All language subtitles for Law & Order svu s22e02.Ballad of Dwight and Irena.eng

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.

[DRAMATIC STING]

Your husband, Leon,
is getting paroled tomorrow.

♪ ♪

If Leon came back,
you could be in a grave.

And that little boy would be alone.

- Sergeant Fin.
- Andre.

Think fast.

My man, if you're ever
scared about anything,

call me.

Andre. Slow down.

[DRAMATIC STING]

You didn't know your husband,
Leon, was getting paroled?

Not until Sergeant Tutuola told me.

And that's when you let him know

Leon was reaching out to you
through your son, Andre?

Probably.

And isn't that when you asked him

not to report it
to Leon's parole officer?

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

What I remember...

Mr. Tutuola told me it was a violation.

He'd have to report it and
Leon would go back to prison.

Mrs. Fuller, are you saying under oath

that you never asked Sergeant Tutuola

to refrain from going to Leon's PO?

Counselor, the law is clear.

Sergeant Tutuola
was obligated to report.

Isn't it true you wanted
Leon out on parole?

So he'd have to pay child support?

[SCOFFS]

What I-I didn't want...

I didn't want my son

to watch his father get shot

and bleed out on the kitchen floor.

Come on, Leon. Stop.

- [INDISTINCT CHATTER]
- Don't do it!

- Come on.
- [GUNSHOT]

- [ALL YELPING]
- [CRIES]

[TENSE MUSIC]

♪ ♪

_

[GRUNTING]

[BOTH BREATHING HEAVILY]

Hoo!

[PANTING]

[INHALES]

[EXHALES]

Well, I-I've been thinking about that

since the Mason-Dixon Line, darling.

[SIGHS]

What?

Just wish you would've called, Dwight.

Before just showing up?

Oh, here we go.

I drive 16 hours straight

with a case of Popov under my arm,

a princess gown for my daughter.

No. No, that was... that was sweet.

Maybe next time you could
bring something for Will too?

He ain't my kid.

[DOOR OPENS]

Mom?

I'm hungry.

I'll be right out, sweetie.

I'll put the fruit tarts
in the toaster, Ma.

The hell are you doing?

Shut the damn door.

Kid's a fruit tart himself.

Leave him alone.

Hey.

How about I make us
some bacon and eggs?

You know what? We should get married.

The way you bust my balls,
might as well be my wife.

[LAUGHS]

Was that a proposal?

[SOFT UNEASY MUSIC]

♪ ♪

[EGGS SIZZLING]

- More?
- Ow!

- You little thief.
- Guys, what's going on?

He ate all my damn bacon.

I don't even eat bacon. I'm a vegan.

Well, your kid's a liar and a cry baby.

Ow!

I'm not crying.

Just let him go.

I'll make more.

Boy, you don't toughen up,

this world will run right over you.

Dwight! How 'bout some more coffee?

It's about time.

Well, how about you? You want some?

I don't drink coffee, Daddy.

Oh, you don't.

Since when?

♪ ♪

I'm so sorry. Hang in there, Fin.

What... five hours
and they're still deposing him?

This is not right.

He saves Andre's life
and Joelle sues him?

She's in a long-term
abusive relationship.

She's identifying with her abuser.

Um, yeah, I know.

But Fin is the last man
who deserves this.

Hey, is it okay if I take
a run up to Fort George?

- Do you wanna tell me why?
- A nurse called from I.S. 196.

A boy came in with bruising.

- What'd the kid tell her?
- He was evasive.

She called the mom and
overheard a domestic situation.

Okay, a DV should go
to the local precinct.

There's a daughter in the apartment.

The nurse is worried
about sexual abuse.

Okay. Uh, Rollins, go with.

And if it sounds like a situation,

then you wait for backup.

Ugh, she still has me on a short leash.

It's not you.

Four years ago, we lost a good man

on a DV call.

Chief Dodds's son.

She's never forgiven herself.

[SOMBER MUSIC]

♪ ♪

- [KNOCKING]
- NYPD, open up please.

She's home.

I saw that jerk leave without her.

Go ahead.

What... what jerk?

- Look...
- [KEYS JANGLING]

Leave me out of this.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

I got her.

♪ ♪

All clear. Place is empty.

I got a pulse. Call it in.

SVU Portable to Central,

we need a bus to 71 Naval Avenue

for unconscious female
hit in the head...

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪ ♪

Irena Nowak,

her son Will is from her ex.

And she's got a six-year-old

with her trucker boyfriend,
Dwight Wagner.

He's a good old boy.
He came in all hopped up.

I sent him downstairs to vape.

- What about the kids?
- The school's holding them.

Okay. Good.

Kat, see if you can get
any more out of Will.

Rollins, you take Dwight.

So you don't remember everything

but you think that you fainted?

I was rushing to pick up the kids.

Mm-hmm.

So, Irena, you have a...

you have a black eye

and, some bruising on your arm.

Uh, I'm supposed
to be on the road already.

I do long hauls for a freight broker.

But Irena called, so I came right away.

So you and she don't live together?

No, I live in West Virginia.

Irena and I, we see each other
when I pass through.

Were you two in a fight
before you left?

We got a call
that there was a disturbance.

People here need
to mind their business.

- Oh.
- You know back home,

it's legal to beat your wife on Sunday.

You can look that up.

We weren't fighting.

Okay.

Do you remember getting a call

from Will's school?

Will, how is he? Where is he?

Well, the school nurse called and said

that Will also had bruising on his arm.

Do you know anything about that?

These schools overreact.

Boys tussle.

So do you know how it happened?

Well, I can guess.

Willy's a runt.

The other kids push him around.

I try to teach him
how to fend for himself.

Teach him how?

[TENSE MUSIC]

Look. I know what you're getting at.

But hand to God,
I've never hurt that boy.

I fell.

Anyway, it doesn't matter.

Dwight'll be gone soon.

My kids... I-I need...
I need to get my kids.

No, no, your kids are at school

with a detective.

♪ ♪

I'm a good mother.

I would never let anything
happen to either of them.

_

Will always has a story.

He fell off the monkey bars.
He tripped.

And you didn't believe him?

Not today.

After I called his mother,

I tried his father.

He said Irena's boyfriend bullies Will.

I should have called before.

So this has been going on for a while?

Worse now with the pandemic.

Not just him.

Lots of these kids
stuck at home, stressed,

no one to look out for them except

the ones doing the abusing.

It was dumb.

These boys on the subway
wanted my MetroCard.

I said no, so they
started wailing on me.

That used to happen to me a lot.

So it's just you, your mom,
and your sister at home?

Most of the time.

Except when Dwight stays over.

You and Dwight get along?

I don't like it
when he yells at my mom.

Was he yelling at her today?

- Will!
- Dad.

How you doing, buddy?

Marc Vargas, with the one-one-seven.

Let me take Will off your hands.

Kat Tamin, SVU. We're almost done.

I get it, but I don't want
my boy being dragged into this.

Will, go play with your sister.

[SIGHS]

So I guess Dwight's back in town?

I'm not just saying this
'cause I'm her ex.

The guy has anger management issues.

Your son told me that he got mugged.

I'll talk to him and fill you in.

I should've fought harder for custody.

Irena and Dwight...

[SIGHS]

Takes two to tango,
and they've tangoed for years.

A son with bruises,
a mother with a black eye,

and the only one accusing the boyfriend

is the ex-husband.

Will and Irena are afraid.

Does... the boyfriend, Dwight,
does he have a record?

A lot of mis-ds including assault.

On Irena?

Bar fight. West Virginia.

- That is no help.
- Hold up.

The local precinct
responded three times

to neighbor complaints
when Dwight was in town.

Shouting, breaking glass.

And when the cops showed up?

Well, she stood by her man
but that's par for the course.

So she won't file a complaint?

[SIGHS]

Can you get her to request
a restraining order?

- I can try.
- [PHONE VIBRATING]

But she will be afraid, rightly so,

that Dwight will view that
as an escalation.

- Dwight doesn't live here, right?
- No.

Best bet, find a way
to get him on the road.

Carisi.

Dwight is staying
an extra day to care of me.

He's out getting Aspirin now.

Okay. I-I understand that, Irena.

But... but it's not just you,

that I'm worried about.

My children?

I take care of them.

And Dwight would never hurt LeAnn.

What about Will?

Of course not. I-I meant to say that.

I'm just still not all here.

[TENSE MUSIC]

In fact, the doctor wants me
to take it easy,

and my ex is about
to bring the kids back so...

I understand but, you know,

maybe, um,

the kids could stay
with your ex-husband tonight.

I think that would be easier for you.

Marc's new wife,
she didn't love that idea.

♪ ♪

- Well, then...
- We're fine.

We're all gonna be fine.

My dad was upset.

So I ran to him.

You weren't afraid of your dad?

No.

Not even when he put a knife
to your throat?

Daddy wouldn't hurt me.

Why'd you have to shoot him,
Sergeant Tutuola?

♪ ♪

Checking in.

Hey. How'd it go?

Joelle claims she's worried about Andre

but then she made him testify.

She's got her eyes on the prize.

Fin, you and I both know

that you did what you had
to do that night.

Everything is being looked at

through a different prism now.

It is what it is.

These lawsuits,
these depositions... don't

underestimate how painful

and how exhausting they can be.

You gotta take care of yourself, Fin.

There's more to life than this job.

Trust me.

You sound like Phoebe.

How's that going?

About the only good thing
to come out of this pandemic.

Hey, I just got an alert.

Irena's building.

Okay, Kat. You and I will go up.

I'll go.

I mean, I'm still on the job, right?

[TENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC]

- Hey.
- Hey, Kat.

EMTs just called it.

- Is she gone?
- "She"?

♪ ♪

You mean he?

What happened?

He was in the tub with that hair dryer

still plugged into the wall.

Full cardiac arrest.

Who called it in?

Dead guy's girlfriend.

She and her daughter
are with the super's family.

♪ ♪

So Irena's abusive boyfriend

ends up electrocuted by a hair dryer

in the bath tub?

Kicking it old school.

And the ME confirms cause.

It was an old model blow dryer.

Pre-war building with faulty wiring,

manner not yet determined.

[GROANS]

Do we think this was an accident?

Okay...

What did she say on the way in?

Only that her ex-husband, the cop,

told her to wait for her lawyer.

Great. The kids with her?

LeAnn was there. Son was with the ex.

Come up with Kat. Bring him here.

Hey. Irena's lawyer is...

Tommy Calabrese. Formerly with the PBA.

DA's office here already?

I hope this isn't a rush to judgment.

[DOOR OPENS]

So it's pretty clear that we're
looking at a tragic accident.

Okay. We just...

Just need to hear from Irena.

That's right. It was an accident.

[DOOR SHUTS]

Okay.

[SIGHS]

So, uh, Irena, we know...

- That you called 911.
- Mm-hmm.

You found him?

Mm-hmm.

Dwight had been in the tub a while.

LeAnn needed to pee.

I knocked, there was no answer,

so I went in.

What did you see?

He... he was just lying there.

Uh, I saw the hair dryer.

It must have fallen in.

Fallen in from where?

It's usually on a shelf,
above the sink.

Do you usually keep it
plugged in, turned on?

She told you what she saw.

Okay.

Irena...

And then what did you do next?

Uh...

I didn't know what to do.

Um, I was afraid to touch him.

And I didn't want LeAnn to see

so I closed the door and called 911.

And what about Will?

You told me yesterday
when we were talking

that your ex-husband was
dropping off LeAnn and Will.

[SOMBER MUSIC]

Well, I, um...

I told Marc that you were nervous

about Dwight staying with Will

so he kept him at his house overnight.

♪ ♪

[WATER RUNNING]

Mister? When can I see my mom?

Soon.

You, uh... you doing okay in here?

- I got this, Mr. Carisi.
- I'm hungry.

We can get you some, uh...

Some pizza?

Can I get a hot dog?

Yeah, sure. We could do that.

How about two?

Mm-hmm.

Will doesn't like hot dogs.

Last night I asked him for one

but he said they have
to kill cows to make them.

Oh.

So, uh, your brother
made dinner last night?

Uh-huh. Veggie burgers.

Ugh.

Right before Daddy had his accident.

♪ ♪

[SIGHS]

And you're sure
that she meant last night?

- Yeah, pretty sure.
- Oh.

Can I take LeAnn home now?

We still have some things to sort out.

Will. Will!

- Mom!
- What's he doing here?

He doesn't know anything about this.

Right. Um...

Just...

He's gonna have to tell us that.

Let's go have a seat.

Officer Vargas,
I appreciate you coming in.

Kat, take them to the Interview Room.

Fin, you have a minute?

Come on, this way.

My dad picked me and LeAnn up.

You were there. You saw.

I did.

And he took you back to his house?

Both kids.

My wife, Carmen,
was not too happy about it

so I drove the girl
back to the apartment.

LeAnn but not Will?

I wanted to go with her.

But Dad wouldn't let me.

'Cause of Dwight.

I get it.
So you had dinner with your step-mom?

Sergeant, what's this about?

- You have veggie burgers?
- Yeah.

How'd you know that?

Your little sister like 'em?

Will was with me.

And we're done here.

Look, man, relax. We're both cops here.

You already knew we were gonna check

the traffic cams and your cell.

So you might as well
just tell us right now.

Did Irena call you
when she found Dwight?

[SIGHS]

She was in a panic.

She needed advice.

And she needed you to come get Will?

- Dad.
- Shut up, son.

This is how you treat
a brother officer?

No wonder you got lawsuits against you.

Will, let's go.

No. Dad!

- Now.
- Dad, ow!

- Will.
- Stop.

- Shut up.
- Dad, stop!

[SHAKY GASP] I was there.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

And I did it.

They were arguing.

Mom was crying.

He was gonna hurt her again.

I know he was.
I wouldn't let that happen.

I said shut up.

How dumb are you?

♪ ♪

You guys played me.

I knew I should've brought a lawyer.

Not another word till he gets one.

- I was afraid of this.
- [SIGHS]

Will has been a punching bag
his whole life.

He finally hit back.

♪ ♪

I told you Will wasn't in the house.

We know you called Marc,

to get your son out of the house

before you called the police.

Irena's just been through a trauma.

- She's confused.
- And we understand that.

So... why don't, um,

Irena, let's just...

[BREATHES DEEPLY]

Let's just take a breath
and start over, okay?

Will was home,

when Dwight died.

Okay. Yes.

So were they fighting?

[SCOFFS] Neighbors tell you that?

Like Dwight says, they should
mind their own business.

So Will was defending you.

Is that what Will is saying?

I told you I walked in
and Dwight was dead.

It must've been an accident.

Thing is, Will told us he was there,

that he threw the dryer into the tub.

No, no. He's trying to protect me...

- Irena, you need to stop talking now.
- Protect you from what, Irena?

- Shush.
- Protect you from what?

- Do you have a confession from the boy?
- Yes.

And we need corroboration,
so Irena needs to tell us...

No, she doesn't! Is she under arrest?

No, but if you wanna help your son...

Then I'm taking her and LeAnn home.

- You need to do that.
- I need to talk to Will.

- Is he gonna be okay?
- You can talk to him later.

We are going home. [SNAPS]

Now.

[BREATHING HEAVILY]

[WHISPERING] Irena, listen to me.

♪ ♪

Thanks, Pippa. Okay.

Pippa Cox has agreed to defend Will.

She's been doing child defense work

- since I don't...
- Yeah, since her husband

went to prison for child porn?

- She's a good lawyer.
- Yeah, well, Will's gonna need one.

Carisi, are you gonna charge this kid?

I'm sorry. Do I have a choice?

- He just confessed.
- He's 14.

He was bullied by Dwight.
Self-defense maybe.

Not unless he was threatened
in the moment.

And his mother's gotta confirm that.

She's still saying it was an accident.

And that is coming from her
ex-husband and her lawyer.

And in case you haven't noticed,

Irena does what men in her life
tell her to do.

If you ask me, she did it

and she's letting her son
take the fall.

I'm due back in my deposition.

[HUFFS] Listen, I...

I don't wanna charge Will.

But something's gotta give here.

Then give us a warrant

for the cell phone, computer, devices.

Fine. Not a problem.

What about the forensics
in the bathroom?

Useless! Everybody's
fingerprints are everywhere.

And nobody is telling us the truth.

- Except LeAnn.
- Who's six.

We can only talk to her
with her mother in the room.

Well, please. Let's try that.

Because unless you get me

something exculpatory, right now,

Will is gonna take the whole weight.

[SIGHS]

The lawyer told me
you can go through our stuff

but I can't talk to you.

Okay, so does Will have a computer?

That's his study area. His backpack.

Go ahead.
And we'll also need your cell.

LeAnn...

You know, why don't you show
Officer Tamin your bedroom?

No, I'm sorry, the lawyer told me

not to leave her alone
with either of you.

Okay. The three of you go then.

I'll stay here and supervise.

So this is your room, LeAnn?

It's nice.

Will has the top bunk.

When Daddy's not here,
I get to sleep with my mom.

Is Will gonna be okay?

I hope so.

If I were to ask LeAnn
about what happened that night,

you'd want her
to tell the truth, right?

Um, of course.

My mom says to always tell the truth.

That's 'cause she's a good mom.

You won't get mad if I say
what happened to Daddy?

No, no, no. Daddy's in heaven.

Like we talked about.

That's right. God's not mad at him,

even though he was yelling.

Yelling at who?

The lawyer said we shouldn't...

I remember.

You said not to tell anyone, Mommy.

But he was yelling at you
and Will in the bathroom,

right before he had his accident.

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪ ♪

_

[KNOCK AT DOOR]

[DOOR OPENING]

Excuse me, Mr. Carisi?

They said you're the lawyer
on Dwight Wagner's case?

Yes. How can I help you?

I'm Sherry, his wife.

Drove straight up from Wayne
county hoping someone would

tell me who murdered him.

Um... we're... please, take a seat.

We're still...

we're still piecing that
together, ma'am.

I 't know what they've
been saying about him.

But he was a good man.

This baby... [SNIFFLES]

Will never get to meet his daddy.

[PHONE VIBRATING]

Sorry. Excuse me.

Rollins.

Okay. Slow down.

It's inadmissible. LeAnn's six.

She doesn't know the difference
between truth and make believe.

Well, she knew her mother
told her to lie.

I didn't want them to put Will in jail.

Irena, were you in the bathroom

with Will and Dwight?

You still have a confession
from the boy?

He hasn't recanted?

Then what are we doing here?

Will's story and LeAnn's
story don't match up.

We need Irena to tell us
what actually happened.

The kid did it.

Or it was an accident.

And forgive me for saying this,

but we're all better off
now that Dwight is gone.

All, huh?

Does that include his grieving,

pregnant widow in West Virginia?

[TENSE MUSIC]

Sherry?

Dwight told me they broke up years ago.

Huh. Well, sorry.

I thought you must have known.

Guess I do now.

Well, whatever she's saying,

it's common law at most.

- Dwight would never commit...
- Irena!

Irena, Dwight was a liar.

He lied to you.

He abused you.

He abused your son!

I understand that
you were scared of him.

- So if there's anything...
- Enough, Captain!

All right, there's no
mitigating circumstances

- because there's nothing to mitigate.
- Is that right, Irena?

Or did Mr. Calabrese convince you

to let your son do the time?

No, no, he won't go to jail. He's 14.

- Irena...
- Hold on, is...

Is that what you told her?
Is that why she's not talking?

- You're forcing my hand.
- Wait, what does he mean?

He's bluffing. Don't worry.

All right.

You have left me no other choice.

I will be charging Will as an adult.

♪ ♪

He's barely 14.

You're gonna charge him as an adult?

This was clearly self-defense.

Electrocuting a naked man in a bathtub?

Dwight was no saint but
I don't see imminent danger.

But if Will tells me what
really happened that night,

I would be more than happy

to redirect this to juvenile court.

Where he can still be
locked up till he's 18?

Dwight was terrorizing Will that night.

Okay. Let's say that's true.

It's a small apartment.

Your mother must have heard something.

No.

It wasn't "loud" loud.

Will, your sister says it was.

She said all three of you
were in the bathroom arguing.

LeAnn's a little girl.
She gets days confused.

Will, if your mom was there with you,

- it's okay to say that.
- My mom wasn't there.

I swear.

Oh... okay.

How about I give you two the room?

Will...

I know you're worried about your mom.

But sooner or later,
the truth is going to come out.

This is not your responsibility.

- You're just a kid.
- My mom wasn't there.

Just me.

[SIGHS]

LeAnn needed to use the bathroom.

I went in to tell Dwight.

He told me to shut up.

He said she could use the kitchen sink.

He said he'd deal
with me and my mom later.

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

♪ ♪

I saw the hair dryer.

I saw him in the tub.

I guess I just snapped.

He was in the tub, Will?

Yeah, I just told you.

[WHISPERS] Okay.

[TALKING] He sticks to that story,

there goes self-defense.

♪ ♪

[SIGHS]

_

The victim, Dwight Wagner,
died of cardiac arrest

due to electrocution caused
by a hair dryer in his bathtub.

In your experience,
is there any way that his death

could've been an accident?

You mean was he blow-drying
his hair while taking a bath?

That would be highly unlikely

given the room geography
and tub position.

Geography and position.

His head was
at the farthest end of the tub,

the dryer at his feet,

and the outlet four feet from there.

Was there any chance
that he was standing up?

There are no signs of
bruising or the body falling.

So he was lying in the tub

when he was electrocuted?

In my opinion, yes.

Thank you, doctor.

Dr. Truman, you weren't in the bathroom

at the time of the fatal
incident, were you?

Me? No, of course not.

The prosecutor wants
this jury to believe

that because Mr. Wagner was in the tub,

Will was not in any danger.

In your opinion,
could a 6'3", 180 pound man

seem threatening to a 14-year-old boy?

- Objection. Speculation.
- I'll rephrase.

You can't know if Will
did feel threatened.

I can't know what he felt.

I only know the physical
and forensic reality

of a dead man in a tub.

Irena called, said there
had been an accident,

that Dwight was dead,

that I had to get Will
out of the house.

And, um, what did you
take that to mean?

That Will was somehow involved.

You assumed

- that Will had killed Dwight?
- Yes.

But I knew it was self-defense.

But you didn't tell that to the cops.

- No.
- In fact,

didn't you drive to the apartment

and get Will out of there?

And then tell the police

that Will wasn't there
when Dwight was killed?

I-I... didn't know what happened.

I-I was just worried about my son.

Mr. Vargas, as a police officer,

if somebody lies to you,

instead of claiming self-defense,

what does that tell you?

What do you want me to say?

Nothing further.

Officer Vargas,

did you know your son had been
bullied by Dwight Wagner?

I was aware.

I should have intervened sooner.

I blame myself.

Do you believe
Will was afraid of Dwight?

- Terrified.
- Afraid for his life?

Objection.
Again, calls for speculation.

Sustained.

Mr. Vargas,

do you think your son
is capable of murder?

No.

He's a good kid.

He'd never do anything
to harm another human being,

unless he was absolutely forced to.

[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]

Thank you.

[FOOTSTEPS]

[DOOR OPENS]

Irena.

There you are. [DOOR CLOSES]

Do you know when
they'll call me to testify?

It's been hours.

I-I don't know.

But, um...

But your ex-husband
just got off the stand.

Did he blame me?

The whole time we were married,

any time anything went wrong,

it was always my fault.

[BREATHING SHAKILY]

If... if I... if I tried to explain,

it didn't matter.

He never listened to me.

♪ ♪

He was right to blame me.

I should have known better.

[SIGHS] Irena...

I grew up in a house

where someone got beaten
every single day.

I swore I wouldn't
let that happen to my kids.

♪ ♪

I don't know why Leon thought that.

I was not involved with Joelle.

My only concern was Andre,

a young boy trying to protect his mom.

So on the night of Leon's murder...

I'm sorry, death...

you came to his home.

You inserted yourself
in their domestic situation.

Andre, frightened that you were
going to hurt his father,

rushed to his dad's side, right?

No.

Leon called him to use him as a shield.

Leon would've never hurt Andre.

He... he loved him.

It doesn't matter.

I've seen this so many times before.

A man in that state,

he'll take his wife and his kid down.

If he can't have you, nobody can.

There's no way he was gonna let

the two of you walk out of there.

_

Will asked Dwight
to get out of the bathroom.

I heard Dwight calling Will names

and threatening him.

How so?

Saying Will was gonna pay,

that he'd had enough.

I could hear splashing,

Will saying, "Stay away."

What did you think was happening?

I was sure Dwight was getting
out of the tub to attack Will.

But you didn't go in, try to stop it?

By the time I opened the door,
it was too late.

Dwight was dead.

Can you tell the jury why

you didn't call 911 right away?

I was sure it was self-defense

but... I was afraid of...

Of this.

I should have told the truth
from the beginning.

I'm sorry.

Ms. Nowak,

when you went into the bathroom,

what did you see?

Dwight was in the tub, dead.

Will was in shock.

Did you see the hair dryer?

I saw the cord.

It was plugged in and off
the shelf I keep it on.

Okay, so Will had to reach
for the hair dryer.

He had to take it off the shelf.

He had to unwind the cord.

And he had to plug it in,

- right?
- Yes.

And all of that would've taken time...

more than enough time
for Dwight to get out of the tub

and attack Will, if...

That's really what
Dwight intended to do.

But there was no sign of a struggle.

Dwight was lying, submerged,

his head on the far side of the tub.

I don't remember.

Do you remember thinking that
your son had murdered Dwight?

Objection!

I'll allow it.

You may answer the question, Ms. Nowak.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

Oh, are you looking
at... at your lawyer?

Maybe... maybe look at your son.

♪ ♪

I didn't know what to think.
I was trying to protect him.

Well, from what?

- From being charged with murder?
- My son is innocent.

He shouldn't even be sitting there.

Mom, stop!

[WHISPERS] Sit down.

He didn't kill Dwight.

Well, how do you know that, Ms. Nowak?

Because I did!

♪ ♪

Irena breaks down on the stand.

Is she trying to cause a mistrial?

I don't think that
that's what's going on here.

- Maybe Pippa Cox coached her into it.
- I was watching Pippa.

She was more shocked than you are.

So Will's been covering
for her from the start.

- Huh?
- He has been trying

to protect his mother his entire life.

First from the ex-husband.

Then from Dwight.

And now...

Now from you.

My client was
in a fragile state of mind.

The stress of seeing her son
at the defense table...

Are you saying that she
perjured herself on the stand?

- No, I am not saying that.
- How about you let Irena

tell us what happened that night.

[DRAMATIC MUISC]

♪ ♪

LeAnn needed to use the bathroom.

Will went in first.

Dwight started yelling.

Okay. What did you see?

Dwight in the tub.

My son holding the hair dryer.

And Dwight... Dwight was taunting him,

saying he didn't have
the nerve to drop it.

That when he finished his bath,

he'd take care of me and Will,

that we'd be sorry.

Okay, Irena.

And what happened next?

Will said that he'd never
let anyone hurt me again,

that he'd had enough,

that he was gonna
take care of the family.

I couldn't let him do it.

So I did.

♪ ♪

Did you think, in that moment,

that Dwight was about to hurt you,

or your son?

I thought in that moment

that if I waited for Dwight
to get out of the tub,

it would be too late.

Clearly self-defense.

We're not taking a plea.

And if you take it to trial,

we will put Will on the stand,

and he will swear that he did it.

No.

No, no, he won't.
Not after I talk to him.

Irena, they don't have a case.

We're good. And we're going,

- Now.
- No, no.

[SIGHS] Jesus, how stupid are you?

They are handing you and your son

a Get Out of Jail Free card.

- Just take it and thank me.
- Do you always

talk to women like that?

Excuse me, "Captain."

This is between my client and I.

What if I don't want
to be your client anymore?

Can I fire him?

- Yes!
- Yes, you can.

I need the room.

I need to tell Irena
what's good for her.

No, no. I am done listening to you.

I can't take it anymore.

You are making a big mistake.

Get out!

Get out! Get out now!

You heard her.

Counselor.

♪ ♪

Before you say another word, Irena,

we need to get you a new lawyer.

Mm-hmm.

♪ ♪

_

That night,

I saw my son about to give up
his life for me.

I couldn't let that happen.

I took the dryer out of his hand.

Dwight had that... that look,

and I knew if I didn't stop him,

there was gonna be hell to pay.

I threw the dryer in.

My son was just trying to protect me.

I'm the one who
should've been protecting him.

Counselor?

Your Honor, given
the traumatic circumstances,

the state has no interest
in pursuing charges

against Will Vargas,

and we will accept a guilty plea

of criminally negligent
homicide from Ms. Nowak.

And how do you plead, Ms. Nowak?

I'm guilty, Your Honor.

♪ ♪

Having reviewed all of the evidence,

I accept the guilty verdict,

and sentence Ms. Nowak
to a year in prison

on the condition
that she and her family

start getting psychological help.

A year?

A year? That's all?

Ma'am, calm down please.

What? She killed him.

She killed the father of my baby.

- Officers, remove her please, gently.
- You killed him.

You killed my Dwight.

You killed my husband!

[THUDDING] No, no!

[DRAMATIC MUSIC INTENSIFIES]

♪ ♪

The city settled with Joelle
for 2 million.

Seriously.

The attorney said
something about "optics."

Leon had a knife to his son's throat.

It was a good shooting.

Look, if I could do it all over again,

the minute Leon violated his parole,

I would have turned him in.

Hindsight's 20/20, Fin.

It used to be so simple, you know?

Just take down the bad guys.

Now the lines are blurred,

and half the city looking at us
like we're the bad guys.

It was an impossible summer.

Things are gonna calm down.

Yeah. I don't see that happening.

The way that NYPD
handled the demonstrators...

We were under attack.

What do you want us to do?
Sit there and take it?

We're supposed to deescalate.

We're supposed to be aware
of our bias, not over-react.

Like shoot a man in front of his son?

[SOMBER MUSIC]

Fin...

Look, growing up in the hood,

the way the cops treated us,

I never trusted 'em.

That's why I joined the force:

to try to make a change.

Then I worked my way over to SVU

'cause there's no gray area

when you're taking out
rapists and pedophiles.

The last thing I wanted to be

is another trigger-happy cop
that kills a Black man.

And here I am.

♪ ♪

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