Law & Order Special Victims Unit s11e04 Episode Script
Hammered
NARRATOR: 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, (SlRENS WAlLlNG lN THE DlSTANCE) (GRUNTlNG) (EXHALES) What the Oh, God.
(GROANlNG) Oh, my God.
No.
No.
(VOMlTlNG) (CHATTERlNG OVER POLlCE RADlO) Careful of the emesis.
STABLER: Who puked? The apartment owner, when he discovered her.
Dalton Rindell.
He's got a pretty good gash to the head.
Paramedics are with him now.
We saw him on the way in, but wanted to get a handle on what went down here before we talked to him.
Fluids on her thigh indicate sexual activity.
Rest of the story's written on the wall.
Bludgeoned to death from someone in a rage.
From the impressions to the skull, I'd say you're looking for a hammer.
Rindell called Do you have an approximate time of death here? I can give you the exact minute.
She tried to shield her head with her hands.
One of the blows crushed the crystal on her watch.
(EXHALES) BENSON: 12:57.
So, Rindell was out cold for six and a half hours.
That's some hit to the head.
This might explain the perp's rage.
(READlNG) I thought Mr.
Rindell's name was Dalton.
He was having an affair with Audrey.
Michael catches them in the act, he attacks Dalton, kills his cheating lover.
STABLER: So the sex was consensual.
Mr.
Rindell, can you tell us what happened? I was hoping you could tell me.
I don't remember anything.
My head is splitting.
Could his injury have affected his memory? Neuro exam checked out fine.
STABLER: What exactly is the nature of your relationship with Audrey? Who's Audrey? The dead woman on your bedroom floor.
We didn't have any relationship.
Until I found her this morning, I'd never seen her before in my life.
Melinda, you got a minute? I was hoping to pop her in the fridge before she goes bad.
I'm thinking it's Dalton's story that's stinking.
You like him for it.
Well, there was no sign of forced entry.
But the victim's clothes, purse and lD are missing.
Someone must have taken them.
Someone Dalton doesn't want us to know about.
Drug dealer, pimp.
We know she had sex.
I need to know if it was with Dalton.
You mind coming upstairs and doing a DNA swab? We letting him know why? I don't understand.
Why do you need my fingerprints? We take it from anyone who has Iegitimate access to the apartment.
Once we eliminate the friendlies, any unidentified print could be the perp's.
Got you.
We need you to sign this so we can search your apartment.
That way, we don't have to pester a judge for a warrant.
Why would you need to do that? There's no crime scene exception to the Fourth Amendment.
We need to keep our searches legal.
A man killed someone in my home.
Whatever you need to do.
But I don't get it.
Why did he pick me? Have you ever seen anything like this? (SlGHS) If I had a nickel for every dead prostitute I ever woke up with I've never used a prostitute.
Sorry, without gallows humor to cope with what we see every day, I'd go stark raving mad.
What do you mean, "Go"? How do you deal with stress, Mr.
Rindell? Usually, I avoid it.
WARNER: Mr.
Rindell? Is it okay if I take a DNA sample? It's just a quick swab of the inside of your mouth.
Won't hurt a bit.
Routine procedure? With your permission.
Of course.
BENSON: Mr.
Rindell, do you own a hammer? Uh-huh.
It's not in your toolbox.
Is that what he used? I'm going to be sick again.
I need some water.
We should get you to the hospital and have you checked out.
All right, let me just grab my wallet.
I'm not so sure he doesn't know the perp.
If he's hiding something, we'll find it.
DR.
MANNlNG: Looks like the paramedic missed a sliver of glass.
Could that have caused the memory loss? No, not deep enough.
And your head CT looks fine.
And you still don't remember anything? No.
No, and I feel like crap.
Well, you're dehydrated.
I'll start an lV.
Did you party last night? No.
Not at all.
I was working.
Dalton, I can't tell you how many victims withhold information about illegal drug use because they're scared they're going to get into trouble.
STABLER: We're not looking to jam you up on a possession charge.
If you had a dealer in your apartment or you were partying with friends, you just have to tell us.
I don't do drugs.
I don't even drink.
What if someone drugged me? Okay.
Like who? I don't know.
Nayyar, how much longer you going to keep this bathroom tied up? You're worse than my ex-wife.
Someone let a sweet talker like you go? I'm done scanning.
It's all yours.
Does CSU know there's bloody handprints in here? ANU: They're right behind you in the lunch line.
You know, those prints look smeared to me, but they'll lift them all.
MUNCH: Bloody towels, as well.
They're still damp.
Well, no one from the canvass saw a bloody maniac, so you've got to figure he cleaned up before he left.
FlN: You didn't look in the shower? Washed clean.
He took a shower while I was passed out on the floor? Or maybe you came home and surprised him while he was in there.
But why was I naked? That's the million dollar question.
You think I raped her.
You think I did this? STABLER: We're looking for answers.
And you're not providing any.
Well, I don't have any.
BENSON: Dalton, calm down and work with us.
We're trying to figure out how a dead, naked woman ended up in your apartment.
What time did you come home last night? I don't remember coming home.
You said you were working.
Where's that? Did anybody see you? I'm a developer.
My partner Bill and l met with the buyers of these co-op units we had presold.
About 75 people showed up to our headquarters.
Any one of them unhappy with their purchase? All of them.
Construction hit a little speed bump, so we threw this cocktail mixer to put their minds at ease.
Dalton, you said you weren't partying last night.
Trust me.
It was no party.
BlLL: Dalton was dripping flop sweat.
You have no idea how crucial it was to instill the investors with confidence.
Of course I do.
That's step number one in The Idiot's Guide to Flimflamming, Hey, we're not running the "Nigerian prince" scam here.
This is going to be a landmark building.
When do you plan on completing it? Soon as we shore up new financing.
That was the point of last night.
You were trying to suck even more money out of these people? Otherwise, we have to file bankruptcy and they lose everything.
Well, how much are they already in for? Two to four hundred thousand each.
So they all had motive to murder both of you.
Or set you up for one.
We were hoping for a slightly more enthusiastic response.
That coward, Dalton, left me to deal with them.
At the end of the cocktail hour, I called the meeting to order, and he was gone.
Maybe he didn't leave on his own.
I'll need a list of your victims.
I mean, buyers.
Absolutely not.
You can't drag them all into a murder investigation.
Even if it means clearing your partner? BOWMAN: Detectives.
What have we got? The buildings are connected.
That's Mr.
Rindell's bedroom window right up there and the perp must have tossed this out of it.
MUNCH: Oh! What have we here? FlN: We've got ladies clothes, shoes and a purse.
Why toss it over here? If he didn't want it to be found, he could have thrown it in the river.
FlN: I don't know.
But I just might have found a motive for her murder.
Our victim's a doctor.
(MUNCH READlNG) They do abortions.
We're so sorry for your loss.
Our divorce was finalized a few months ago, but I never stopped loving Audrey.
Friendly divorce? Is there such a thing? You can't imagine the screaming matches.
Me begging her to leave her job at the clinic and her saying she had a commitment to uphold a constitutionally protected service.
You didn't approve of your wife's work.
I was afraid for our daughter, Clarissa.
Your family get threats? A few years ago, an anti-abortion group posted hundreds of doctors' names and home addresses and telephone numbers on the lnternet.
And we started getting hang-up calls in the middle of the night and nasty letters.
Did you keep any of them? No, I didn't want our daughter finding them.
And once that doctor was shot in his own church in Kansas this summer, I petitioned the court for sole custody, but lost.
And Audrey was supposed to pick her up tomorrow.
I told her this was going to happen.
Mr.
Hale, did you or Audrey have any connection with an R-T Developers? No.
STABLER: How about a Dalton Rindell? Who's that? One of those fanatical nuts? No, I am definitely not one of them.
Let's play a little free association.
You say the first thing that pops into your head.
Roe v, Wade, Two ways to get across a creek.
You consider Dr.
Hale's murder a joke? No, no.
It was the most horrific thing I've ever seen.
But I didn't do it.
I don't know her or anything about her.
Then how did she get in your apartment? Forget that.
How did she get in your bed? Look.
I know it sounds crazy, but it had to be one of the co-op owners.
I think I'm being set up.
Okay.
Here comes the conspiracy theory.
You go.
A guy puts a chunk down on a three-million-dollar condo that's never going to be built.
And he's not going to get any of his money back.
I can see that making a guy a little nutty.
Right.
So he starts obsessing about the ills of the world and kills two birds with one hammer.
We're going to need the investors list to prove that.
We're hanging on by a thread.
Could you at least be discreet? No problem.
Just answer my partner's question.
Which are you? Pro-choice or no-choice? I know it's everybody's litmus test for picking a president or a Supreme Court justice.
It's not even on my priority list.
And I was just starting to believe you, Mr.
Rindell.
Abortion is the one subject everyone has a strong opinion about.
Abortion is murder.
You know, that's what I've been trying to tell her.
What group are you with? Operation Save and Deliver.
Life begins at conception.
BENSON: What if my life is at risk? It's in God's hands, not yours.
And what if I told you I was raped? Well, the Lord wouldn't have brought a child into this world if he didn't have great plans for it.
Even though she'll be a constant reminder? You have no idea the toll that takes on a woman.
You must have been happy when Dr.
Hale was murdered.
No, no, no, no.
That was awful.
We don't condone any killing.
But it is a blessing there's one less mass murderer out there.
(lNAUDlBLE) lronically, the young women she scares away are the ones coming for birth control.
So, yes, she's a danger, but not a violent one.
So what's with the bulletproof glass here? Well, we had that put in in '93 after our sniper attack.
A receptionist was shot in the arm.
Any more recent attacks? Well, not here, but I monitor the national stats.
Since the '70s, there have been Dr.
Hale's ex-husband was telling us about the hate mail they received at home.
Yeah, well, we get plenty of that here.
I had Beth pulling it out for you.
This is the first box.
Okay.
How many more like this? There are five or six.
(THUDDlNG) Get down.
STABLER: Get down.
Just a harmless egging.
We get that from time to time.
Did you do this? It was a couple of kids.
Which way did they go? I don't know.
I had my eyes closed.
But I'm touched for your concern for the chicken fetuses.
El, pop the trunk? Dr.
Kittle said Audrey was meeting a friend for dinner last night.
Male? Female.
Let's go see if she made it.
We had dinner at Picholine.
We left there around So Audrey went home? No, there was night construction on 5th, and we were in standstill traffic.
I saw this bar.
Said we should get out and have a nightcap.
Audrey didn't want to, but I dragged her.
Do you remember the name of the bar? That's what I'm looking for.
BENSON: Anyone there hassling her? No, but there was this guy.
Okay.
Linda.
Linda.
It's okay.
Calm down.
Just tell us about him.
White, 30s, really good looking.
Audrey hadn't even looked at another man since her divorce.
I'm the one that got them talking.
Well, could he have instigated it? Maybe he followed you into the place? No.
It looked like he'd been there for a while.
Oh! Here it is.
West Falls Lounge.
Okay.
That's good, but back to the guy They really hit it off.
STABLER: How did it end with them? I don't know.
I just left her there.
I thought I was doing her a favor.
Did you get the guy's name? Something like Barnes.
I just remember it was the name of a book store.
Dalton? Yes.
I appreciate the lift home.
I'm exhausted.
STABLER: We've just got to do a quick stop here.
Here it is.
West Falls Lounge? BENSON: Do you know this place? DALTON: No.
It's walking distance from your office.
I haven't been to a bar in over a year.
Back in a second.
(CAR DOOR CLOSES) Sure you weren't here last night? I'm positive.
Why do you keep asking me? Look, I'm in the program.
One year, three months, eight days sober.
What do you know? One-year chip.
(SlGHS) So, Dalton.
You had a headache, you were throwing up, you were dehydrated.
I was hit in the head.
Or you had a hangover.
I don't drink.
I need to use the restroom.
Wait a minute.
Hey.
Wait a minute.
Dalton.
Yo! Get back here.
Dalton.
BARTENDER: That's the guy right there.
Dalton, what are you doing in here? Where's the men's room? What, you don't remember from last night? What are you talking about? Well, you were knocking them back.
What's going on here? Well, the bartender says that you were buying Audrey rounds after her friend left.
Why would you say that? Buddy, you two left together.
I know a hookup when I see one.
You're lying.
Who put you up to this? BENSON: Hey.
Hey.
Back.
Let go.
Take it easy.
I'm going to be sick again.
BARTENDER: All the way back on the right.
(DALTON COUGHlNG) Wait a minute.
I can't.
I can't.
(CELL PHONE RlNGlNG) Stabler.
Hello? Hello? Who is this? Yeah, go ahead.
Lab results.
The bloody print in the bathroom? Dalton's.
And the DNA from the rape kit.
Great, thanks.
Hey, Dalton.
Let's go.
Suck it up and get out here.
Hey.
Let's go.
Where did he go? Where is he? Dalton! He's running.
I'll take the front.
I don't see him.
Son of a bitch.
We lost him.
Now, what part of taking a killer rapist on a field trip sounded like a bright idea? Dalton wasn't technically under Zip it, John.
They are perfectly capable of making their own half-assed excuses.
No excuse.
Liv was interviewing the bartender.
I was supposed to have eyes on Dalton.
This one is on me.
It was equally my responsibility.
Spare me the mutual stroke-fest.
What are we doing to fix this? We sat on his apartment all last night.
He was smart enough not to come home.
Got a subpoena for his cell phone records.
And somebody's watching the garage where he keeps his car.
I put the word out to the airport, train, and bus terminals.
His bank has an alert on his credit and debit cards.
He hasn't used them yet.
Well, then, somebody is harboring him.
Girlfriend? Parents? Dalton told us he wasn't dating anybody seriously, but we did a little digging.
His parents divorced when he was a kid.
His father's in California, and his mother died from cirrhosis of the liver.
Appears no one in the Rindell clan can handle their liquor.
There were multiple domestic abuse calls against a drunken Dalton Sr.
whaling on the wife and kid until he skipped out on them.
PAXTON: Morning, detectives.
Just when I thought my day couldn't get any worse.
Has anyone seen my missing defendant? Well, we could try and find him, unless you want to just waste our time busting my balls.
Oh, I'd never kick a fellow when he's down.
I'm sure you feel like a grade-A moron as it is.
Of course, I'm the one who has to slog through a Wade hearing because you tainted the bartender's lD, but What do you need, Sonya? On the assumption you'll retrieve Dalton Rindell for me, I'm proceeding with my trial prep.
I actually just stopped by to catch a movie.
Want to join me? ANU: Here's your recreation of the crime scene based on the Leica Scan Station, which you can show to the jury from any angle.
Dalton approached from the left, wielding the hammer.
Audrey must have seen the first swing coming, scrambles out of the bed, still tangled in the sheets.
Dalton comes around.
CRAGEN: He's got her trapped.
ANU: She's facing him.
Tries to ward off the first blow, which breaks her wrist.
As he hauls back for the second strike, he Wait, wait, wait, wait.
She was raped first, right? You want me to simulate that? Actually, it's looking like the sex was consensual.
I mean, they hooked up in a bar.
They both were drinking heavily.
Oh, please.
Half the rapists I've put away were drunk or high.
It's called Dutch courage.
It doesn't excuse jack.
And stopping her from crying rape is a motive to kill her, right? Keep going.
ANU: Audrey's on her side.
He strikes her temple, causing this arterial spurting pattern on the carpet.
Now, she's face down, covering her head with her hands.
One of the strikes breaks her watch.
It's going to be hard for a jury to watch.
But easy for them to convict.
Castoff extends onto the ceiling.
Means he was bringing the hammer back all the way over his head for each blow.
Well, wait.
This shows him covered in blood.
There would have been tons of back spatter.
Well, do we have his bloody clothes? No.
He must have been naked, too.
So, after he cleaned up, he realized what he'd done, and he started banging his head against the medicine cabinet mirror.
Bull.
He was staging the scene to make it look like he'd been attacked, as well.
OFFlCER: Captain, this just came in.
Well, if juries want a video of the crime, you're practically giving them one.
Yeah.
This is really good.
Listen.
Raise the production values for me.
Spare no expense.
We just got Dalton's cell phone records.
Dozens of calls to the partner, all unanswered.
But he had a nice long chat with his ex.
CELlNA: I have no idea where Dalton is, Really? He didn't mention it during your 17-minute conversation last night? No.
He just told me his insane story.
It end with a confession? He swears he's being set up.
He asked you for a place to hole up, didn't he? He asked.
I said no.
Well, you mind taking us to your place to verify that? Not at all.
As soon as my open house is over.
FlN: Well, of course, you being a rental agent, you have access to plenty of apartments you can stash him in.
You're not going to make us get a search warrant for every one of them, are you? After what Dalton put me through? I'd never help that son of a bitch.
Bad marriage? Varied days of wine and roses.
I quit drinking.
Dalton couldn't.
Was he abusive? The real Dalton is the greatest guy you'll ever meet.
But when he drinks, he turns into a monster.
He kicked a lot of holes in our walls, but he only hurt me once.
That's when I walked.
Well, be grateful you're still alive.
Sober, he wouldn't hurt a fly.
I heard he went on the wagon after our divorce was final.
Yeah, well, he fell off with a big splash.
If you wouldn't help him, who would? (SCOFFS) His old drinking buddy.
His business partner, Bill Tattenger.
You son of a bitch! Hey! Police! Break it up! Hey! Hey! Police! Break it up! Break it up! Break it up! What are you doing? You're only making things worse.
First, evading arrest, and now assault? DALTON: I didn't run because I was guilty.
I ran because I needed to prove my innocence.
Admit what you did.
He's out of his freaking mind.
Now, he's under arrest.
It doesn't matter.
I finally figured out who's responsible for this.
Tell them.
Tell them! (SlGHS) What? Tell us what? We were dying there! Back in the day, you closed million dollar deals over drinks.
I convinced him a little liquid courage would steady his nerves.
You ruined my life! No, let's go.
Let's go.
There's no way one drink put me on my ass.
What did you put in it? Nothing! I didn't do anything illegal.
No, not by frat boy standards.
"You want to have your way with them? Get them nice and drunk.
" I swear to God, I only gave him one.
What harm could that do? Look, I'm on a prescription benzo for anxiety.
You're not supposed to mix that with alcohol.
Bill kept telling me one wouldn't hurt.
He must have made the drink a lot stronger than he told me.
Well, the thing is, after you left Bill, you drank seven or eight on your own.
That we know of.
Yeah, but I didn't even know I was doing it.
I don't even remember leaving the office.
All right? The combination of meds and alcohol must have completely disoriented me.
You had no problem finding the nearest bar.
And you were the one who did the ordering.
Not Bill.
Not Audrey.
You.
It's only because Bill pressured me into that first drink.
That's the reason I quit in the first place.
Look.
Once I have one in me, I can't stop.
(EXHALES) What a load of crap.
It's not that he couldn't stop.
He just didn't want to.
CRAGEN: It's not that cut and dry, Sonya.
Alcoholism is a recognized addiction.
That millions of people have successfully overcome.
I've been sober over 20 years, but I struggle with it every day.
It's not something you ever overcome.
But you're not drinking, are you? Proving my point.
Alcohol is just a crutch for weak-willed, pathetic losers.
How many coffees and cigarettes you have today, Sonya? (SCOFFlNG) Oh, please.
I can quit anytime I want.
And if I committed a felony, I wouldn't trot them out like the old Twinkie defense.
Intoxication has never been and never will be a defense to rape and murder.
Well, you have at it on the murder, but I don't think you're getting him on the rape.
Actually, Captain, there's someone here you need to talk to.
I used to be an assistant at R-T Developers.
A friend who still works there called and told me what Dalton was arrested for.
You don't seem too surprised.
A little over a year ago, just after Dalton and Celina separated, I was working late and went in to let him know I was leaving.
And what happened? He'd been drinking in there all day.
He exposed himself.
I tried to leave, but he cornered me.
He grabbed my breast and forced his hand down my pants.
I told you he was a rapist.
So, let me guess.
You have no memory of sexually assaulting your old assistant.
Oh, I took responsibility for that.
Paying a girl off to keep her from filing criminal charges is not taking responsibility.
Ask Glenna when that happened.
It was the day I finally admitted I had a problem.
I quit cold turkey.
I thought the DTs were going to kill me, but I never touched another drop.
Not until Bill practically poured it down my throat.
Oh, cut the crap.
Geez.
Need something, Sonya? Yeah.
For him to admit he killed and raped Audrey Hale.
I got tired of watching you two play patty cake.
Sorry.
DALTON: How can I admit something I don't remember? Look, I had a history of blackouts in my drinking days.
One time, I woke up in a hotel room in Phoenix.
I had no clue how I got there.
"The liquor made me do it.
My partner made me do it.
" He did.
He admitted it.
Please.
It's not like he slipped you a Mickey.
And he's not the one who killed Audrey.
You are.
You lured her to your place, found out what she did for a living, and then you killed her in a drunken rage.
I'm not even anti-abortion.
Okay.
So her profession was just a fluke.
Then why did you kill her? I don't know! I swear, I have no memory of what happened that night.
Fine.
Maybe this will jog your memory.
That's me.
Yeah.
You can't show that to a jury, can you? No, not with your likeness, but everything else.
I made this one just for you.
(SlGHS) I want to talk to a lawyer.
Thanks for your help.
(DOOR CLOSES) DR.
SOPHER: While the initial decision to drink is a choice, there comes a time when the addiction switch is turned on in the brain.
I believe this is the case with Mr.
Rindell.
Dr.
Sopher, you conducted a study involving the brain imaging of alcoholics.
DR.
SOPHER: Yes, and the results The People renew their objection to this hearing in its entirety.
Counselor.
It doesn't matter what voodoo science she trots out as an excuse.
Intoxication has been banned as a defense to rape and murder dating back The People didn't meet their burden for rape.
That charge was dropped.
Banned as a defense to murder dating back to the 19th century.
Would Your Honor remind Ms.
Paxton that the entire point of a Frye hearing is to consider the admissibility of new science at trial? I do have other matters to consider.
Objection overruled.
Continue with your witness, Mr.
Kressler.
What was the outcome of your study? Addiction is a neurobiological disease.
A brain disease.
You have evidence to support this? Imaging of addicted individuals shows physical changes in areas of the brain critical to judgment, memory and behavioral control.
So while Mr.
Rindell took a drink of his own volition, because of his disease, he was physically incapable of controlling the urge to keep drinking.
Which led him to kill.
Dr.
Sopher, do all addicts commit murder? No, of course not.
And your findings, are they generally accepted within the scientific community? We do have our detractors.
Huh! Do you believe if I had an inoperable tumor, that I could just will it away? No.
Because a tumor is a disease.
Not a behavior.
Right? Alcoholics stop drinking all the time by sheer willpower alone.
And you know why they can do that? Because alcoholism is not a disease.
Good news, people! Judge Moredock isn't allowing Dalton's cockamamie "alcoholism is a disease" defense.
Well, I'm familiar with Dr.
Sopher's work.
The point of her research isn't to excuse criminal behavior.
It's to find a cure.
Yeah.
Well, good luck with that.
Imagine if they could.
Crime rate would be down 50%.
More than that for sexual assaults.
Some of us might be out of a job.
Please.
People do bad things because they're bad people.
Getting drunk to do it is just an excuse.
(CHUCKLlNG) Olivia, finally, we agree on something.
Liv, if there had been a cure a decade ago, your mom might still be alive.
Wait, Mommy liked her cocktail, or My mother was a falling-down drunk.
She died going down a flight of stairs.
She started drinking after she was raped.
To cope.
Yeah, she never quite managed to do that with me there.
Well, no offense to your mother, Olivia, but you can't hide behind a bottle.
Now, Dalton is claiming temporary insanity due to alcoholic psychosis.
Well, take it from somebody who's been there.
Odds are there will be a sympathetic drinker on that jury who's had a blackout themselves.
It won't matter.
Not after I show them the 3D recreation of Dalton hammering the brains out of Audrey's skull.
PAXTON: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I warn you.
What you are about to see is graphically violent.
But forensic evidence proves that these are the indisputable actions of the defendant.
(JURY GASPS) Objection! No! She can't play that.
She told me the jury couldn't see this one.
Bailiff, remove the jury.
Your Honor, I have no idea how this Counselors, my chambers! What happened? (SlGHS) The judge sent the jury home so we could have a hearing on my royal screw-up.
(CHUCKLES) Payback's a bitch.
Come on.
Come on.
Let me have it.
Everyone makes mistakes.
Not me.
I must be losing it.
What happened at the hearing? That weasel, Kressler, said he knew I was losing and purposely played the wrong disc to force a mistrial.
It was an accident, wasn't it? Of course it was.
Geez.
But the judge isn't convinced.
So he's polling the jurors tomorrow to see if they can disregard the video.
What if some of them can't? Then he'll have to release them.
Even with the alternates, if the pool dips below 12, he'll have no choice but to declare a mistrial.
So, you'll get him on retrial.
Not if the judge determines there was prosecutorial misconduct.
In that case, double jeopardy attaches, and there is no retrial.
Party's over.
Everybody just goes on home.
So, Dalton gets a walk.
You've got to be kidding me.
Oh, that I were.
Hey, people.
Does anybody work here? My friends need drinks.
Hello? I've got to go home.
No, no, no, Stabler.
You need to go over your testimony with me.
STABLER: I know exactly what I'm going to say.
I'll see you tomorrow.
Please.
Come on.
Actually, why don't you cut yourself off? What time do you have to be at the hearing tomorrow? of work to do, Olivia.
I'll probably be up all night, re-strategizing.
So can we get started? Good luck.
(PEOPLE CHATTERlNG) I'm here! I'm here, Your Honor.
You're 45 minutes late, Counselor.
I deeply apologize, Your Honor.
I was involved in a fender bender on my way, and MOREDOCK: Are you all right? Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
I'm fine.
Thank you.
I'm just Ooh! I made it.
I was just (EXCLAlMS) MOREDOCK: You don't look all right to me.
Do you need medical help? No, no, no, no, no.
I might have hit my head in the fender bender, but I can play hurt.
Alright.
I can (BREATHlNG HEAVlLY) I'm ready to proceed, Your Honor.
MOREDOCK: I think you need to be looked at.
She's drunk.
Excuse me? She's drunk.
Excuse me, Dalton? Are you Did you say something to me? Trust me.
I would know.
Your Honor, this is outrageous.
Oh, what's your problem, you tiny little man? Hey, Dalton? MOREDOCK: Ms.
Paxton.
Huh? Have you been drinking? No, no, no, no, not at all.
I'm just exhausted, Your Honor.
I was up all night preparing.
What? Drinks? PAXTON: No.
I was going over Detective Benson's testimony with her.
Ask her.
Bailiff? Get Detective Benson over here.
And have her bring a breathalyzer.
Where would you like me to administer the test, Your Honor? Right at the Defense table? Guess again.
Unfortunately, the Prosecution.
BENSON: No.
You can't be serious.
Could you please clear this up, Olivia? They're trying to ruin my reputation.
I have no desire to ruin your reputation, Counselor.
Detective, were you drinking with Ms.
Paxton last night? I wasn't drinking.
Was she? I saw her consume two drinks.
So you did lie to me.
How many drinks did you have after Detective Benson left? I object to this line of questioning, Your Honor.
MOREDOCK: Then blow.
No.
I can attest, as an officer of this court, that I am not intoxicated.
Sonya, your eyes are bloodshot and watery.
Your speech is slurred, and you stink of booze.
Now blow! I thought you were my friend.
Just do it.
Don't do this to me, Olivia.
Please don't do this to me.
You did this to yourself, Sonya.
Now, blow.
(SlGHS) (BLOWlNG) I got it.
MOREDOCK: Bring it up here.
Let me see.
I saw it, Your Honor.
It's 0.
07.
It's legally sober.
I was hoping for a zero.
It's still climbing.
MOREDOCK: For the record, your blood level count is 0.
082.
That's residual from last night.
I'm fine, Your Honor.
I am ready to proceed.
MOREDOCK: Counselor, you have a problem.
I'm ordering you removed from this courtroom.
Detective.
Let's go.
Let's go.
I've got it.
I've got it.
Then go.
I've got it.
A shocking development in the trial of Dalton Rindell for the murder of abortion doctor Audrey Hale.
A mistrial was declared after a crime scene recreation, concocted by the Prosecution, was shown to the jury with the defendant's image Photoshopped onto it.
BENSON: I hope you know that you're the luckiest man alive.
You think? No matter how long I live, no matter what I do with the rest of my life, my obituary is already written.
"Dalton Rindell, the man who killed Audrey Hale.
" It's still all about you.
I've destroyed so many lives.
You're finally owning up to it? You know, you can never serve time for this, no matter what you tell me.
So why don't you get it off your chest? Tell me.
After seeing all the evidence, after watching that Prosecutor falling down drunk, ruining her own career, it was like looking in the mirror.
(SOBBlNG) I finally realized I had done it.
I killed her.
Why? I swear I don't know.
I swear to God.
Oh, I had no reason to hurt her.
My doctor told me that in an alcoholic blackout, maybe I might have known exactly what I was doing.
But the memory never formed.
And it never will.
Maybe the stress from my business going under made me snap, and I took it out on her.
I don't know.
How am I supposed to live with that? I don't know.
Dalton.
Dalton, can you give me a statement for The Ledger, please? FEMALE REPORTER: Do you have anything to say to the victim's family? Dalton, how does it feel to get away with murder? MALE REPORTER: Dalton, you can't walk away.
Well, at least he walked because of the video mix-up, and not Paxton's I don't have to mention the irony of that.
SVU was too much for her.
The pressure must have triggered her drinking.
Explains why she was such a control freak.
White-knuckle drunk just hanging on by a thread.
What a hypocrite.
She was a good lawyer with a bad problem.
I definitely saw a lot of my mother in her.
Well, her career's over.
There's no way she's coming back from this.
I mean, she's a walking cluster I couldn't have said it better.
Though I wouldn't have censored myself.
I just wanted to say that it's been an honor working with you.
You taking some personal time? No, no, no, no.
I'm actually on my way to court-ordered rehab.
(EXHALES) I know that there is no way that you will ever be able to forgive me.
But I intend to make amends to each and every one of you.
I'm sorry.
(GROANlNG) Oh, my God.
No.
No.
(VOMlTlNG) (CHATTERlNG OVER POLlCE RADlO) Careful of the emesis.
STABLER: Who puked? The apartment owner, when he discovered her.
Dalton Rindell.
He's got a pretty good gash to the head.
Paramedics are with him now.
We saw him on the way in, but wanted to get a handle on what went down here before we talked to him.
Fluids on her thigh indicate sexual activity.
Rest of the story's written on the wall.
Bludgeoned to death from someone in a rage.
From the impressions to the skull, I'd say you're looking for a hammer.
Rindell called Do you have an approximate time of death here? I can give you the exact minute.
She tried to shield her head with her hands.
One of the blows crushed the crystal on her watch.
(EXHALES) BENSON: 12:57.
So, Rindell was out cold for six and a half hours.
That's some hit to the head.
This might explain the perp's rage.
(READlNG) I thought Mr.
Rindell's name was Dalton.
He was having an affair with Audrey.
Michael catches them in the act, he attacks Dalton, kills his cheating lover.
STABLER: So the sex was consensual.
Mr.
Rindell, can you tell us what happened? I was hoping you could tell me.
I don't remember anything.
My head is splitting.
Could his injury have affected his memory? Neuro exam checked out fine.
STABLER: What exactly is the nature of your relationship with Audrey? Who's Audrey? The dead woman on your bedroom floor.
We didn't have any relationship.
Until I found her this morning, I'd never seen her before in my life.
Melinda, you got a minute? I was hoping to pop her in the fridge before she goes bad.
I'm thinking it's Dalton's story that's stinking.
You like him for it.
Well, there was no sign of forced entry.
But the victim's clothes, purse and lD are missing.
Someone must have taken them.
Someone Dalton doesn't want us to know about.
Drug dealer, pimp.
We know she had sex.
I need to know if it was with Dalton.
You mind coming upstairs and doing a DNA swab? We letting him know why? I don't understand.
Why do you need my fingerprints? We take it from anyone who has Iegitimate access to the apartment.
Once we eliminate the friendlies, any unidentified print could be the perp's.
Got you.
We need you to sign this so we can search your apartment.
That way, we don't have to pester a judge for a warrant.
Why would you need to do that? There's no crime scene exception to the Fourth Amendment.
We need to keep our searches legal.
A man killed someone in my home.
Whatever you need to do.
But I don't get it.
Why did he pick me? Have you ever seen anything like this? (SlGHS) If I had a nickel for every dead prostitute I ever woke up with I've never used a prostitute.
Sorry, without gallows humor to cope with what we see every day, I'd go stark raving mad.
What do you mean, "Go"? How do you deal with stress, Mr.
Rindell? Usually, I avoid it.
WARNER: Mr.
Rindell? Is it okay if I take a DNA sample? It's just a quick swab of the inside of your mouth.
Won't hurt a bit.
Routine procedure? With your permission.
Of course.
BENSON: Mr.
Rindell, do you own a hammer? Uh-huh.
It's not in your toolbox.
Is that what he used? I'm going to be sick again.
I need some water.
We should get you to the hospital and have you checked out.
All right, let me just grab my wallet.
I'm not so sure he doesn't know the perp.
If he's hiding something, we'll find it.
DR.
MANNlNG: Looks like the paramedic missed a sliver of glass.
Could that have caused the memory loss? No, not deep enough.
And your head CT looks fine.
And you still don't remember anything? No.
No, and I feel like crap.
Well, you're dehydrated.
I'll start an lV.
Did you party last night? No.
Not at all.
I was working.
Dalton, I can't tell you how many victims withhold information about illegal drug use because they're scared they're going to get into trouble.
STABLER: We're not looking to jam you up on a possession charge.
If you had a dealer in your apartment or you were partying with friends, you just have to tell us.
I don't do drugs.
I don't even drink.
What if someone drugged me? Okay.
Like who? I don't know.
Nayyar, how much longer you going to keep this bathroom tied up? You're worse than my ex-wife.
Someone let a sweet talker like you go? I'm done scanning.
It's all yours.
Does CSU know there's bloody handprints in here? ANU: They're right behind you in the lunch line.
You know, those prints look smeared to me, but they'll lift them all.
MUNCH: Bloody towels, as well.
They're still damp.
Well, no one from the canvass saw a bloody maniac, so you've got to figure he cleaned up before he left.
FlN: You didn't look in the shower? Washed clean.
He took a shower while I was passed out on the floor? Or maybe you came home and surprised him while he was in there.
But why was I naked? That's the million dollar question.
You think I raped her.
You think I did this? STABLER: We're looking for answers.
And you're not providing any.
Well, I don't have any.
BENSON: Dalton, calm down and work with us.
We're trying to figure out how a dead, naked woman ended up in your apartment.
What time did you come home last night? I don't remember coming home.
You said you were working.
Where's that? Did anybody see you? I'm a developer.
My partner Bill and l met with the buyers of these co-op units we had presold.
About 75 people showed up to our headquarters.
Any one of them unhappy with their purchase? All of them.
Construction hit a little speed bump, so we threw this cocktail mixer to put their minds at ease.
Dalton, you said you weren't partying last night.
Trust me.
It was no party.
BlLL: Dalton was dripping flop sweat.
You have no idea how crucial it was to instill the investors with confidence.
Of course I do.
That's step number one in The Idiot's Guide to Flimflamming, Hey, we're not running the "Nigerian prince" scam here.
This is going to be a landmark building.
When do you plan on completing it? Soon as we shore up new financing.
That was the point of last night.
You were trying to suck even more money out of these people? Otherwise, we have to file bankruptcy and they lose everything.
Well, how much are they already in for? Two to four hundred thousand each.
So they all had motive to murder both of you.
Or set you up for one.
We were hoping for a slightly more enthusiastic response.
That coward, Dalton, left me to deal with them.
At the end of the cocktail hour, I called the meeting to order, and he was gone.
Maybe he didn't leave on his own.
I'll need a list of your victims.
I mean, buyers.
Absolutely not.
You can't drag them all into a murder investigation.
Even if it means clearing your partner? BOWMAN: Detectives.
What have we got? The buildings are connected.
That's Mr.
Rindell's bedroom window right up there and the perp must have tossed this out of it.
MUNCH: Oh! What have we here? FlN: We've got ladies clothes, shoes and a purse.
Why toss it over here? If he didn't want it to be found, he could have thrown it in the river.
FlN: I don't know.
But I just might have found a motive for her murder.
Our victim's a doctor.
(MUNCH READlNG) They do abortions.
We're so sorry for your loss.
Our divorce was finalized a few months ago, but I never stopped loving Audrey.
Friendly divorce? Is there such a thing? You can't imagine the screaming matches.
Me begging her to leave her job at the clinic and her saying she had a commitment to uphold a constitutionally protected service.
You didn't approve of your wife's work.
I was afraid for our daughter, Clarissa.
Your family get threats? A few years ago, an anti-abortion group posted hundreds of doctors' names and home addresses and telephone numbers on the lnternet.
And we started getting hang-up calls in the middle of the night and nasty letters.
Did you keep any of them? No, I didn't want our daughter finding them.
And once that doctor was shot in his own church in Kansas this summer, I petitioned the court for sole custody, but lost.
And Audrey was supposed to pick her up tomorrow.
I told her this was going to happen.
Mr.
Hale, did you or Audrey have any connection with an R-T Developers? No.
STABLER: How about a Dalton Rindell? Who's that? One of those fanatical nuts? No, I am definitely not one of them.
Let's play a little free association.
You say the first thing that pops into your head.
Roe v, Wade, Two ways to get across a creek.
You consider Dr.
Hale's murder a joke? No, no.
It was the most horrific thing I've ever seen.
But I didn't do it.
I don't know her or anything about her.
Then how did she get in your apartment? Forget that.
How did she get in your bed? Look.
I know it sounds crazy, but it had to be one of the co-op owners.
I think I'm being set up.
Okay.
Here comes the conspiracy theory.
You go.
A guy puts a chunk down on a three-million-dollar condo that's never going to be built.
And he's not going to get any of his money back.
I can see that making a guy a little nutty.
Right.
So he starts obsessing about the ills of the world and kills two birds with one hammer.
We're going to need the investors list to prove that.
We're hanging on by a thread.
Could you at least be discreet? No problem.
Just answer my partner's question.
Which are you? Pro-choice or no-choice? I know it's everybody's litmus test for picking a president or a Supreme Court justice.
It's not even on my priority list.
And I was just starting to believe you, Mr.
Rindell.
Abortion is the one subject everyone has a strong opinion about.
Abortion is murder.
You know, that's what I've been trying to tell her.
What group are you with? Operation Save and Deliver.
Life begins at conception.
BENSON: What if my life is at risk? It's in God's hands, not yours.
And what if I told you I was raped? Well, the Lord wouldn't have brought a child into this world if he didn't have great plans for it.
Even though she'll be a constant reminder? You have no idea the toll that takes on a woman.
You must have been happy when Dr.
Hale was murdered.
No, no, no, no.
That was awful.
We don't condone any killing.
But it is a blessing there's one less mass murderer out there.
(lNAUDlBLE) lronically, the young women she scares away are the ones coming for birth control.
So, yes, she's a danger, but not a violent one.
So what's with the bulletproof glass here? Well, we had that put in in '93 after our sniper attack.
A receptionist was shot in the arm.
Any more recent attacks? Well, not here, but I monitor the national stats.
Since the '70s, there have been Dr.
Hale's ex-husband was telling us about the hate mail they received at home.
Yeah, well, we get plenty of that here.
I had Beth pulling it out for you.
This is the first box.
Okay.
How many more like this? There are five or six.
(THUDDlNG) Get down.
STABLER: Get down.
Just a harmless egging.
We get that from time to time.
Did you do this? It was a couple of kids.
Which way did they go? I don't know.
I had my eyes closed.
But I'm touched for your concern for the chicken fetuses.
El, pop the trunk? Dr.
Kittle said Audrey was meeting a friend for dinner last night.
Male? Female.
Let's go see if she made it.
We had dinner at Picholine.
We left there around So Audrey went home? No, there was night construction on 5th, and we were in standstill traffic.
I saw this bar.
Said we should get out and have a nightcap.
Audrey didn't want to, but I dragged her.
Do you remember the name of the bar? That's what I'm looking for.
BENSON: Anyone there hassling her? No, but there was this guy.
Okay.
Linda.
Linda.
It's okay.
Calm down.
Just tell us about him.
White, 30s, really good looking.
Audrey hadn't even looked at another man since her divorce.
I'm the one that got them talking.
Well, could he have instigated it? Maybe he followed you into the place? No.
It looked like he'd been there for a while.
Oh! Here it is.
West Falls Lounge.
Okay.
That's good, but back to the guy They really hit it off.
STABLER: How did it end with them? I don't know.
I just left her there.
I thought I was doing her a favor.
Did you get the guy's name? Something like Barnes.
I just remember it was the name of a book store.
Dalton? Yes.
I appreciate the lift home.
I'm exhausted.
STABLER: We've just got to do a quick stop here.
Here it is.
West Falls Lounge? BENSON: Do you know this place? DALTON: No.
It's walking distance from your office.
I haven't been to a bar in over a year.
Back in a second.
(CAR DOOR CLOSES) Sure you weren't here last night? I'm positive.
Why do you keep asking me? Look, I'm in the program.
One year, three months, eight days sober.
What do you know? One-year chip.
(SlGHS) So, Dalton.
You had a headache, you were throwing up, you were dehydrated.
I was hit in the head.
Or you had a hangover.
I don't drink.
I need to use the restroom.
Wait a minute.
Hey.
Wait a minute.
Dalton.
Yo! Get back here.
Dalton.
BARTENDER: That's the guy right there.
Dalton, what are you doing in here? Where's the men's room? What, you don't remember from last night? What are you talking about? Well, you were knocking them back.
What's going on here? Well, the bartender says that you were buying Audrey rounds after her friend left.
Why would you say that? Buddy, you two left together.
I know a hookup when I see one.
You're lying.
Who put you up to this? BENSON: Hey.
Hey.
Back.
Let go.
Take it easy.
I'm going to be sick again.
BARTENDER: All the way back on the right.
(DALTON COUGHlNG) Wait a minute.
I can't.
I can't.
(CELL PHONE RlNGlNG) Stabler.
Hello? Hello? Who is this? Yeah, go ahead.
Lab results.
The bloody print in the bathroom? Dalton's.
And the DNA from the rape kit.
Great, thanks.
Hey, Dalton.
Let's go.
Suck it up and get out here.
Hey.
Let's go.
Where did he go? Where is he? Dalton! He's running.
I'll take the front.
I don't see him.
Son of a bitch.
We lost him.
Now, what part of taking a killer rapist on a field trip sounded like a bright idea? Dalton wasn't technically under Zip it, John.
They are perfectly capable of making their own half-assed excuses.
No excuse.
Liv was interviewing the bartender.
I was supposed to have eyes on Dalton.
This one is on me.
It was equally my responsibility.
Spare me the mutual stroke-fest.
What are we doing to fix this? We sat on his apartment all last night.
He was smart enough not to come home.
Got a subpoena for his cell phone records.
And somebody's watching the garage where he keeps his car.
I put the word out to the airport, train, and bus terminals.
His bank has an alert on his credit and debit cards.
He hasn't used them yet.
Well, then, somebody is harboring him.
Girlfriend? Parents? Dalton told us he wasn't dating anybody seriously, but we did a little digging.
His parents divorced when he was a kid.
His father's in California, and his mother died from cirrhosis of the liver.
Appears no one in the Rindell clan can handle their liquor.
There were multiple domestic abuse calls against a drunken Dalton Sr.
whaling on the wife and kid until he skipped out on them.
PAXTON: Morning, detectives.
Just when I thought my day couldn't get any worse.
Has anyone seen my missing defendant? Well, we could try and find him, unless you want to just waste our time busting my balls.
Oh, I'd never kick a fellow when he's down.
I'm sure you feel like a grade-A moron as it is.
Of course, I'm the one who has to slog through a Wade hearing because you tainted the bartender's lD, but What do you need, Sonya? On the assumption you'll retrieve Dalton Rindell for me, I'm proceeding with my trial prep.
I actually just stopped by to catch a movie.
Want to join me? ANU: Here's your recreation of the crime scene based on the Leica Scan Station, which you can show to the jury from any angle.
Dalton approached from the left, wielding the hammer.
Audrey must have seen the first swing coming, scrambles out of the bed, still tangled in the sheets.
Dalton comes around.
CRAGEN: He's got her trapped.
ANU: She's facing him.
Tries to ward off the first blow, which breaks her wrist.
As he hauls back for the second strike, he Wait, wait, wait, wait.
She was raped first, right? You want me to simulate that? Actually, it's looking like the sex was consensual.
I mean, they hooked up in a bar.
They both were drinking heavily.
Oh, please.
Half the rapists I've put away were drunk or high.
It's called Dutch courage.
It doesn't excuse jack.
And stopping her from crying rape is a motive to kill her, right? Keep going.
ANU: Audrey's on her side.
He strikes her temple, causing this arterial spurting pattern on the carpet.
Now, she's face down, covering her head with her hands.
One of the strikes breaks her watch.
It's going to be hard for a jury to watch.
But easy for them to convict.
Castoff extends onto the ceiling.
Means he was bringing the hammer back all the way over his head for each blow.
Well, wait.
This shows him covered in blood.
There would have been tons of back spatter.
Well, do we have his bloody clothes? No.
He must have been naked, too.
So, after he cleaned up, he realized what he'd done, and he started banging his head against the medicine cabinet mirror.
Bull.
He was staging the scene to make it look like he'd been attacked, as well.
OFFlCER: Captain, this just came in.
Well, if juries want a video of the crime, you're practically giving them one.
Yeah.
This is really good.
Listen.
Raise the production values for me.
Spare no expense.
We just got Dalton's cell phone records.
Dozens of calls to the partner, all unanswered.
But he had a nice long chat with his ex.
CELlNA: I have no idea where Dalton is, Really? He didn't mention it during your 17-minute conversation last night? No.
He just told me his insane story.
It end with a confession? He swears he's being set up.
He asked you for a place to hole up, didn't he? He asked.
I said no.
Well, you mind taking us to your place to verify that? Not at all.
As soon as my open house is over.
FlN: Well, of course, you being a rental agent, you have access to plenty of apartments you can stash him in.
You're not going to make us get a search warrant for every one of them, are you? After what Dalton put me through? I'd never help that son of a bitch.
Bad marriage? Varied days of wine and roses.
I quit drinking.
Dalton couldn't.
Was he abusive? The real Dalton is the greatest guy you'll ever meet.
But when he drinks, he turns into a monster.
He kicked a lot of holes in our walls, but he only hurt me once.
That's when I walked.
Well, be grateful you're still alive.
Sober, he wouldn't hurt a fly.
I heard he went on the wagon after our divorce was final.
Yeah, well, he fell off with a big splash.
If you wouldn't help him, who would? (SCOFFS) His old drinking buddy.
His business partner, Bill Tattenger.
You son of a bitch! Hey! Police! Break it up! Hey! Hey! Police! Break it up! Break it up! Break it up! What are you doing? You're only making things worse.
First, evading arrest, and now assault? DALTON: I didn't run because I was guilty.
I ran because I needed to prove my innocence.
Admit what you did.
He's out of his freaking mind.
Now, he's under arrest.
It doesn't matter.
I finally figured out who's responsible for this.
Tell them.
Tell them! (SlGHS) What? Tell us what? We were dying there! Back in the day, you closed million dollar deals over drinks.
I convinced him a little liquid courage would steady his nerves.
You ruined my life! No, let's go.
Let's go.
There's no way one drink put me on my ass.
What did you put in it? Nothing! I didn't do anything illegal.
No, not by frat boy standards.
"You want to have your way with them? Get them nice and drunk.
" I swear to God, I only gave him one.
What harm could that do? Look, I'm on a prescription benzo for anxiety.
You're not supposed to mix that with alcohol.
Bill kept telling me one wouldn't hurt.
He must have made the drink a lot stronger than he told me.
Well, the thing is, after you left Bill, you drank seven or eight on your own.
That we know of.
Yeah, but I didn't even know I was doing it.
I don't even remember leaving the office.
All right? The combination of meds and alcohol must have completely disoriented me.
You had no problem finding the nearest bar.
And you were the one who did the ordering.
Not Bill.
Not Audrey.
You.
It's only because Bill pressured me into that first drink.
That's the reason I quit in the first place.
Look.
Once I have one in me, I can't stop.
(EXHALES) What a load of crap.
It's not that he couldn't stop.
He just didn't want to.
CRAGEN: It's not that cut and dry, Sonya.
Alcoholism is a recognized addiction.
That millions of people have successfully overcome.
I've been sober over 20 years, but I struggle with it every day.
It's not something you ever overcome.
But you're not drinking, are you? Proving my point.
Alcohol is just a crutch for weak-willed, pathetic losers.
How many coffees and cigarettes you have today, Sonya? (SCOFFlNG) Oh, please.
I can quit anytime I want.
And if I committed a felony, I wouldn't trot them out like the old Twinkie defense.
Intoxication has never been and never will be a defense to rape and murder.
Well, you have at it on the murder, but I don't think you're getting him on the rape.
Actually, Captain, there's someone here you need to talk to.
I used to be an assistant at R-T Developers.
A friend who still works there called and told me what Dalton was arrested for.
You don't seem too surprised.
A little over a year ago, just after Dalton and Celina separated, I was working late and went in to let him know I was leaving.
And what happened? He'd been drinking in there all day.
He exposed himself.
I tried to leave, but he cornered me.
He grabbed my breast and forced his hand down my pants.
I told you he was a rapist.
So, let me guess.
You have no memory of sexually assaulting your old assistant.
Oh, I took responsibility for that.
Paying a girl off to keep her from filing criminal charges is not taking responsibility.
Ask Glenna when that happened.
It was the day I finally admitted I had a problem.
I quit cold turkey.
I thought the DTs were going to kill me, but I never touched another drop.
Not until Bill practically poured it down my throat.
Oh, cut the crap.
Geez.
Need something, Sonya? Yeah.
For him to admit he killed and raped Audrey Hale.
I got tired of watching you two play patty cake.
Sorry.
DALTON: How can I admit something I don't remember? Look, I had a history of blackouts in my drinking days.
One time, I woke up in a hotel room in Phoenix.
I had no clue how I got there.
"The liquor made me do it.
My partner made me do it.
" He did.
He admitted it.
Please.
It's not like he slipped you a Mickey.
And he's not the one who killed Audrey.
You are.
You lured her to your place, found out what she did for a living, and then you killed her in a drunken rage.
I'm not even anti-abortion.
Okay.
So her profession was just a fluke.
Then why did you kill her? I don't know! I swear, I have no memory of what happened that night.
Fine.
Maybe this will jog your memory.
That's me.
Yeah.
You can't show that to a jury, can you? No, not with your likeness, but everything else.
I made this one just for you.
(SlGHS) I want to talk to a lawyer.
Thanks for your help.
(DOOR CLOSES) DR.
SOPHER: While the initial decision to drink is a choice, there comes a time when the addiction switch is turned on in the brain.
I believe this is the case with Mr.
Rindell.
Dr.
Sopher, you conducted a study involving the brain imaging of alcoholics.
DR.
SOPHER: Yes, and the results The People renew their objection to this hearing in its entirety.
Counselor.
It doesn't matter what voodoo science she trots out as an excuse.
Intoxication has been banned as a defense to rape and murder dating back The People didn't meet their burden for rape.
That charge was dropped.
Banned as a defense to murder dating back to the 19th century.
Would Your Honor remind Ms.
Paxton that the entire point of a Frye hearing is to consider the admissibility of new science at trial? I do have other matters to consider.
Objection overruled.
Continue with your witness, Mr.
Kressler.
What was the outcome of your study? Addiction is a neurobiological disease.
A brain disease.
You have evidence to support this? Imaging of addicted individuals shows physical changes in areas of the brain critical to judgment, memory and behavioral control.
So while Mr.
Rindell took a drink of his own volition, because of his disease, he was physically incapable of controlling the urge to keep drinking.
Which led him to kill.
Dr.
Sopher, do all addicts commit murder? No, of course not.
And your findings, are they generally accepted within the scientific community? We do have our detractors.
Huh! Do you believe if I had an inoperable tumor, that I could just will it away? No.
Because a tumor is a disease.
Not a behavior.
Right? Alcoholics stop drinking all the time by sheer willpower alone.
And you know why they can do that? Because alcoholism is not a disease.
Good news, people! Judge Moredock isn't allowing Dalton's cockamamie "alcoholism is a disease" defense.
Well, I'm familiar with Dr.
Sopher's work.
The point of her research isn't to excuse criminal behavior.
It's to find a cure.
Yeah.
Well, good luck with that.
Imagine if they could.
Crime rate would be down 50%.
More than that for sexual assaults.
Some of us might be out of a job.
Please.
People do bad things because they're bad people.
Getting drunk to do it is just an excuse.
(CHUCKLlNG) Olivia, finally, we agree on something.
Liv, if there had been a cure a decade ago, your mom might still be alive.
Wait, Mommy liked her cocktail, or My mother was a falling-down drunk.
She died going down a flight of stairs.
She started drinking after she was raped.
To cope.
Yeah, she never quite managed to do that with me there.
Well, no offense to your mother, Olivia, but you can't hide behind a bottle.
Now, Dalton is claiming temporary insanity due to alcoholic psychosis.
Well, take it from somebody who's been there.
Odds are there will be a sympathetic drinker on that jury who's had a blackout themselves.
It won't matter.
Not after I show them the 3D recreation of Dalton hammering the brains out of Audrey's skull.
PAXTON: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I warn you.
What you are about to see is graphically violent.
But forensic evidence proves that these are the indisputable actions of the defendant.
(JURY GASPS) Objection! No! She can't play that.
She told me the jury couldn't see this one.
Bailiff, remove the jury.
Your Honor, I have no idea how this Counselors, my chambers! What happened? (SlGHS) The judge sent the jury home so we could have a hearing on my royal screw-up.
(CHUCKLES) Payback's a bitch.
Come on.
Come on.
Let me have it.
Everyone makes mistakes.
Not me.
I must be losing it.
What happened at the hearing? That weasel, Kressler, said he knew I was losing and purposely played the wrong disc to force a mistrial.
It was an accident, wasn't it? Of course it was.
Geez.
But the judge isn't convinced.
So he's polling the jurors tomorrow to see if they can disregard the video.
What if some of them can't? Then he'll have to release them.
Even with the alternates, if the pool dips below 12, he'll have no choice but to declare a mistrial.
So, you'll get him on retrial.
Not if the judge determines there was prosecutorial misconduct.
In that case, double jeopardy attaches, and there is no retrial.
Party's over.
Everybody just goes on home.
So, Dalton gets a walk.
You've got to be kidding me.
Oh, that I were.
Hey, people.
Does anybody work here? My friends need drinks.
Hello? I've got to go home.
No, no, no, Stabler.
You need to go over your testimony with me.
STABLER: I know exactly what I'm going to say.
I'll see you tomorrow.
Please.
Come on.
Actually, why don't you cut yourself off? What time do you have to be at the hearing tomorrow? of work to do, Olivia.
I'll probably be up all night, re-strategizing.
So can we get started? Good luck.
(PEOPLE CHATTERlNG) I'm here! I'm here, Your Honor.
You're 45 minutes late, Counselor.
I deeply apologize, Your Honor.
I was involved in a fender bender on my way, and MOREDOCK: Are you all right? Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
I'm fine.
Thank you.
I'm just Ooh! I made it.
I was just (EXCLAlMS) MOREDOCK: You don't look all right to me.
Do you need medical help? No, no, no, no, no.
I might have hit my head in the fender bender, but I can play hurt.
Alright.
I can (BREATHlNG HEAVlLY) I'm ready to proceed, Your Honor.
MOREDOCK: I think you need to be looked at.
She's drunk.
Excuse me? She's drunk.
Excuse me, Dalton? Are you Did you say something to me? Trust me.
I would know.
Your Honor, this is outrageous.
Oh, what's your problem, you tiny little man? Hey, Dalton? MOREDOCK: Ms.
Paxton.
Huh? Have you been drinking? No, no, no, no, not at all.
I'm just exhausted, Your Honor.
I was up all night preparing.
What? Drinks? PAXTON: No.
I was going over Detective Benson's testimony with her.
Ask her.
Bailiff? Get Detective Benson over here.
And have her bring a breathalyzer.
Where would you like me to administer the test, Your Honor? Right at the Defense table? Guess again.
Unfortunately, the Prosecution.
BENSON: No.
You can't be serious.
Could you please clear this up, Olivia? They're trying to ruin my reputation.
I have no desire to ruin your reputation, Counselor.
Detective, were you drinking with Ms.
Paxton last night? I wasn't drinking.
Was she? I saw her consume two drinks.
So you did lie to me.
How many drinks did you have after Detective Benson left? I object to this line of questioning, Your Honor.
MOREDOCK: Then blow.
No.
I can attest, as an officer of this court, that I am not intoxicated.
Sonya, your eyes are bloodshot and watery.
Your speech is slurred, and you stink of booze.
Now blow! I thought you were my friend.
Just do it.
Don't do this to me, Olivia.
Please don't do this to me.
You did this to yourself, Sonya.
Now, blow.
(SlGHS) (BLOWlNG) I got it.
MOREDOCK: Bring it up here.
Let me see.
I saw it, Your Honor.
It's 0.
07.
It's legally sober.
I was hoping for a zero.
It's still climbing.
MOREDOCK: For the record, your blood level count is 0.
082.
That's residual from last night.
I'm fine, Your Honor.
I am ready to proceed.
MOREDOCK: Counselor, you have a problem.
I'm ordering you removed from this courtroom.
Detective.
Let's go.
Let's go.
I've got it.
I've got it.
Then go.
I've got it.
A shocking development in the trial of Dalton Rindell for the murder of abortion doctor Audrey Hale.
A mistrial was declared after a crime scene recreation, concocted by the Prosecution, was shown to the jury with the defendant's image Photoshopped onto it.
BENSON: I hope you know that you're the luckiest man alive.
You think? No matter how long I live, no matter what I do with the rest of my life, my obituary is already written.
"Dalton Rindell, the man who killed Audrey Hale.
" It's still all about you.
I've destroyed so many lives.
You're finally owning up to it? You know, you can never serve time for this, no matter what you tell me.
So why don't you get it off your chest? Tell me.
After seeing all the evidence, after watching that Prosecutor falling down drunk, ruining her own career, it was like looking in the mirror.
(SOBBlNG) I finally realized I had done it.
I killed her.
Why? I swear I don't know.
I swear to God.
Oh, I had no reason to hurt her.
My doctor told me that in an alcoholic blackout, maybe I might have known exactly what I was doing.
But the memory never formed.
And it never will.
Maybe the stress from my business going under made me snap, and I took it out on her.
I don't know.
How am I supposed to live with that? I don't know.
Dalton.
Dalton, can you give me a statement for The Ledger, please? FEMALE REPORTER: Do you have anything to say to the victim's family? Dalton, how does it feel to get away with murder? MALE REPORTER: Dalton, you can't walk away.
Well, at least he walked because of the video mix-up, and not Paxton's I don't have to mention the irony of that.
SVU was too much for her.
The pressure must have triggered her drinking.
Explains why she was such a control freak.
White-knuckle drunk just hanging on by a thread.
What a hypocrite.
She was a good lawyer with a bad problem.
I definitely saw a lot of my mother in her.
Well, her career's over.
There's no way she's coming back from this.
I mean, she's a walking cluster I couldn't have said it better.
Though I wouldn't have censored myself.
I just wanted to say that it's been an honor working with you.
You taking some personal time? No, no, no, no.
I'm actually on my way to court-ordered rehab.
(EXHALES) I know that there is no way that you will ever be able to forgive me.
But I intend to make amends to each and every one of you.
I'm sorry.