Rollins was on high alert as her husband, Carisi, prepared to enter the witness box on SVU.
This season ofLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit has seen Sonny Carisi (Peter Scanavino) get traumatized by a brutal robbery-turned-murder. And his wife, Sgt. Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish), is worried about him, especially as he took the witness stand during the April 3 episode to testify about the ordeal.
To rewind: Earlier this season, Carisi was thrust into the center of a horrific hostage situation that’s left him utterly broken. What began as Carisi’s routine trip to his local deli turned into a nightmare after he walked in on a robbery with two gunmen holding the shop’s owner and two college graduates, Tess and Elizabeth, hostage. Calling the shots was a criminal named Boyd, alongside his accomplice, Deante.
Carisi was helpless in stopping Boyd from killing the deli owner and assaulting Tess. Eventually, Carisi was able to trick Deante into turning on Boyd and killing him. In the process, Carisi was able to disarm Deante and get Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and her team inside to clean up.
The case came to a head in SVU’s April 3 episode, when Rollins returned to support Carisi in the courtroom. Here’s what happened:
Carisi wasn’t going to let Deante get away with a plea deal on SVU
Carisi really struggled to let his lawyer take the reins over this case. He’d been obsessing over it for months, so it was hard for him to have another A.D.A call the shots. Not only was Carisi haunted by the memory of being held hostage, he is struggling with the guilt of failing to help Tess and the deli owner. So when his lawyer mentioned that she was offering a plea deal to Deane, Carisi was angry.
“I personally witnessed him aid to encourage and facilitate a veritable avalanche of chargeable felonies,” Carisi argued. After reminding the attorney of the sexual assault that occurred inside the deli, Benson and the squad were encouraged to gather evidence and witnesses who could testify.
Rollins made a heartbreaking confession about Carisi
“I thought my husband had been killed,” Rollins told Carisi’s attorney as they prepared for her own testimony in the trial.
“Are you OK?” the attorney asked. “I can give you space if you want privacy.”
“No, I’m sorry,” Rollins said, still fighting tears. “It’s just that whole day, I wasn’t sure if I was going to see my husband again. And I’m not sure that I have yet. Part of him is still trapped in that deli…He’s not going to be free until you win this case.”
Carisi was finally able to move on after a tense courtroom showdown
Benson’s squad got everything they needed to take down Deante’s self-defense plea. The jury swiftly ruled Deante guilty, giving Carisi and the team a resounding win.
Carisi was elated and ready to celebrate the victory with his fellow survivors, Tess and Elizabeth. After commending the girls for getting through the trial, Rollins reminded them that with their testimony, Deante was going to prison for the rest of his life.
“Thanks to your husband,” Tess said.
“Neither one of us would have survived without him,” Elizabeth added.
Despite this compliment, Carisi still felt immense guilt over what happened to Tess.
“Tess, I wish I could have, um —” Carisi started saying, but Tess cut him off with a hug. “Thank you,” she said, bringing tears to his eyes.
“She seems like she’s going to be OK,” Carisi smiled.
“She made the decision to move on,” Benson told him.
“Maybe it’s time you did, too,” Rollins softly suggested.
“I think you already have,” Benson said.
