The best episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 7
Season 7 only — ranked by viewer rating, highs first. Vote on a placement to back it or contest it.
- 01
When a bruised, bloodied and severely injured 12-year-old boy is dumped outside a hospital, Detectives Benson and Stabler are led to Charlie Monaghan, a teenager seen beating the boy a week earlier at St. Victor's school. But the suspect's alibi proves unlikely when his 8-year-old half sister's own problems at school and tormented past at the hands off the injured boy surface. Meanwhile, the girl's legal woes are exacerbated when questions concerning legal guardianship and consent - and what constitutes fit parenting - come into play.
- 02
When an eight-year-old girl is kidnapped on her way home from school and DNA tests on the blood found in the abductor's abandoned van reveal she has leukemia, M.E. Warner visits the girl's family to inform them of her findings. No sooner does Warner deliver the diagnosis than she's drawn into the kidnapper's deadly game when it's clear he has the family's apartment - and its occupants - in his sights and no cops are to be involved.
- 03
Solid investigative work leads the detectives to a violent repeat sex offender Jeremy Paul Wilson who was recently released back onto the streets. Wilson, a cold blooded murderer and pedophile, is in possession of a cache of hunting knives, has kidnapped two children and has nothing to lose. The manhunt for Wilson brings Dets. Fin, Benson and Stabler to a bus terminal where a violent and emotional showdown with Wilson takes a dangerous turn.
- 04
Disturbing 911 call from nine-year-old Maria Recinos is forwarded to Detective Olivia Benson. Recinos is calling for help from a room she claims to have been locked in for days. The detectives put a trace on the cell phone she is using, however it turns up multiple phony leads due to manipulation of the signal, which leaves detectives confused. As the case progresses, Benson eventually convinces Recinos to divulge crucial clues, including the name of her captor. Recinos will only talk to Benson, and just as she is getting closer to finding her, the cops question the case and are now concerned that it could be a prank. Benson knows this is real, when the phone goes dead, Benson realizes that she is losing time and needs to act quickly on what little information she has if she is going to save this girl's life.
- 05
A distraught and pregnant April Troost, is found on a ledge threatening to commit suicide. After being talked down, she confides in Benson that she has been raped, and her unborn child is a product of that crime. Troost accuses Barclay Palmer, a handsome, wealthy and successful business man, of the crime. Although Palmer denies involvement, DNA tests prove he is the father. The case goes to trial, but when it becomes evident that Troost is willing to settle for money, her credibility diminishes and Benson and Stabler become suspicious of her story.
- 06
When construction workers pour the sand into a newly made playground and discover the remains of a young boy, Detective Stabler teams up with CSU tech Millie Vizcarrondo to investigate,which leads them to resurrect a cold case where four boys disappeared 30 years earlier. As the investigation unfolds, new forensic evidence surfaces but no progress can be made solving this case until Anna surfaces, claiming her stepfather Robert Sawyer was the killer.
- 07
Detectives Benson and Stabler investigate a school shooting, where three children are shot. When one African-American child dies, detectives follow critical clues and are lead to believe the crime was racially motivated. As the case progresses, Detectives find evidence that the rifle used in the killings is linked to a gun store, which also serves as the headquarters for a white supremacist group: Revolution Aryan Warriers. Detectives discover that Star Morrison, and the store owner's 14-year-old son Kyle both keep Nazi paraphernalia in the basement of the shop. DNA from the rifle leads detectives to the person they believe is the killer and when the case goes to court shots are fired inside the court house by group members and a major twist is revealed.
- 08
After 21 years, sex offender Ray Schenkel is released from jail. Retired officer William Dorsey who initially locked him up, is convinced he'll offend again and begs Detectives Benson and Stabler to put him away for good. Stabler goes undercover to see if Dorsey is correct and in doing so befriends Schenkel, posing as a sex offender on parole and earning his trust. As the investigation unfolds, Stabler sets Schenkel up, but this time he doesn't take the bait. When Stabler's cover is blown, the investigation is not only compromised, but Stabler finds his life in danger.
- 09
When Lauren Westley is found badly beaten and taken to a New York hospital, it is discovered she's a runaway from Virginia whose father Philip Westley has been in the city searching for her. Detectives discover that Westley was 24 weeks pregnant and due to her injuries, suffered a miscarriage. As the investigation unfolds Detectives Benson and Stabler question Wayne Meredith a teenager from Westley's high school who is the father of the baby. Westley and Meredith ran away to New York seeking the help from an abortion clinic. When the case goes to court, Meredith's attorney, Sophie Devere, tries to defend Meridith's actions but new evidence is introduced questioning the credibility of the abortion clinic and whether the doctor there was ultimately responsible for West's injuries.
- 10
When a 17-year-old high school student is brutally attacked by one of her classmates on campus, Detectives Stabler, Benson and Fin investigate Luke Breslin the prime suspect. When asked about attacking his friend, Breslin becomes enraged and attacks Det. Fin but when later questioned, he claims to have no memory of attacking anyone. Meanwhile, Stabler realizes that Breslin is the son of his former partner Pete Breslin and Detective Cragen suspends Stabler after he makes a number of unprofessional choices in trying to go easy on his friend's son. As the investigation continues, Stabler tries to help both Breslin and his son, but begins to lose control because of his own rage. Stabler turns to Dr. Rebecca Hendrix for help coping with his own anger issues.
- 11
Man is found murdered execution style in the window of his workplace, and above him the word Killer is written. A stamp on his hand leads Detectives Benson and Fin to a gay circuit club, also a methamphetamine hangout. Detectives Benson and Fin scan the ID's of the guests who were at the club and during the investigation, Fin discovers his estranged son Ken Randall was also there. As the case continues, Detective Fin confronts his son and Medical Examiner Warner confirms that the victim Robin Weller had the deadly and contagious new strain of AIDS which is becoming an epidemic. When Weller's boyfriend, who also carried the deadly strain of AIDS, is also found murdered, eyes turn toward Gabriel Thurman an activist trying to stop the spread of the disease. The case goes to trial and Thompson's attorney Carolyn Maddox, tries to sway the jury that her client's actions were justified.
- 12
When a series of rapes is linked to a speed-dating service, Detective Benson goes undercover and discovers Mike Jergens is the assailant. As the case progresses, Jergens' insecure girlfriend Cora Kennison - an alcoholic and bulimic - becomes an unwilling pawn as both Benson and attorney Minerva Grahame-Bishop seek to persuade Kennison to testify for their respective sides - despite her mother's insistence that her daughter is too fragile. Kennison opts to marry Jergens in the hope that spousal privilege will save her from taking the stand, but since the rapes occurred before they married, she is still forced to testify. Distraught, Kennison drinks to excess, leaving her in an irreversible coma, and her fate in the hands of her husband.
- 13
Detectives Benson and Stabler aggressively pursue a child molester who kidnapped three young sisters from New Orleans after their parents were killed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina -- but their efforts to secretly locate the third child are compromised by an ambitious reporter. However, a far greater problem looms as the New York cops butt heads with federal authorities after the suspect is discovered to have deadly anthrax that could result in a full-blown epidemic.
- 14
Three teens -- Jason King, Doug Waverly and Nick Pratt -- are suspected of foul play when high school student Jennifer Durning disappears after a night of partying. Nick and Doug's wealthy parents and their attorneys argue the plan was for Jason to lose his virginity to Jennifer before the other two had consensual sex with her -- but Jason got greedy. Jason agrees to testify, but when he disappears, Judge Donnelly has no choice but to dismiss the case. A.D.A. Casey Novak becomes suspicious because without Jason's testimony there's no case against the other boys. Attorneys Dave Seaver, Oliver Gates and Monica Bradshaw represent the teens.
- 15
A mother (Dana Eskelson) is devastated by the revelation that her 8-year-old son (Jack Vignone) has been sexually abused years after her ex-husband was sent to prison for molesting her older child, whose DNA now implicates him in his brother's case.
Shows like Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
The closest matches on shared genres, ranked by match strength and popularity.
- 01Drama·Crime·LegalThe best episodes of The Good Wife2009–2016·CBS
The Good Wife follows Alicia Florrick, a wife and mother who boldly assumes full responsibility for her family and re-enters the workforce after her husband's very public sex and political corruption scandal lands him… - 02Drama·Crime·LegalThe best episodes of Law & Order1990–presentSame network — NBC·
- 03Drama·Crime·LegalThe best episodes of Better Call Saul2015–2022·AMCBetter Call Saul is the prequel to the award-winning series Breaking Bad, set six years before Saul Goodman became Walter White's lawyer.
- 04Drama·Crime·LegalThe best episodes of Goliath2016–2021
Once a powerful lawyer, Billy McBride is now burned out and washed up, spending more time in a bar than a courtroom. - 05Drama·Crime·LegalThe best episodes of Bull2016–2022·CBSBull stars Michael Weatherly as Dr. Jason Bull in a drama inspired by the early career of Dr.
- 06Drama·Crime·LegalThe best episodes of The Lincoln Lawyer2022–presentMickey Haller, an iconoclastic idealist, runs his law practice out of the back seat of his Lincoln Town Car, as he takes on cases big and small across the expansive city of Los Angeles.
