Sam Ellis is a college student who became prime suspect in the rape and murder of Shelli Hanson, as well as the rape and assault of her friends.
Background[]
Sam's father died when he was younger, and he often remembered how the latter often told him that he'd have little luck with girls because he was different. As a young man, he attended college and was studying law with the aim of becoming a lawyer. He became infatuated with his classmate and friend Shelli Hanson, frequently spending time with her and even helping her install a camera in her room. As noted by his peers, it looked like there was a mutual attraction, and Sam believed he had a chance. Eventually, he worked up the strength to ask her out on a date but was rejected. He was saddened but continued his association with her and attempted to get her to change her mind. His crush turned into an obsession, and he started to monitor her through the camera, deluding himself into thinking that he was looking out for her.
Fractured[]
One night, Sam witnessed Shelli having a threesome with her roommates through the camera. Spurred into a jealous rage, he shut off the camera and went to the apartment. He used a hammer to knock out her male roommate Damon, who believed Sam was another roommate and let him in, thereby leaving him critically injured. He barged into Sheli's room, where she and her female roommate Elodie were asleep. He raped both women and incapacitated Elodie, before he violently murdered Sheli with the hammer. Afterwards, he dumped the hammer in a nearby park, where it was taken by homeless man. Elodie and Damon were found by their roommate Teddy Hall, who returned home to find the scene and quickly called for help. The crime caught the attention of the Special Victims Unit. Elodie said that she was unable to see who broke in and was shaken by her ordeal. The SVU quickly figured out that Sheli was the target, because of how personal her murder seemed and realized the friends were just collateral damage. Sam was arrested by the SVU after his association with Sheli was discovered. His witnessing peers were outraged and formed a riot, while recording the supposed brutality, leading to officers being assaulted and many people getting arrested. Sam quickly asked for a lawyer and SVU were at deadlock, as they didn't have any other lead besides his access to the camera and him watching the video on more than one occasion.
At the trial, he tried to maintain his innocence and remained composed when question. However, SVU brought in evidence in the form of the hammer he used, footage of him on the streets, and a recorded cam session of Shelli at a women strengthening program, where she contradicts his statement by revealing she intended to reject him because of his obsessive behavior. His lawyer tried to get a recess, but Sam quickly refused and asked to be allowed to testify in his own defense. When he interviewed, he tried to spin a narrative of how he and Sheli were good friends and while he had feelings for her, she rejected him and he accepted but A.D.A. Carisi wasn't buying his explanation. To that end, Carisi badgered Sam with both videos where Shelli is clearly repulsed by him and playing her sexual encounters with her friends. These sights soon triggered Sam, who had an outburst where he admits his anger at being turned down when Shelli wasn't popular like him but still, she was able to have sexual escapades and brought up how resentful he was that his father warned him of this treatment. In his anguish, he admitted to the murder before showing remorse at how he never meant to hurt anyone, especially Shelli. His words left the court shocked, with Sheli's mother breaking down.
In the end, he is found guilty and imprisoned for rape, burglary, stalking, assault, and murder. (SVU: "Fractured")
Known Victims[]
- The apartment attack:
- Shelli Hanson (raped, then fatally bludgeoned with a hammer)
- Elodie Whitfield (assaulted and raped)
- Damon Reynolds (assaulted; bludgeoned with a hammer, but survived)