Tonight’s episode of NBC’s Law & Order: Special Victims Unit will showcase failed Republican Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin’s infamous remark that “if it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down” so the woman would not get pregnant.
NBC’s promo for the March 27 episode touts a storyline “ripped from the headlines” with “words that set off a national controversy.” In the promo run at the end of last week’s show, a man on a witness stand, who is sporting a flag lapel pin, declares: “It’s nearly impossible for a victim of legitimate rape to become pregnant.” [UPDATED with a summary of what aired]
The network is at least -- seemingly -- not portraying a conservative politician as the one defending a rapist, changing the circumstances, in the series set in New York City, to an expert witness defending a man on trial for attacking a TV sports reporter.
The plot summary for the March 27 episode, titled “Legitimate Rape,” which will air at 9 PM EDT/PDT, 8 PM CDT, the second hour of prime time:
A popular sports reporter (Lauren Cohan) accuses a cameraman (David Marciano) of rape and stalking; when the victim learns she is pregnant as a result of the rape, the defense employs controversial tactics in hope of gaining favor with the jury.
