RELATED: Law & Order: SVU - Why Christopher Meloni's Elliot Stabler Left the SeriesĪt Jenna's house, Detective Amanda Rollins and Officer Joe Velasco confirm that Jenna's bike is missing, so she likely fled.
Jenna is nowhere to be found and likely escaped through her bedroom window. When Rollins goes to check, she finds blood in the hallway and Jenna's room locked. Rollins and Velasco go to check on Jenna and meet her parents, who say she is asleep upstairs. Detective Odafin "Fin" Tutuola is informed that Paulie was jumped and murdered in jail while the COs didn't intervene. She tells Kat she's leaving to Buffalo, but Kat begs her to stay under police protection. The remaining witness, Rosa, answers the door to Detective Katriona "Kat" Tamin and tells her she's being threatened by men who say they'll hurt her son. Benson knows Howard is cleaning house, and she knows he's using others to distance himself and his future presidency from this scandal. Then there's Jenna, the high school girl Howard attempted to rape, who is not answering her calls. Benson then informs Garland that Ortiz, who just testified against accused rapist and sex trafficker Congressman Howard, was found dead in his tub with slit wrists and that she has calls in to check on Paulie, another witness, in jail. However, there is no immediate sign of apparent foul play.
She does not believe it to be an accident, and Garland agrees. Captain Olivia "Liv" Benson is investigating the crime scene when Chief Christian Garland shows up. The extended Season 23 premiere of Law & Order: SVU continues, picking up immediately from the cliffhanger of the first hour, with news stations reporting Dr. WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Law & Order: SVU Season 23, Episode 2, "Never Turn Your Back On Them'," which premiered Thursday, September 23rd, on NBC.