Season 13 dealt with the departure of Detective Elliot Stabler from the Special Victims Unit after a shooting in the squad room.

Release Date

Premiered

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 released on September 21, 2011.

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Episodes

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S13E01 Aired September 21, 2011

Scorched Earth

A hotel maid accuses an Italian diplomat of rape, but then doubt arises about her believability. Meanwhile, Atlanta detective Amanda Rollins joins the squad as Detective Benson struggles to cope with the fall-out from the shooting in the precinct.

S13E02 Aired September 28, 2011

Personal Fouls

An ex-basketball player accuses his old coach of sexually abusing him as a child. Det. Nick Amaro transfers to the squad and helps with the case, which involves interviewing former players, one of whom is now famous. Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh have cameos

S13E03 Aired October 05, 2011

Blood Brothers

A 13-year-old girl won't reveal who got her pregnant, leading police to suspect she was raped. The suspects include the son of a noteworthy political couple, as well as the son of their housekeeper.

S13E04 Aired October 12, 2011

Double Strands

A family man is suspected of being a serial rapist in a string of assaults stretching across several states. Mounting evidence points to his guilt, but detectives research his past and begin to believe his pleas of innocence.

S13E05 Aired October 19, 2011

Missing Pieces

Detectives search for a missing baby on Halloween after a young mother from Buffalo tells them her car was stolen while her baby was still in it.

S13E06 Aired November 02, 2011

True Believers

The SVU team works together to investigate the case of a promising music student who was brutally raped at gunpoint.

S13E07 Aired November 09, 2011

Russian Brides

When a young woman is found brutally murdered, the SVU detectives use her distinctive tattoos to identify her as a recently engaged Russian mail-order bride. Upon questioning her distraught fiancé, they learn that she was kidnapped and held for ransom the night of their engagement party. While the detectives follow the money to a deadly blackmail scam run by the Russian Mafia, Captain Cragen goes undercover as a sad and lonely suitor to lure out a killer.

S13E08 Aired November 16, 2011

Educated Guess

A patient in a mental hospital claims to have witnessed a sexual assault. However, although the supposed victim is a fellow patient who has a history of making rape allegations, she denies being assaulted this time.

S13E09 Aired November 30, 2011

Lost Traveller

When a Romani boy vanishes on his way home from school, the Special Victims Unit must penetrate his insular community to find the unlikely abductors.

S13E10 Aired December 07, 2011

Spiraling Down

A military colleague of Detective Amaro’s wife reports his 14-year-old daughter missing. The detectives find the girl working as a prostitute under a possessive pimp. They quickly set up a sting operation to entrap Johns on rape charges with a minor, and arrest aging pro quarterback Jake Stanton. Detective Benson and ADA Cabot seek to make an example out of the football legend, but the case is thrown into chaos with the return of defense attorney Bayard Ellis, who questions Stanton’s mental capacity after years of injuries on the field.

S13E11 Aired January 11, 2012

Theatre Tricks

An actress in an interactive theater production is raped on stage, while the audience believes it to be part of the show. The SVU detectives hit a dead end in their investigation when they learn the show’s passionate director gave the audience, including the assailant, masks to wear during the performance. Detectives Rollins and Tutuola track down an obsessed fan of the young actress who recorded the assault while stalking her, which leads Detectives Benson and Amaro to a respected judge. With the judge’s reputation on the line, the SVU squad explores the underbelly of the New York theater world to uncover who really orchestrated the public attack.

S13E12 Aired January 18, 2012

Official Story

Benson and Amaro must work around a resistant victim when the CEO of a military contractor is assaulted.

S13E13 Aired February 08, 2012

Father's Shadow

An aspiring actress is found unconscious in Central Park with drugs in her system and evidence of sexual trauma. Detectives Benson and Amaro pay a visit to the reality show producer for whom she had auditioned just before the attack, and stop him from assaulting another actress on the casting couch. The detectives arrest the producer, but the situation turns dangerous when his distraught son takes drastic action in order to get his father out of jail. Meanwhile, Benson and Executive ADA David Haden grow closer.

S13E14 Aired February 15, 2012

Home Invasions

A gunman storms a family's home, killing the parents and leaving their teenage daughter in critical condition. When a hate crime investigation turns into a dead end, Benson and the SVU detectives struggle to find a motive for such violence. The clues lead to a surprising revelation about Detective Rollins, which threatens her future in the Special Victims Unit.

S13E15 Aired February 22, 2012

Hunting Ground

Detectives Benson and Amaro lead the search for a serial killer who is targeting young prostitutes.

S13E16 Aired February 29, 2012

Child's Welfare

Detective Benson calls on Bayard Ellis for legal help when her estranged brother, Simon Marsden gets caught in a child custody battle. Also, Detectives Tutuola and Rollins investigate why a newborn baby is abandoned near a hospital.

S13E17 Aired April 11, 2012

Justice Denied

A closed rape case of Benson's is reopened because of it's similarities to a new case, and the possibility of wrongful imprisonment surfaces. As Benson's work is questioned, tension develops between her, ADA Haden and Bayard Ellis.

S13E18 Aired April 18, 2012

Valentine's Day

A man witnesses his wife's rape and kidnapping while video chatting with her on his way home from a business trip. The abductors seek a ransom, and the case grows more complex as detectives probe deeper.

S13E19 Aired April 25, 2012

Street Revenge

A string of rapes in West Soho inspires a group of vigilantes to organize against both neighborhood crime and the NYPD. While Reporter Dennis Griscomb takes every opportunity to publicly criticize police efforts, the SVU squad struggles to find a lead in the case until one of the vigilantes is attacked. As the other detectives fight for control over the investigation and angry citizens, Amaro is distracted by the suspicion that his wife is seeing another man.

S13E20 Aired May 02, 2012

Father Dearest

Detectives search for a missing teenage girl who vanished while looking for her biological father, an anonymous sperm donor. A puzzling prime suspect who's targeted several young women soon emerges.

S13E21 Aired May 09, 2012

Learning Curve

Detectives investigate a string of hate crimes against gay men, and the victims include the new fiancé of Fin's son. A private-school teacher is then similarly brutalized, and the evidence in his case points to a possible cover-up.

S13E22 Aired May 16, 2012

Strange Beauty

Police dive into an underground world of self-mutilation and ritual amputation while searching for a missing woman. When a cleanly severed leg is found, the detectives look for links between their current investigation and a possibly similar cold case.

S13E23 Aired May 23, 2012

Rhodium Nights

In the 13th-season finale, an underage escort is murdered at an upper-crust bachelor party, and the detectives are cautioned to be discreet because of the names on the guest list. The investigation soon uncovers a feud between two escort companies. To be continued...