Viola Mesner was the mother of Henry Mesner, who is a psychopath.
Background[]
Viola is a busy working mother who tends to heavily rely on other people to care for her two children Henry and Ruby, such as babysitters and their friends' parents. She doesn't appear to give much attention to her children despite her clear devotion to them. Viola is also aware of Henry's escalating abusive behavior towards Ruby but refuses to seek psychological help for him, instead trying parental consequences such as banning gaming systems and TV, which often fail.
On SVU[]
When Ruby's school nurse discovers a huge bruise on her stomach and a bump on her head, the school calls the Special Victims Unit. Ruby tells the detectives a "monster" pushed her down the stairs. The children's babysitter Irina becomes a suspect but it soon becomes clear that Henry pushed Ruby down the stairs. Detectives Benson and Amaro try to convince Viola and Tom that Ruby isn't safe as long as Henry is living there. However, Viola insists she can manage Henry herself, having taken a leave of absence from work and locked up everything sharp. Her husband, Tom, says he knows people who said they can sue the DA's office when Detective Rollins warns the DA won't agree.
It isn't until Henry slices Viola's hand with a knife he somehow obtained, tries to kill Ruby by setting fire to the apartment to suffocate her, holds a boy hostage in the apartment playground and shoots Amaro that Viola finally agrees with the SVU and Pippa Cox to send Henry to a secure treatment facility. (SVU: "Born Psychopath")
Viola, Tom and Ruby frequently visited Henry after he was imprisoned. She was killed in a car accident in 2016, three years after Henry was sent to juvenile detention. (SVU: "Post-Graduate Psychopath")