.

The other names were Connor Howell,
Lance Mosconi, and Zach Franklin.

All on the hockey team.

This is where it happened.

Pick up all cell phones, laptops,
bedding and hockey sticks.

NYPD. Glad to see you, officers.

You here about the brick
coming through the window?

Nice try. IDs, now.
Turn that music off.

All right? We're looking for Howell,
Mackey, Mosconi, and Franklin.

Yes, sir... Ma'am.

Guys, STFU. Come
on. I'm Brian Mackey.

This is Connor
Howell, Lance Mosconi.

Franklin's out of the country.

Thank you. We also have a
warrant to search the premises.

Which means all
of you, stay put.

Somebody wants to hear my
side of the story? That's a first.

Brian, between you and me, there've
been a lot of women doing a lot of talking.

Sometimes, as guys, our side gets
lost. And I just wanna hear yours.

Heather and I had sex.

Consensual. Now this went away
months ago. And now she goes on TV?

KIM: Had Brian been
dating Heather for a while?

Heather's wanted the business
from Brian since rush week.

He finally threw her a bone.

Eight inches of it, brah!

How you know? You watch?

Heather wanted to stay and
snuggle. But I was kind of... Done.

So she just left?

No, I did. She was
upset. You know, girls.

Middle of the night, she
does her walk of shame.

She kind of had
to run the gauntlet.

What are we talking about?

We call her a whore, we
throw things. We didn't hurt her.

Can't take the
heat, don't be a thot.

You have sex with her?

(SCOFFING) And pick up
Mackey's scraps? I don't think so.

We're the ones getting
screwed here, all right?

Search warrants, a frickin' vigil
outside. Nobody raped this girl.

Okay. Well, that search warrant
includes collecting your DNA.

CARISI: Open up.

How was the boy's club?

Gamey. They're the victims. She's
a whore that woke up with regrets.

Anybody admit to consensual sex?

Brian Mackey. Connor
and Lance deny.

And what about
the fourth assailant?

Zach Franklin, he's twenty.
He's a multi-sport scholar athlete.

He's on a culture
tour of Cuba right now.

Can we get him back? From Cuba?

Sarge. TARU just found a
video that Connor made that night.

He erased it from his cell, but they
found it on his computer's hard drive.

You're gonna want to see this.

ALL: (CHANTING) Go
to church! Go to church!

MAN: There she is!

This has been another Connor
Howell slut-shaming video. (CHUCKLES)

That's harassment. It's
ugly, but it's not assault.

We have semen matching Connor
and Brian's DNA on Heather's underwear.

Anything on the hockey sticks?

Not after three months,

but between Brian's text and
Heather's testimony, you've got enough.

Enough for probable cause.
Everyone wants these guys put away,

but this case is three
months cold. No rape kit.

Heather's initial disclosure
mentioned only one assailant.

President Roberts shut her down. She
can be extremely intimidating, believe me.

Heather knows what she's in for?

(SIGHING)

Bring in the hockey team.

There was no gang rape, okay?

No assault? Then
why text her this?

"My boys were out of control. You
deserve better than what they did."

Look, I know the guys, you know,
like messed with her on the way out.

I felt badly.

The guys? You were there too.

That text was to check in on a
friend. It's not proof of a criminal act.

FIN: How about
the others, Brian?

We have DNA proof that
you weren't the only one.

You do? Then talk to them.

Not me. I told you, I don't want
to be Brian's Eskimo brother.

Well, you're lying, Connor.

We have your DNA on Heather
Manning's underwear from that night.

My DNA's all over
that place. I live there.

This underwear has an evidentiary
chain of custody from three months ago?

Ask your client. He handed it back to
her, in class, in front of twenty students.

Which explains
his DNA, doesn't it?

Doesn't explain his semen.

Lance, there's a reason that you're
here, and those other guys are in the box.

'Cause I didn't do anything?

Yeah. That's right. I mean...
You just, you watched.

No, I wasn't even in the
room with her, okay? I swear.

Okay. Well. Today's
your lucky day.

'Cause if you tell me who was
in the room, you could walk.

You call Cuba?

It's not like I have pull there.

Zach Franklin will be arrested
when he returns to American soil.

If he does.

(CHUCKLING) Okay.

Hey, Connor, I was just telling
Detective Rollins here that we don't need

to talk to you anymore.

Between the DNA and one of
your buddies putting you in the room

with Heather, you're done.

(WHISPERING)

Okay, look, I didn't want to say this
before, 'cause I thought it would look bad.

Uh-huh. But after she finished
with Brian, she moved on to me.

Like that. (SNAPPING FINGERS)

Her idea. Totally consensual.

And I didn't rape
her. Ask Brian.

So he was there? He saw you?

Oh, Brian, you forgot to tell
us about your boy, Connor.

What is this about?

Connor just admitted that he had
sex with Heather right after you did.

DEFENSE ATTORNEY: How
is that my client's problem?

Well, he said that you knew
about it. Which means you lied to us.

So, what else you
been lying about?

Brian, you don't need to
answer any more questions.

No, I... I want to explain. I did
see Connor with her, but she was...

Enough.

Let him finish.

For her to be acting all
prim and proper now?

She wants to act the whore on
Saturday, and play the virgin on Sunday.

There you have it. Detectives, so
far we've extended every courtesy.

But now it's time for us to go.

Or... Listen, you could sign
this, we could keep talking,

and you can tell us your side.

And maybe we can clear this whole thing
up without it having to go into the system.

KIM: Okay?

A temporary arraignment
waiver? Get out of here with that.

Unless my client's under
arrest, we're leaving.

Okay, you two stay here. I'll
see what my D.A. wants to do.

(DOOR OPENING)

All three turned
down the waiver.

Their lawyers think letting them
talk's just gonna make things worse.

Good. Arraign them. The deeper into the system
they get, the harder it is to pull them out.

All right, we'll
load them up now.

BENSON: You know
what? Hold up a half-hour.

Connor's a handsome
boy with a smug smile.

Be good to get that face
on the eleven o'clock news.

(REPORTERS YELLING)

Hey, Brian, this way!
Come here, Brian!

WOMAN: Are you
going to plead guilty?

Connor, Lance, why
did you rape Jane?

WOMAN: Lance, are
you the ringleader?

With us this morning
is Skip Peterson.

He has an update now
on that shocking story

of a gang-rape at
Hudson University.

Skip, welcome.

I understand that the school has
since suspended all fraternity activities?

Yes, they have, and
last night NYPD arrested

and arraigned three
of the accused rapists.

Brian Mackey, captain of the
hockey team, and his teammates,

Connor Howell,
and Lance Mosconi.

And you had a chance
to talk to the victim, Jane?

She's now bravely come forward.
Her real name is Heather Manning.

We caught up with her at a
campus rally late last night.

I'm gratified to hear that three of
the six men who attacked me were

arrested tonight by NYPD.

(CHEERING)

What they did that night
was meant to dehumanize me.

When they said, "Who
else wants to rape that?"

They weren't just assaulting me,

they were assaulting every
woman on this campus.

Did she just say six men
raped her? I thought it was four.

Maybe she's counting the guys
in the video, the ones in the hall.

I don't know. Something feels
off. "Who else wants to rape that?"

Does that sound like something
even a frat boy would say?

It's not what they said, it's
what they did. DNA don't lie.

And you say there's more
information still to come?

Sources have also told me that
police confiscated a video of the assault,

and that hockey sticks used on
her have tested positive for DNA.

JENNA WOLFE: It's just
horrifying. What about Heather?

Her words are just so powerful.

You told me they didn't find
anything on those hockey sticks.

(SIGHING) They didn't. And
there's no video of the assault.

So who's his source? And why is
Heather even giving an interview?

She's gone from reluctant witness to
being on every news show in 48 hours.

Once you tell your story, it can be
empowering. The floodgates open.

They opened and let in two
extra assailants. She's up to six.

Right. When you're dealing with
PTSD, things come back in pieces.

I will talk to her.

In no way is this about silencing
you. But we're still making our case.

And we need to know that the
public speeches you've made

won't contradict the
statements you've made to us.

People need to know
what these boys did to her.

Okay. But, first of all,
let's get clear on the who.

You know who they
are. You arrested them.

Are we really going to start
picking apart the survivor's story?

This is exactly why we were
reluctant to come here in the first place.

BENSON: I understand,
Professor Dillon.

But Heather, last night at the rally,
you said that there were six assailants.

Are there two others that
we should be looking for?

Look, I don't know exactly
what happened in that room.

People were hiding in the
shadows, chanting, throwing things.

But the four you named...

Absolutely raped me. Brian,
Connor, Lance, and Zach.

I know Zach was there because
they kept calling him Stinky,

and he said, "Dudes,
my name is Zach."

DILLON: Can I ask why
Zach wasn't picked up?

Because he's in Cuba,
and they won't extradite.

But we do have a
warrant out for his arrest.

Good. And again, I
hope going forward,

that we can kick apart
their stories, not Heather's.

BENSON: We can, and we will.

And I hope, going forward, Heather,
that you'll stop talking to the press

and at rallies about this,

so we can do our
job, you understand?

There's only one
problem with that.

Which is what?

I'm supposed to go on Anderson
Cooper and Rachel Maddow tonight.

Heather, you're gonna
have to cancel those.

That's impossible.
It's too late.

These issues are finally being
brought to national attention.

The whole country is waking up to
the rape epidemic on our campuses.

I thought that you said that you
wanted to bring your assailants to justice.

Right, I did say that. And I do. But
this is so much more than that now.

I'm the face of a movement.

How'd that go? Not good.

She wants her story heard.

Which one? Her
story's falling apart.

Six guys, four guys,
hockey sticks, no DNA.

She keeps talking, she's
gonna torpedo her own case.

FIN: Zach Franklin just
surfaced at his lawyer's office.

He's about to go
live on LMZ right now.

Folks, just let me know when you're
all ready, and we'll get this going.

Hey, Liv, you know about this?

I'm John Buchanan,
attorney for Zach Franklin.

Star athlete, scholar, and
unequivocally innocent of

any and all charges in the so-called
Hudson University gang-rape.

Of course he is.

That's a big bluff,
even for Buchanan.

You think he's got something?

Tell them where you
were December 12th, 2014,

the night of Heather
Manning's alleged assault.

I was nine hours away,
in Kimball, West Virginia,

on the WV Hillmen soccer field.

The championship game was televised
live on SEN until 11:40 p.m., Eastern Time.

If you missed it, you'll be happy
to hear that Hudson won, three-zip.

(ON PHONE) Benson.
We didn't vet this?

He was in Cuba, Barba. Remember?

COUNSELOR BUCHANAN: This is the exact
time Heather Manning is alleging my client

was engaged in a
heinous crime against her.

NYPD and the D.A. are
guilty of an outrageous and

utterly inept investigation
and prosecution.

Zach, tell them where you
were December 12th, 2014,

the night of Heather
Manning's alleged assault.

I was nine hours away,
in Kimball, West Virginia,

on the WV Hillmen soccer field.

Alleged assault?
Heather was gang-raped.

If that's true, Zach
Franklin was not involved.

I could have sworn he was there.

It was dark, but
I heard his voice.

'Cause you told us that they called him by
his nickname, that you heard him respond.

Well, maybe that happened in a
nightmare. I haven't been sleeping.

DILLON: Survivors have unclear
memories. But the other boys are guilty.

You have their DNA.

They're claiming
it was consensual.

And you believe
them over Heather?

Professor Dillon, I think it's best if
Heather speaks to the A.D.A. alone.

I disagree. I'm the only
one who's been here for her.

RAFAEL: You've advocated
enough. It's our turn.

If you want this
case to continue,

I need Heather to tell me
exactly what happened to her.

And you need to tell Detective Rollins
exactly what Heather disclosed to you.

We told everything
to Skip Peterson.

Mm-hmm. We're talking
to him right now, too.

I don't need you to tell
me this thing is blowing up.

Hashtag "What else did
Skip skip?" is trending.

I'm just as hurt
by this as you are.

Look, our case is collapsing.

You took this on air.

Now, you need to give
us anything that you have

that can corroborate
Heather's story.

Your notes, your interviews.

I can't do that.

We're way past
the coy shtick, Skip.

You don't get it. I can't corroborate
because I don't have anything to do so with.

Come on. You must
have talked to the boys,

the people who saw Heather
the next day? The school?

No. I talked to Professor
Dillon, and Heather. In that order.

Isn't investigating the main
component of investigative journalism?

Three boys have been
arrested and arraigned.

Their reputations damaged,
possibly beyond repair.

Now, I know that
that's on us, too, but...

20-20 hindsight's easy.
You sound like my producer.

Should I have talked
to them? Obviously, yes.

So why didn't you?

Because I was protecting Heather.
She was terrified of reprisals.

And given Hudson's history,
she had every right to be.

I found Heather
to be very credible.

I have daughters her age.

I have to say, I feel
gratified, in some small way,

I helped to start a dialogue
about the outrage of campus rape.

WOMAN: (ON PA)
Skip, five minutes.

Then why didn't you start that
dialogue with a story that was true?

Because most other
stories are more complicated.

They're he-said, she-said.
Heather's story checked every box.

Callous administration.
Entitled, white, frat boy jocks.

The pack mentality gang-bang aspect.
This is the story I've been looking for.

If we hadn't grabbed it,
someone else would have.

Damn the consequences, right?

Don't blame the messenger,
blame the audience.

Campus rape is so commonplace, it
doesn't even rise to the level of news.

Look what it took to
get anyone to even care.

I'd love to do this all day,
but I have a retraction to tape.

SKIP: Let's go,
guys. Let's do it.

I went on a date with Brian.

We got a little drunk,

then we made our
way back to the frat.

I thought he liked
me, but it went wrong.

It was horrible.

Focus on the facts.

Did Brian lead you into a dark room
where three of his brothers were waiting?

His room was dark, but

it was empty. At first.

So Connor Howell and Lance
Mosconi weren't waiting there?

Connor came in later.
I'm positive of that.

And Lance?

I... I don't know.

I know he was outside. But, it
was dark. I was drunk, confused.

Confused about what?

When Heather came to me, she couldn't
even articulate what had been done to her.

That's how deep the
culturally-imposed self-blame goes.

Okay. Uh, what, exactly,
did she articulate?

She told me she'd
been assaulted.

Did she say she was gang-raped?

It was obvious she'd
been through hell.

Professor Dillon told me
that I was so traumatized,

it would take me a while for me
to process what had happened.

Heather,

did Brian Mackey rape you?

I was drunk.

He started to have sex with me.

He moved really fast.

Did you move with him?

I guess, in the beginning.

So, it's possible
it was consensual.

I'm not sure.

I passed out.

When I woke up, Connor
Howell was on top of me.

He was raping me. I
absolutely didn't want that.

I remember Brian
coming back into the room.

And the others?

That night is a blur.

Guys harassing me as I left.

When I told Professor Dillon that, she
said they probably all took a piece of me.

Professor Dillon told you that?

Can you wait here a minute?

I need to know exactly
what you told Heather.

What she already knew.

It was barbaric the way they abused
her, taunted her, assaulted her.

But she was raped. Right?

Is that what she told you?

I mean, by how many men?

What difference does that make?

Excuse me?

She was assaulted. Does it matter by
whom, for how long, in which orifice?

Yes. Yes. It matters.

We are talking about criminal charges
based on specifics of what happened.

It doesn't matter
what happened to her.

What matters is it
happens. Every day.

And these frat boys strut
around like they're bulletproof.

So a few of them finally
have to take responsibility?

Good. This isn't about you,
or these boys, or this case.

This is bigger than any of us. This is about
eliminating rape culture once and for all.

Our story, "Nightmare on Campus,"
generated international media attention

and inspired a long-overdue
discussion about campus sexual assault.

However, it has now come to our attention
that many of the disturbing allegations

were fabricated by
Heather Manning.

Did I miss the
actual apology part?

Like many of you,
I believed Heather.

That was a mistake.

We have asked an independent ombudsman
from the Medill School of Journalism

to investigate and issue a report about
what we can do differently in the future.

An independent investigation?

They're throwing the
book at themselves.

Barba's hanging by a string and
Dodds is hanging you out to dry.

I don't blame him.

We moved too fast. We
didn't vet it hard enough.

It's not on us. Not
even on that haircut.

It's on Heather. She
straight out lied to us.

Fin.

Uh, Heather. Can I help you?

Once the story got out there, I had all
these survivors coming to me and disclosing.

Counting on me
to be their strength.

I couldn't just
take back my story.

But your story
wasn't true, Heather.

Brian may think
he didn't rape me.

But we were both drunk.

Professor Dillon told me that that
means that I wasn't capable of consenting.

She also said, that once I passed out,
there's no way to know what happened to me.

I could have been gang-raped.

But we can't make that case.

Well, what about Connor?
I know he raped me.

Brian left. And I was
passed out. I was half-naked.

And then I came to because
Connor was raping me.

Hard, violent.

Did anybody else see?

Yes, Brian came in.
He saw everything.

And then he just turned and
walked away, like you're doing now.

I believe you, Heather.

But a jury is gonna
have reasonable doubt.

So that's it?

I have to go to school
every day and see my rapist?

I'm sorry, Heather.

I'm sorry about all of it.

And if there was something I could
do, to go back and change it, I would.

But at this point, there's
nothing we can do.

COUNSELOR BUCHANAN: Your
Honor, given the collapse of this case,

we move for a dismissal of all
charges against the four defendants.

How say you, Mr. Barba?

We're prepared to
drop the charges.

JUDGE: Against all
four of the accused?

Yes, Your Honor. All four.

Assuming no other holds,
you are free to go, gentlemen.

Thank you, Your Honor.

I believed Heather. I
still believe Heather.

We all know something horrible
happened to her that night.

But until rape culture changes in
this country, none of us will be safe.

And that was just part of
the outrage on campus today,

as students reacted to the news
that the D.A. has dropped the charges

against all four defendants in the
Hudson University gang-rape case.

Meanwhile, an attorney
for the former defendants

will be filing a lawsuit against Hudson
University and the NYPD, early next week.

Turn that off.

Well, we should feel proud.

Pumped up their ratings for another
week and those boys will never get

their reputations back.

Yeah, but that's
the job, Carisi.

It's hard to know what actually
happened in cases like these.

If you can't take that,
SVU isn't right for you.

No, I get it. I'm good here.

Let's hope Liv is.

Right now she's
heading up to Hudson U.

Round three of the apology tour.

Given everything that's happened,
I wanted to apologize for my tone

a few days back.

We were both taken advantage
of and we both had blinders on.

You know, it was
the perfect story.

Confirmed all of my
preconceived notions.

And that alone should have made
me approach it with more skepticism.

And, to be honest,
I can't help but ask,

if I had listened to Heather instead
of badgering her with questions,

if this wouldn't have
ended differently.

Maybe. Maybe she would
have told you the true story.

Connor Howell did
actually rape Heather.

You have a dangerous
predator on your campus.

And now that he's gotten away
with it, he'll likely be emboldened.

And you can't prosecute, but
you want me to discipline him?

I'm asking you to
do what you can.

A lot less than I
could have last week.

We had an incident last night.

The first thing the accused
said to campus security was,

"She's lying just like
Heather Manning."

I don't blame Heather.

Skip Peterson and
Professor Dillon,

they pressured her
into coming forward.

They thought this would be the case
that would change rape culture. And it did.

It set the clock back 30 years.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)