| "Paranoia" | ||
|---|---|---|
| ← | SVU, Episode 2.14 | → |
| Production number: E1426 First aired: 16 February 2001 | ||
 | ||
| Written By Jonathan Greene & Robert F. Campbell Directed By Richard Dobbs | ||
Summary[]
Sergeant Karen Smythe, a cop who was Detective Benson's training officer, is raped while responding to a crime in progress. But when the Special Victims Unit tries to investigate, the Internal Affairs Bureau keeps interfering.
Plot[]
The rape of a veteran police officer who trained Benson is first linked to her ex-husband's gambling debts and then to her fellow officers.
Cast[]
Main cast[]
- Christopher Meloni as Detective Elliot Stabler
- Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson
- Richard Belzer as Detective John Munch
- Stephanie March as A.D.A. Alexandra Cabot
- Ice-T as Detective Odafin Tutuola
- Dann Florek as Captain Donald Cragen
Recurring cast[]
- Scott Sowers as I.A.B. Lieutenant Waldman
- Brian O'Neill as Chief Sullivan
- Brennan Brown as Defense Attorney Brendan Walsh
- Daniel Pearce as Defense Attorney Egan
- Kirsten Sans as Lab Technician Felicia Young
Guest cast[]
- Khandi Alexander as Sergeant Karen Smythe
- James Hanlon as Officer Austin Bates
- Jason Kolotouros as Officer Mitch Murray
- Sam Coppola as Uncle Sammy
- Dominic Fumusa as I.A.B. Lieutenant Coates
- Chris McKinney as Officer Michael Towne
- Isiah Whitlock, Jr. as Todd Smythe
- Liam Craig as A.D.A. David Goreman
- E.J. Carroll as Ronnie
- Sandra Daley as Marina Garza
- P.J. Marshall as Homeless Man #2
- P.J. Morrison as Uniform Policeman
- Ray Robertson as Homeless Man #1
References[]
Quotes[]
- John Munch: Easier to sweep the sands of the beaches than getting anything off of these guys.
- Odafin Tutuola: You know where you are?
- Homeless Man: It ain't an outhouse. It ain't the White House. So it might be the station house.
- Odafin Tutuola: Good guess.
- Olivia Benson: Where'd you get the money, Karen?
- Karen Smythe: None of this concerns you, Olivia.
- Olivia Benson: Boy, I am running out of reasons to defend you.
- Karen Smythe: Then back off!
- Donald Cragen: Anything from the lab?
- Elliot Stabler: So far, zero. They haven't called us.
- Donald Cragen: Well, then get down there and light a Bunsen burner under them.
- Olivia Benson: We're going to get this bastard, Karen. You can count on that.
- Karen Smythe: I might be worried if you were still as green as when I got you.
- Olivia Benson: Do you remember the time... when the Lieutenant sent me up to the roof of the precinct? To turn the lights on so that the Captain could land his chopper and inspect the building?
- Karen Smythe: You asked me if you needed red paddles to guide him in.
(they laugh) - Olivia Benson: (still laughing): I didn't take that too well, did I?
- Karen Smythe: No!
- Elliot Stabler: Hey... you following me now?
- Olivia Benson: A cop should know where his partner has breakfast. Listen, you took a chance going through that radio car. Thanks.
- Elliot Stabler: Praise makes me hungry.
- Olivia Benson: Got your appetite back.
- Elliot Stabler: Feels good to eat like a human being again.
- Olivia Benson: You get the test results?
- Elliot Stabler: Clean bill of health. Negative for HIV... hepatitis.
- Olivia Benson: Salud.
- (After Chief Sullivan tells Captain Cragen he's being paranoid)
- Donald Cragen: 12 years at captain: I can't get promoted; yeah, I'm paranoid.
Background information and notes[]
- In this episode we see the effects of the antiretrovirals that Detective Elliot Stabler had to take, after his possible exposure to HIV. Stabler was exposed to the virus through contact with HIV positive Gloria Palmera, in the previous episode "Victims". At the end of the episode he reveals to Detective Olivia Benson that he didn't contract the virus. The eagle-eyed viewer might also note that whenever Stabler is seen alone in this episode, the camera wobbles, hinting at his nausea.
- Munch mentions the Red Squad. This was a unit of the NYPD that handled subversive groups throughout the better half of the 20th century. Many of the nation's large cities had them, and they acquired a reputation for using questionable methods in order to catch suspected "reds". They were officially disbanded in 1978, after the passing of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, but conspiracy theorists like Munch have long believed that the officers in those squads have simply been moved to divisions like Narcotics or the IAB.
- Cragen mentions he ran an Anti-Corruption Task Force before. He was shown running that task force in the Law & Order episode "Bad Faith", which was his last appearance in the Law & Order franchise prior to the start of SVU.
- The episode name "Paranoia" was also used for the Law & Order season 6 episode, "Paranoia (L&O)".
- Smythe mentions a singer getting a restraining order against Benson, who counters by saying she was trying to protect the singer's daughter; this occurred three episodes ago in the episode "Abuse".
- The scene card for Rikers Island lists the date as "Thursday, February 16" after the previous scene card read for Wednesday as "February 14". Someone simply mixed up "Thursday" with "Friday".
Episode scene cards[]
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|
|
Special Victims Unit |
Apartment of Marina Garza |
Lorenzo Storage |
| 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|
|
Triborough Bakery |
One Police Plaza |
Rikers Island |
| Previous episode: "Victims" |
"Paranoia" Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 2 |
Next episode: "Countdown" |