History Recap / LawAndOrderS9E19TabulaRasa

A college professor named Marion Hollis dies from being pushed under a subway train. The detectives identify Bill Fallon, a man whom witnesses saw her with. It is eventually discovered that Fallon was formerly known as Nick Taska, the ex-husband of one of the victim's friends. A court had granted the ex-wife full custody of their two daughters, so he kidnapped the children and vanished. Hollis was a friend of the couple and had recognized Fallon, giving him a motive for murder. Fallon admits who he really is but denies being with Hollis at the time of her death. Fallon's daughter Alexis gives him an alibi; but it's obvious she's lying, and that she and Fallon's new wife are terrified of him.

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. This presents a problem because the statute of limitations on second-degree kidnapping (what a parental abduction would be categorized as) has run out, but [=McCoy=] argues that because of his extreme treatment of his daughters, his actions could be categorized as "kidnapping with intent to terrorize", which is ''first''-degree kidnapping and therefore still within the statute of limitations. In court, Fallon's ex testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; whom he repeatedly browbeat and harangued until they learned to obey his every instruction without question. [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding Fallon is. Fallon, realizing he's losing the case, agrees to a deal: he'll plead to a lesser kidnapping charge, and in exchange, he won't contest his ex getting custody of Alexis, who is still a minor. The deal is entered and he's sentenced, but the brainwashed daughters are still unable to see the reality of their situation, perceiving their biological mother as destroying their family. [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells:

* DownerEnding

A college professor named Marion Hollis dies from being pushed under a subway train. The detectives identify Bill Fallon, a man whom witnesses saw her with. It is eventually discovered that Fallon was formerly known as Nick Taska, the ex-husband of one of the victim's friends. A court had granted the ex-wife full custody of their two daughters, so he kidnapped the children and vanished. Hollins was a friend of the couple and had recognized Fallon, giving him a motive for murder. Fallon admits who he really is but denies being with Hollis at the time of her death. Fallon's daughter Alexis gives him an alibi; but it's obvious she's lying, and that she and Fallon's new wife are terrified of him.

* MeaningfulNameChange: Alexis's birth name was Cynthia, but Fallon changed it just to make the point that he considers her his property.

A college professor named Marion Hollis dies from being pushed under a subway train. The detectives identify Bill Fallon, a man whom witnesses saw her with. It is eventually discovered that Fallon was formerly known as Nick Taska. A court granted his ex-wife full custody of their two daughters, so he kidnapped the children and vanished. Hollins was a friend of the couple and had recognized Fallon, giving him a motive for murder. Fallon admits who he really is but denies being with Hollis at the time of her death. Fallon's daughter Alexis gives him an alibi; but it's obvious she's lying, and that she and Fallon's new wife are terrified of him.

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. This presents a problem because the statute of limitations on second-degree kidnapping (what a parental abduction would be categorized as) has run out, but [=McCoy=] argues that because of his extreme treatment of his daughters, his actions could be categorized as "kidnapping with intent to terrorize", which is ''first''-degree kidnapping and therefore still within the statute of limitations. In court, Fallon's ex testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; whom he repeatedly browbeat and harangued until they learned to obey his every instruction without question. [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding Fallon is. Fallon, realizing he's losing the case, agrees to a deal: he'll plead to a lesser kidnapping charge, and in exchange, he won't contest his ex getting custody of Alexis, who is still a minor. He's convicted and the deal is entered, but the brainwashed daughters are still unable to see the reality of their situation, perceiving their biological mother as destroying their family. [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells:

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. In court, Fallon's ex testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; whom he repeatedly browbeat and harangued until they learned to obey his every instruction without question. [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding Fallon is. He's convicted of kidnapping and forced to relinquish custody of Alexis, who is still underage. Both daughters now hate their biological mother, and [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells:

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. In court, Fallon's ex testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; whom he repeatedly browbeat and harangued until they learned to obey his every instruction without question. [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding Fallon is. He's convicted of kidnapping and forced to relinquish custody of his daughters. They now hate their biological mother, and [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells:

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. In court, Fallon's ex testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; whom he repeatedly browbeat and harangued until they learned to obey his every instruction. [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding Fallon is. He's convicted of kidnapping and forced to relinquish custody of his daughters. They now hate their biological mother, and [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells:

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. In court, Fallon's ex testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding he is. He's convicted of kidnapping and forced to relinquish custody of his daughters. They now hate their biological mother, and [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells:

When challenged, Alexis now claims ''she'' pushed Hollis. Because of this, Fallon can't be charged with murder, so [=McCoy=] pushes for kidnapping charges. In court, Fallon's ex-wife testifies about his psychological abuse of their daughters; [=McCoy=] lures Fallon, his wife and other daughter into revealing exactly how controlling and demanding he is. He's convicted of kidnapping and forced to relinquish custody of his daughters. They now hate their biological mother, and [=McCoy=] and Abbie sadly watch as the older daughter yells: