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"Crush"
SVU, Episode 10.20
Production number:
First aired: 5 May 2009
  th of 502 produced in SVU  
th of 502 released in SVU
  th of 1271 released in all  
Cragen Huang and Judge Marsden
Written By
Jonathan Greene

Directed By
Peter Leto

Summary[]

High-schooler Kim Garnet falls down the stairs after being mocked at school, but her injuries suggest that something far worse has been going on for a while. When it is revealed she sent nude photos of herself to two boys, and one of them spread them around the school, Kim is arrested for distributing child pornography because she refuses to give up her abuser. Even after telling the truth, the consequences of her trial reveal a far more concerning plot involving the trial judge.

Plot[]

Kim Garnet ends up in the hospital after falling down the stairs at school, but the doctors reveal that her brain damage and scarring is significant and must have occurred at least a few days before the tumble, and even more before that. At first the detectives suggest her father might be responsible after he lost his job and has been under stress lately. The parents point her toward Kim's boyfriend, Steve Walker.

Steve says he saw Kim's bruises on her ribs a while ago, which she says she got from her boxing class, which is a secret. A woman in the boxing class says a man named Rick Edwards has been trying to make a move on Kim, who rejected him. Stabler talks to Edwards, who tries to punch him so Stabler brings him to the station and intimidates him with the time in the holding cell, leading Edwards to immediately start talking. Meanwhile, CSU tech Dale Stuckey reveals that in Kim's locker, he found Kim's phone which has nude photos of herself, which have been spread around school, resulting in a threatening text message.... from her own phone. Stuckey demonstrates it's very easy to fake phone numbers. O'Halloran shows that Kim texted a boy named Ethan the nude photos first. Ethan tells Stabler and Fin that she texted him on accident when she really meant to send them to Steve. The last time he saw her was on Monday before she fell down the stairs, but Kim's cell phone data places her near Ethan's house the night she sent the text, which is when she must have been beaten.

The detectives have several theories about what happened on Friday night, perhaps Ethan or Steve beat her up out of jealousy. They bring in both boys and question them, suggesting to both of them that they were the ones that hurt and threatened Kim. Both boys parents request lawyers. At the hospital, Kim wakes up and claims that her injuries are all from accidents, but when presented with the evidence the detectives have found. Counselor Samantha Copeland demands that Benson arrest Kim for producing and distributing child pornography because she isn't cooperating or telling the truth about her injuries, but says she will drop the charges if Kim starts talking. Kim stays silent, and the judge decides she has enough evidence to take it to trial. In the judge's chamber, Benson gets a call from the hospital, where Kim is laying with a broken arm, a black eye, and several bruises, but she insists it was an accident on her skateboard.

In the courtroom, Copeland asks whether her injuries are an attempt from one of the boys to get her to change her testimony and make her lie about what happened. Kim refuses to talk about what happened, and the judge puts her in contempt of court, sending her to the lockup overnight. Benson brings in Kathleen Stabler to convince Kim to do the right thing and change her life for the better. Kathleen explains to Kim that someone who loves you would never hit you, and she's not betraying him by telling him what's happening. Kim finally reveals that Ethan has always been nice to her, and they text all the time. She accidentally texted Ethan the photos, and Steve found out that Kim had sent the pictures to Ethan. Steve sent the pictures to the whole school, and hit Kim. Kim went to visit Ethan, but Steve followed her and beat her up, and he also beat her up before trial to stop her from revealing the abuse. Steve is arrested.

With the truth revealed, Copeland agrees to dismiss the charges. Judge Hilda Marsden, however, not only refuses the request, but convicts Kim on the spot (not even bothering to allow closing arguments) and hands down a shockingly harsh sentence: one year at a juvenile sex offender facility in Wellsburg, Ohio.

Benson and Pond become so upset by the sentence (and the way Marsden ran her court) that they privately investigate her. Copeland, while equally horrified, refused to join in for fear it could ruin her career. While searching for Marsden's judicial records, the lead clerk, Ed Mangini, alerts Marsden of their presence, and she proceeds to imprison both on made-up contempt citations (Benson for "mocking" her in an explicitly off-the-record conversation, Pond simply for pointing that the judge had no right to so). Much to their surprise, when Cragen arrives to release them, he brings Copeland along. Upon hearing of the arrest, the ADA, convinced by Marsden's behavior that she must have something to hide, had looked up the records herself, and discovered just what Mardsen couldn't let the detective and attorney see: she would target teenagers who had committed minor offences (urinating in public, public lewdness, etc.), turn the offence into a felony sex offence, and ship them off to the Wellsburg facility.

Stabler goes undercover and tries to ensnare the judge

Though Cragen points out that, while harsh, such punishments are with her discretion, and locking up Benson and Pond to stop them from seeing her records (especially coming from someone who self-righteously boasts about her sentencing, had left them every bit as disgusted as they had been by the sentence itself), along with the clerk tipping her off, suggests something more sinister. Mangini is quickly arrested, and confesses the truth: Marsden's docket is rigged to include the "right" cases, as she gets a commission on everyone she sends to the Wellsburg facility, which her cousin runs. Later that day, Stabler, posing as a father whose daughter's boyfriend took his car on a joyride and totaled it, bribes Marsden to harshly punish the teen. Finally, the next day, with Kim's friend Ethan playing the unfortunate "defendant", Copeland playing prosecutor, Huang playing defense attorney, and Cragen the defendant's father, Marsden is brought to justice for her own criminal acts. Another judge overturns Kim's conviction and even wipes her record clean like it never happened so she can start anew. Marsden gets arrested for false imprisonment, bribery, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and other crimes she committed after an argument.

Cast[]

Main cast[]

Recurring cast[]

Guest cast[]

References[]

Quotes[]

Rick Edwards: [after Stabler hits him] Cheap shot.
Stabler: Oh, I thought it was a street fight.

Stabler: [to Rick Edwards] Because you're a lover, not a fighter, huh, champ?
Rick Edwards: Exactly.

O'Halloran: Yeah. In other words, Stuckey's wasting our time again.

Samantha Copeland: [to Kim] You think these pictures made him angry? One day, he's going to go too far and kill you.
[to Kim's parents] You'll be saying goodbye to your daughter on a slab in the city morgue.
Benson: [to Kim's parents] Excuse us. Excuse us for one second, please. [Benson and Copeland leave the room]
[to Copeland] What are you doing? That girl is a victim. Browbeating her is not the answer.
Copeland: Then we'll arrest her.
Benson: Arrest her? For what?
Copeland: Possession and distribution of kiddie porn. A couple of days in jail, she'll turn around.
Benson: Are you out of your mind?
Copeland: That girl broke the law when she sent naked pictures of herself.
Benson: I'm not collaring a victim to make her talk.
Copeland: Arrest her or I'll find someone who will and I'll report you to Internal Affairs for failure to take police action.

Miranda Pond: [to Copeland] How low can you get, Samantha? What you're doing to this girl is repugnant.
Samantha Copeland: I'm trying to save Kim's life.
Kim Garnet: By putting me in jail?
Copeland: If that's what it takes.
Miranda Pond: Kimberly hasn't committed a crime. This charge is a transparent ploy to intimidate her into naming her abuser.
Copeland: Dating violence in this city is up nearly 50% in the last decade. I am not about to let another girl get victimized or murdered. If your client cooperates, I'll drop the charges.
Miranda Pond: Blackmailing her isn't going to get her to cooperate.

Miranda Pond: Kids dating is supposed to be about what color prom dress to wear, not a trip to the E.R.

Miranda Pond: [to Kim] Kimberly, you can't let him do this to you anymore.
Kim Garnet: [referring to Olivia] Now she's on her side.
Benson: Kim, we're all on your side.
Kim Garnet: Then leave me alone.
Benson: I can't do that.
Kim Garnet: Get out.
Mrs. Garnet: Kim...
Kim Garnet: I want her out of here now!

Cragen: It is not private when these kids begin sexting. College admissions officers, future employers, even their own children might see these pictures one day. They don't realize the consequences of their actions.

Kim Garnet: Who are you?
Kathleen Stabler: Kathleen. I'm a friend of Olivia's. I was sitting in here a couple of months ago.
Kim Garnet: She put you in jail too?
Kathleen: Yeah. And my dad's Detective Stabler.
Kim Garnet: How could you do that to your partner's kid?
Kathleen: I'm glad she did. Helped me stop hating myself.
Kim Garnet: What makes you think I hate myself?
Kathleen: Because I was a lot like you. I let boys use me, have sex with me, even hit me. Kim, I was too scared and too ashamed to say anything. Things got so bad, I went to jail. But I finally let someone help me. Same person's trying to help you.
Kim Garnet: I don't know what to do. I love him. How can I betray him?
Kathleen: He's betraying you every time he hits you. Afterwards, he says he's sorry, he'll never do it again, so you forgive him but he hits you again, he makes you feel like you're nothing, like he's the only one who will ever love you and then he hits you some more and says that you deserve it, doesn't he?
Kim Garnet: The first time, we were at a party, I spilled punch on him and he slapped me in the face for messing up his new shirt and then it was after school for talking to another boy and it was just for no reason at all.
Kathleen: Kim, If someone really loves you, they'd never hurt you, they'd treat you with respect. Please let them help you.

Miranda Pond: [to Copeland] You just gambled with my client's life.
Copeland: Kim was a first-time, non-violent juvenile offender. The worst I thought she'd get was probation.
Benson: Yeah? Well, she's going to prison. Five hundred miles away. If something happens to that girl, it's on you.
Miranda Pond: How are you going to fix it?
Copeland: I don't know what I can do.
Benson: Talk to the judge. Have her reconsider.
Copeland: I have other cases in Judge Marsden's court. If I challenge this decision, she's going to make my life a living hell.
Miranda Pond: She's not the only one. I'm filing a 440 motion to vacate the conviction & sentencing and I'm reporting you to the Bar.

Miranda Pond: Your Honor, the defense rests and moves for dismissal.
Samantha Copeland: Corporation Counsel has no objections.
Judge Marsden: The Defense's motion is denied.
Copeland: Your Honor? The respondent's testimony clearly showed that she had no intent to make or distribute child pornography.
Judge Marsden: Respondent will rise for my decision.
Pond: Your decision? We haven't even delivered closing arguments yet.
Judge Hilda Marsden: I'm not required to hear closing arguments. [to Kim] Stand up, young lady. [Kim stands up] Kimberly Garnet, I find you guilty of producing, possessing, and distributing a sexual performance by a child. I sentence you to incarceration in a secure facility for juvenile sex offenders in Wellsburg, Ohio, for a period of one year. Court is adjourned. [bangs her gavel]
Kim Garnet: [to Olivia as she's being taken into custody] This is all your fault. I listened to you and you lied to me. You said that if I told the truth, I would be safe.

Benson: You wanted to see me, Your Honor?
Judge Marsden: Yes. Are you representing Detective Benson, Ms. Pond?
Miranda Pond: Does she need representation?
Judge Marsden: Of course not. We're off the record. Join the party, Counselor... Why the sudden interest in me?
Miranda Pond: [to Olivia] You don't have to answer that.
Judge Marsden: Nobody's under oath. It's just a friendly chat.
Benson: [shrugged] That's funny, because it doesn't feel so friendly.
Judge Marsden: No reason to be cute, Detective. Now, tell me. Why are you so hot for my sentencing stats just hours after I sent your child pornographer away?
Miranda Pond: With all due respect, Your Honor, we're just trying to understand your reasoning behind sending Kimberly Garnet to Wellsburg.
Judge Marsden: Oh, well, it's the best alternative. There's no facility with available beds in New York for sex offenders and she's a sex offender.
Benson: She's not a sex offender, and you're ruining her life.
Judge Marsden: You know, I am so tired of these kids waltzing in here thinking they can do whatever the hell they want and get away with it. Someone has to take a stand.
Benson: Is that it? Or do you just get off on the power?
Pond: Olivia...
Judge Marsden: Mock me again, Olivia, and I'll hold you in contempt.
Benson: How? I thought this was just a friendly chat.
Judge Marsden: That's it.
Pond: Your Honor, you don't have the authority to sanction Detective Benson...
Judge Marsden: Watch this. Officer? Take Detective Benson - and Ms. Pond - down to the lockup; they're in contempt. [as Olivia and Ms. Pond are taken out of the courtroom] Have a nice day, ladies.

[while Olivia and Ms. Pond are sitting in a jail cell]
Benson: [to Cragen] What are you waiting for? Spring us.
Cragen: After I'm done savouring the moment.
Pond: This is your boss?
Benson: Yeah, he's very supportive.

Benson: We didn't get our phone call - how did you know we were here?
Cragen: Sam called...
Benson: Wow, word travels fast...
Copeland: Especially when you're asking questions about Judge Marsden.
Pond: I thought you didn't want to cross her, 'cause this'll put you in the line of fire...
Copeland: At least I'll be in good company...I pulled up her stats off our database: I think I found what she doesn't want you to see!

Pond: She's taking minor offenses and turning them into felonies!
Cragen: So, Marsden's a hanging judge - she's harsh, but it's all within her discretion...
Benson: Then why did she lock us up for asking about her records?
Pond: And why did Ed Mangini tip her off?

Ed Mangini: What do you think you're doing? Get off the car!
Stabler: Nice wheels!... Rental?
Ed Mangini: Please... I own it.
Stabler: Yeah? Pretty pricey for a government hack...
Ed Mangini: I don't have to explain myself to you!
Stabler: You know, [flashes badge] actually, you do... You ratted out my partner to Judge Marsden.

Judge Marsden: Officer, take the respondent into custody... We're adjourned. [slams gavel]
Stabler: The only one going into custody is you.
Judge Marsden: [incredulous] What the hell is this?!
Copeland: The end of a nightmare for hundreds of kids...
Stabler: [to Marsden] Hilda Marsden; you are under arrest for bribery, official misconduct, and false imprisonment.
Dr. Huang: Plus, federal charges of wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States...
Stabler: [as he slaps on the handcuffs] You have the right to remain silent...
Judge Marsden: I know my rights. I'm a judge! I have done nothing wrong. These kids need to be put away. It's people like me who keep this country safe. I have the balls to stand up for what's right, not like you lousy bleeding hearts.

Ethan Morse: How'd I do?
Stabler: Well, you got a shot at Broadway.

Background information and notes[]

  • Kathleen Stabler talks about her experiences being locked up, which happened in the episode "Swing".
  • There is no town in Ohio named Wellsburg. However, there is a Wellsburg, West Virginia, located in the state's nothern panhandle, just across the state line from Ohio. The closest juvenile facility to Wellsburg is in Wheeling, West Virginia - 16 miles away from Wellsburg (and 178 miles away from Ohio).
  • Based on the Kids for cash scandal.

Episode scene cards[]

1 2 3 4

Mick's Gym
21 West 24th Street
Tuesday, April 21

Grandview
Preparatory School
58 West 67th Street
Wednesday, April 22

Mercy General Hospital
365 West 32nd Street
Wednesday, April 22

Chambers of
Judge Hilda Marsden
Friday, April 24

5 6 7

Family Court
Monday, April 27

Family Court
Office of the Clerk
Tuesday, April 28

Family Court
Thursday, April 30

Previous episode:
"Selfish"
"Crush"
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Season 10
Next episode:
"Liberties"
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