he Season 25 finale of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit hit the ground running with a serial rapist case that had Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and her squad scratching their heads. Benson is never at ease until a case is closed, and while some perps leave dead giveaway trails, the squad’s latest suspect demanded a full-on manhunt. As a new Trial District Chief made her way to the NYPD, all eyes were on Benson’s squad to see when justice would be served. It wasn’t a simple task, but it was an exhilarating end to a historic season of SVU.
Learn what happened during the Season 25 finale of Law & Order: SVU, below:
Captain Olivia Benson on Law And Order Svu Episode 2513
Captain Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 13. Photo: Virginia Sherwood/NBC
What happened during Law & Order: SVU’s finale?
Read the official logline for SVU’s Season 25 finale, below:
Season 25, Episode 13 (“Duty to Hope”): “The SVU searches for a pattern assailant before his crimes escalate to murder; Fin must contend with a suspect’s aggrieved son; Carisi is pressured to close the case quickly to ease public concern.”
Captain Olivia Benson on Law And Order Svu Episode 2513
Captain Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 13. Photo: Virginia Sherwood/NBC
What was the main case on Law & Order: SVU this week?
The episode kicked off with Benson and the squad hosting a conference with the NYPD to relay details about a suspect who had assaulted four women in six months. The perp used a coat hanger to bind his victims, later assaulting them with his firearm, earning the suspect the moniker “The Wire Hanger Rapist.”
It was up to Benson to make a speedy arrest. This initiative was further rushed with the arrival of the new Trial Division Chief, Heidi Russell (Kate Loprest), who after barging in on the conference, informed the NYPD that there was pressure on this investigation. Benson continued by explaining the perp targets single women and unscrews lightbulbs to fake power outages.
“And, he’s still escalating,” Benson said before the detectives got started. After connecting with Russell, the squad heard back about another victim named Ariel who was hospitalized. Her attack matched their perp’s MO, and after checking out the scene, the SVU discovered a fingerprint on a glass door, strangely located on the outer edge.
The fingerprint came back with a hit on Billy Hedges, a sanitation worker with a record. Hedges was previously arrested for groping a woman on the dance floor, however, the victim didn’t move forward with the charges. After bringing him in for questioning, Hedges adamantly denied any involvement, telling the detectives he was never with Ariel. But, with a wretched alibi (“I was home alone”) and a fingerprint hit, the signs pointed to Hedges assaulting Ariel. After he was positively ID’d within a photo lineup by Ariel, it seemed like the logical conclusion.
That said, proving Hedges’ connection to the previous four victims was virtually impossible. Despite this, after Russell heard about the fingerprint hit, she rushed the investigation, encouraging Sonny Carisi (Peter Scanavino) to “take the win.” Hedges was promptly sent to trial for Ariel’s assault, where he pled not guilty. After learning his bail was set at an astronomic rate and that he was going to Rikers to await a high-stakes jury trial, Hedges began to think. He negotiated a plea deal with Carisi for seven years.
Of course, just as Hedges was sent off to Rikers, the SVU heard about another victim matching the MO of the wire hanger rapist. The suspect was still out there, and he seemed to want to prove that the NYPD messed up. The media fallout was pandemonium as reporters swarmed Benson and Fin (Ice T) about arresting the wrong man.
After the rough day, Fin headed home for the night. While taking the trash out after work, Fin received a shocking visit from Hedges’ young son, Toby, who held him at gunpoint. Furious over his father’s wrongful imprisonment, he insisted on shooting Fin to show how much he loved his father. Luckily, Fin was only grazed, and the boy panicked upon realizing what he’d done. Knowing he was the only one who could prove Hedges’ innocence, Fin told Toby to never speak of the shooting to anyone. After a non-protocol ditching of the gun and a quick trip to the hospital, Fin was ready to get Toby’s dad out of jail.
Meanwhile, Benson learned that the sixth victim, Sara, noticed the assailant drop his gun holster as he fled the scene. While waiting for DNA evidence on the holster, the detectives got creative while looking into the fingerprint evidence that led to Hedges’ arrest. After Fin and Carisi visited Hedges at Rikers, Hedges remembered that he had a string of jobs a few years back, a home renova
