All language subtitles for Law & Order SVU - 4x23 - Grief PDTV

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.

Can you take our order?
We've been waiting forever.

Excuse me, miss,
can we get some drinks?

I'll send your
server right over.

You said that
15 minutes ago.

I'll be right back.

Danya.
Yeah.

Where's Vanessa?

She was at the bar with
some guy. A real hottie.

She's got six tables waiting
and she's taking a bootie break?

Jake. Where's Vanessa?

With her boyfriend.

I thought she kicked him to the curb.

He didn't get
the message.

They got so loud, I told
them to take it outside.

Vanessa. I need you.

Girl, what are you
doing back there?

Damn cat. You scared me half to death.

You have blood on you.

Oh, my God!
Oh, my God! Jake! Jake!

Victim is Vanessa Bevins, 19.
Waitress here at Dominique's.

Also has an ID from
Hudson University.

Hudson? That's...
Maureen's school.

Cause of death?

Shot once, close range, after
being raped and sodomized.

How did you get that?

Panty's torn. Lumalite
showed semen on her chin.

Do we have a weapon?

Yeah, right over here.
Smith & Wesson Model 36.

Snub-nose. 38,
one round fired.

Anything else?

Gun shot residue
on her hands.

Looks like she struggled for
the weapon, went out fighting.

Who found her? Another
waitress, Kimmie Robinson.

Kimmie, I'm Detective Benson, this
is my partner, Detective Stabler.

I already told the officers what happened.

Okay, we'd just like to ask
you a few more questions.

How long has Vanessa
been working here?

About a month,
part-time.

What else do you
know about her?

Not much.
She's a college girl.

She was always out there, feeding the
cats and arguing with her boyfriend.

Like tonight.

Well, does her boyfriend
have a name?

Vanessa calls him Dee.

I don't know what
his real name is.

What do
you know about him?

Maybe he was
her connection.

Vanessa got high?

I don't know. I never saw her using, but
one night she was in here and she'd be flying

like a kite and next night,
she'd be dragging her ass

like a zombie. You can't
cross the line, buddy.

My daughter works there. The nightclub
called me. Get me who's in charge here.

Sir. Sir.

Who are you?
What's your name?

Ray Bevins.
I'm Vanessa's father.

Now, they said
there was an accident.

Is she okay?

Mr. Bevins, I'm sorry to have
to tell you but your daughter...

Oh, my God. Not my baby. Oh, my God!

Mr. Bevins, you've been
up all night.

We don't have to do this
now if you don't want.

No, I want to help.

We're looking for Vanessa's
boyfriend. You know him?

I didn't know
she had one.

Would her mother know
who she was dating?

No, Vanessa's mother died
when she was three.

It's just been the two
of us all these years.

How was she
doing in school?

She always used
to get straight A's

and then her grades fell
to C and D's last semester.

She talk
to anyone about it?

The dean called me,

said that she was trying to take
out a personal loan for $5,000.

I confronted her
about it yesterday

and she wouldn't tell me
why she needed the money.

Did your daughter ever
have a problem with drugs?

She's been having
violent outbursts,

she accused me of
treating her like a child

when I told her to
stop working at that club.

The last thing
I said to her,

"Don't come to me for help,
when you ruin your life. "

I didn't mean it.

We know that. Look, I have
three daughters myself.

When I'm angry, I say things I don't mean.

You can take it back.
I can't.

Erratic behavior, keeping
secrets, grubbing for money.

All classic signs
of a drug problem.

If she owed five grand to her dealer,
maybe he decided to make an example of her.

The sexual assault was
just an extra humiliation.

We finished
canvassing Dominique's.

A lot of people saw her
boyfriend getting loud with her,

but nobody knows
his full name.

Young guy, 5'10". The only thing
everyone agrees on is he's cute.

Did you get a timeline together?

Vanessa put her
last order in at 1:15.

Bartender said that's about
the time Dee showed up.

About 2:00 a. m.,
Kimmie finds her body.

That doesn't allow a lot of time for
another player to walk onto the set.

So, the boyfriend's
looking good for this?

Well, then let's
find out who he is.

Munch, Fin, see if Ballistics
got any prints off that gun.

Elliot, you and Olivia follow
up with Vanessa's roommate.

Maybe Dee is supplying
more than romance.

His real name
is Donovan Alvarez.

He go to school here?

Yeah, he's Pre-Law like me,

but Vanessa dumped
him last semester.

Why?

I don't know.

Donovan's a great catch.
All the girls were after him.

After him
or his drugs?

Drugs? Donovan's a total
straight-arrow, like Vanessa used to be.

So what changed?

She started blowing
off class, acting wild,

short skirts,
tight tops.

She flirted
with everyone.

Must've pissed Donovan off.

He was cool about it. Said he liked
that Vanessa was a free spirit.

Then one day,
she dumped him.

Is this Donovan?

Yeah.

Where can
we find him?

When he's not in class, he's
in the park playing speed chess.

You think you can
take me, you patzer?

Shut up and move.

Oh, aren't we
tense today?

Hey, we're in
the middle of a game.

Not anymore. Move.

You're here
about Vanessa?

Yeah, I can see
you're upset about it.

What, do you grieve by hustling
some fish in five-dollar blitz.

Chess takes my mind off her. I loved Vanessa.

So why were you arguing with her last night?

If you're trying to say that
I killed her, you're wrong.

All right, when I left Dominique's
last night, Vanessa was fine.

What happened
to your neck?

I see where
this is going.

I'm not answering any more
questions without a lawyer.

So give us a DNA swab
and you won't need one.

I'm not gonna give you a sample so
you can frame me with my own cells.

Why would we do that?

I don't know. Why would you stick
a plunger up Abner Louima's ass?

If you want anything from me,
come back with a warrant.

I believe
that's check and mate.

Sure is, smartass.

Couldn't get a DNA sample from our
suspect, but I think we got prints.

Index finger
and thumb.

I'll see if I can lift
a print off the body.

Meanwhile, I've got
lots to work with.

There's evidence
of vaginal trauma,

I've got the perp's fluids,
and I got skin cells,

from underneath
her acrylic nails.

Great for trapping evidence.

Could explain the
Band-Aid on Donovan's neck.

Vanessa clawed
the son of a bitch.

She wasn't
the only one.

The blood on the cat's fur
was Vanessa's,

but the blood on its claws,
was a match to the perp.

We gotta get
Donovan's DNA.

I'll get the prints off
the chess piece and send them

over to Ballistics
to compare with the gun.

I dusted the gun. The wooden grip
is too textured to raise prints,

and only your victim's
are on the barrel.

Like Vanessa
tried to grab it.

Also found a greasy
substance on the weapon.

Gun cleaning fluid?

No, I'd recognize
that in my sleep.

I'll run some
tests on it.

So that's it?

Would I waste your time?

I've got the gun owner.

You mean we have a legal,
registered piece?

Mmm-hmm. Carry permit comes back to
Marvin Kligman, address on Park Avenue.

Sure, Marvin had a gun.

My late husband, may he rest in
peace, was in the diamond trade.

Dangerous business.

Where's the gun now,
Mrs. Kligman?

In my lock box.

May we see it?

Of course.

Does anyone else
have access to the gun?

Only my son. He lives in the
dorms. At Hudson University.

It's gone.

I didn't take
my father's gun.

How did it get used
to kill your classmate?

I don't know anything
about Vanessa's murder.

But you do know her.
Yeah.

Yeah? You sleeping with her?

Yeah, I wish.

Where were you
last night?

At an all-night cram session
with my study group. Go check.

Oh, we will, but right now you're the
one who's looking good for this murder.

Okay.

I got a little over-extended
on the Super Bowl.

I was gonna sell the gun,
but someone stole it.

You know Donovan Alvarez?

Yeah, sure,
he lives down my hall.

Could he
have stolen it?

I don't know...

Stabler.

Did Donovan ever
see the gun?

Yeah, I was looking
for a buyer.

I showed it to a lot
of people, including Donovan.

Did he see
where you kept it?

Yeah, yeah,
in my desk.

Warner. She wants
to talk to us.

You fumed her.

It's amazing what you can do with crazy glue.

Vaporize it, and when it hardens,
you can dust a print on skin.

Where's the print?

On the inside of her right wrist,
where there's deep bruising.

Like someone
grabbed her hard.

With the glue,
it's as clear as day.

Donovan Alvarez?

Ten point match.

In People v. Carmichael,
the M.E. Ruled that the death

was due to undetermined
homicidal violence.

How did the District Attorney
get a conviction?

Donovan Alvarez, you're under arrest
for the murder of Vanessa Bevins.

Hey, what do
you think you're doing?

You can't do this.
Sure we can.

What do you think
you're doing?

Your teacher cover Miranda
yet? What's going on? Hey!

You have the right
to remain silent.

If you give up that right, anything
you say can and will be used...

This is your last chance,
Donovan.

Just tell us the truth.

Once there's a DNA match, no
one will care what you say.

I am telling the truth,
all right.

I didn't kill Vanessa. I only
went to the club to talk to her.

Because you were pissed off
that she broke up with you?

No, I was pissed because
she stole my credit card

and spent thousands
of dollars on crazy stuff.

That sounds like a good motive to
drag her out to the alley and kill her.

No.

We were arguing because Vanessa said she
had bigger problems than paying me back.

So then you pulled the gun to
make her take you seriously.

No, I didn't have a gun.

Come on, Donovan.

Vanessa was killed with a gun
stolen from your dorm.

I don't know
anything about that.

Why don't you believe me?
I could never hurt Vanessa.

You grabbed her so hard your
prints were bruised into her flesh.

She was walking away. I grabbed
her arm so I could stop her.

Is that when
she scratched your neck?

I cut myself shaving.

See for yourself.

Does this look
like a scratch?

You believe his story?
I don't know.

Vanessa's on drugs,
desperate for money,

she steals from her ex-boyfriend.
Sounds like motive to me.

Donovan can't explain how Vanessa was
shot with a gun that he had access to?

Something wrong?

Yeah. Ray Bevins,
he called five times.

DNA's back.

The semen, fingernail scrapings,
and the blood on the cat's claw,

all come from
the same person.

And it's not
Donovan Alvarez.

So, Vanessa had sex with
someone else earlier that night,

and then Donovan
shoots her in the alley.

Possible, but not enough to hold a kid you
arrested in front of a criminal law class.

We can't
cut him loose.

And we can't
talk to him anymore.

Why's that?

Professor called and
lawyered up for him.

Ray.

Detective.

It's the middle of the night.
What are you doing here?

I called.

I know. I haven't had a chance
to get back to you. I'm sorry.

I just wanted to know
if you had any leads.

Yeah, we're making progress.

Can't you tell
me anything?

No. Ray, go home.
Get some sleep.

I can't.

I can't... I mean, I can't sleep.

I just keep seeing Vanessa's
face, in the morgue.

Ray...

If I have any news, I'll call
you. I promise. You have my word.

Now go home.
Go home.

Hey, how's he doing?

He's a mess.

The logs on Vanessa's phone.
Check out this number.

Dozens of calls to it.

It's the Rape
Crisis Center.

Why was Vanessa calling them
two weeks before she was raped?

Vanessa must've called me 20 times,
but she never gave a last name.

I was afraid if I pushed
too hard, she'd stop calling.

I know what she said
is confidential...

And any father would waive confidentiality
to catch his child's killer.

Let's cut
the red tape.

Good. Why was Vanessa
calling you?

She was in a sexual
relationship she couldn't handle.

So, she was raped.

She wasn't sure.

She needed help understanding what had
happened to her, but it was rape all right.

She had gotten involved
with this man that she met.

Donovan Alvarez?

She never gave his name.

He was a sadist.
He liked to degrade her.

Make her have sex in
public places. Get rough.

When she refused,
he beat her up.

After that she was too
scared to say no again.

Why didn't she
call the police?

I gave her your number.

Vanessa just wasn't ready.
She was very depressed.

She kept blaming herself
instead of her boss.

Her boss?

Yeah, that's
who was raping her.

Look, I understand
the need for investigation.

I just don't see
how I can help you.

Well, you were at the club,
weren't you?

I was in the VIP room. I told that
to the officers who interviewed me.

You didn't tell them you
were sleeping with the victim.

Well, now I see. Someone's been
talking about me behind my back.

Then let's talk openly,
in our squad room.

Baby, I'm going now.
You'll call me later?

Come here.

You know I will.

Give me a moment to call my
lawyer. I'll have him meet me there.

There's no need to.
You're not under arrest.

And I'd like to
keep it that way.

My client is more than happy
to assist in the investigation.

He'll answer
your questions.

Why don't we let his DNA
sample do the talking?

Oh, hey, take a swab.
It'll match.

I'm sure you'll find my
blood in the alleyway, too.

Damn cat clawed
the hell out of my ass.

Listen, I had sex with Vanessa
that night. That's not a crime.

Rape and sodomy are.

Rape? Detective, I don't need to
force women to have sex with me.

Oh, so you expect
us to believe

that Vanessa liked
being half-naked,

down on her knees
in a dirty alley?

Yeah, she grew to like it.

Once you stripped away
that schoolgirl exterior,

underneath lay
a very adventurous woman.

Why'd you go out back?

I don't like to
share my girls.

I saw Vanessa go
outside with a friend.

I went to make sure they
weren't having a quickie.

Were they?

No, no. Her tastes
had changed.

She told him to
get the hell out.

So,
did you see him leave?

He got into a cab.

Vanessa and I had a little fun,
and then I went back inside.

So she fought with her
boyfriend, had sex with you,

and then, a third guy
came along and he killed her.

Is that what
you're telling me?

Truth is stranger
than fiction.

But you're the only one with
a history of abusing Vanessa.

Oh, more gossip?

No, we have witnesses.

Vanessa told people about
your repeated sexual assault.

I don't recall anyone
watching us having sex.

So unless you guys communicate
with ghosts, you've got nothing.

All right. My client has
answered all of your questions.

So, unless you're arresting
him, we're leaving.

You'll notify me if you want to
speak to my client any further.

Oh, we'll be speaking
to him again, yeah.

Come on.

Detective Stabler,
any news about Vanessa?

Are you her father?
Yeah.

Hey, I'm really sorry.

Thanks. Who are you?

Oh, sorry,
Perry Williams.

How do you know
my daughter?

I was her boss.
Let's talk. Come on.

She was really sweet.
What?

Why are you here?

I'm just answering
a few questions.

About what?

My relationship
with your daughter.

You bastard! You raped
and murdered my daughter.

Hey, hey, I didn't
have to rape her.

And I sure
didn't kill her.

He's not worth it.
Let him go. All right?

All right, all right.
Come on.

Ray, you've gotta
stop coming here.

I got nothing
else to do.

What about your job?

I don't give a damn
about my work anymore.

You're never going
to make an arrest.

It's been three days, Ray.
You gotta give me time.

That filth killed my daughter and you're
just gonna let him walk out the door.

We don't have enough evidence
to arrest him for murder yet.

You could at least
arrest him for rape.

He's claiming their
relationship was consensual.

That's crazy.
We need the proof.

What do you think? It doesn't
matter what I think, Ray.

In your heart,
what do you think?

We may never know.

Please...

Just tell me...

Did he rape her?

We're looking
at him for it.

Did he do it?

We're gonna
get the guy.

Thanks.

Go home.

You sound like
me talking to Ray.

Elliot, there's nothing
we can do tonight.

We'll start fresh
in the morning.

I need to get
that bastard.

Plenty of other bastards out
there, Elliot, why this one?

You know why.

I'm gonna go catch
a few hours of sleep.

See you at 7:00.

Hey, it's Stabler.
Sorry to bother you so late,

I need you to do
me a big favor.

You gotta run
the tests tonight.

I burned a sample of the greasy
residue in the gas chromatograph.

Tell me it nails
Perry Williams.

Hear me out.

The grease on the gun had three
component organic substances.

The first two are
lanolin and talc.

Skin care products?
Exactly.

Chemical compositions
identical to the lotion

and face powder
brands Vanessa used.

So the gun
touched her skin.

It doesn't explain the flakes
trapped in the lotion.

Cured tobacco, same brand as the
cigarettes we found in Vanessa's purse.

Vanessa was carrying
the gun.

She tried to defend herself.
Perp took it away and shot her.

You'd think so,

but I decided to take another look at
the residue pattern on Vanessa's hands.

Here it is.

But that residue pattern is not
consistent with any defensive posture.

Not like this.
Not like this. And so on.

So you have no match.

I think there
might be.

Like this.

Fire in the hole.

It's a match.

Vanessa killed herself.

Perry Williams raped Vanessa
and it drove her to suicide.

She steals the gun, brings it
down to the alley to kill him,

loses her nerve.

When Perry rapes her again, it's
the last straw, so she kills herself.

This bastards gonna escape,
we got nothing on the rape.

You know, maybe Vanessa told someone in
person, other than the rape crisis counselor.

We get an outcry witness,
we got ourselves a chance.

Ray didn't know,
none of her friends knew.

Hell, no one even
knew she was suicidal.

They all say
she was a party girl.

This may explain why.
Vanessa's toxicology report.

It says that her blood
was positive for lithium.

What's that used for?

For treating
bi-polar disorder.

No wonder she was flying high
one day, and crashing the next.

Promiscuous, going on spending sprees,
explains why everyone thought she was on drugs.

It also explains
her inability

to break off from Perry Williams
despite his treatment of her.

So why didn't
the lithium help?

Because the amount found in her
blood wasn't a therapeutic dose.

My guess is she stopped
taking her meds a week ago.

So why didn't anybody
tell us about her diagnosis?

This is a woman
who suffered in silence.

Now, I gotta tell Ray
his only child killed herself.

First you tell me she's on drugs.
Now you tell me that she's crazy,

and I'm telling you I know my
daughter, and she was never suicidal.

If you'd like, you can talk
to our medical examiner.

She can explain how
she came to the findings.

Thank you. You know what, I will.

Did you know that she was taking
medication for bipolar disorder?

She was moody. I mean, she
felt things very intensely.

She was a caring... Look,
my daughter was not sick.

Then Vanessa never mentioned that
she was seeing a psychiatrist?

No.

Ray, maybe she was ashamed.

No daughter wants to
disappoint her father.

Vanessa's "problem" was
that bastard Perry Williams.

He murdered her, even if
he didn't pull the trigger.

But legally, Ray, legally he's
not responsible for her death.

Can you give us
the name of her doctor?

I don't know.

She was using the college
health care service.

Could you all
just please leave?

Vanessa wanted help
controlling her behavior.

The lithium worked, and in
combination with psychotherapy...

Well, she was making
excellent progress.

Did she ever mention
a Perry Williams in therapy?

Yes.

He was encouraging her to
drink and stop taking her meds.

Why?

To make her more vulnerable,
more manic.

He liked being with
a hyper-sexual party girl.

When she began to stabilize,
he lost his control over her.

That's when she realized
he was abusing her.

Well, why'd she keep
going out with him?

Well, he's a handsome, successful
older man. She was blinded by his charm.

Our tox screen shows that Vanessa
had stopped taking the lithium.

Now you know what can happen to a manic
depressive when they go off their meds.

What did you
do about it?

What could I do?

She's an adult legally free
to make her own choices.

She was suicidal.

Not last week
when I saw her.

You should have told her
father what was going on.

The only way
I could've disclosed anything

is if she'd been homicidal or
suicidal and as I said, she wasn't.

Did Vanessa ever mention
confiding in anybody else?

She was keeping
a therapy journal.

Vanessa's roommate had the diary. I
can see why she kept it hidden from Ray.

It's graphic sexual stuff, a
catalog of Perry's perversions.

He's a sexual sadist, he doesn't
want a partner, he wants a victim.

I'm not sure
that's enough.

We talked to several
of Perry's ex-girlfriends.

He gets off on pain,
they'll all testify to that.

Were they raped?

No, but...

But then
it's not enough.

Vanessa's body showed signs
of sexual trauma.

Well, Perry will argue that it
was rough but consensual sex.

And we've got her statements
to the psychiatrist

and the rape crisis counselor,
that she was forced.

All right, those I can get admitted under
the outcry exception to the hearsay rule,

but I would still like
a confession from Perry.

Alex, it's all in here.

Everything that
he did to her.

"I'm still bleeding
from last night.

"I should go to the hospital, but
I'm too embarrassed to tell anyone.

"When I said I couldn't have sex tonight,
he punched me so hard I couldn't breathe. "

Let's go after him
for the rape.

But, just in case, tell
Ray to file a civil suit.

Clean Perry out.

At least arresting Perry
might give Ray some closure.

Maybe you, too.

Elliot, can I talk
to you for a minute?

I'll meet you
down in the car.

What you got?

Ray Bevins came by
to see me,

asked questions about why we
ruled Vanessa's death a suicide.

He accept it?

I walked him through the evidence as
gently as I could, but I screwed up.

I mentioned the oral sodomy.
I thought you told him.

No. I didn't want to put
that image in his head.

His daughter on her knees
in some filthy alley.

I'm sorry,
but it's in there now.

He really lost it. He left
mumbling something about a club.

Detective Charlie
to Central K.

Sorry, Detectives.
It was over when we got here.

Where's Ray Bevins?

In the wind. Dead guy was the
only one here when we arrived.

We had him.
We had Perry.

Elliot, Ray's still
got the gun.

We boomed the door and swept
the place. No sign of your guy.

Where could he be?

This is all about Vanessa.
He'd want to be with her.

Detective Stabler, Section Central
Park has a man with a gun to his head.

Description matches your guy.

Secure the perimeter. Tell Ray we're
on our way. No one talks to him but me.

Ray.

Put the gun down.

Don't do this, Ray.

I have nothing left.

Let's just talk.
Let's just sit here and talk.

Vanessa's gone, I mean...

There's no other way
to end the pain.

Vanessa loves you.

She wouldn't
want you to do this.

My daughter needed help,
and she couldn't come to me.

I can't live with that.

Why here?

This was Vanessa's favorite
place, when she was a...

When she was
a little girl.

Those memories are
alive in you, Ray.

You keep her alive.

Everything that you and Vanessa
had together, that's what you want.

I want her to know
how much I love her.

I want her to know
how sorry I am.

I couldn't be there for her.

She's here, Ray, in your
heart. She's alive, here.

She can only die
when you die, Ray.

Elliot, I want to
hear it from you.

Did you actually
lawyer up for Ray Bevins?

He needed an attorney.

So you called one of the best
defense attorneys in town?

Usually you get a confession
instead of throwing up

road blocks to
protect the perps.

Ray Bevins is not a perp.

He killed a man
in cold blood.

He killed a sexual predator that
you said we couldn't convict.

I will not
condone vigilantism.

I am not going to let my compassion
for Ray prevent me from doing my job.

Well, I did my job. I
arrested him. He's all yours.

I want manslaughter and probation.
Extreme emotional disturbance.

Ray snapped when he found out his daughter's
rapist would go unpunished for his crime.

For someone who snapped, your
client was thinking clearly enough

to obtain a weapon, locate
the defendant, and execute him.

That's not
temporary insanity.

You know the EED statute was
designed to downgrade murder charges,

when they are mitigated by the
defendant's severe psychological trauma.

Only when the defendant's mental
state creates a loss of self-control.

Ray's actions appear
deliberate and rational.

Don't take our word for it,
have your shrink evaluate Ray.

Perry Williams
killed my daughter.

He took her to such a dark place
that she couldn't find a way out.

So what did you do?

Guy I know at the work site
gave me the gun.

I went to the club, said I
had an appointment with Perry

and waited in his office.

And what happened after that?

Perry walked in.

I confronted him
with Vanessa's rape.

He denied it, and then...

Then he said that she liked
what he did to her.

Ray, how did Perry
end up in the alley?

I took him there.

I forced him to his knees, the
way he forced Vanessa to her knees.

He begged for his life, he swore that
he would tell the truth to the cops.

I said enough,
you know, enough lies.

So I put the gun in his mouth,
and I pulled the trigger.

Ray's emotional pain
is genuine

and the cause for his mental
trauma is legitimate,

but I don't buy
his affirmative defense.

Why the hell not? This is a
man who's lost his daughter.

Well, despite his emotional
distress, he had the presence of mind

to carefully plan this murder.
He knew right from wrong.

He knew nothing. This is
a guy drowning in grief.

Ray made clear, logical,
and deliberate choices.

He forced Perry
out into that alley

and symbolically re-enacted
his daughter's rape and murder.

He didn't shoot
Perry in the chest.

No, he put the gun in Perry's
mouth, imitating the oral sodomy.

I'll notify Ray's attorney
that we're gonna fight it.

She'll probably try for jury nullification,
get them to acquit out of sympathy.

They should.

Look. I'm not mourning
for Perry Williams,

but I'm not rolling
over for Ray, either.

I need that report as
soon as you can get it.

I could've stopped him. I should've
known what Ray was gonna do.

How?

I'd have done
the same thing.

No, you wouldn't.

Wait till
you're a parent.

Don't throw that crap at me,
Elliot. You made a mistake.

What?

You let Ray in.

You're right, I did.

He got to me,
and now I'm responsible.

I don't remember
leaving the nightclub.

What's the next
thing you do remember?

Sitting in the park,
by the lake.

Vanessa and I went there
since she was a little girl.

She would feed the ducks her sandwiches
when she thought I wasn't looking.

But you still had the gun?

Yes.

What were you
going to do next?

Shoot myself, so that I
could be with my daughter.

Thank you.
No further questions.

You blame Perry Williams
for your daughter's death?

Yeah, he raped Vanessa and
that's why she killed herself.

You sound very
certain of that.

But Vanessa was emotionally
unstable, wasn't she?

He made her that way.

Mr. Bevins, she was
under psychiatric care

and had been prescribed
lithium for a bipolar disorder.

Are you suggesting that Perry
Williams was responsible for that?

He lowered her self-esteem, and
told her not to take her medication.

My daughter was
happy and healthy,

before she
worked at that club.

As far as you knew.

There was quite a bit about her
life that Vanessa did not tell you.

Did she tell you that she
had been sexually assaulted?

No.

So her relationship
with Perry Williams

could have been
consensual as he claimed.

You call the deceased a
rapist, but you have no evidence

other than your
personal beliefs.

That's not true.

Detective Stabler told me that
Perry Williams raped my daughter.

Thank you.
Nothing further.

You're calling
me to the stand?

No, the Defense is.

You've just become
their star witness.

Excuse me?

Elliot, did you tell Ray that you
knew Perry Williams had raped Vanessa?

No.
He says you did.

I told him
Perry was a suspect.

Now they're going to use you
to justify Ray murdering Perry.

Yeah? Well, the hell with him.
He got what he deserved.

Well, now it's your turn.

You gave premature information
to an unstable man.

You sure as hell better be
ready when I cross-examine you.

Detective Stabler,
did you have a conversation

with Ray Bevins
about Perry Williams?

Yes.

Do you remember the content
of that conversation?

Not word for word, no.

Do you remember
telling Ray Bevins

that you believed Perry
Williams raped his daughter?

I said we were
looking at him.

Did you say, quote,
"We're gonna get the guy. "

Yes, I said that.

Who did "the guy" refer to?

The killer. It didn't necessarily mean
that I was looking at Perry Williams.

But it's reasonable to assume that
Ray believed you meant Mr. Williams.

Now, did you tell Ray that you were
powerless to arrest Mr. Williams?

At the time, we didn't have enough evidence.

Yes or no, Detective.

At the time of the murder
did my client believe

you would ever be able
to arrest Mr. Williams?

No.

Thank you.

"We're gonna get the guy. "

Detective Stabler, when you made
that remark to the defendant,

was it based on any official
determination from the NYPD?

"Official determination"? No.

Was it based on
any forensic evidence?

Yes, we had Perry Williams'
DNA on Vanessa's body.

DNA proves that sex
took place, not rape.

We had her diary.

A person, Detective,
not her writings.

We had the rape
crisis counselor.

An eyewitness, Detective.

No.

So your statement
to the defendant,

that Perry Williams raped Vanessa was
based purely on your individual opinion?

Yes.

Then why did
you say that?

Because he needed
something to hold onto.

So your sympathy
for the defendant

led you to give Ray Bevins
unsubstantiated information?

Yes.

Detective Stabler, do you condone
Ray Bevins' murder of Perry Williams?

Detective?

No.

It was wrong.

Nothing further.

The law is supposed to provide
us with safety and justice

but the law failed to get
justice for Vanessa Bevins.

And in his time of grief,

Ray Bevins learned that the
man who had abused, humiliated,

and raped his daughter
was going to walk free.

Now, if it were your daughter,

your wife, your mother,
who had been raped

and the police were unable to arrest
their attacker, how would you feel?

Ray Bevins suffered
every parent's nightmare.

He did what every parent knows
in their heart they would do.

He acted from a place of profound
grief, of overwhelming loss.

He did not have
control of his actions.

He tried to get justice for his
daughter in the only way he knew how.

And now you must make
justice for Ray Bevins,

and return a verdict
of not guilty.

Some of you may believe that Perry
Williams raped Vanessa Bevins in that alley,

but Perry Williams
is not on trial here.

In fact, he never got
his day in court at all.

So in the eyes of the law, he
is innocent until proven guilty.

Even if his guilt had been
established beyond a reasonable doubt,

he could not have been
executed for his crime.

Ray Bevins executed
Perry Williams.

He shot a man, who was on his
knees, begging for his life.

Now some of you may think
that he deserved to die.

But you have to
ask yourselves

if you would execute a man
whose guilt had not been proven.

We have all felt the need for
revenge at some point in our lives.

We have all lashed
out in pain and anger,

and we have all thought that
justice means an eye for an eye.

But is that justice?

Does Perry Williams' family now
have the right to kill Ray Bevins?

Does Ray Bevins' family then have the
right to retaliate against Perry Williams?

When would it stop?

An eye for an eye
leaves the whole world blind.

Has the jury
reached its verdict?

Yes, we have, Your Honor.

Will the defendant
please rise?

On the count of murder in the Second
Degree, how does the jury find?

We find the defendant,
Raymond Bevins, guilty.

Thank you for
your service. You're excused.

Ray.

I'm sorry.

I'm not.