Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 27 episode 1 recap: Did Olivia Benson get arrested?

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Season 27, Episode 1, titled ‘’In the Wind,’’ brings in the very first *ape case for the special unit in New York City. The premiere episode says goodbye to the beloved boss of Olivia Benson, Captain Donald Cragen (Dann Florek). With that, Sergeant Odafin "Fin" Tutuola gets attacked by mobs right after getting out of the memorial service.

For Olivia, “He was the best boss I ever had. Everything I know about being a captain, I learned from him.” Olivia even learns that Finn is planning to retire very soon, whereas Elliot hesitates to enter the memorial. When Olivia goes to meet him, the two share a heartfelt hug, remembering the tragic loss within their unit.

Olivia shares her feelings with Elliot and says, “I feel like we’re entering the ‘all our friends are dying era.’’’ Benson gets a call to be on the crime scene where a girl named Ella has been physically abused. As she makes her way onto the crime scene, Finn gets attacked by local mobs. He heard a girl screaming, trying to get away from the guy; however, it turns out that they both were setting up an act to trap him. They attacked him and stole his wallet and gun. 

Amidst the chaos, how did Olivia’s actions lead to her arrest in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 27 episode 1?

Ella, the girl who got r*ped in the rented apartment shared with Olivia that she was ‘’lying in bed, watching TikTok. Then someone broke in and the lights went out.’’ She felt his presence in the room, and then the man pressed a knife to her neck and physically assaulted her. 

Although she revealed that she is living illegally in this area because she had a job interview. Olivia says that she doesn’t care, as she does not belong to the housing authority, and the only thing that matters to her is catching the guy who did this to her.  

Later, the apartment’s owner, Eric Brunnot, was called in to list out the movement in the apartment over the last 24 hours. Turns out, the apartment’s owner was the r*pist, and he had already done the same with another girl who rented his room 5 years ago. 

Ruiz, the building’s secretary, was the only eyewitness in the case who saw the man entering Ella’s apartment. The main clue they got from the CCTV footage was that whoever the guy was, he knew where the cameras were, and he skillfully walked into her apartment without revealing his face even once.

However, the key witness was an illegal immigrant and was arrested by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) the day he was supposed to be in court. Olivia goes to get the guy, but fails as they are not allowed to meet him. 

Olivia then goes to Ruiz’s cousin to find out if he would have attempted to contact her. She hands over her card with her personal number on it. She promises to help him out with this immigration issue if he steps up to give his statement in court. 

Meanwhile, he arrives at the LAPD and seeks Olivia’s help in exchange for his statement, which could lead to the arrest of Ella’s r*pist. But the stakes get higher, as ICE gets the tip of Ruiz being there, and they get on their way to arrest him. 

Olivia uses a smart trick. She claims Ruiz is being arrested for r*pe, but ICE sees through her cleverness and arrests her instead for obstruction in the operation from the beginning, and ‘’that is a federal charge.’’ Later, she was released. 

Right after Ruiz told the court that he had seen the apartment’s owner getting into Ella’s room, it gave justice to her and another win for Liv. However, ICE took Ruiz again, leaving Olivia unsure of how she would fulfill her promise to help him with his immigration issue.

Olivia even learns that Finn is hiding that his weapon was stolen, which breaks her trust and could risk his career. This leads them to have a difficult talk about trust, their friendship, and Finn’s future on the team.

Olivia was offered a promotion by Chief Kathryn Tynan in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit season 27 episode 1

After the case was solved, Olivia’s next problem was solved too. The promise she made to Ruiz to help him out with the immigration arrest was already done. Tynan asks her to meet her at 1PP and gives her the news that the guy who made the arrest possible in the r*pe case will now get an S Visa, making him a legal immigrant in New York very soon. 

Plus, impressed with Olivia’s work, she offered her the role of deputy chief, but Brenson is not looking for any changes right now. Tynan has an idea: she wants to combine all special victims units across the five boroughs and create a deputy chief position at 1PP. All units would report to this person, and Tynan wants Benson to take the role.

‘’I am not looking to make any changes. Anytime soon,’’ Benson replied. As Benson leaves, Tynan tells her she’s adding someone new to Benson’s squad (since Fin is recovering). Benson can’t refuse, and Tynan also knows about Fin losing his gun, which could cause trouble.

The episode ends with Velasco walking home. A car stops next to him, someone inside tells him to get in, and he does. Well, what’s new plot is coming ahead will eventually unfold when the new episode comes out next week.