Written By Barbie Kligman and Joshua Kotcheff
Directed by Juan J Campanella
A woman claims a man whom she struck was attempting to rape her, and it was self-defense. However, as she flees the scene rather than be examined, the detectives grow suspicious.
Tropes
- Abusive Parents: When Cheryl was a child, her father caught her playing with her mother's makeup and beat her. This is a key part of the defense's strategy, showing that Cheryl has good reason to believe that she has to react strongly to threats.
- Amoral Attorney: Berger is an interesting case. On one hand, he's known to be a media-hound and lies to Alex, telling her Cheryl refused to plea out when he never told Cheryl there was a deal in the first place, seeing the case as a way to change legal precedent on gender issues even if it means Cheryl going to jail. On the other, he genuinely tries to protect Cheryl when it's clear she is going to jail, and his view of gender as more complex than a binary is more forward-thinking than Alex or even Benson's assessment of her.
- Crotch-Grab Sex Check: After Eddie finds out about Cheryl being transgender, he barges into the interrogation room Cheryl's in and does this to her, finding they're telling the truth.
- Downer Ending: Cheryl is found guilty of murder and then brutally gang raped in prison.
- Driven to Suicide: Eddie kills himself after finding out Cheryl's transgender.
- Internal Affairs: Sergeant Tucker comes after Cragen after the latter's "failure to supervise Detective Stabler and Agent Huang". After Cragen points out, "IAB doesn't have jurisdiction over Doctor Huang", Tucker says he will refer the doctor's conduct to his FBI counterpart, the Office of Professional Responsibility.Tucker: I hope your med-mal insurance is paid up, Doc.
- My God, What Have I Done?: The episode ends with a horrified Alex finding out Cheryl was gang raped and beaten into a coma in Rikers after getting convicted for the murder of Eddie’s brother.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Benson and Stabler wrongly assumed that Eddie knew about Cheryl being transgender, causing a horrific confrontation that ends with Eddie committing suicide. One could also argue that Alex getting her conviction was what led to Cheryl being sent to a men’s prison where she’s raped and beaten into a coma.
- Only Sane Man: Cheryl's younger sister seems to be the only person in her life that accepts and supports her. Unfortunately, as a minor, her ability to help is severely limited.
- Prison Rape: The episode ends on a bleak note with Cheryl brought to the hospital after being brutally raped in a men's prison.
- Sobriquet Sex Switch: Cheryl was originally named Charles by her parents.
- Thought They Knew Already: Benson and Stabler look at Eddie like he knew Cheryl was a transgender woman until he gets the hard news.
- Trans Tribulations: Cheryl has been attacked repeatedly by people as a result of being transgender. Both her parents rejected her. Then she kills a man, saying it was self-defense. Once her boyfriend finds out, he also rejects her. To top it all off, she's convicted and gang-raped in prison (because they put her with men), as the government doesn't recognize her gender since she's pre-operative.
- Unsettling Gender-Reveal: Eddie finds out the hard way from Stabler that Cheryl is transgender.
