Law & Order: Season 12
Season 12 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Law & Order Season 11.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 12 Progress Shield
Who Let the Dogs Out?
Sep 26, 2001 · 45 min
The investigation into the death of a jogger mauled by a vicious dog leads to an Attica inmate, his attorneys, and an underground dog-fighting ring.
Armed Forces
Oct 3, 2001 · 45 min
The fatal stabbing of a man leads to the discovery of his status as a Vietnam war veteran and the truths uncovered about an incident that occured with him and three former soliders
For Love or Money
Oct 10, 2001 · 45 min
The death of a parolee, who was a hit man, leads to a wealthy widow and daughter and whether they hired him to kill their rich relative.
Soldier of Fortune
Oct 24, 2001 · 45 min
The daring daylight kidnapping of a diamond dealer which results in two murders at the scene uncovers an international dynasty of diamond sales and its links to a foreign civil war
Possession
Oct 31, 2001 · 45 min
Investigating the murder of a woman in a rent-controlled apartment, the detectives discover that she was engaged in a long-running battle with her landlord and had been blocking th
Formerly Famous
Nov 7, 2001 · 45 min
The shooting death of a former singer's wife leads the detectives to investigate his manager and sons after his explanation of the events surrounding her death have no credibility.
Myth of Fingerprints
Nov 14, 2001 · 45 min
A murder investigation uncovers deliberately faulty forensics in the wrongful conviction of two men 12 years earlier in the case that paved the way for Van Buren's promotion.
The Fire This Time
Nov 21, 2001 · 45 min
When a building is set ablaze, a girl must be identified despite her fatal burns. Through further investigation, it turns out that an extreme environmentalist group struck the matc
3 Dawg Night
Nov 28, 2001 · 45 min
When a celebrity is implicated in a nightclub murder, McCoy and Southerlyn battle the flaks who attempt to insulate their client from any involvement or interrogation.
Prejudice
Dec 12, 2001 · 45 min
The murder of a magazine publishing company's black CEO leads to a suspect who has a clear streak of racism and whose attorney intends on using that as a mental defect.
The Collar
Jan 9, 2002 · 45 min
The death of a cleric leads the detectives to a priest who was given information by a murder suspect outside of the church but insists that he can't discuss anything about it, brin
Undercovered
Jan 16, 2002 · 45 min
The father of a dying girl gets his revenge on an insurance executive who denied a certain leukemia treatment for his daughter. One problem arises when the father is technically on
DR 1-102
Jan 30, 2002 · 45 min
The bludgeoning of two women in their apartment leads the detectives to a suspect who has taken a hostage while demanding legal representation ... and Southerlyn's actions, while h
Missing
Feb 6, 2002 · 45 min
When a girl's parents frantically search for her, Briscoe and Green see that the girl's belongings were packed up in her apartment. They learn that the girl had been seeing a marri
Access Nation
Feb 27, 2002 · 45 min
The murder of a psychologist leads to a case involving a computer company that sells information and their responsibility in shielding their clients' history in order to serve thei
Born Again
Mar 6, 2002 · 45 min
The investigation into the death of an 11-year-old girl uncovers the possible culpability of the child's mother and a rebirthing therapist.
Girl Most Likely
Mar 27, 2002 · 45 min
When a high school student is found dead in an apartment building, Briscoe and Green suspect that the murder was a result of her running a website. As McCoy and Southerlyn investig
Equal Rights
Apr 3, 2002 · 45 min
A stock analyst's murder leads the detectives to a corporation whose stock had fallen ... and plenty of suspects in the investors.
Slaughter
Apr 10, 2002 · 45 min
The investigation of a student's killing leads to a case involving meat contamination at a food service.
Dazzled
Apr 24, 2002 · 45 min
A woman is drugged and falls to her death, and the evidence suggests that her ex-boyfriend and her current husband's ex-wife may have conspired to kill her.
Foul Play
May 1, 2002 · 45 min
The investigation into the death of a private investigator uncovers corruption, deceit, and immigration fraud in a Youth Baseball League whose manager will go to any lengths to win
Attorney Client
May 8, 2002 · 45 min
The wife of an attorney with many disgruntled clients is killed but the detectives believe that he was the intended target as he was willing to reveal information despite confident
Oxymoron
May 15, 2002 · 45 min
The investigation of a woman's strangulation leads to a case involving the selling of drugs and a gangster's son.
Patriot
May 22, 2002 · 45 min
A tenement building explodes and the lone victim is Joseph Haden. The building was rent controlled and there had been a tenant strike, so the police initially suspect arson. But th