SVU Episode #13-17: Justice Denied

12 April, 2012 By 18 Comments

Recap: First, let me say how much happier my Wednesday nights are now that SVU is back on the air.  It was a long, grey March.  Welcome home, SVU fans.  Second, I thought this was a great way to start the new string of episodes: a strong, smart story about the important real-life subject of wrongful convictions.

We open with Olivia whispering sweet nothings into Harry Connick Jr.’s voice mail.  She’s just left his warm bed to go to a crime scene.  And, yowzers, is it a vicious one.  A young woman has been tied up, tortured, and raped by a man wearing a sailor’s uniform.  He poured ammonia in her eyes to try to blind her.
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Olivia is stunned.  She recognizes the assailant’s MO.  She knows this guy – it’s Omar Pena.  She put him in jail for life, 8 years ago.
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“Law of Attraction” comes out in paperback today!

27 March, 2012 By 2 Comments

My first novel, “Law of Attraction,” comes out in paperback today!  If you like SVU, I think you’ll like my book, which covers many of the issues Mariska deals with every week.  After all the nitpicking I’ve done about SVU’s realism, I tried to keep the story as authentic as possible.  Check it out and tell me if you think I succeeded.  :)

You can buy “Law of Attraction” at any of these outlets:

Amazon      Barnes & Noble     Books-a-Million      Indie Bound

The Backstory:

As a prosecutor of sex crimes and domestic violence in D.C., I saw heartbreaking tragedies, acts of shocking evil, and vulnerable victims every day— but also moments of real heroism, true love, and healing.  Given the stories I witnessed, the rich cast of characters I worked with, and my lifelong love of fiction, I had to write a book.

In Anna Curtis, I wanted to create a character who people would relate to and root for, and a story that would both entertain and teach about the way the criminal justice system works—and doesn’t work.  My day job and my writing were mutually beneficial: my work gave me interesting material, while writing my fictional characters made me understand my real-life witnesses more deeply.

I focused on a nightmare shared by domestic-violence prosecutors: losing a case and setting free an abuser who eventually kills his victim.  I wanted to explore the reasons why so many women go back to boyfriends who hurt them.  And I wanted to create a strong, smart female prosecutor who would be particularly empathetic to her witnesses because she shared some of their experiences – but whose romantic life would suffer from those same experiences.

For the sake of my wonderful mom and dad, I need to stress that Anna is not me and her family is not my family.  Similarly, all events in this book are fictional, and any resemblance between my legs and the legs on the cover is purely coincidental.

Law of Attraction was written in the spaces of my life between prosecuting and mommying.  I started writing the book while I was pregnant with my first son.  Back then, I would wake up at 5:00 a.m. and write for a couple of hours before heading to work.  I wrote at night and on weekends.  I carried a laptop everywhere and wrote wherever I could find a horizontal surface (and preferably a latte).  After my son was born, I wrote during his naps and after bedtime.  Now, the sound of a softly snoring baby triggers a Pavlovian response in me to start typing.

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Prostitution Ring Embarrassed by Link to John Edwards

25 March, 2012 By 6 Comments

One of the first johns in the “Millionaire Madam” scandal has been named: former presidential candidate John Edwards allegedly hired pricey call girls from the exclusive NY escort service.
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After the story broke, Edwards’ attorney held a press conference calling the allegations “false” and “defamatory.”
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To paraphrase from the Princess Bride, I do not think “defamatory” means what he thinks it means.

To defame a man, he must have a good reputation that’s harmed by the allegations.  Edwards’ reputation is so low, there’s not much left to damage.  Check out this Daily Beast footage, where Meghan McCain calls Edwards “the Charlie Sheen of politics,” and one analyst opines that Edwards could be caught clubbing puppies and no one would be surprised.

Edwards has already admitted to cheating on his dying wife with a flaky blonde he hired to be his campaign videographer.  After she bore his illegitimate child, he persuaded his married male staffer to pretend to be the baby’s father.  Edwards lied about the affair repeatedly before finally fessing up.  Oh, and he’s now facing federal criminal charges for illegally using campaign funds to support the mistress and cover up the scandal.
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Heck, sleeping with prostitutes seems like a step up.
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According to lawyers who’ve worked for tabloids, certain public figures have such terrible reputations, you can say just about anything about them and it doesn’t rise to the level of defamation.  These guys’ reputations just can’t get any worse.  Perhaps OJ Simpson can buy Edwards a drink and welcome him to the club.
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I Did Not Report…

19 March, 2012 By 7 Comments

Sexual assaults are the most under-reported crimes in America.  Kudos to the survivors who are speaking out about it for the first time on Twitter.  Check out the hashtag #ididnotreport to view survivors who’ve  posted (in 140 characters or less) their experience with sexual assault or street harassment that they didn’t report.  Men and women all over the world have been sharing personal stories.  You can post too.  Here’s a sampling of #ididnotreport tweets:

 

Debbie Chiang@debbiechiang: #ididnotreport that I was asleep when I lost my virginity, because I was dating him at the time.

AlexandraGoldstein@mokuska: #Ididnotreport the guy who ran up to my best friend & me as we walked along, shoved his hands into our crotches and ran away laughing.

Martha Martha@CornishCalzone: #ididnotreport the boy in my class who repeatedly put his hand up my skirt. I was embarrassed that I’d “made it happen”. I was 11.

Katharine@rockon_musegirl: #ididnotreport because the first time I tried telling someone they asked what I was wearing. It was an orange bikini. I was 12.

BeckyB@MrsBeBe_#ididnotreport systematic sexual abuse over a 2 yr period by boys at my school because teachers didn’t believe me so why would anyone else?

cate cate@birdgehrl: #ididnotreport the man who would not listen to me when I said no, even though I was drunk.

Vicky Kapoor@hrsyofgrmnghst: #ididnotreport because I have no faith in our justice system where so few rapists are jailed + victims are treated like perpetrators.

Nicole Sullivan@stubbornella: #ididnotreport because I was too little to know I had any right to my own body… to say no.

TimChevalier@eassumption: I’ve seen firsthand how much shaming and ridicule is directed at people who report harassment. #ididnotreport is an understandable reaction.

aimee@moewytchdog: #ididnotreport because he was a police officer.

RaeLeaver@raethepain: So much respect for those contributing to the #ididnotreport tag. I can’t, because I *did* report it and the police told me I had no case.

RopesToInfinity@RopesToInfinity: The #ididnotreport hashtag makes for some pretty sobering reading. We have a depressingly long way to go.

DavidAaronovitch@DAaronovitch: #ididnotreport is an extraordinary hashtag. Saddening. Enraging.

witchoAngmar@gwrthryfel: If you want to understand why feminism and feminist movements are still vitally important–> #ididnotreport

JohnAllsopp@JAScarb: #Ididnotreport the 3 people in my school class (35yrs ago) who got girl unconscious at party & screwed her & denied when she visited in the morning

EmilyKoehlerLemaire@eklemaire: I am in awe of the courageous disclosures on the #ididnotreport hashtag. #breakthesilence #vaw #sheparty

Jodie@MsJodieLW: If you are disclosing on the #ididnotreport and #webelieveyouhashtags make sure you look after yourself, whatever that might involve.

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Thanks to my wonderful self-defense course teachers at IMPACT-DC for sharing this story with me.

If you like this blog, please follow me on Twitter.

 

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Art Imitates Life

15 March, 2012 By 4 Comments

You’ve probably heard about the headline-grabbing call-girl case  in New York City: the arrest and prosecution of Anna Gristina, also known as the “Manhattan Madam” or the “Millionaire Madam.”  She’s been charged with running an elite Manhattan escort agency catering to the fantasies and fetishes of the world’s most powerful men.

That case bears an uncanny resemblance to the case in my upcoming book, Discretion, which is about … an elite escort agency catering to the fantasies and fetishes of the world’s most powerful men.  My book was inspired by both the DC Madam and the Manhattan Madam.
This may be the first time I cover a story before SVU does.

Alleged "Manahattan Madam" Anna Gristina posted racy pictures of herself and her husband years before her case broke

Some of the details in my upcoming novel "Discretion" will sound eerily familiar in light of the Manhattan Madam case.

Gristina’s lawyer made a strange appearance on the Today Show this morning, where he spent way more time promoting himself than discussing the case.  The whole thing promises to be explosive. I can’t wait to see how it all plays out.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Tragic real-life stories SVU should take up

15 March, 2012 By 2 Comments

This week brought two tragic real-life cases that should work their way into upcoming SVU episodes.

First is the unconscionable death of Amina Filali.  The 16-year-old Moroccan rape victim killed herself by eating rat poison after a Moroccan court forced her to marry her rapist.  Article 475 of the Moroccan penal code allows for the “kidnapper” of a minor to marry his victim to escape prosecution.  There is a long and barbaric practice in Morocco of forcing rape victims to marry their assailants in order to preserve her family’s honor.  One of the great things about SVU is its ability to get people talking about important issues. I hope the show will take this one up soon, and shine a light on this dark corner of human rights.

Second, was the murder of domestic-violence victim Heather McGuire by her husband, a few days after she’d obtained a restraining order against him.  (This happened in Kensington, Maryland, a mile from where I live.)  Although the husband had assaulted her several times in the days before, and was arrested for it, the judge released him on bail.  The husband killed her the next day.  After the police launched a massive manhunt, he killed himself.

In light of the murder/suicide, many people have asked me whether protective orders are really useful.  It’s true that a piece of paper can’t stop a bullet.  But studies show that victims who seek help from the courts are far safer than those who don’t.  Of course, the safest thing in a case of repeated violence and stalking is to keep the perpetrator locked in jail pending trial.  Judges need to take domestic violence seriously, and protect victims with the tools available.  When they don’t, this kind of tragedy is too often the result.

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Law & Order: Special Letters Unit

9 March, 2012 By 1 Comment

SVU is running reruns throughout March, and I’m missing my weekly dose of Law & Order!  Here’s a fun little mashup of SVU and Sesame Street to help tide all of us over.

 

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SVU Episode #13-16: Child’s Welfare

1 March, 2012 By 10 Comments

Recap:  Tonight’s episode featured two troubling but realistic storylines, both based on real life cases.
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In the first, we see a young woman giving birth to a child in a terrifying dungeon-like place.  The baby boy is left in a box outside a church.  DNA testing reveals that the mother is a 16 year old girl who was abducted three years ago.  At the time of her abduction, she was bike-riding with her father, who was (unfairly) named as the prime suspect.  The detectives soon discover another baby boy, abandoned 3 years ago, who shares the same paternal DNA as the first child.
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