The BEST episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 17
Every episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 17, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 17!
Delves into the dark side of the NYC underworld as the detectives investigate and prosecute various sexually oriented crimes, including rape, pedophilia, domestic violence, and the abuses of children, the disabled, and elderly victims of non-sexual crimes who require specialist handling, all while trying to balance the effects of the investigation on their own lives as they try not to let the dark side of these crimes affect them.
#1 - Criminal Pathology (2)
Season 17 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/23/2015
The SVU is called to a familiar crime scene – the beach where serial killer Gregory Yates buried his many victims. When another body washes ashore, Detective Rollins tries to coax him into confessing, but the surprising information he provides sends shockwaves through the police department. As the case goes to court, Barba faces off against two hotshot defense attorneys in a trial that leads to blackmail, an incriminating confession, a new victim and a fugitive suspect.
#2 - Devil's Dissections (1)
Season 17 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/23/2015
The squad revisit a crime scene where bodies were buried by a serial killer. Rollins tries to get a confession, but the killer reveals shocking new info instead.
#3 - Community Policing
Season 17 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/14/2015
An unarmed black man is shot during the pursuit of a suspect, raising racial tensions. Barba must indict the three officers involved – who claim they followed procedure.
#4 - Manhattan Transfer (1)
Season 17 - Episode 17 - Aired 3/2/2016
A sexual exploitation case involving Catholic schoolgirls results in surprising charges against people in esteemed leadership positions, including judges, lawmakers, lawyers and cops.
#5 - Unholiest Alliance (2)
Season 17 - Episode 18 - Aired 3/23/2016
When one of their own is implicated in a cover-up, the SVU struggles to unravel a sex trafficking operation deeply-rooted in government offices, the police department, and the Catholic Church.
#6 - Intersecting Lives (1)
Season 17 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/18/2016
A corrections officer is arrested for sexually assaulting female inmates in and out of prison, and the union that supports him targets Barba and the SVU.
#7 - Transgender Bridge
Season 17 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/30/2015
15 year-old Avery Parker walks home from school through Fort Tryon Park when she's surrounded by a group of rowdy boys. Taunts and jokes intensify to pushing and shoving, leaving Avery in the hospital and three assailants under arrest. When the DA's office decides to try one of the culprits, 15 year-old Darius McCrae, as an adult, the SVU squad agonizes over whether the punishment fits the crime, and must deal with the pain of both families involved.
#8 - Institutional Fail
Season 17 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/7/2015
A starving toddler found wandering the streets alone leads detectives to the home of Manuela Ozuna and another child in grave condition. The police question Department of Child Services caseworker Keith Musio, whose vague and backdated reports on the family suggest he hadn't checked on the children in months. When the overworked Keith accuses his supervisor, Janette Grayson, of orchestrating the false reports, Chief Dodds promises to conduct an internal investigation. But when neglect leads to death, Barba takes matters into his own hands and arrests them for manslaughter. Meanwhile, Dodds indicates some changes coming to Benson's squad.
#9 - Melancholy Pursuit
Season 17 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/11/2015
The hunt for a missing teenage girl takes an emotional toll on Sgt. Dodds, and DNA evidence becomes a crucial lead in finding the girl's abductor.
#10 - Forty-One Witnesses
Season 17 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/3/2016
A woman is followed home and raped outside her building, where several neighbors witness the crime but fail to call for help.
#11 - Fashionable Crimes
Season 17 - Episode 20 - Aired 5/4/2016
A young model is raped by a renowned fashion house photographer, who looks to his successful brother to make the charges disappear.
#12 - Heartfelt Passages (2)
Season 17 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/25/2016
When the investigation of Corrections Officer Gary Munson deepens, he and his union take drastic actions that threaten the lives of ADA Barba and the SVU squad.
#13 - Townhouse Incident
Season 17 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/13/2016
Benson is taken hostage when she tries to stop a home invasion.
#14 - Maternal Instincts
Season 17 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/21/2015
Rollins' mother Beth throws her a baby shower while the SVU reports to a four-star hotel where a famous violinist was raped by her colleague, Anton Krasnikov. With no memory of the crime, Anton claims a hired escort drugged and robbed him, and evidence leads to the shocking return of Rollins' fugitive sister Kim. Meanwhile, Sgt. Mike Dodds arrives for his first day at SVU.
#15 - Nationwide Manhunt (1)
Season 17 - Episode 14 - Aired 2/10/2016
Chicago P.D. detectives Lindsay (guest star Sophia Bush) and Dawson (guest star Jon Seda) join the SVU in the hunt for two escaped murderers (returning guest stars Dallas Roberts and Jefferson Mays) they helped to convict. (Part 1 of a 2-part Law & Order: Special Victims Unit - Chicago P.D. crossover on 2-10.)
#16 - Sheltered Outcasts
Season 17 - Episode 19 - Aired 3/30/2016
Detective Carisi lives undercover at a homeless shelter to determine if one of its sex offender residents is the suspect in a string of neighborhood rapes.
#17 - Patrimonial Burden
Season 17 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/4/2015
A reality TV family secrets begin to spill when their young teenage daughter learns she's pregnant.
#18 - Depravity Standard
Season 17 - Episode 9 - Aired 11/18/2015
Benson seeks justice in the trial of child abductor Lewis Hodda, but when a plea deal is rejected, Barba must rely on decades-old evidence to make his case and faces off against former SVU colleague Dr. Huang.
#19 - Catfishing Teacher
Season 17 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/6/2016
A high school student plans a clandestine hookup with his female teacher but ends up in a far more sinister situation.
#20 - A Misunderstanding
Season 17 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/20/2016
A murky he-said, she-said date rape case ruins the futures of two high school students.
#21 - Collateral Damages
Season 17 - Episode 15 - Aired 2/17/2016
Two high-profile suspects are arrested in the takedown of an online pedophile ring following a sting operation.
#22 - Star-Struck Victims
Season 17 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/24/2016
When a lack of evidence leads Barba to drop rape charges against a popular actor; Rollins takes matters into her own hands.
#23 - Assaulting Reality
Season 17 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/11/2016
The producers of a reality TV dating series make Benson and the SVU team part of the show when they investigate a contestant's claim that she was raped.