What a turn of events.
The Justice Department announced June 30 that they’re conducting an investigation into the policies and practice of NYPD’s Special Victims Division (SVD), which commonly handles crimes involving rape, sexual abuse and children. According to the release to media, Justice Department received information claiming that SVD deficiencies have been present for more than a decade. This has deprived survivors and the general public of timely, thorough, effective investigations to ensure public safety.
According to the Justice Department, officers “failed to conduct basic investigative steps” and instead shamed and abused survivors and traumatized them in investigations.
This same division inspired Law and OrderCreator Dick Wolf to write an episode based on the 1986 murder of Jennifer LevinHer ex strangled Ex, a woman who had been strangled to death in Central Park. Robert Chambers. The episode, “Kiss the Girls Make Them Die,” prompted the 1999 spin-off, starring Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni.