Burden

"Burden"
←	L&O, Episode 8.20	→
Production number: K2526 First aired: 24 April 1998
	{{{nNthProducedInSeries}}}th of 456 produced in L&O
←	{{{nNthReleasedInSeries}}}th of 456 released in L&O	→
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Written By David Shore & I.C. Rapoport Directed By Constantine Makris

Plot

A 12-year-old quadriplegic dies at home, and paramedics claim he was poisoned. The suspects include the boy's parents and sister.

Cast

Main cast

• Jerry Orbach as Detective Lennie Briscoe
• Benjamin Bratt as Detective Rey Curtis
• S. Epatha Merkerson as Lieutenant Anita Van Buren
• Sam Waterston as Executive A.D.A. Jack McCoy
• Carey Lowell as A.D.A. Jamie Ross
• Steven Hill as D.A. Adam Schiff

Recurring cast

• William Severs as Judge Henry Fillmore
• J.K. Simmons as Dr. Emil Skoda
• John Fiore as Detective Tony Profaci
• Leslie Hendrix as Dr. Elizabeth Rodgers
• Larry Sherman as Judge Colin Fraser

Guest cast

• Gerry Bamman as Stan Gillum
• John Hickok as Dr. Lyle Semenko
• Heather Matarazzo as Stephanie Sutter
• John Procaccino as Joe Sutter
• Maryann Plunkett as Lois Sutter
• Jerry Lyden as Roy Cashman
• Barrie Youngfellow as Dr. Emily Lindros
• Stephen Stout as Dr. Keogh
• Eric R. Moreland as Nichols
• Christine Jones as Stapleton
• Gregory Mitchell as Peter Gilbert
• Jane Connell as Mrs. Hodge
• Gordon Connell as Mr. Larry Hodge
• Julie Follansbhee as Rose Bing
• Karen Goberman as Martha McSorley
• Louisa Holaday as Kara Vadnay
• Laine Valentino as Bea Goring
• Danny Burstein as Howe
• John Gleeson Connolly as Anderson
• Jim Taylor McNickle as Jury Foreperson

References

• Michael Sutter (victim)
• Hudson Terrace Medical Center
• White House press corps
• President of the United States
• Ancient Greece
• Socrates
• Florida
• People v. Molineux
• People v. Mees
• Dr. Jack Kevorkian
• Bergen County Clinical

Quotes

[Briscoe and Curtis question Joe Sutter, who is suspected of killing his quadriplegic son]

Briscoe: Look what's happened to your beautiful family. Your wife is sleeping with some dance instructor, your daughter is one step away from living on the street, and you have no money and it's all because of that kid!

Joe: You don't know me, if you knew me, you would see...

Briscoe: Oh, I know you. If you had the stones...

Curtis: You don't know this man, Lennie. This isn't about money or adultery or anything like that, is it, Joe? My wife's got MS. I picture her life 10 years from now, and it kills me because it might not be a pretty picture. You picture your son. He used to be strong. Played soccer, yeah?

Joe: Yes.

Curtis: My wife used to run 3 miles every morning. Did you imagine Michael at 20 years old, 40 years old, still in the same bedroom, still in the same tortured pain?

Joe: [choked up] Yeah.

Curtis: Me, too. And you wanna know the worst part? I know why it's happening. It's my fault. God is punishing her for something I did.

Joe: No, you can't think that way!

Curtis: I try to tell myself that. I try to think that. But every time I look at her, I feel the guilt. Every time I look at my daughters, and think about what they're going to lose... Someone you love is in pain. They have no hope. What can you do to help this person? How often have you asked yourself this question? Every time you bathe him?

Joe: [in tears] Every time I kiss him goodnight.

Curtis: And you knew there was only one way out. You had to do it. You had to do it because you loved him. Let it go. It was an act of love, Joe.

Joe: [sobs] I love Michael! Maybe I... but I didn't do this. I didn't kill him.

Joe: Can I leave?

Van Buren: Not for another 30 years.

McCoy: This case is not a debate about euthanasia. It's about a thrill-killing by a monster masquerading as an angel of mercy. Michael Sutter is dead. He was murdered. That's all that matters.

Background information and notes

• The episode's title is derived from the medical phrase "burden of disease", which signifies a collective measurement of the life impact of chronic health problems.

Episode scene cards

1	2	3
Stapleton's Dance Studio 2184 Broadway Monday, January 8	Hudson Terrace Medical Center Wednesday, January 10	C&A Garden Depot 125 West 22nd Street Tuesday, January 16

4	5	6
Hudson Terrace Medical Center Friday, January 24	Apartment Of Dr. Lyle Semenko 32 First Avenue Monday, February 5	Supreme Court Trial Part 84 Tuesday, April 2

Previous episode: "Disappeared"

"Burden" Law & Order Season 8

Next episode: "Bad Girl"