Goren and Eames investigate the murder of an aspiring writer. Kira Danforth was surrounded by unsavory literary figures, including a lecherous book agent (Fisher Stevens), an author with a hardscrabble back story (Pablo Schreiber), and a publishing giant who hasn't had a bestseller in years (Peter Coyote). The detectives learn Kira discovered TJ Hawkins' gritty biography was a lie and that the washed-up Lionel Shill plagiarized her unpublished novel.  Did one of the writers kill her to protect their secret?

We're talking about Criminal Intent season seven episode seven "Self-made." Our returning guest is Pulitzer Prize-winning author Dr. Marcia Chatelain.

Among the literary scandals that inspired this episode is that of J.T. LeRoy. 

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Benson and Stabler connect an assault on a child (played by a young Sabrina Carpenter) to the rape of Larissa, who'd been forced into child pornography decades ago. The rapist leads them to Orville Underwood, the man acquitted of making the explicit videos years earlier. He explains that his DNA was on photos found at the rapist's home because he decided to rub one out in the bathroom and it got everywhere.

Unable to make a case against Underwood, Olivia and Elliot look for Daniel, Larissa's scene partner. The detectives discover he's making his own child porn and refuses to testify against his old kidnapper. After Underwood gets the case thrown out of court, Larissa takes matters into her own hands.

We're talking about Special Victims Unit season 12 episode 12 "Possessed." Our returning guest is Lauren van der Meer from the "Drinks with Death" podcast.

 Aspects of this episode take some inspiration from the case of Alex Cabarga.

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After a mother is murdered and her newborn Nicky kidnapped, Detectives Joe Fontana and Ed Green interrogate Frank, the drug dealer who was in her apartment that morning. But Lt. Van Buren says a witness spotted a pregnant woman fleeing the building with Nicky. The trail leads to Arlene Tarrington, a woman who'd been faking her pregnancy.

Arlene admits while suffering from postpartum psychosis, she kidnapped the infant but didn't kill the victim. ADA Alexandra Borgia learns Arlene had offered a teen mom $50,000 for her baby, and she called Frank days before the murder. He tells the cops he's Nicky's biological father and scammed Arlene with a promise to sell his child for cash. EADA Jack McCoy must decide who he believes the actual killer is and offer a deal to the other...but does he make the right choice?

We're talking about Law & Order season 16 episode 7 "House of Cards." Our guest is Margo Donohue from the Book vs. Movie podcast. 

Some inspiration for this episode comes from the 1988 kidnapping of Rachael Ann White. 

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After escaping from her kidnapper, Tasha (played by Keke Palmer) tells Benson and Stabler the man rescued her and her sisters from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. The detectives track down the abductor and find Tasha's sister, but the suspect has contracted a fatal case of anthrax inhalation. The FBI swoops in, takes the girls, steals all of SVU's evidence, and threatens to prosecute any detective who discloses the information. Olivia leaks the story to reporter Jackson Zane whose front page exposé gets the sisters returned. After she and Elliot arrest a lab tech and learn the anthrax is still at large, Olivia again tips off Zane. The reporter refuses to identify the leaker and chooses to go to jail instead of revealing Benson as his source.

We're talking about the jam-packed Special Victims Unit season seven episode ten "Storm." Our guest is Maggie Freleng from the "Wrongful Conviction" podcast. 

A character in this episode is based on former New York Times journalist Judith Miller.

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Benson and Stabler look for a serial rapist who's targeting women with disabilities. Into the squad room walks Miranda Cole, a woman with schizophrenia (Amanda Plummer, in an Emmy-winning appearance), but it's hard to find answers within her disorganized speech. Olivia butts heads with Miranda's doctor, a former cop who went to the academy with her. Tidbits from the victim's ramblings lead Munch and Tutuola to a closeted gay man who's a strong suspect, but Cragen says his DNA doesn't match the crime scenes. Stabler breaks the rules to decipher the misleading DNA, while Benson lets Miranda be Miranda to discover important evidence.

We're talking about Special Victims Unit season six episode nine "Weak." Our guest is Aviv Rubinstein of the "Special Viewing Unit" podcast.

This episode is inspired by the ripped-from-the-headlines story of Troy Graves.

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Benson and Stabler investigate the murder of a woman in her hotel room. She's the daughter-in-law of the president of an ultra-conservative college, Ben Hadley. Munch and Jeffries arrest the culprit behind a string of hotel burglaries, but he's not the killer. Neither is the financial consultant the victim had been hitting on.  Elliot discovers Ben Junior wasn't aware his wife was pregnant, and Olivia learns she had a two-year-long affair with Ben Senior. When Cragen confronts the Hadleys with the DNA results, the son confesses to strangling the victim in a jealous rage, unaware her lover was his father.

We're talking about Special Victims Unit season one episode 17 "Misleader." Our returning guest is Nettie Smith from the Saber's Playbook podcast.

This episode is inspired by the real life story of George Roche III.

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Detectives Goren and Eames investigate the kidnapping of a baby left alone in a hotel room while the parents went out to dinner. They locate a cat burglar who robbed several rooms, then foil a fake ransom scam targeting a wealthy aunt, but baby Emma is still missing.

Captain Ross says there's no way the baby could have left the hotel undetected. Maybe she was never there to begin with? The detectives discover the little girl in the picture is actually the Haslum's neighbor. Goren finally gets to the truth: Emma died months ago in a hot car and the grieving parents are suffering from a dual madness pretending it didn't happen.

We're talking about Criminal Intent season eight episode seven "Folie á Deux." Our returning guest is Katie from A Date with Dateline podcast.

Among the stories drawn upon for this episode include the 2007 disappearance of Madeleine McCann.

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Detectives Vincent Riley and Jalen Shaw investigate the murder of a dating app developer. The squad's new lieutenant, Jessica Brady, runs the suspect's DNA through the rape kit database. Laura, the shooter, is a former SVU victim whose case was mishandled. Captain Olivia Benson goes to bat for her, arguing victims will refuse to give their DNA if they think it will be used against them in the future.

Benson stuns prosecutors Nolan Price and Samantha Maroun by agreeing to testify the shooting was self-defense. She says Laura's trauma gave her a heightened sense of danger, even though the victim wasn't actually stalking her. Benson convinces Price to offer Laura a deal - which she refuses. Meanwhile, District Attorney Nicholas Baxter pledges to reform the use of that DNA database.

We're talking about the latest episode of NBC's "Law & Order" season 24 episode 2 "The Perfect Man." Our returning guest is Brandi Brown.

Plot points in this story are inspired by the concerns over the use of artificial intelligence in dating apps.

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When two frat boys at Hudson University learn co-ed Evie Barnes earns her tuition shooting violent porn, they rape her in a dorm. Sgt. Olivia Benson says the attack is still a crime because Evie didn't consent. At trial, the defense says Evie is so good in her rape fantasy pornos, the boys had no idea she wasn't acting. Barba wins a conviction, but the judge sets the conviction aside, saying there was no evidence she said "no." Betrayed by the court, disowned by her parents, and expelled from school, Evie leaves the city once and for all to star in even more violent adult films.

We're talking about Special Victims Unit season 16 episode 5 "Pornstar's Requiem." Our returning guest is Kimberly from the A Date with Dateline podcast.

This episode is inspired by the real life story of Duke University student Miriam Weeks, an adult film actress who performed under the name Belle Knox. 

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Toronto detectives Henry Graff and Frankie Bateman arrest the hit man responsible for the murder of Zoe Vaughn, the COO at grocery store mega-chain Best Betts. The search for who hired the assassin leads them to Douglas Hill, owner of rival Hill Breads. But photos taken by the victim show the competitors were actually colluding to fix the price of bread in Canada. Graff uses his Gorenesque skills to deduce CEO Nadia Betts fooled Hill into hiring the hit man - not to keep Vaughn from exposing their price fixing scheme - but to keep her from stealing Betts's job.

We're talking about the new Canadian spin-off series Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent season 1 episode 6 "Minnow and the Shark." Our guest is Simone Paget from the We’re Never Doing This Again podcast.

Plot points for this episode come from the scandal over the Canadian bread price fixing scheme.

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