| "Privilege" | ||
|---|---|---|
| ← | SVU, Episode 4.17 | → |
| Production number: E3122 First aired: 21 February 2003 | ||
 | ||
| Written By Patrick Harbinson Directed By Jean de Segonzac | ||
A woman apparently throws herself off a playboy's penthouse.
Plot
Detectives Benson and Stabler are called to a crime scene where a young woman in a maid's uniform has jumped to her death from a high-rise apartment building. Suicide was determined to be the initial cause of death, but the sexual-related bruising causes them to question whether she had been pushed.
The woman is identified as a film student, Carmen Trancoso. Her face had been destroyed by the fall, so the detectives initially identified her as Anna Rivera, a former maid at the Lamerly's penthouse. The detectives learn Carmen had been dating the Lamerly's son, Drew, but the relationship had gotten too intense. Drew broke it off with her and Carmen began to stalk him. Benson and Stabler visit the attorneys who were representing Carmen, who was trying to sue Drew for rape. However, Drew is prepared with his lawyer Lorna Scarry, who refutes Carmen's claim.
As they dig into Drew's past, it is revealed he had been expelled from a private school. The detectives learn Drew's prom date, Jenny White, also claims Drew had raped her. Jenny had been a prostitute at the time and is now married to a rich and powerful man. Because of this, she hesitates to come forward. Then investigators now believe Carmen did not jump, she had been pushed. Drew claims the family's head of security, Tom Paysen, had killed Carmen, but Paysen tampered with the security cameras.
The detectives bring Drew in for an evaluation by Dr. Huang and a lie detector test, but he almost does too well on it. Then finally a break, a rare material traced to a jacket in his closet is found on the victim. Drew is placed under arrest. Scarry attempts to get Cabot to cut a deal. When that doesn't work, she claims he is not guilty by virtue of diminished capacity because his father was highly abusive. Drew's grandmother, Candace, tries to make the case on the stand, but Cabot claims in the abuse from his father never came up in Drew's polygraph. The judge rules against Cabot and allows the testimony. Since it was privileged information, Cabot refuses to be defeated.
The detectives go to Jenny White Rochester and convince her to testify. They now realize it was Drew's grandmother, who was the ringleader, and not his father. Candace had groomed Drew to be the violent man that he is. Candace is now in as much trouble as her grandson, whose defense has been rejected by the court.
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
- B.D. Wong as Dr. George Huang
- Dann Florek as Captain Donald Cragen
Guest cast
- Tamara Tunie as Dr. Melinda Warner
- Erik von Detten as Drew Lamerly
- John Bolger as Douglas Lamerly
- Sarah Wayne Callies as Jenny Rochester
- Joel de la Fuente as TARU Technician Ruben Morales
- John Ottavino as Tom Paysen
- Tina Sloan as Mrs. Hartnell
- Tom O'Rourke as Judge Mark Seligman
- Scotty Bloch as Ms. Blundell
- William Wise as Roger Burnbaum
- Mariette Hartley as Lorna Scarry
- Michael Learned as Candace Lamerly
- Jordan Gelber as CSU Technician Layton
- Dan Snook as Angus Rochester
- Malaya Rivera Drew as Suzie Fleckner
- Steven Marcus as Landlord
- Jonathan Hogan as Headmaster
- Keith Reddin as Lab Tech
References
Carmen Trancoso; Anna Rivera; Roger, Burnbaum, & DeLisle; Radleigh High School; 29th Precinct; Jenny White; Paris, France; Lorena Athens
Quotes
- Olivia Benson: Hi. Can we help you?
- Drew Lamerly: Uh, my name is Drew Lamerly. Suzie called me. I think I should make a statement.
- Olivia Benson: About what?
- Drew Lamerly: Carmen Trancoso. It's my fault she's dead.
- Elliot Stabler [to Drew Lamerly]: You call beating the crap out of her intense? Huh? You little prick. You did this to her.
- Drew Lamerly: Yes, I did do this, but she wanted me to.
- Olivia Benson: No! No woman wants this!
- Drew Lamerly: Carmen did! This was her thing!
- Olivia Benson: So you beat and rape her because it was her thing?
Background information and notes
- In the episode "Justice", the suspect's brother-in-law misstates his tag number, saying "BQY-2064" when he should have said "BQY-2604." In this episode, the same tag number (BQY-2604) is used for the Lamerly's vehicle.
- During the trial, Drew's lawyer stated that the lie detector interview couldn't be used because of privilege. However, there was a third person in the room with him and Dr. Huang. The presence of a third party shatters the doctor-patient privilege and would be admissible in court.
- Drew called Candace his mother once when she is actually his grandmother.
- Goof: When Munch is reviewing the security tape from the Lamerly's penthouse, he notices a jump in time on the clock. The second hand moves from the 8 to the 10 and Benson replies, "10 seconds are missing". However, since it moved from the 8 to the 10, it was really 10 minutes.
| Previous episode: "Tortured" |
"Privilege" Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 4 |
Next episode: "Desperate" |