Written By Julie Martin and Brianna Yellen
Directed By Martha Mitchell
The sudden disappearance of a high school student (Brighton Sharbino) is soon linked to a nasty cyberbullying attack from her fellow peers and best friend (Madison Pettis). When finally located, she further reveals she was raped by three of her fellow students at a party, one of whom had formerly been a childhood friend. Although the case starts off strong, it soon hits a wall when the victim refuses to testify due to hatred and further bullying from her peers and Benson must convince her to take the stand. Meanwhile, Sheila Porter attempts to challenge Benson's parenting skills as a mother, which infuriates Benson.
Tropes
- Abusive Parent: Zig-zagged; Leo Ross calls Daniel an idiot for not cooperating with the police and gives his son a Death Glare when Daniel is suspected of raping Mandy Fowler.
- Break the Cutie: What happens to Mandy Fowler.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After Mandy is raped, then vilified and cyberbullied in its aftermath, just as the case against her rapist seems dead in the water, she indirectly gets Andrew to admit his crime via text message. When this incriminating evidence is presented to him during an interrogation, Andrew knows it's the end of the line and gives a full confession before pleading guilty, even admitting during his courtroom allocution that Mandy was telling the truth and didn't deserve any of what happened to her. Not long after, Benson gives an anti-bullying assembly at Mandy's school, where the latter publicly acknowledges being a sexual assault survivor and her peers also discuss their own ordeals; at one point, Mandy's ex-best friend Stacy admits to not having stood up up for her and apologizes (while Mandy says nothing afterwards, it's clear by the smile on her face that she accepts Stacy's apology and wants to be friends again).
- Papa Wolf: Bruce, Mandy's father, says he want to kill whoever drew all over his daughter.
- Stepford Smiler: Mandy shifts into this after her rape, when her entire school is cyberbullying her, calling her a "liar" and a "skank". After a few weeks of being (completely understandably) sullen and angry, she suddenly changes her hair, starts wearing bright clothes, cleans her room, takes down all of the framed pictures of her friends and family, and puts up a vlog, smilingly explaining that she's decided to quit focusing on the past and wants to start with a clean slate. Her completely unconvincing cheery demeanor and forced positive attitude makes it all too clear, especially to Olivia and Rollins, that this is not a good thing.
