Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Episode 13.10 Spiraling Down

Vicki Harris gets off the bus and is almost immediately accosted by an aggressive homeless man. Tre Davis intervenes and saves the day. Vicki's instantly smitten. Tre becomes Vicki's pimp, even though she's uncomfortable with the setup. At one point, after Tre gets physical, Vicki phones her dad for help. Later, Captain Jason Harris comes to Amaro for help. He served with Amaro's wife in Baghdad. Jason says Vicki's in danger and needs Amaro's help. Vicki's only 14, and she's clearly in an abusive relationship.

The SVU team traces Vicki's call to her father. They find her at a hotel room. When Vicki claims that Tre is her boyfriend ant that she's doing nothing wrong, Amaro threatens to arrest her for prostitution. Benson tries to reason with Vicki, but Vicki denies any wrongdoing. They're forced to arrest her. Later, Jason and Linda Harris arrive at the precinct, annoyed that their daughter has been arrested. Benson assures them Vicki's not to blame and that they're going to help her. The poor girl is only in ninth grade.

Fin and Rollins ambush Tre while Amaro and Benson talk to Vicki. Vicki thinks Tre loves her. She's also clearly upset that her father hasn't been around; she says he's been serving in Iraq and that her mother thinks he's having an affair. When Benson and Amaro tell Vicki that Tre has a wife and children, Vicki bursts into tears and admits what's going on. Later, Fin and Rollins tell Tre that unless he snitches on the johns he works with, he's going to serve a life sentence.

The SVU sets up a sting. Vicki goes undercover to lure in her clients. Amaro is shocked when one of the johns turns out to be Jake Stanton, a former football star. Fin and Rollins arrest him. At Jake's arraignment, his lawyer claims Jake did nothing wrong and that this is a case of entrapment. Bail is set at $50,000. Moments later, Jake's wife Georgia rushes up to Cabot and Benson. Georgia claims that Jake is not well. He's starting to lose his memory and sometimes doesn't even know where he is. She says he's not a bad man and that he didn't know Vicki's age.

The SVU team reviews footage of Jake playing football. He's suffered numerous concussions, and Rollins says that she doesn't think he's "all there." Could his condition justify his poor behavior? Moments later, the team gets word that Jake exposed himself to a woman at the West Bank Cafe. Amaro's suspicious, wondering if Jake's just trying to use an insanity defense. Benson argues that Jake's wife Georgia claims his recent behavior is totally out of character and therefore could be the result of a mental problem.

Georgia tells Benson how bad things have gotten. Jake needs constant care; otherwise, he's bound to do something horrible. An MRI was inconclusive, so there's no treatment for whatever's ailing Jake. He and Georgia are broke, and Jake's too proud to get help. They can't even afford a lawyer. Benson gives Georgia the name of someone who can help. It's Counselor Bayard Ellis. Later, Ellis arrives and immediately sides with supposed victim, Jake. He says Jake is clearly exhausted and confused. Ellis says he's considering taking on the rape case.

Privately, Ellis asks why Benson gave Georgia his name. After all, by doing so, Benson's risking her badge. Benson admits that she's sure Jake can't be accountable for his actions. Later Ellis talks to Jake and Georgia about the case. Jake doesn't even remember why he's on trial. Later, Nick Amaro has a nice conversation with his wife Leanne via Skype. He talks about Jason, and soon Leanne is peeved; she says sometimes it feels like Nick isn't talking to her, he's interrogating her.

Ellis tells the court that Jake is pleading not guilty by reason of insanity. Ellis says his client has "diminished capacity." Jake explodes in a rage, yelling that he's not crazy. When he finally calms down, the case begins. Ellis is aggressive with Fin and proceeds to ask Vicki a number of objectionable questions on the stand.

Dr. Sopher takes the stand to argue that Jake might have dementia as a result of numerous concussions. That explains his forgetfulness and his lack of impulse control. Cabot pointedly asks the doctor if Jake has dementia. The doctor must admit that the only way to know for sure would be via autopsy. There's no way to diagnose "CTE" while a patient is still alive. Later, Cabot aggressively cross-examines Jake. Jake is terrible on the stand, oversharing and acting like a clown. He doesn't remember that Ellis told him to answer with simple yeses and nos.

Ellis calls Jake to the stand. Ellis shows that Jake's mental state is horrible; Jake can't recall how long he's been married and has no recollections of questions moments after they're asked. Not surprisingly, the jury finds Jake not guilty. When Benson displays compassion for Jake, Cabot says this is all Benson's fault. After all, Benson wanted to prosecute Vicki's johns. Cabot even implies that she knows Benson invited Ellis to help fight Jake's case. After the court case, reporters swarm Jake. Overwhelmed and slowly losing his mind, he shoots himself.