SVU: Is that girl on the phone in trouble or a hoax?

SVU S7 E3 “911”

“So, he’s married and a little toxic and I’m not sure how I actually feel about him. Some distance might be good. Not working together. Maybe his wife gets killed in a car bomb. I don’t know. You’re such a good listener, Maria.”

Benson takes a 911 call from a little girl locked in a room without food or water. The squad is frantically searching the city, but the cell signal keeps changing locations and some details the girl provides don't add up. Cragen worries the call is a hoax, but Olivia believes it's real and won't quit until the girl is rescued. 

We're talking about Mariska Hargitay's Emmy-winning performance in the highest ranked episode in the Law & Order franchise: SVU season 7 episode 3 "911."  Our guest is Sarah Devin from the Special Survivors Unit podcast.

This episode takes some cues from the controversy around a fake 911 call made to New Jersey police in 2004. 

L&O: Is their white murder suspect secretly Black?

Law & Order S8 E7 Blood

I have a feeling this scene is going to seem pretty weird in 15 years.

A white socialite had given up her Black baby for adoption before being thrown from her balcony. Briscoe and Curtis learn her husband is really a Black man who’s passed as white for years. Is he - or someone else - willing to kill to keep the family secret? 

We have thoughts about Law & Order season 8 episode 7 "Blood." Our guest is Pulitzer Prize winning author/ podcaster/ professor Marcia Chatelain.

This episode takes cues from the real-life story of author Anatole Broyard.

SVU: A reporter goes TOO hard on the mom of a missing baby

SVU S8 E15 “Haystack”

“Do I think the questioning of a murder suspect should be so rough they kill themselves afterward? Well, who am I to throw the first stone?”

After her baby is kidnapped, Stabler and Cragen wonder if the mom is responsible. When a reporter accuses her on television of murder, the mother kills herself. The baby turns up unharmed and DNA leads to a biological father with a violent past. Their efforts to protect the child get Stabler and Novak sued, so they get Judge Donnelly to represent them in court.

We're talking about Special Victims Unit season 8 episode 15 "Haystack." Our guest is Nettie Smith from Oh Hell Yes: A Girlfriends Podcast.

This episode is inspired by the real-life story of Melinda Duckett.

Law & Order returns! A celebrity serial rapist is killed by his victim

Law & Order S21 E1 “The Right Thing”

The mothership is back!

“Anthony, didn’t the show get cancelled the last time you were on it?”

“I have Sisto’s number on speed dial. Don’t play me, bitch.”

A singer who drugged and raped dozens of women is murdered. Detective Kevin Bernard and his hot-headed new partner Frank Cosgrove trace the crime back to a rape victim. Uneasy with the ethics of Cosgrove’s interrogation, prosecutor Nolan Price tells DA Jack McCoy he won’t use the confession. The trial ensnares a familiar face: ADA Jamie Ross.

We’re talking about the first new Law & Order episode since 2010: season 21 episode 1 “The Right Thing.” Our guest is Brady Carlson from the Cool Weird Awesome podcast.

This episode is based on the legal turns in the sexual assault case against Bill Cosby.

SVU: A second grader shoots a classmate

SVU S2 E5 “Baby Killer”

“They say he’s a baby killer, but is he a killer of babies or a baby-aged killer? The Lennonesque wordplay of the SVU writers is such a thinker!”

A seven-year-old boy shoots a classmate during recess. Benson and Stabler learn the gun was used in previous homicide. The detectives hope solving the first shooting will answer questions about the second one. Meanwhile, Cabot doesn't want to prosecute a second grader for murder, but her politically-ambitious boss orders her to throw the book at him. 

We're talking about SVU season 2 episode 5 "Baby Killer." Our guest is Lauren van der Meer from the "Drinks with Death" podcast.

This episode is based on the real-life story of Kayla Rolland.

L&O: You can't claim double jeopardy if you bribed the judge

Law & Order S6 E4 “Jeopardy”

“You put together this magazine with faxes and CD-ROMs? What’s next? Phones with cameras in them?”

Briscoe and Curtis investigate the murder of a magazine publisher. A lawsuit over a bad review has placed his rich family in financial peril. His brother is charged, but when the judge dismisses the case, Schiff becomes suspicious of his old friend. Now McCoy and Kincaid have to prove the judge was bribed and find a way to get around double jeopardy and retry the killer.

We're talking about Law & Order season 6 episode 4 "Jeopardy." Our guest is Sarah Marshall from the "You're Wrong About" podcast.

This episode is inspired by the real life case of Harry “The Hook” Aleman.

SVU: Benson and Stabler choose each other over the job

SVU S7 E19 Fault

“Promise me…if I get out of this alive…that you and I are going to have a more serious discussion about the nature of our relationship.”

The squad is looking for a man who murdered a whole family and kidnapped two children. When Stabler has a chance to rescue the boy, he instead rushes to help a wounded Benson - a choice that costs the child his life. Later, during an armed standoff, Olivia refuses to shoot their suspect because it may endanger Elliot. Realizing they are choosing each other over doing the job, the partners split up.

We're looking at Special Victims Unit season 7 episode 19 Fault. Our guest is Anita Flores from the "Caretalkers" podcast.

This episode is inspired by the real-life case of Joseph Edward Duncan.

CI: The wrong Hamilton is killed in a duel

Criminal Intent S6 E13 “Albatross”

Hamilton was shot. I’m beginning to suspect Burr.

A sniper takes out a man reenacting the Hamilton-Burr duel. Goren and Eames learn the men had switched costumes right before the shooting. Was the target actually the cheating, embezzling real estate developer who's dragging down his wife's political career? 

We're talking about Criminal Intent season 6 episode 13 "Albatross." Our guest is Katie Mitchell from the "Date with Dateline" podcast. 

This episode is inspired by the real-life scandals of Fox News commentator Jeanine Pirro and her husband, Albert. 

SVU: Cops stick a plunger where the sun don't shine

SVU S4 E13 “Rotten”

“The murder weapon is a plunger? What end am I supposed to hold?”

A prisoner bleeds out after being sodomized while in custody. The cop who arrested him quickly confesses to the assault, but Benson and Fin suspect he's covering for other officers who might have held the victim down during the attack.

We're talking about Special Victims Unit season 4 episode 13 "Rotten." Our special guest is Teddy Lavoie.

Plot points for this episode were inspired by the 1997 police brutality case against Abner Louima.

SVU: Lewis breaks out of prison and comes for Liv!

SVU S15 E20* “Beast’s Obsession”

“You think this is bad? Wait until the audience sees you kiss Tucker.”

Madman William Lewis escapes from a prison hospital and goes on a rape and murder spree. But what he really wants is Benson to confess to brutally beating him before she arrested him. As SVU combs the city for Lewis, Liv agrees to go with him for one final confrontation and a game of Russian roulette. 

We're looking at the classic SVU season 15 episode 20* "Beast's Obsession." Our guest is Kimberly from the "Date with Dateline" podcast. This episode takes cues from the real life story of Gillian Guess.

Note: Because of a two-part season 15 opener, some streaming services list this as episode 19.

L&O: Nazis threaten Judge Candice Bergen

Law & Order S15 E3 “The Brotherhood”

Do NOT mess with me. I’ve got five Emmy awards and I’m not afraid to pull them out.

A member of a powerful racist prison gang is found murdered hours after his release. Fontana and Green arrest a guard whom the inmate had targeted. Now members of The Brotherhood are hoping the guard will end up on their side of the bars...and they aren't above threatening a judge (played by Candice Bergen) to make sure he's convicted.

We're talking about Law & Order season 15 episode 3 "The Brotherhood." Our guest is Lauren Milberger from the "Murphy Brown podcast."

This episode takes some cues from the real life story of Judge Joan Lefkow. 

L&O: Did a racist's speeches incite skinhead teens to murder?

L&O S9 E10 “Hate”

“Jack…you’ve got that look like you’re going to tear up the Constitution again.”

The murder of a girl leads Briscoe and Curtis to a group of White Power teens. When the team learns they were inspired by the speeches of a racist leader, McCoy charges him as an accomplice - setting off a series of debates about the First Amendment. 

We're talking about Law & Order season 9 episode 10 "Hate." Our guest is Suzanne Cerreta of the Culips Everyday English podcast.

This episode is inspired by the 1988 murder of Mulugeta Seraw.

SVU: Carol Burnette is a black widow

SVU S10 E16 “Ballerina”

“Hello. I’d like to introduce you to my fake nephew and secret lover, Shaggy. Won’t you come in?“

A stripper's murder leads detectives to the fifth husband of bon vivant Birdie Sulloway, but before they can cuff him, he's thrown from a window. Benson and Stabler look closer at Birdie, her unusual relationship with her nephew, and the trail of dead husbands she's left over the years.

We're talking about Carol Burnette's Emmy nominated performance in Special Victims Unit season 10 episode 16 Ballerina. Our guest is Jake Anthony from the Reality Gays podcast.

This episode is inspired by the real life story of Betty Neumar.

SVU: Jennifer Love Hewitt gets a rape kit

SVU S12 E3 Behave

“There’s got to be an easier way to do 21 & Me.”

A woman says she's been raped by the same man multiple times over two decades. When SVU can't make the identification stick, the squad stalks the suspect. Benson thinks he has other victims and she flies across the country only to find a huge backlog of untested rape kits.

We're talking about the unforgettable SVU season 12 episode 3 "Behave." Our guest is Brittni Liyanage from the D20 Dames podcast. 

This episode is inspired by the ripped from the headlines story of Helena Lazaro.

L&O: Lupo sleeps with a murder suspect and Van Buren gets cancer

L&O S20 E5 “Just a Girl in the World”

“Wait. You’re saying the cop behind me was humping the suspect when he came across a nightie connected to the murder? Your honor, I’m going to need a minute to bang my head against a wall.”

The murder of a crime tech and a thwarted attack have Lupo and Bernard looking for a man targeting Asian women. Lupo breaks the rules by sleeping with the witness, but when he discovers a key piece of evidence in her apartment he realizes she's a suspect.

Meantime, Van Buren learns her stage II cervical cancer was caused by an HPV infection from her ex-husband (that son of a bitch!).

We're talking about Law & Order season 20 episode 2 "Just a Girl in the World." Our returning guest is Lani Diane Rich from Chipperish Media.

This episode is inspired by the case of Kari Ferrell, the so-called "hipster grifter."

SVU: Beware the Glasgowman!

SVU S16 E6 “Glasgowman’s Wrath”

“Let’s touch pinkies in a really creepy way which signals our long con criminal spree was successful. Because if we do that in front of Carisi it’s going to blow his fucking mind.”

Three girls went to the park to find the mythical Glasgowman. Only one returned...Now SVU is looking for the missing tweens and the mysterious figure who stabbed the younger sister. Is the suspect really a supernatural predator? (We pinkie swear!)

We're talking about SVU season 16 episode 6 "Glasgowman's Wrath." Our guest is Ronald Young Jr from the Solvable podcast.

This episode is inspired by the Slenderman stabbing case.

SVU: The women in this sex cult get branded

SVU S20 E5 “Accredo”

“Did it hurt? I had a hot brand seared into my skin. What the hell do you think?”

A murder victim may have been trying to leave a woman's empowerment group run by a charismatic man. "Accredo" offers expensive classes, blackmail photos, branded symbols, and sex with the leader. Can hot-mess Amanda Rollins convince the women to stand on their own and tell the truth?

We're talking about SVU season 20 episode 5 "Accredo." Our special guest is Erika Villalba from the "That Aged Well" podcast.

This episode is inspired by the case of the NXIVM cult. 

L&O: A psychotic man defends himself in court...and it's heartbreaking

Law & Order S6 E21 “Pro se”

“You think I’m crazy? Did you know my sister is Aunt Lydia from ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ for Christ’s sake.”

A triple murder leads Briscoe and Curtis to a psychotic homeless man (Denis O'Hare). Claire is feeling the heat from Schiff for letting James Smith off with a fine in an earlier case. Jack finds that Smith is a legal wiz when back on his medication. It takes the testimony of his sister (Ann Dowd) to finally break his spirit.

We're talking about one of the most acclaimed episodes of Law & Order, season 6 episode 21 "Pro Se." Our special guest is writer and blogger Charlie Pierce.

This episode takes cues from the real life story of David Riggins.

Click here to read Charlie's article on L&O's 25th anniversary.  

SVU: The teens make a pregnancy pact!

SVU S10 E6 “Babes”

“This high school as both a chastity club AND a group of girls who got pregnant together so they can all be MILFs? The student council needs to expand its horizons.”

The immolation and castration of a homeless man leads Stabler and Munch to a Catholic high school. A student says the death was revenge for the rape of his sister. But Benson learns the girl initiated the sex because she and her friends made a pact to all get pregnant together.

We're popping out SVU season 10 episode 6 "Babes." (Speaking of procreation) our special guest is Rebecca's son, Henry Lavoie.

This episode is inspired by the so-called pregnancy pact at Gloucester High School. 

SVU: Ballerina sex trafficking ring!

SVU S21 E17 “Dance, Lies and Videotape”

“You’re going undercover as a high roller who’s going to spend $100,000 to have sex with a ballerina? Makes me wanna get a tutu.”

Someone is secretly videotaping ballerinas having sex. SVU then discovers the dancers are being blackmailed into getting prime roles if they sleep with the highest bidder at the gala auction. Cue the undercover sting!

We're talking about SVU season 21 episode 17 "Dance, Lies and Videotape." Our guest is June Thomas from Slate's Working podcast. 

This episode is inspired by the controversary around the New York City Ballet.