Law & Order Special Victims Unit s26e22 Episode Script
Post-Rage
1
In the criminal justice system,
sexually based offenses
are considered especially heinous.
In New York City, the
dedicated detectives
who investigate these vicious felonies
are members of an elite squad
known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Velasco, what are you still doing here?
Just catching up on paperwork.
Okay, well, where is everybody?
It's a Friday night.
I guess they got lives.
Well, I gotta get home to Noah,
but you wanna grab a quick drink?
You serious?
Yeah, why don't we go talk for a minute?
Did I do something wrong?
You know, I can be nice sometimes.
Come on.
I know I'm not really good with words,
but I just wanted to say thank you.
For what?
Not giving up on me.
Well, I'm not gonna lie, Velasco,
there have been a few times a while back
where I considered throwing
you out on your ass.
But then it turns out that you're
not entirely a lost cause.
Guys?
ALL: Congratulations!
Whoo!
What is all this?
What's the matter? You look scared.
If we were the mob,
you'd be probably getting
whacked right about now.
Somebody wanna tell me what's going on?
Yeah, you're being promoted, jackass.
To Detective Second Grade.
For real?
For real.
Well, how did this happen?
I called the chief,
and I let him know that
you've demonstrated strong casework.
And earned the respect
of your superiors.
Or in other words, command presence.
Congratulations, Velasco.
Bring it in.
Yo, but there's a
tradition in NYPD old school
that you probably not aware of.
Newly promoted detectives
gotta buy drinks
- for their whole squad.
- Everybody.
This round's on you.
Go in your pocket, man!
I'm definitely having another, man!
- Same here!
- Set me up!
All right.
So to Detective Second Grade Velasco.
ALL: Velasco!
Yeah.
My man.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
[INTERCOM BUZZING]
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
[BEEPING]
[RUSTLING]
Hello? Who's there?
[SIREN BLARING]
What've we got?
Gretchen Stewart, early
50s, general psychiatrist,
lives alone upstairs,
office on the parlor floor.
Found lying on the ground,
bludgeoned with possible signs
of a sexual assault.
Who's the woman in tears? Neighbor?
Unis said it's her assistant.
Came to check on her when she
wasn't answering her phone.
All right. Anything else?
Local precinct got some calls last night
about a possible gunshot in the area.
And they didn't respond?
All right. Take the
assistant's statement.
Hey, Captain.
Forced entry.
Well, it looks like he used a pry bar.
Mm-hmm.
Hey, Tang. What'd you find?
9-millimeter round.
Shell casing's across the room.
Okay, let's see what
ballistics has to say.
Okay, so maybe the gun
went off in a struggle.
Either that, or whoever
fired it was a lousy shot.
Well, like I said, I work remotely.
So I got pretty worried
when Gretchen didn't
pick up her phone, so I drove in.
Was she conscious when you found her?
Barely.
She was bleeding a lot.
But she must have been awake
for at least a little
while after the attack.
What makes you say that?
Her pajama bottoms were off,
but it looked like she was able
to cover herself with a blanket.
She was bludgeoned here
with the pry bar that he broke in with.
Well, you'd expect more blood, right?
Okay.
He rapes her here.
My lieutenant had me take a picture
if you wanna see it, Captain.
I most certainly do.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
He made her comfortable.
Why would he do that?
Post-rage comedown.
So the aftermath of
some adrenaline rush?
No, not just adrenaline.
It's actual regret, right?
I've seen guys like
this actually feel sad,
try to undo the crime,
even call the police on themselves.
Unfortunately, that's not the case here.
Okay. Thanks.
So you think he knew her?
Not as well as she knew him.
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
Captain?
Hey. Any word from the hospital?
Dr. Stewart was concussed.
She lost a pint of blood.
Okay. Can we talk to her?
She's having eye surgery
for her detached retina.
Okay, but they confirmed sexual assault?
Yeah, the rape kit showed
lacerations to her vulva.
But no no DNA?
No, but they did find
carpet fibers inside of her,
which confirms your theory
that the primary assault
- happened on the floor.
- Yeah.
Okay.
Hey, we get anything from CSU?
We did a full sweep, found
some DNA, fingerprints,
but besides Gretchen
Stewart, no one we can ID.
And what do we know about this gun?
Silva and I checked
every inch of that scene.
It's not there.
In all likelihood, our perp
took it with him when he left.
Me and Velasco just got back from a walk
to the License Division.
The gun was registered to a Dr. Stewart.
- So when did she buy it?
- Three months ago.
And were there any recent
break-ins in her neighborhood?
No, not that we found.
Makes you wonder why she
needed the hand cannon.
She was scared of something.
She's been a therapist
for over 20 years,
so it could have been
any one of her patients.
So Bruno and Silva, follow
up with that assistant.
Show her copies of the notebook
and find out who Stewart saw
on the days that the
pages were ripped out.
She averages about
two pages per patient,
so it looks like a week's worth
of session notes were ripped out.
Going how far back?
Mm, sometime around the holidays.
How many patients does Dr. Stewart
usually see in an average day?
Around Christmas?
You'd be surprised
eight a day sometimes.
It would be great if we
had a list of the patients
she had during that week.
And give away their personal details?
Just looking for names.
I understand, but I have
to abide by HIPAA laws.
We'll get a subpoena.
Whatever you have to do.
Was Dr. Stewart afraid
of any of her patients?
If she was, she didn't mention it to me.
Is there anyone else in her life
we might be able to talk to?
Her husband died a few years ago,
and she has no kids.
How about friends?
She did go out to dinner
with Dr. Schwartz last night.
I take Gretchen out to
dinner every now and then.
Are you two dating?
I'm interested, but
I'm afraid she hasn't
given much of an indication.
I don't think she's ready.
We understand.
Gretchen is an amazing woman.
She's bright and effervescent and funny.
Who would do something like this?
What time did you walk her home?
We finished eating around 10:00.
I tried to convince her to get a drink
at the wine bar up the block,
but she wanted to go home.
And you say you escorted her?
I always do.
It's a way of maximizing
my time with her,
apart from it being
the right thing to do.
I really should be going.
We just have a few more questions.
Did you notice anyone following you?
No.
During your date, was she nervous
or frightened about anything?
Well, it was like any other night.
We were laughing, talking shop.
- How do you mean?
- Well, I
Gretchen would probably kill me
if she knew I was telling you this,
but at our dinners, there's a
friendly little game we play
who has the more complicated patient.
Who won last night?
Gretchen won.
She told me about a
couple she's been seeing,
some Wall Street guy and his wife.
Did she say what she
was seeing them for?
The husband's very problematic.
She was attempting to
get the wife to realize
that she needed to leave him.
Anthony Fierro
- 35, trades oil and gas futures.
- Okay.
Does he have any kind of record?
Two arrests for DV against
his wife of two years.
Looks like she refused to testify.
And then went to couples
counseling instead.
According to Gary Schwartz,
Fierro and his wife started
seeing Dr. Stewart around the holidays.
- Okay, text me that photo.
- Yeah.
Captain Benson.
Dr. Wilder, how's
Gretchen Stewart doing?
It was a brutal assault
bleeding in the anterior
chamber of her right eye.
I had to do surgery to
fix the tear in her retina.
Any idea what he hit her with?
Most likely his fists.
Is she able to speak with us?
Came out of anesthesia
about an hour ago.
Poor thing was asking
for her dead husband.
Still a bit groggy.
- Let's keep it brief.
- Of course. Yeah.
Dr. Stewart?
I'm Captain Benson.
This is Captain Curry.
We're with SVU.
Doctor mentioned that
you'd be stopping by.
Is it okay if we ask
you a few questions?
- Yeah, of course.
- Okay.
Can you walk us through
what happened last night?
Yeah, I was in my bed, asleep.
I heard my downstairs buzzer,
the one for my office intercom panel.
I mean, sometimes I have patients
with late-night emergencies,
but I stopped to grab my gun.
Do you know what time this was?
Midnight, I think.
And then what happened?
Whoever it was wouldn't stop buzzing.
So I went into my office.
I asked who was there.
And the next thing I
knew, a man appeared.
He lunged at me.
And I remember him pressing
his thumbs into my eyes.
And then I fell and blacked out.
- Do you recognize his voice?
- No.
No, no, no. He didn't speak.
He just, um, attacked me.
Dr. Stewart, after he attacked you,
he covered you with a blanket.
Do you remember that?
No, I'm sorry.
Um, they said I have a concussion.
Yeah. Please, it's okay.
We're almost done here.
We just we just have a few
more questions, if that's okay.
So Dr. Stewart, is there
anyone that you can think of
that would be capable
of this kind of violence?
I meet people
in some of the most challenging
moments of their lives.
But this, I I can't
I'd like to ask you if
you recognize this man.
Yeah.
Anthony Fierro, he's one of mine.
Okay, what can you tell us about him?
He had been doing a lot of ketamine,
became increasingly paranoid.
I transitioned them
to one-on-one sessions.
Any particular reason why?
His wife took out a restraining order.
He wasn't to come
within 100 feet of her.
Did you have anything to do with that?
[SOFT APPREHENSIVE MUSIC]
Now you know why I took my gun with me
when I went downstairs.
Do you have it?
We did not find it in your office.
So Anthony Fierro has my gun.
Got eyes on Fierro.
- Is he alone?
- Yes.
Does it look like he's
got Gretchen's gun on him?
Silva, you see any gait clues?
Yeah, he's got a loose shirt on,
and he keeps patting his waist like he's
doing a security check.
The last thing that
we need is a shootout.
Bruno, you see him?
Looks like he's hopping
in a QuikRide black SUV,
license plate last four, 1-6-Q-C.
[TENSE MUSIC]
Silva's with me now.
- You want us to light him up?
- Hang back.
I don't want him to know
that he's being followed
until we are ready to move in.
This guy is most likely armed.
Fin, Velasco, you see him?
He just passed us, headed northbound.
♪
Fin, Velasco, we're a few behind you.
You got eyes on the guy?
Yeah, he's two cars ahead.
I'm turning left on the on-ramp.
Hey, there's an accident up ahead.
The cars are at a standstill.
We're two cars behind him.
Do you think you can get him?
Yeah.
We should probably do it
right now before this traffic
- starts moving again.
- Okay.
Velasco, let's go.
But, Bruno, I want you on backup.
Copy that.
♪
- Hey!
- Hey!
- There he goes!
- Hey!
- Stop!
- Stay in your car!
Yo!
- BOTH: Gun!
- [GUNSHOTS]
[PEOPLE SCREAMING]
Stay in your car!
- Stay in your car!
- Stay in your car!
Stay down!
- Yo!
- He's heading eastbound.
He's heading towards the railing.
Stay in your car!
Stay down! Stay down!
I didn't go near her!
Drop the gun!
Just put the gun down!
Put it down!
Okay.
I didn't go
- That's it!
- Okay.
Okay. [BREATHING HEAVILY]
No, no, no!
[METALLIC CRUNCH]
[PEOPLE SCREAMING]
♪
Well, I'm sure we're
getting the same phone calls.
What do you mean?
About our main suspect dying
on the way to the hospital?
Not to mention the damage
he did to the windshield
of some future litigant
of the NYPD's Honda.
Yes, we are getting the same calls.
What'd the ME say?
Ready to rule it a suicide,
pending our investigation.
All right. Velasco's in the clear.
He pulled a gun, Carisi.
Not Gretchen Stewart's gun.
He popped off three shots.
And there's multiple
witnesses on the highway
that confirm that, including Bruno.
Well, how sure are we
that this guy's good
for Dr. Stewart's assault?
Well, Gretchen confirmed
that he made verbal threats
during their last session.
Okay, that certainly points to him.
But that's not gonna be good enough
for the eighth floor on this one.
I need hard evidence.
Which we will have as soon as
we find these ripped-out pages
from her session notebook.
On top of that, now that Fierro
can't really speak for
himself, you're gonna have
to rule out the rest of
Dr. Stewart's patients.
Look, Carisi, Fierro ran
the second he saw Velasco.
He has multiple DV arrests.
And I need you to put
him in Gretchen's office
the night of her assault.
He was staying at a hotel, right?
Yes, which he fled to when his wife
took out a restraining order.
Fin and Velasco are there now.
And and Bruno and Silva
are speaking with the wife.
Well, let's hope she
doesn't alibi Fierro out.
What'd you find?
Other than ketamine? Nothing, Sarge.
Okay, listen, nobody leaves here
until we get those journal pages.
Anywhere you haven't checked yet?
He's got a car in the garage
make, model, plate number.
We'll handle that.
Check with security and see if they have
camera footage of the
night of Gretchen's attack.
So what makes you think this
guy even kept those pages?
'Cause if it was me, I would
have burned them by now.
Let's hope he didn't.
What, for Benson's sake?
Man, Benson got so much juice downtown,
she could start her
own beverage company.
I'm worried about you.
- Me?
- Yeah.
You see a D2 badge around your neck yet?
- No.
- Neither do I.
We gotta stay on our game.
Anthony and I started couples counseling
with Dr. Stewart last year.
For what?
We already know about the DV arrest.
It wasn't that.
Then what was it?
His ketamine use.
I could put up with a lot.
I grew up in a messed-up family,
so I'm used to a
certain amount of chaos.
But I couldn't take
the constant paranoia.
Paranoia over what?
He was convinced I was cheating on him.
I wasn't.
We believe you.
I was exhausted
being under constant indictment,
trying to prove I was faithful.
He put a keystroke
recorder in my laptop,
pulled my underwear out of the hamper
to check if I'd been with anyone,
even hired a private detective.
We understand that Dr. Stewart was
helping you leave him?
She gave me the confidence
to know I deserved better.
That's when I took out
the restraining order.
And when did you finally
tell him you were done?
A few weeks ago.
And that kept him away?
He came back, pounded on the door.
But I called the cops.
He was scared of going back to jail,
what with his prior arrests and all.
Do you have any idea
where your husband was
the night Dr. Stewart was attacked?
At the hotel, I assume.
What makes you say that?
I have the receipt.
We share an email account.
[SOFT SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
I feel guilty saying this, but
it feels good knowing
I'll never see him again.
Okay.
All right. Thanks, Fin.
I know that look.
And what look is that?
The look of an investigator
whose main suspect
was just alibied out.
Your ADA got a judge to issue a subpoena
for my patient files?
Just the names and appointment dates
from the missing pages.
I I don't understand.
I thought you said that
Anthony Fierro was dead.
It's looking like Anthony Fierro is
not the man who attacked you.
What? How?
So I sent some of my
detectives down to the hotel
that he was staying at.
And we have camera footage confirming
that he was there the
entire night of your attack.
We have a receipt of the
recent purchases he made
from the hotel to back it up.
So you are telling me that
another one of my patients
wants to harm me?
It's looking that way.
Why?
[INHALES SHARPLY]
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Please don't apologize.
How am I supposed to leave here
knowing that it's dangerous?
We don't feel that it
would be safe for you
to go back to your apartment.
Where am I going to go?
Well, we're hoping that you could stay
with a friend, maybe your friend Gary,
or stay at a hotel.
Either way, we wanna
eliminate any other suspects
before you can go home.
And unfortunately, that means
the rest of your patients.
So where are we with the rest
of Dr. Stewart's patients?
Found four possible suspects.
At least given the window suggested
by Dr. Stewart and her assistant.
We check all their alibis?
We got Ross Gordon, who
was on business in Chicago
the night of the attack.
Jeff Martino was at a wedding
with dozens of witnesses.
And Vickers was home with
his wife and his new twins.
Guy has a time-stamped
baby monitor to prove it.
What about this this
mystery man right here?
- So Keith Sparks.
- We can't seem to locate him.
Why? He's not returning your calls?
Me and Bruno are trying,
but there's 230 Keith
Sparks in the tri-state area.
Well, did you circle back
with Gretchen Stewart about this guy?
Yeah, she barely remembers his name.
So she said that he came
in for an initial consult,
but she usually does those for free.
So there's no record of his credit cards
or insurance or anything?
If you want, I can put in a
call to Gretchen's assistant.
She's the one who probably
scheduled the consult.
Maybe she remembers
something else about him.
There was a therapist
that was just raped
and murdered in her
community center office.
Homicide is on their way to the scene?
They're waiting for us.
Let's go, guys.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
What are we looking at?
Forced entry, no signs of robbery.
Vic was killed in her
office in the basement.
Make an ID on her yet?
Yeah, Dr. Lauren Wright, 50.
Her husband's on his way over now.
Who called it in?
Office cleaning service.
- Okay. You got her?
- Yeah.
How was she murdered?
Blunt force to the head.
But there's something
you're gonna want to see.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Perp gouged her eyes perimortem.
- He's blinding therapists.
- Yeah.
Well, the symbolism's hard to miss.
He moved her to the couch this time.
And escalated to murder.
No.
I think Gretchen just got lucky.
♪
- So you did know her.
- Yeah, not very well.
We, um, referred a couple of patients
to each other over the years.
Okay.
She was killed in her own office.
How?
Well, the details were
similar to your attack.
She was sexually assaulted.
Blinded while she was still alive.
And then she was placed on the couch
and covered up afterward,
which hints at the
same post-rage comedown.
Then you think it's the same man?
But I wasn't blinded or killed.
No, not for lack of trying.
Well, he most likely didn't
expect you to have a gun.
Not to mention, he was
probably concerned that somebody
would hear the gunshot.
There's one other detail
from the crime scene
that might be relevant.
Dr. Wright kept her
records on her computer.
It's missing.
And we're trying to track them now.
So in the meantime, we'd like to ask
you again about Keith Sparks.
You said he made an
initial consult with you.
Do you happen to have an email?
If I remember correctly,
he did it through an
online portal, so I
I would have to log on.
Stay where you are, dear.
I'll get you a laptop
from the other room.
Gary's been very sweet
to let me stay with him
until it's safe for me to go back home.
It seems like he's
been a very good friend.
- Yeah.
- Thank you.
Here.
I've had this account for years.
My assistant doesn't have access.
Um, okay.
Here it is.
American Psychiatric Wellness?
And here is the email
address that he gave me.
It seems you followed up with
him again after the consult.
He didn't reply.
Okay.
Thank you for your time.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
Okay, so we got his email address.
Is that really gonna narrow it down?
Keith Sparks may not
even be his real name.
[SIGHS] Would explain
why we can't find him.
His MO is his real signature.
I think guys like this,
they don't just pop up out of nowhere.
Gretchen Stewart may
not be his first victim.
I think we need to broaden
the search beyond New York.
I'll run it through ViCAP.
Hyphema and vitreous
hemorrhage to both eyes.
She's got a lot of
bruises on her forearms.
She fought back.
- Tried to.
- What finally killed her?
Punch to the back of her head ruptured
a saccular aneurysm she probably
didn't even know she had.
Did you find any evidence of the rape?
Multiple abrasions, tearing to
the frenulum of her labia minora.
Lot of rage.
What about DNA?
Swabbed her, sent what
we found to the lab.
Well, stay on them.
Make sure they know to rush it.
My guy's already acting like a D2.
Anything else?
I found a faint bite
mark on her right breast.
Enough to leave an impression?
A lot of problems with
forensic odontology,
but I photographed it anyway.
Okay, when we find him,
we'll make sure not to knock
his teeth out, just in case.
We're very sorry about
your wife, Mr. Wright.
She picked a rough profession.
She was an emergency psychiatrist.
It put her in close
proximity to people who were
in acute mental health crises.
Has she ever talked about any patients
that might be capable
of something like this?
Not to me.
But knowing her, I'm sure
her notes were pristine.
I'm sure they were.
But like we said on the phone,
her computer with all
her files was taken.
I know.
Fortunately, it's all right here too.
What's this?
The next best thing
notes for a book she was writing.
They have details about every patient
she's seen for the last few years
names, dates,
diagnoses.
♪
Sit down!
What am I doing here?
Can you tell us where
you were last night?
I got dinner at the Indian spot
below my apartment,
best naan in the city.
Did you eat with anyone else?
Why does that matter?
Because you were a
patient of Dr. Wright's.
And that you saw her the
week before she was murdered.
And raped last night.
And her notes show that you
had a physical altercation.
Wanna tell us about that?
That's you she's
talking about, isn't it?
Hey, where did you get these?
You know why you're here now?
[TENSE MUSIC]
Because I killed her.
♪
Why'd you do it?
Why do you think?
She knew things about me.
I told her everything.
I saw her write it all down.
Is that why you stole her computer?
I didn't want anyone to
find out what was on it.
Why?
What was on it?
What were you so
afraid that she'd share?
- Details.
- About what?
The man I pushed onto the subway tracks
last summer in Times Square.
And
how I assassinated the former president.
Last time I checked,
they're still alive.
That's what the deep
state wants you to think.
- So.
- Well, this is going nowhere.
You got this guy from her notes?
He's the only one
that we flagged so far.
- Captain.
- What do you got?
A hit from ViCAP
rape and murder of a female therapist
in Danbury, Connecticut,
back in December.
Same MO?
I mean, she was beaten
to death, blinded.
Well, according to Danbury
PD's investigative division,
they interviewed a handful of suspects.
Is the case still open?
Yeah, but they could never tie anyone
definitively to the crime.
Well, maybe we can.
Here's all I got on the Burgess case.
You think it has something
to do with one of your cases?
Two female therapists
one raped and assaulted,
- one raped and murdered.
- Blinded?
One of them was.
Made comfortable
postmortem, same as our vic.
Maureen Burgess have a next of kin?
She's got an adult
son that keeps calling.
I'm sure he'd be happy to
hear someone's interested.
She was murdered in her home office?
Yep.
Any chance we can take a look?
It's been five months.
It's not exactly an active crime scene.
- Who lives there now?
- No one.
Her son put it on the market
and having a hell of a time
selling it, considering
what happened there.
All right. Call him and
let him know we're coming.
- Mind if I take this?
- Sure.
Perp shows up at 3:00
a.m., kicks in the door.
That's been replaced.
And Dr. Burgess was raped and
bludgeoned on the floor here.
Carpet's long gone.
You're not gonna find
any evidence, Curry.
And her couch was here.
What are you hoping to find here?
I'll know it when I feel it.
You've been spending too
much time with Benson.
Excuse me. Mr. Burgess.
You painted this place, right?
Yeah.
Had to have it cleaned.
Did your mother keep any kind
of records or session notes?
I gave all that to the Homicide cops.
What about her finances?
You had to settle out her
practice, right? Pay taxes?
With a probate attorney.
Did she keep good books?
She was fastidious.
And I'm assuming that
most of her clients paid
with credit card, correct?
Yeah.
Did she charge for the initial consult?
No, but she did take 50 bucks
off for whoever referred them.
She keep a list of those referrals?
What we got now?
Mindy Davis, one referral.
All right, drive safe,
and remember to bring it
back on a full tank, okay?
Ms. Davis?
- Yeah?
- I'm Captain Curry.
This is Sergeant Tutuola, NYPD.
You were a patient at Dr. Burgess's?
Yeah, for a few years.
She really helped me.
So you knew her well?
Look, I was devastated when I
found out what happened to her.
You said you were NYPD?
Yeah, we're following up on some cases
- that might be related.
- Okay.
Well, what do you need from me?
Did you refer a client to her?
Yeah, a coworker.
- Can you give us their name?
- Ted Schramm.
Okay, is he here? Can we talk to him?
No, he transferred to another location.
He got a job as a manager there.
Let me guess. Manhattan?
Yeah.
You got his picture on file?
Come on.
Do you recognize this man?
He looks familiar from
the initial consult
that you asked me about.
Take your time.
Yeah, that's him.
That's Keith Sparks.
What have we got, Captain?
Confirmation from Gretchen.
We think he's good for it?
For all three of them.
Got an address?
Yeah, he's a assistant manager
of a car rental place in Midtown.
Got enough for a warrant?
You better believe it.
So pick him up, and wear your vests.
- Copy.
- Copy that.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
Hey! NYPD.
Is Ted Schramm working today?
Yeah, he should be bringing
a car down the elevator.
♪
Ted Schramm?
- I'll take the back.
- Call it in!
SVU Portable to Central, our
suspect is in the elevator.
Let's form a perimeter.
And let's close the elevators down!
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
[GRUNTS]
- You good?
- Yeah!
Go, go, go! Go!
Don't move!
There's nowhere to go, man.
♪
Aw, son of a bitch!
Ted Schramm?
Or whatever the hell your name is.
You're under arrest. Turn around.
[HANDCUFFS CLINK]
- You good?
- Oh, yeah. I'm good.
Ted, I'm Captain Benson.
I was just filling Ted in on his rights.
Okay.
I don't have to talk to you.
That is true.
But if you don't,
you'd be missing out on,
uh, some free therapy.
How do you mean?
All these women that were hurt,
they're therapists.
And, um, I thought that
might appeal to you.
Basically, that's what
an interrogation is.
It can be very therapeutic.
Especially if someone's
carrying something.
Like shame or regret.
But you're right.
We don't have to do this.
So why don't you have somebody
take him to central booking?
Got it.
No, wait.
[APPREHENSIVE MUSIC]
What what did you wanna ask me?
Well, Ted, I'm gonna be honest with you.
As an investigator, I'm
I'm in a little over my head here.
I'm very impressed by crimes like this.
I mean, aren't you, Fin?
That's one way to put it.
In our jobs, we're forced to look
at some of the darkest
corners of humanity.
But this is different.
How so?
How so?
This has an elegance to it,
like a, you know,
symbolism to it, you know?
And I've I've had my
fair share of therapy,
but, uh, not even remotely
enough to understand
something like this.
I've been going to a
psychiatrist since I was a kid.
Oh.
Was even institutionalized a few times.
That must have been
very difficult for you.
So you've seen dozens of
shrinks over the years?
Sort of makes you somewhat
of an expert, I would say.
I guess.
Can you tell me why someone
would blind these women?
Maybe whoever did it
didn't wanna be seen.
- You mean identified?
- No.
I mean, like, really seen.
For who they really are,
like in their soul, yeah?
Deep inside?
Something like that.
So what is he?
Who is this?
Ted?
Everyone starts out this life as a baby.
So he was innocent,
at one point at least.
But then he probably got angry.
Why?
The lies,
that the world's full of wonder.
That only works for so long
until you start noticing the cracks.
Cracks?
I think we all notice those cracks, Ted.
Parents who said one
thing but did another.
Right.
At school, it's the same
teachers preaching fairness
but playing favorites!
Eventually, he'd start to
see the world for what it is.
So they probably made him get help,
thinking it might offer clarity.
But it never did.
Mm-mm.
Nothing but mental manipulation
placing blame, shifting blame,
turning it all around!
They took him apart!
And they never put him back together.
No.
And that was her fault, Ted?
Not just hers
all of them.
Don't you see?
He wanted deliverance.
He wanted to be free from the pain.
But all they did was talk
and talk and talk and talk!
They couldn't help you,
so they needed to feel pain too.
Is that it?
Punishment should fit the crime.
And who better to dole it out than you?
Ted, but you didn't
wanna do it, did you?
No.
No.
I didn't.
I really didn't.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
God, I am so tired.
Yeah.
♪
So that's it?
It's over?
We have Ted Schramm
in custody right now.
We also searched his apartment
and found the missing
pages of your journal,
along with Dr. Wright's computer.
Thank you.
It's not a popular thing
to believe in my profession,
but some people are just beyond help.
Well, I guess our jobs are
pretty similar that way
at least, it feels that way sometimes.
Yeah.
[INTERCOM BUZZES]
That means our time's up?
You have another patient already?
It's actually Gary.
He wanted to bring me dinner.
Oh, nice.
You take care of yourself.
Thank you.
You know, what happened
to me isn't gonna keep me
from trying to help other people,
even if some of them are beyond it.
Well, like I said, um,
our jobs are similar.
- Take care.
- Thank you.
- Hey. Take care.
- Yeah.
Hi.
How was Ted's arraignment?
He pled not guilty.
His lawyer's going for
an insanity defense.
Oh, that's rich.
Yeah, no jury's gonna buy that.
These were premeditated murders.
This guy knew exactly what he was doing.
So he will never see the light of day?
Not when I get through with him.
[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]
As a result of their dedication
and devotion to duty, 16 detectives have
been designated Detective Second Grade.
And those detectives are Ezra Harvey.
♪
Niki Robertson.
♪
José Velasco.
♪
I just wanna say, again,
what an honor it is to
be here, Captain Benson.
Velasco, being a cop
isn't some sort of penance.
Are we good?
We're good.
Command presence.
You showed real leadership, Velasco.
Thanks, Captain.
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
[WOLF HOWLS]
In the criminal justice system,
sexually based offenses
are considered especially heinous.
In New York City, the
dedicated detectives
who investigate these vicious felonies
are members of an elite squad
known as the Special Victims Unit.
These are their stories.
Velasco, what are you still doing here?
Just catching up on paperwork.
Okay, well, where is everybody?
It's a Friday night.
I guess they got lives.
Well, I gotta get home to Noah,
but you wanna grab a quick drink?
You serious?
Yeah, why don't we go talk for a minute?
Did I do something wrong?
You know, I can be nice sometimes.
Come on.
I know I'm not really good with words,
but I just wanted to say thank you.
For what?
Not giving up on me.
Well, I'm not gonna lie, Velasco,
there have been a few times a while back
where I considered throwing
you out on your ass.
But then it turns out that you're
not entirely a lost cause.
Guys?
ALL: Congratulations!
Whoo!
What is all this?
What's the matter? You look scared.
If we were the mob,
you'd be probably getting
whacked right about now.
Somebody wanna tell me what's going on?
Yeah, you're being promoted, jackass.
To Detective Second Grade.
For real?
For real.
Well, how did this happen?
I called the chief,
and I let him know that
you've demonstrated strong casework.
And earned the respect
of your superiors.
Or in other words, command presence.
Congratulations, Velasco.
Bring it in.
Yo, but there's a
tradition in NYPD old school
that you probably not aware of.
Newly promoted detectives
gotta buy drinks
- for their whole squad.
- Everybody.
This round's on you.
Go in your pocket, man!
I'm definitely having another, man!
- Same here!
- Set me up!
All right.
So to Detective Second Grade Velasco.
ALL: Velasco!
Yeah.
My man.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
[INTERCOM BUZZING]
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
[BEEPING]
[RUSTLING]
Hello? Who's there?
[SIREN BLARING]
What've we got?
Gretchen Stewart, early
50s, general psychiatrist,
lives alone upstairs,
office on the parlor floor.
Found lying on the ground,
bludgeoned with possible signs
of a sexual assault.
Who's the woman in tears? Neighbor?
Unis said it's her assistant.
Came to check on her when she
wasn't answering her phone.
All right. Anything else?
Local precinct got some calls last night
about a possible gunshot in the area.
And they didn't respond?
All right. Take the
assistant's statement.
Hey, Captain.
Forced entry.
Well, it looks like he used a pry bar.
Mm-hmm.
Hey, Tang. What'd you find?
9-millimeter round.
Shell casing's across the room.
Okay, let's see what
ballistics has to say.
Okay, so maybe the gun
went off in a struggle.
Either that, or whoever
fired it was a lousy shot.
Well, like I said, I work remotely.
So I got pretty worried
when Gretchen didn't
pick up her phone, so I drove in.
Was she conscious when you found her?
Barely.
She was bleeding a lot.
But she must have been awake
for at least a little
while after the attack.
What makes you say that?
Her pajama bottoms were off,
but it looked like she was able
to cover herself with a blanket.
She was bludgeoned here
with the pry bar that he broke in with.
Well, you'd expect more blood, right?
Okay.
He rapes her here.
My lieutenant had me take a picture
if you wanna see it, Captain.
I most certainly do.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
He made her comfortable.
Why would he do that?
Post-rage comedown.
So the aftermath of
some adrenaline rush?
No, not just adrenaline.
It's actual regret, right?
I've seen guys like
this actually feel sad,
try to undo the crime,
even call the police on themselves.
Unfortunately, that's not the case here.
Okay. Thanks.
So you think he knew her?
Not as well as she knew him.
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
Captain?
Hey. Any word from the hospital?
Dr. Stewart was concussed.
She lost a pint of blood.
Okay. Can we talk to her?
She's having eye surgery
for her detached retina.
Okay, but they confirmed sexual assault?
Yeah, the rape kit showed
lacerations to her vulva.
But no no DNA?
No, but they did find
carpet fibers inside of her,
which confirms your theory
that the primary assault
- happened on the floor.
- Yeah.
Okay.
Hey, we get anything from CSU?
We did a full sweep, found
some DNA, fingerprints,
but besides Gretchen
Stewart, no one we can ID.
And what do we know about this gun?
Silva and I checked
every inch of that scene.
It's not there.
In all likelihood, our perp
took it with him when he left.
Me and Velasco just got back from a walk
to the License Division.
The gun was registered to a Dr. Stewart.
- So when did she buy it?
- Three months ago.
And were there any recent
break-ins in her neighborhood?
No, not that we found.
Makes you wonder why she
needed the hand cannon.
She was scared of something.
She's been a therapist
for over 20 years,
so it could have been
any one of her patients.
So Bruno and Silva, follow
up with that assistant.
Show her copies of the notebook
and find out who Stewart saw
on the days that the
pages were ripped out.
She averages about
two pages per patient,
so it looks like a week's worth
of session notes were ripped out.
Going how far back?
Mm, sometime around the holidays.
How many patients does Dr. Stewart
usually see in an average day?
Around Christmas?
You'd be surprised
eight a day sometimes.
It would be great if we
had a list of the patients
she had during that week.
And give away their personal details?
Just looking for names.
I understand, but I have
to abide by HIPAA laws.
We'll get a subpoena.
Whatever you have to do.
Was Dr. Stewart afraid
of any of her patients?
If she was, she didn't mention it to me.
Is there anyone else in her life
we might be able to talk to?
Her husband died a few years ago,
and she has no kids.
How about friends?
She did go out to dinner
with Dr. Schwartz last night.
I take Gretchen out to
dinner every now and then.
Are you two dating?
I'm interested, but
I'm afraid she hasn't
given much of an indication.
I don't think she's ready.
We understand.
Gretchen is an amazing woman.
She's bright and effervescent and funny.
Who would do something like this?
What time did you walk her home?
We finished eating around 10:00.
I tried to convince her to get a drink
at the wine bar up the block,
but she wanted to go home.
And you say you escorted her?
I always do.
It's a way of maximizing
my time with her,
apart from it being
the right thing to do.
I really should be going.
We just have a few more questions.
Did you notice anyone following you?
No.
During your date, was she nervous
or frightened about anything?
Well, it was like any other night.
We were laughing, talking shop.
- How do you mean?
- Well, I
Gretchen would probably kill me
if she knew I was telling you this,
but at our dinners, there's a
friendly little game we play
who has the more complicated patient.
Who won last night?
Gretchen won.
She told me about a
couple she's been seeing,
some Wall Street guy and his wife.
Did she say what she
was seeing them for?
The husband's very problematic.
She was attempting to
get the wife to realize
that she needed to leave him.
Anthony Fierro
- 35, trades oil and gas futures.
- Okay.
Does he have any kind of record?
Two arrests for DV against
his wife of two years.
Looks like she refused to testify.
And then went to couples
counseling instead.
According to Gary Schwartz,
Fierro and his wife started
seeing Dr. Stewart around the holidays.
- Okay, text me that photo.
- Yeah.
Captain Benson.
Dr. Wilder, how's
Gretchen Stewart doing?
It was a brutal assault
bleeding in the anterior
chamber of her right eye.
I had to do surgery to
fix the tear in her retina.
Any idea what he hit her with?
Most likely his fists.
Is she able to speak with us?
Came out of anesthesia
about an hour ago.
Poor thing was asking
for her dead husband.
Still a bit groggy.
- Let's keep it brief.
- Of course. Yeah.
Dr. Stewart?
I'm Captain Benson.
This is Captain Curry.
We're with SVU.
Doctor mentioned that
you'd be stopping by.
Is it okay if we ask
you a few questions?
- Yeah, of course.
- Okay.
Can you walk us through
what happened last night?
Yeah, I was in my bed, asleep.
I heard my downstairs buzzer,
the one for my office intercom panel.
I mean, sometimes I have patients
with late-night emergencies,
but I stopped to grab my gun.
Do you know what time this was?
Midnight, I think.
And then what happened?
Whoever it was wouldn't stop buzzing.
So I went into my office.
I asked who was there.
And the next thing I
knew, a man appeared.
He lunged at me.
And I remember him pressing
his thumbs into my eyes.
And then I fell and blacked out.
- Do you recognize his voice?
- No.
No, no, no. He didn't speak.
He just, um, attacked me.
Dr. Stewart, after he attacked you,
he covered you with a blanket.
Do you remember that?
No, I'm sorry.
Um, they said I have a concussion.
Yeah. Please, it's okay.
We're almost done here.
We just we just have a few
more questions, if that's okay.
So Dr. Stewart, is there
anyone that you can think of
that would be capable
of this kind of violence?
I meet people
in some of the most challenging
moments of their lives.
But this, I I can't
I'd like to ask you if
you recognize this man.
Yeah.
Anthony Fierro, he's one of mine.
Okay, what can you tell us about him?
He had been doing a lot of ketamine,
became increasingly paranoid.
I transitioned them
to one-on-one sessions.
Any particular reason why?
His wife took out a restraining order.
He wasn't to come
within 100 feet of her.
Did you have anything to do with that?
[SOFT APPREHENSIVE MUSIC]
Now you know why I took my gun with me
when I went downstairs.
Do you have it?
We did not find it in your office.
So Anthony Fierro has my gun.
Got eyes on Fierro.
- Is he alone?
- Yes.
Does it look like he's
got Gretchen's gun on him?
Silva, you see any gait clues?
Yeah, he's got a loose shirt on,
and he keeps patting his waist like he's
doing a security check.
The last thing that
we need is a shootout.
Bruno, you see him?
Looks like he's hopping
in a QuikRide black SUV,
license plate last four, 1-6-Q-C.
[TENSE MUSIC]
Silva's with me now.
- You want us to light him up?
- Hang back.
I don't want him to know
that he's being followed
until we are ready to move in.
This guy is most likely armed.
Fin, Velasco, you see him?
He just passed us, headed northbound.
♪
Fin, Velasco, we're a few behind you.
You got eyes on the guy?
Yeah, he's two cars ahead.
I'm turning left on the on-ramp.
Hey, there's an accident up ahead.
The cars are at a standstill.
We're two cars behind him.
Do you think you can get him?
Yeah.
We should probably do it
right now before this traffic
- starts moving again.
- Okay.
Velasco, let's go.
But, Bruno, I want you on backup.
Copy that.
♪
- Hey!
- Hey!
- There he goes!
- Hey!
- Stop!
- Stay in your car!
Yo!
- BOTH: Gun!
- [GUNSHOTS]
[PEOPLE SCREAMING]
Stay in your car!
- Stay in your car!
- Stay in your car!
Stay down!
- Yo!
- He's heading eastbound.
He's heading towards the railing.
Stay in your car!
Stay down! Stay down!
I didn't go near her!
Drop the gun!
Just put the gun down!
Put it down!
Okay.
I didn't go
- That's it!
- Okay.
Okay. [BREATHING HEAVILY]
No, no, no!
[METALLIC CRUNCH]
[PEOPLE SCREAMING]
♪
Well, I'm sure we're
getting the same phone calls.
What do you mean?
About our main suspect dying
on the way to the hospital?
Not to mention the damage
he did to the windshield
of some future litigant
of the NYPD's Honda.
Yes, we are getting the same calls.
What'd the ME say?
Ready to rule it a suicide,
pending our investigation.
All right. Velasco's in the clear.
He pulled a gun, Carisi.
Not Gretchen Stewart's gun.
He popped off three shots.
And there's multiple
witnesses on the highway
that confirm that, including Bruno.
Well, how sure are we
that this guy's good
for Dr. Stewart's assault?
Well, Gretchen confirmed
that he made verbal threats
during their last session.
Okay, that certainly points to him.
But that's not gonna be good enough
for the eighth floor on this one.
I need hard evidence.
Which we will have as soon as
we find these ripped-out pages
from her session notebook.
On top of that, now that Fierro
can't really speak for
himself, you're gonna have
to rule out the rest of
Dr. Stewart's patients.
Look, Carisi, Fierro ran
the second he saw Velasco.
He has multiple DV arrests.
And I need you to put
him in Gretchen's office
the night of her assault.
He was staying at a hotel, right?
Yes, which he fled to when his wife
took out a restraining order.
Fin and Velasco are there now.
And and Bruno and Silva
are speaking with the wife.
Well, let's hope she
doesn't alibi Fierro out.
What'd you find?
Other than ketamine? Nothing, Sarge.
Okay, listen, nobody leaves here
until we get those journal pages.
Anywhere you haven't checked yet?
He's got a car in the garage
make, model, plate number.
We'll handle that.
Check with security and see if they have
camera footage of the
night of Gretchen's attack.
So what makes you think this
guy even kept those pages?
'Cause if it was me, I would
have burned them by now.
Let's hope he didn't.
What, for Benson's sake?
Man, Benson got so much juice downtown,
she could start her
own beverage company.
I'm worried about you.
- Me?
- Yeah.
You see a D2 badge around your neck yet?
- No.
- Neither do I.
We gotta stay on our game.
Anthony and I started couples counseling
with Dr. Stewart last year.
For what?
We already know about the DV arrest.
It wasn't that.
Then what was it?
His ketamine use.
I could put up with a lot.
I grew up in a messed-up family,
so I'm used to a
certain amount of chaos.
But I couldn't take
the constant paranoia.
Paranoia over what?
He was convinced I was cheating on him.
I wasn't.
We believe you.
I was exhausted
being under constant indictment,
trying to prove I was faithful.
He put a keystroke
recorder in my laptop,
pulled my underwear out of the hamper
to check if I'd been with anyone,
even hired a private detective.
We understand that Dr. Stewart was
helping you leave him?
She gave me the confidence
to know I deserved better.
That's when I took out
the restraining order.
And when did you finally
tell him you were done?
A few weeks ago.
And that kept him away?
He came back, pounded on the door.
But I called the cops.
He was scared of going back to jail,
what with his prior arrests and all.
Do you have any idea
where your husband was
the night Dr. Stewart was attacked?
At the hotel, I assume.
What makes you say that?
I have the receipt.
We share an email account.
[SOFT SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
I feel guilty saying this, but
it feels good knowing
I'll never see him again.
Okay.
All right. Thanks, Fin.
I know that look.
And what look is that?
The look of an investigator
whose main suspect
was just alibied out.
Your ADA got a judge to issue a subpoena
for my patient files?
Just the names and appointment dates
from the missing pages.
I I don't understand.
I thought you said that
Anthony Fierro was dead.
It's looking like Anthony Fierro is
not the man who attacked you.
What? How?
So I sent some of my
detectives down to the hotel
that he was staying at.
And we have camera footage confirming
that he was there the
entire night of your attack.
We have a receipt of the
recent purchases he made
from the hotel to back it up.
So you are telling me that
another one of my patients
wants to harm me?
It's looking that way.
Why?
[INHALES SHARPLY]
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Please don't apologize.
How am I supposed to leave here
knowing that it's dangerous?
We don't feel that it
would be safe for you
to go back to your apartment.
Where am I going to go?
Well, we're hoping that you could stay
with a friend, maybe your friend Gary,
or stay at a hotel.
Either way, we wanna
eliminate any other suspects
before you can go home.
And unfortunately, that means
the rest of your patients.
So where are we with the rest
of Dr. Stewart's patients?
Found four possible suspects.
At least given the window suggested
by Dr. Stewart and her assistant.
We check all their alibis?
We got Ross Gordon, who
was on business in Chicago
the night of the attack.
Jeff Martino was at a wedding
with dozens of witnesses.
And Vickers was home with
his wife and his new twins.
Guy has a time-stamped
baby monitor to prove it.
What about this this
mystery man right here?
- So Keith Sparks.
- We can't seem to locate him.
Why? He's not returning your calls?
Me and Bruno are trying,
but there's 230 Keith
Sparks in the tri-state area.
Well, did you circle back
with Gretchen Stewart about this guy?
Yeah, she barely remembers his name.
So she said that he came
in for an initial consult,
but she usually does those for free.
So there's no record of his credit cards
or insurance or anything?
If you want, I can put in a
call to Gretchen's assistant.
She's the one who probably
scheduled the consult.
Maybe she remembers
something else about him.
There was a therapist
that was just raped
and murdered in her
community center office.
Homicide is on their way to the scene?
They're waiting for us.
Let's go, guys.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
What are we looking at?
Forced entry, no signs of robbery.
Vic was killed in her
office in the basement.
Make an ID on her yet?
Yeah, Dr. Lauren Wright, 50.
Her husband's on his way over now.
Who called it in?
Office cleaning service.
- Okay. You got her?
- Yeah.
How was she murdered?
Blunt force to the head.
But there's something
you're gonna want to see.
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
Perp gouged her eyes perimortem.
- He's blinding therapists.
- Yeah.
Well, the symbolism's hard to miss.
He moved her to the couch this time.
And escalated to murder.
No.
I think Gretchen just got lucky.
♪
- So you did know her.
- Yeah, not very well.
We, um, referred a couple of patients
to each other over the years.
Okay.
She was killed in her own office.
How?
Well, the details were
similar to your attack.
She was sexually assaulted.
Blinded while she was still alive.
And then she was placed on the couch
and covered up afterward,
which hints at the
same post-rage comedown.
Then you think it's the same man?
But I wasn't blinded or killed.
No, not for lack of trying.
Well, he most likely didn't
expect you to have a gun.
Not to mention, he was
probably concerned that somebody
would hear the gunshot.
There's one other detail
from the crime scene
that might be relevant.
Dr. Wright kept her
records on her computer.
It's missing.
And we're trying to track them now.
So in the meantime, we'd like to ask
you again about Keith Sparks.
You said he made an
initial consult with you.
Do you happen to have an email?
If I remember correctly,
he did it through an
online portal, so I
I would have to log on.
Stay where you are, dear.
I'll get you a laptop
from the other room.
Gary's been very sweet
to let me stay with him
until it's safe for me to go back home.
It seems like he's
been a very good friend.
- Yeah.
- Thank you.
Here.
I've had this account for years.
My assistant doesn't have access.
Um, okay.
Here it is.
American Psychiatric Wellness?
And here is the email
address that he gave me.
It seems you followed up with
him again after the consult.
He didn't reply.
Okay.
Thank you for your time.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
Okay, so we got his email address.
Is that really gonna narrow it down?
Keith Sparks may not
even be his real name.
[SIGHS] Would explain
why we can't find him.
His MO is his real signature.
I think guys like this,
they don't just pop up out of nowhere.
Gretchen Stewart may
not be his first victim.
I think we need to broaden
the search beyond New York.
I'll run it through ViCAP.
Hyphema and vitreous
hemorrhage to both eyes.
She's got a lot of
bruises on her forearms.
She fought back.
- Tried to.
- What finally killed her?
Punch to the back of her head ruptured
a saccular aneurysm she probably
didn't even know she had.
Did you find any evidence of the rape?
Multiple abrasions, tearing to
the frenulum of her labia minora.
Lot of rage.
What about DNA?
Swabbed her, sent what
we found to the lab.
Well, stay on them.
Make sure they know to rush it.
My guy's already acting like a D2.
Anything else?
I found a faint bite
mark on her right breast.
Enough to leave an impression?
A lot of problems with
forensic odontology,
but I photographed it anyway.
Okay, when we find him,
we'll make sure not to knock
his teeth out, just in case.
We're very sorry about
your wife, Mr. Wright.
She picked a rough profession.
She was an emergency psychiatrist.
It put her in close
proximity to people who were
in acute mental health crises.
Has she ever talked about any patients
that might be capable
of something like this?
Not to me.
But knowing her, I'm sure
her notes were pristine.
I'm sure they were.
But like we said on the phone,
her computer with all
her files was taken.
I know.
Fortunately, it's all right here too.
What's this?
The next best thing
notes for a book she was writing.
They have details about every patient
she's seen for the last few years
names, dates,
diagnoses.
♪
Sit down!
What am I doing here?
Can you tell us where
you were last night?
I got dinner at the Indian spot
below my apartment,
best naan in the city.
Did you eat with anyone else?
Why does that matter?
Because you were a
patient of Dr. Wright's.
And that you saw her the
week before she was murdered.
And raped last night.
And her notes show that you
had a physical altercation.
Wanna tell us about that?
That's you she's
talking about, isn't it?
Hey, where did you get these?
You know why you're here now?
[TENSE MUSIC]
Because I killed her.
♪
Why'd you do it?
Why do you think?
She knew things about me.
I told her everything.
I saw her write it all down.
Is that why you stole her computer?
I didn't want anyone to
find out what was on it.
Why?
What was on it?
What were you so
afraid that she'd share?
- Details.
- About what?
The man I pushed onto the subway tracks
last summer in Times Square.
And
how I assassinated the former president.
Last time I checked,
they're still alive.
That's what the deep
state wants you to think.
- So.
- Well, this is going nowhere.
You got this guy from her notes?
He's the only one
that we flagged so far.
- Captain.
- What do you got?
A hit from ViCAP
rape and murder of a female therapist
in Danbury, Connecticut,
back in December.
Same MO?
I mean, she was beaten
to death, blinded.
Well, according to Danbury
PD's investigative division,
they interviewed a handful of suspects.
Is the case still open?
Yeah, but they could never tie anyone
definitively to the crime.
Well, maybe we can.
Here's all I got on the Burgess case.
You think it has something
to do with one of your cases?
Two female therapists
one raped and assaulted,
- one raped and murdered.
- Blinded?
One of them was.
Made comfortable
postmortem, same as our vic.
Maureen Burgess have a next of kin?
She's got an adult
son that keeps calling.
I'm sure he'd be happy to
hear someone's interested.
She was murdered in her home office?
Yep.
Any chance we can take a look?
It's been five months.
It's not exactly an active crime scene.
- Who lives there now?
- No one.
Her son put it on the market
and having a hell of a time
selling it, considering
what happened there.
All right. Call him and
let him know we're coming.
- Mind if I take this?
- Sure.
Perp shows up at 3:00
a.m., kicks in the door.
That's been replaced.
And Dr. Burgess was raped and
bludgeoned on the floor here.
Carpet's long gone.
You're not gonna find
any evidence, Curry.
And her couch was here.
What are you hoping to find here?
I'll know it when I feel it.
You've been spending too
much time with Benson.
Excuse me. Mr. Burgess.
You painted this place, right?
Yeah.
Had to have it cleaned.
Did your mother keep any kind
of records or session notes?
I gave all that to the Homicide cops.
What about her finances?
You had to settle out her
practice, right? Pay taxes?
With a probate attorney.
Did she keep good books?
She was fastidious.
And I'm assuming that
most of her clients paid
with credit card, correct?
Yeah.
Did she charge for the initial consult?
No, but she did take 50 bucks
off for whoever referred them.
She keep a list of those referrals?
What we got now?
Mindy Davis, one referral.
All right, drive safe,
and remember to bring it
back on a full tank, okay?
Ms. Davis?
- Yeah?
- I'm Captain Curry.
This is Sergeant Tutuola, NYPD.
You were a patient at Dr. Burgess's?
Yeah, for a few years.
She really helped me.
So you knew her well?
Look, I was devastated when I
found out what happened to her.
You said you were NYPD?
Yeah, we're following up on some cases
- that might be related.
- Okay.
Well, what do you need from me?
Did you refer a client to her?
Yeah, a coworker.
- Can you give us their name?
- Ted Schramm.
Okay, is he here? Can we talk to him?
No, he transferred to another location.
He got a job as a manager there.
Let me guess. Manhattan?
Yeah.
You got his picture on file?
Come on.
Do you recognize this man?
He looks familiar from
the initial consult
that you asked me about.
Take your time.
Yeah, that's him.
That's Keith Sparks.
What have we got, Captain?
Confirmation from Gretchen.
We think he's good for it?
For all three of them.
Got an address?
Yeah, he's a assistant manager
of a car rental place in Midtown.
Got enough for a warrant?
You better believe it.
So pick him up, and wear your vests.
- Copy.
- Copy that.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC]
Hey! NYPD.
Is Ted Schramm working today?
Yeah, he should be bringing
a car down the elevator.
♪
Ted Schramm?
- I'll take the back.
- Call it in!
SVU Portable to Central, our
suspect is in the elevator.
Let's form a perimeter.
And let's close the elevators down!
[TENSE MUSIC]
♪
[GRUNTS]
- You good?
- Yeah!
Go, go, go! Go!
Don't move!
There's nowhere to go, man.
♪
Aw, son of a bitch!
Ted Schramm?
Or whatever the hell your name is.
You're under arrest. Turn around.
[HANDCUFFS CLINK]
- You good?
- Oh, yeah. I'm good.
Ted, I'm Captain Benson.
I was just filling Ted in on his rights.
Okay.
I don't have to talk to you.
That is true.
But if you don't,
you'd be missing out on,
uh, some free therapy.
How do you mean?
All these women that were hurt,
they're therapists.
And, um, I thought that
might appeal to you.
Basically, that's what
an interrogation is.
It can be very therapeutic.
Especially if someone's
carrying something.
Like shame or regret.
But you're right.
We don't have to do this.
So why don't you have somebody
take him to central booking?
Got it.
No, wait.
[APPREHENSIVE MUSIC]
What what did you wanna ask me?
Well, Ted, I'm gonna be honest with you.
As an investigator, I'm
I'm in a little over my head here.
I'm very impressed by crimes like this.
I mean, aren't you, Fin?
That's one way to put it.
In our jobs, we're forced to look
at some of the darkest
corners of humanity.
But this is different.
How so?
How so?
This has an elegance to it,
like a, you know,
symbolism to it, you know?
And I've I've had my
fair share of therapy,
but, uh, not even remotely
enough to understand
something like this.
I've been going to a
psychiatrist since I was a kid.
Oh.
Was even institutionalized a few times.
That must have been
very difficult for you.
So you've seen dozens of
shrinks over the years?
Sort of makes you somewhat
of an expert, I would say.
I guess.
Can you tell me why someone
would blind these women?
Maybe whoever did it
didn't wanna be seen.
- You mean identified?
- No.
I mean, like, really seen.
For who they really are,
like in their soul, yeah?
Deep inside?
Something like that.
So what is he?
Who is this?
Ted?
Everyone starts out this life as a baby.
So he was innocent,
at one point at least.
But then he probably got angry.
Why?
The lies,
that the world's full of wonder.
That only works for so long
until you start noticing the cracks.
Cracks?
I think we all notice those cracks, Ted.
Parents who said one
thing but did another.
Right.
At school, it's the same
teachers preaching fairness
but playing favorites!
Eventually, he'd start to
see the world for what it is.
So they probably made him get help,
thinking it might offer clarity.
But it never did.
Mm-mm.
Nothing but mental manipulation
placing blame, shifting blame,
turning it all around!
They took him apart!
And they never put him back together.
No.
And that was her fault, Ted?
Not just hers
all of them.
Don't you see?
He wanted deliverance.
He wanted to be free from the pain.
But all they did was talk
and talk and talk and talk!
They couldn't help you,
so they needed to feel pain too.
Is that it?
Punishment should fit the crime.
And who better to dole it out than you?
Ted, but you didn't
wanna do it, did you?
No.
No.
I didn't.
I really didn't.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
God, I am so tired.
Yeah.
♪
So that's it?
It's over?
We have Ted Schramm
in custody right now.
We also searched his apartment
and found the missing
pages of your journal,
along with Dr. Wright's computer.
Thank you.
It's not a popular thing
to believe in my profession,
but some people are just beyond help.
Well, I guess our jobs are
pretty similar that way
at least, it feels that way sometimes.
Yeah.
[INTERCOM BUZZES]
That means our time's up?
You have another patient already?
It's actually Gary.
He wanted to bring me dinner.
Oh, nice.
You take care of yourself.
Thank you.
You know, what happened
to me isn't gonna keep me
from trying to help other people,
even if some of them are beyond it.
Well, like I said, um,
our jobs are similar.
- Take care.
- Thank you.
- Hey. Take care.
- Yeah.
Hi.
How was Ted's arraignment?
He pled not guilty.
His lawyer's going for
an insanity defense.
Oh, that's rich.
Yeah, no jury's gonna buy that.
These were premeditated murders.
This guy knew exactly what he was doing.
So he will never see the light of day?
Not when I get through with him.
[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]
As a result of their dedication
and devotion to duty, 16 detectives have
been designated Detective Second Grade.
And those detectives are Ezra Harvey.
♪
Niki Robertson.
♪
José Velasco.
♪
I just wanna say, again,
what an honor it is to
be here, Captain Benson.
Velasco, being a cop
isn't some sort of penance.
Are we good?
We're good.
Command presence.
You showed real leadership, Velasco.
Thanks, Captain.
♪
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
♪
[WOLF HOWLS]