Law & Order SVU “Secrets Exhumed” brought out a deep dark secret in FBI Agent Dana Lewis’ past – she’s a murderer. She has quite a history with SVU and an appearance by Dana Lewis usually means trouble. For example, in the episode “Raw,” both Stabler and Munch get shot in a courtroom (Munch being shot in his behind, of all places) as Dana was working undercover. But in this episode, she finds even her best profiling and interrogation skills can’t hide her past crime from the SVU team. It’s Amaro, who has no past with Dana, who first raises suspicions about her involvement in the old murder case. Benson may have been defensive of Dana at the beginning, but when it became obvious that Dana was hiding a horrible secret, Benson was not afraid to apply the right amount of pressure to help get the confession.
It was fairly obvious where this story was headed right from the start; the previews and the episode trailer may have tipped off a bit too much. Still, it was entertaining to see the story unfold and the usual self assured Dana become emotional and crack under the pressure. In fact, had Dana kept her nose out of the serial rape/murder case to begin with, her secret could have remained secret. Dana’s need to control every situation ended in her downfall by unwittingly giving the detectives more reason to connect her to the 5th murder. The only thing that was not quite clear to me – maybe I missed something – was if all 5 victims were all raped and murdered, how exactly did Dana convincingly stage the rape part of this crime? (Maybe I don’t want to know). Marcia Gay Harden brings so much personality to Dana Lewis, and her character has such an interesting history with the series, that it is somewhat sad to see an SVU fan favorite be exposed as a criminal.
The whole cast of regulars was back for this episode, and this adds such depth to the story when everyone can participate. It was wonderful to see Munch return and viewers finally get an explanation for his absence. Hopefully, he won’t get lost in the cold case storage area and we will get to see him in more episodes this season.
Here is the recap:
Cast:
Mariska Hargitay – Detective Olivia Benson
Ice-T – Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola
Richard Belzer – Sergeant John Munch
Dann Florek – Captain Don Cragen
Kelli Giddish - Detective Amanda Rollins
Danny Pino - Detective Nick Amaro
Guest stars:
Marcia Gay Harden – FBI Agent Dana Lewis
Roscoe Orman – Jerome Howard
John Ottavino – Mr. Stanger
Opal Alladin – Gina’s Friend
Jay Karnes – Noah Bunning
Harold Perrineau – Brian Traymor
Kathleen O’Neill – Mary Stanger
Sue Kim - Detective Emily Ling
Danny Bolero – Ramon Velez
The SVU detectives are in the squad room and working on switching desks, and Fin gripes that he does not want to move. Benson cracks back to Fin that it is 6 feet. Cragen adds they are all too complacent, he’s said it before and he will say it again – it’s a new year and he wants to shake things up. Fin says he liked his old desk, and Amaro suggests they get him a grief counselor. Fin replies “says the guy who doesn’t have to move.” Munch walks in and comments that he is gone away for a few months and they are rearranging the furniture. He asks what’s next, carpeting and paper towels in the men’s room? Cragen says, “Well, if it isn’t the man who came in from cold case.” Benson welcomes him back. Munch states that everyone says that the DNA bank at the state is a good thing, but the downside is somebody has to go through the cases. The upside: he got a hit on an unsolved rape/murder from 1987. Rollins comments that is not cold, it’s frigid, asking what they have on the suspect so far. Amaro reads from the file, stating it is Brian Traymor, 52, picked up in Miami on cocaine possession. Munch informs them by the time Traymor’s DNA had been processed, he had served his 3 months and is being released tomorrow. Cragen says he will have the DA start the extradition papers, ands instructs Benson and Amaro to book the next flight to Miami. Fin whines that he has a feel for Miami as he worked there undercover. Cragen tells Fin and Rollins to work the case from here – re-interview witnesses, track down evidence – he doesn’t want to rely on 25 year old DNA.
Benson and Amaro walk in to the Dade County Correctional Facility, and Benson comments that she thinks South Florida is overrated. Amaro asks if it is the sun, coffee, or the people, and Benson says it is the heat and the bugs. They check their weapons at the front desk. Amaro says he didn’t hear her complaining about the Bahamas. An corrections officer greets them by telling them they have a problem. Benson questions if Brian Traymor IS being released today, and when the officer says yeah, Amaro asks what is the problem. The officer explains that the FBI beat them to the punch. They walk over to see that the FBI agent in question is none other than Dana Lewis. Dana and Benson greet each other and Benson introduces Dana to Amaro. She says it is nice to meet him, calling him sunshine. He asks what the FBI’s interest is in a New York cold case, and Dana explains they think he is a serial, he is their prime suspect in three other rape/murders in Sacramento, Philadelphia, Washington, besides the two in New York. Amaro says the DNA match to the Manhattan case makes it theirs, adding that these are not Federal crimes. Dana asks if they can work together on this, and Benson comments to Amaro that when Dana asks, it is not really a question. Amaro says he is getting that. They look over and see Brian Traymor entering and he is in a wheelchair. Amaro ask Dana if she knew Traymor was in a wheelchair, and Dana replies she is as surprised as they are. Benson walks up to Traymor and announces she is NYPD, and that they have a warrant for his arrest. Amaro hold out the warrant but Traymor doesn’t take it, saying he did his time on the coke bust and they said he could go home. Dana says he was misinformed, and Benson explains they will be taking him back to his old stomping grounds in New York City. He asks for what, and Dana informs him it is for rape and murder; it has taken 25 years but his past has finally caught up with him. Amaro hands him the warrant and then begins to push the wheelchair.
Back at SVU, Benson explains to the group that Brian Traymor was paralyzed from the waist down in a bus accident April 1988, 3 months after his last suspected attack. Cragen thinks this explains his absence from the system in over 2 decades. Fin questions if they are sure he is good for all 5. Dana says it is the same pattern; all of the women were raped then tied up and strangled with athletic tape and he wore latex gloves and stuffed them in the women’s’ mouths. Benson adds that from 1986 to 1988, Traymor was the assistant equipment manager to the Atlanta Barons basketball team. Their away game schedule puts Traymor in every city or on a day off at the times of the murders. Rollins comments that the DNA was not usually run in 1987, asking how did they get lucky? Munch explains that cold case in Sacramento and New York ran DNA from rape kits 10 years ago and there were no hits until Traymor was arrested. Swabs matched Traymor’s DNA on the Sacramento victim Theresa Grey and on the first New York victim, Gina Mantos. Dana adds that the Philadelphia and Washington never ran DNA so they put in a request to expedite. Cragen asks how about a confession, did Traymor give anything up on the plane ride. Amaro replies he just looked out t he window but he did waive his right to counsel. Benson suggests that before Traymor changes his mind that she and Amaro take a run at him. Dana says she was part of the initial profiling and she would appreciate sitting in. Cragen explains he appreciated her being there but states this is NYPD’s case and they will take the lead. Dana gets a message on her phone and as Benson walks off, Dana tells Cragen “fine” but she will be observing, her bosses are understandably anxious. Rollins announces they just got a break, they found Gina’s roommate.
At Williamsburg Hospital, Fin and Rollins speak with Gina’s roommate and they find Gina was a basketball fan. When Fin asks her roommate to look at a photo of a possible suspect, she is reluctant as it was so long ago. But Rollins advises her of the new DNA evidence and she agrees. She picks out Traymor, saying he looked right past her and made a fool out of himself trying to get a Minnesota girl’s attention at a sports bar near The Garden a few months before Gina was killed. She thinks he told Gina that he worked for the team and she was so jealous as guys were always hitting on Gina. Her folks paid her rent. She walked in and found Gina and it was horrible and she tried to forget all that.
Back at SVU, Benson has Traymor in interrogation and she asks him about Gina. He says she is cute but denies knowing her. They continue to question him about Gina’s roommate seeing them together months before when the Barons were in town. Cragen and Dana watch from the observation area. He says he never lied about his job with the basketball team, but Amaro says the girls didn’t want to meet an assistant equipment manager, they wanted to meet the players. Traymor said he did all right, and Benson asks if he did alright with Gina. He thinks he may have, when he wasn’t in his wheelchair. Amaro says that was when Traymor could walk and have sex, and if it were him, he would remember that. He says maybe he remembered meeting her, and Amaro says Traymor’s DNA was found on Gina’s body. Benson says they know he was with her. He admits going home with her but says that does not mean he killed her. Benson asks about the bus that hit him and broke his spinal cord didn’t just cripple him, it made him impotent and he’s had 25 years to think about that accident and asks if he even thought it was karma?
Meanwhile, Mr. & Mrs. Stanger, parents of another victim, Kira Stanger, arrives at SVU and Rollins and Fin approach. They ask Rollins if she called them about the person who killed Kira. They walk the over to the interview room and show them photos of black suspects but they don’t pick out anyone. Mrs. Stanger says Kira would never go with anyone “like that.” Mr. Stanger said Kira was a music student and hated sports. Kira moved to New York and they are still living in the same house in Vermont. Rollins asks if it is possible they didn’t know everything Kira did for fun, and Mr. Stanger snaps that they knew, they met Noah, her fiancé, two weeks after she met him. Mrs. Stanger confirms they were in love, and Mr. Stanger adds that is how they knew what the police told them about Kira being killed by a man in the bar was crap and she never would open the door for a stranger. Mrs. Stanger said Kira was a kindergarten teacher and Noah was travelling on business and Kira said how much she missed him. She thinks the man they say have didn’t kill their daughter.
