Written By Nick Kendrick
Directed By Constantine Makris
Elliot has a rough time when he helps investigate the murders of sex offenders (one of whom Elliot put away), and it is soon discovered that a former cop turned community activist may be responsible for the murders.
Tropes
- Asshole Victim: Serial rapist Thomas Marchak is found murdered. When it later happens to a rapist named Craig Moss, even his mother wonders why the cops care about him.
- "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: Marchak got paroled because his last victim's mother didn't bother to ask Stabler to testify at Marchak's parole hearing. Stabler bluntly asks why she didn't call him, to which she bitterly admits that she figured the level of Marchak's crimes would have ensured the motion would be denied.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones:
- Marchak has a girlfriend who knows what he did and is okay with it because she's in love with him, and she is outraged because people persecute her for being with him.
- Former cop and vigilante Sam Winfield tries to prevent statutory rapist James Campbell from registering his daughter in Winfield's school, and he puts a bullet through Campbell's window with Campbell's wife and young daughter inside.
- Face-Revealing Turn: Marchak's 12-year-old victim carefully keeps the left side of her face turned away from the camera until it's time for her to turn around to explain to Stabler why she thinks she's so ugly she needs to be home-schooled - because Marchak cut up the left side of her face.
- False Confession: Gloria confesses to the murders, but she's covering for someone else.
- Ham-to-Ham Combat: Stabler and Cragen going at each other like bellowing walruses about whether the squad will have to prosecute the murderer of a pedophile.
- He Who Fights Monsters: Winfield's Start of Darkness came when he murdered a perp who'd kidnapped a kid after raping and torturing the mother. Because he had eight commendations, he was allowed to take an early retirement.Winfield, to Stabler: Just another day on the thin blue line, huh, detective? You better watch out, or you'll wind up just like me.
- Prison Rape: Marchak got AIDS from being raped in prison.
- Punch-Clock Hero:Benson: Your son was murdered, and we're trying to find out who did it.
Craig Moss' mother: What do you care?
Stabler: Because it's our job. - Secretly Dying: After confessing to the murders, Louise reveals she has AIDS. The detectives speculate she's unlikely to live long enough to serve her sentence if convicted.
- Shell-Shocked Veteran:Stabler: I had my own Allen Crider. Insurance salesman, ran his business out of a converted garage in Queens. Well-liked, would invite the neighborhood kids up for ice cream and stories. One day a six-year-old girl goes missing from a playground in Soho, actually. Long story short, we find her underneath the floorboards of his office along with three other children, all in various stages of decomposition, but he is gone, and I'm left with a cold case. Two years, nothing but silence. And, uh, headaches. I developed these debilitating headaches, I wasn't sleeping, I kept having these recurring nightmares where my own children would be under these floorboards that I couldn't pry up. And then one day, I'm just gassing up my car in Chelsea and there he is. And before I know it, I've got his face sandwiched between his windshield and the muzzle of my gun, and I'm yelling, "Freeze!" And I realize I'm yelling at myself. Because I can't stop my finger from pulling the trigger and I'm praying for him to blink, I'm praying for him to twitch, just do something to give me an excuse. And then I see a face inside of his car, It's a girl, this beautiful little six-year-old girl, these big eyes. I figured she'd seen enough.
Winfield: Yeah, she'd seen enough. Your headaches go away?
Stabler: Yeah.
Winfield: That's the only difference between us. - Tragic AIDS Story:Louise: It's bad enough to be raped, detective, but when the rapist has HIV, he leaves you with a daily reminder that lasts you for the rest of your life. I know. I was raped nine years ago.
Benson: You're HIV-positive?
Louise: No. I have AIDS. I'm dying. Drugs don't work for me anymore. - Where Did We Go Wrong?: Craig Moss' mother keeps asking herself while wondering why he became a rapist and she still can't get an answer.
