Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series)

Devastating Story (2015)

Mariska Hargitay: Sergeant Olivia Benson

Photos 

Quotes 

• Olivia Benson : [to Noah, after hearing about a rape epidemic at Hudson University]  Okay, Noah, just to be clear, you are not going to Hudson University.

• Rafael Barba : [to Olivia]  Why is Heather even giving an interview? She's gone from reluctant witness to being on every news show in 48 hours.

  Olivia Benson : Once you tell your story, it can be empowering. The floodgates open.

  Rafael Barba : They opened and let in two extra assailants.

• President Roberts : We had an incident last night. The first thing the accused said to campus security was, "She's lying just like Heather Manning."

  Olivia Benson : I don't blame Heather. Skip Peterson and Professor Dillon, they pressured her into coming forward. They thought this would be the case that would change rape culture and it did. It set the clock back 30 years.

• Professor Jessica Dillon : [to Olivia]  I hope, going forward, that we can kick apart their stories, not Heather's.

  Olivia Benson : We can, and we will. And I hope, going forward, Heather, that you'll stop talking to the press and at rallies about this so we can do our job. You understand?

  Heather Manning : There's only one problem with that.

  Olivia Benson : Which is what?

  Heather Manning : I'm supposed to go on Anderson Cooper and Rachel Maddow tonight.

  Olivia Benson : Heather, you're going to have to cancel those.

  Professor Jessica Dillon : That's impossible. It's it's too late. These issues are finally being brought to national attention. The whole country is waking up to the rape epidemic on our campuses.

  Olivia Benson : I thought that you said that you wanted to bring your assailants to justice.

  Heather Manning : I did say that. I do, but this is so much more than that now. I'm the face of a movement.

• Odafin Tutuola : [to Olivia]  Barba's hanging by a string and Dodds is hanging you out to dry.

  Olivia Benson : I don't blame him. We moved too fast. We didn't vet it hard enough.

  Odafin Tutuola : It's not on us. It's not even on that haircut. It's on Heather. She straight-out lied to us.

  Olivia Benson : Fin.

  [the detectives turn around to see Heather walk in the squad room] 

• Heather Manning : Once the story got out there, I had all these survivors coming to me and disclosing, counting on me to be their strength. I couldn't just take back my story.

  Olivia Benson : But your story wasn't true, Heather.

  Heather Manning : Brian may think he didn't rape me, but we were both drunk. Professor Dillon told me that that means that I wasn't capable of consenting. She also said that once I passed out, there's no way to know what happened to me. I could have been gang-raped.

  Olivia Benson : But we can't make that case.

  Heather Manning : What about Connor? I know he raped me. Brian left and I was passed out. I was half-naked and then I came to because Connor was raping me, hard, violent.

  Olivia Benson : Did anybody else see?

  Heather Manning : Yes. Brian came in. He saw everything and then he just turned and walked away. Like you're doing now.

  Olivia Benson : I believe you, Heather, but a jury is going to have reasonable doubt.

  Heather Manning : So that's it? I have to go to school every day and see my rapist?

  Olivia Benson : I'm sorry, Heather. I'm sorry about all of it and if there was something I could do to go back and change it, I would, but at this point, there's nothing we can do.