Aug
Mariska Hargitay Assists Real-Life Prosecutor in Solving Thousands of Sex-Crime Cases
Mariska Hargitay, best known for her portrayal of Olivia Benson on Law & Order: SVU, took her dedication to justice beyond the screen, aiding in the resolution of thousands of real-life sex-crime cases.
As any fan of Law & Order: SVU knows, Olivia Benson is relentless in her pursuit of justice. This tenacity is shared by Hargitay herself, who has embodied the character since 1999.
Mariska Hargitay Assists Real-Life Prosecutor in Solving Thousands of Sex-Crime Cases
Kym Worthy, a prosecutor in Wayne County, Michigan, discovered a staggering 11,000 untested rape kits languishing in a police evidence room. This troubling discovery was brought to light by NBC journalist Andrea Canning on the Today show while promoting her new Dateline True Crime Weekly podcast.
Determined to bring justice to the victims, Worthy made it her mission to have every single kit tested. However, the immense cost of testing so many kits required significant funding. That’s where Hargitay stepped in.
Hargitay played a crucial role in raising the necessary funds to process the kits, leading to significant changes nationwide. “She helped them raise the money to get this done, and it’s having a ripple effect across the country,” Canning noted. “It’s making changes everywhere — for police departments, for prosecutors’ offices. Thousands of cases were solved. They found 22 serial rapists among these kits.”
Hargitay’s impact on law and order isn’t confined to her fundraising efforts. In May, the actress recounted an incident where her role as Benson seemed to influence real life. While filming a scene for SVU in April, a lost young girl approached Hargitay, who was in full Benson attire. Whether the child mistook her for an actual police officer or not, Hargitay felt they were “meant to connect in that moment,” she shared during Variety’s Power of Women event.
Fans of both Hargitay and her former SVU partner, Elliot Stabler, portrayed by Christopher Meloni, will be excited to learn that Meloni is writing an episode for the upcoming fifth season of Law & Order: Organized Crime featuring Benson. Hargitay, who has guest-starred in more than a dozen episodes of Meloni’s series, “will be with OC for a moment there,” Meloni recently revealed.
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