| "Torch" | ||
|---|---|---|
| ← | SVU, Episode 11.21 | → |
| Production number: 11021 First aired (US): 28 April 2010 First aired (UK): 30 July 2010 First aired (CAN): 30 April 2010 First aired (AUS): 15 July 2010 | ||
 | ||
| Written By Mick Betancourt & Amanda Green Directed By Peter Leto | ||
Plot[]
When two sisters are killed in a fire, Detectives Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler are confused about why they are called to investigate. They soon discover that Stabler's old partner, ADA Jo Marlowe, has been put on the case (despite the absence of a sex crime) because the two victims were so young, and that she has enlisted the duo to help. However, as the investigation continues, Benson and Stabler find that the case might be more suited to their department than anyone originally assumed, and Stabler's interrogation tactics when dealing with a suspected arsonist, Michael Parisi, threaten to get the detectives into trouble.
As they continue their investigation, Deputy Fire Marshal Kurek accuses the father, Frank Sullivan, of having started the fire, making him responsible for the deaths of his daughters. Initially, Marlowe, along with the rest of the SVU, believed that Sullivan was responsible, but after he attempts suicide in front of Marlowe, she begins to believe his innocence. With no leads proving Frank to be innocent, Marlowe turns to a fire investigator, Dr. Iggy Drexel, to prove it. Drexel is able to come up with another theory: that it was an accidental electrical fire. However, he has no way to prove it and McCoy presses for Marlowe to continue the trial. In order to prove the man's innocence, Marlowe and Drexel set a condemned house on fire in a similar manner to what they believe happened. When it burns exactly like the fire that killed the girls, Marlowe drops the charges at the trial after showing everyone the evidence.
Summary[]
Episode summary
Cast[]
Main cast[]
- Christopher Meloni as Detective Elliot Stabler
- Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson
- Richard Belzer as Sergeant John Munch
- Ice-T as Detective Odafin Tutuola
- B.D. Wong as Dr. George Huang (credit only)
- Tamara Tunie as M.E. Melinda Warner (credit only)
- Dann Florek as Captain Donald Cragen
Recurring cast[]
- Sharon Stone as A.D.A. Jo Marlowe
- Lindsay Crouse as Judge D. Andrews
- Georgia Lyman as Officer Whitney Bowman
- Jason Jurman as Legal Aid Attorney Mitch Shankman
- Sam Waterston as D.A. Jack McCoy
- Tom Lucca as Lieutenant Lou Gezmur
- Erica Bradshaw as Court Clerk
Guest cast[]
- Justine Cotsonas as Emily Sullivan
- P.J. Benjamin as Deputy Fire Marshal Kurek
- Jeremy Allen White as Michael Parisi
- Brad Dourif as Dr. Iggy Drexel
- Kevin Anderson as Frank Sullivan
- Lorraine Farris as Marcy Sullivan
- Marty Lawson as Pete
- Spencer Trinwith as Brian
- Jane Dashow as Mary
- Michael Arthur as Uni #1
References[]
- ACS
- Faye Sullivan (victim)
- Kedzie Sullivan (victim)
- Texas
- Alexandra Cabot
- Sandhog
Quotes[]
- Stabler: Well, we've been over every detail, nobody broke into that house and doused it with accelerant.
- Marlowe: There is one witness we haven't questioned...
- Stabler: Who?
- Marlowe: The house.
- Dr. Iggy Drexel: This theory is plausible. So is Kurek's...
- Stabler: So... you can't prove it...
- Marlowe: Dang it! I thought Drexel was going to blow this fire marshal out of the water!
- Benson: Well, maybe Frank killed his kids and we'll never know it unless we find a smoking gun.
- Stabler: What about a smoking house?
- Benson: Well, we can't burn a house down.
- Marlowe: I can! [She leaves the detectives very confused]
- Marlowe: [Later, at the trial, a video of a house fire is shown as she questions Deputy Fire Marshal Kurek on the stand] And only an accelerant can cause those burn patterns?
- Kurek: Correct
- Kurek: And you are ABSOLUTELY sure of that?
- Kurek: As sure as I'm sitting here right now.
- Marlowe: Yet, no accelerant was used to start that fire.
- Kurek: What the hell ya talkin' about?
- Marlowe: Watch. Maybe you'll learn something. [Shows video and re-creation]
- Kurek: That's impossible! I know what I saw! [Angry, then confused...]
- Marlowe: [gestures to the defendant] That is the danger of junk science!
- Marlowe: Your honour, based on this newly discovered evidence, the people move to dismiss this case in the interest of justice
- Marlowe: Now I have to go give McCoy a bill for the house I burned down.
- Benson: Want some back-up?
Background information and notes[]
Episode scene cards[]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Mercy General Hospital |
Apartment of |
1794 Lexington Avenue |
Sullivan Residence |
| 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|
|
Arraignment Court |
Rikers Island |
Laboratory of |
| Previous episode: "Beef" |
"Torch" Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 11 |
Next episode: "Ace" |