The wealthy, powerful Mulroney political family was loosely modeled on the Kennedys. The daughter (charged with a serious crime, but then released) was inspired by a case involving William Kennedy Smith, who in 1991 was tried for sexual assault and was acquitted.
This was Steven Hill's only appearance on this series. The next three actors to play the District Attorney on Law & Order (1990) also popped up on SVU.
Seconal is the brand name for Secobarbital sodium, a barbiturate derivative that is used as an anesthetic and a sedative to treat seizures, anxiety, and insomnia. In the United States, It is also the most commonly used drug for physician-assisted suicide.
S. Epatha Merkerson (Anita Van Buren) is the only Law & Order (1990) Season 10 cast member to not appear in this Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) episode.