From beloved regulars to recurring characters who left too soon, these devastating losses left fans stunned. Join us as we look back at the most unexpected and heartbreaking departures from the long-running crime drama. Warning: major spoilers ahead for multiple seasons!
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00:00and what i wish we had
00:01is more time welcome to ms mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the most unexpected
00:10and devastating character deaths on law and order special victims unit obviously there will be
00:16spoilers ahead i just don't get it we're happy number 10 sonja paxton darn it we were just
00:28starting to like her when sonja paxton shows up to replace alex cupboard at the beginning of season
00:3411 she's no one's favorite character she's abrasive and condescending and of course she clashes with
00:41elliot stabler oh yeah detectives didn't do their jobs in the first place well that isn't the case
00:45here ms paxton takes guilty really oh well that's great then you don't mind calling me after you
00:51re-interview katie harris and show her a sequential photo array in season 12 after she arrives in
00:58court intoxicated we learn that years ago a killer had gotten away on her watch that led her to start
01:05drinking i know that there is no way that you will ever be able to forgive me
01:11but i intend to make amends her dedication is just beginning to win us over when benson finds her
01:22stabbed and bleeding out in a bathroom her murder is totally unexpected she does manage to take a bite
01:28out of the killer literally capturing dna that ultimately enables the detectives to catch the guy
01:34there's a hair in her throat i'll swab her mouth and check her stomach for his blood at least she went
01:41down fighting number nine drew householder everything about this case is heartbreaking drew is an infant with
01:48severe genetic disorder he can't see hear or think and he feels nothing but pain what did the doctor
01:54say that there's nothing they can do that we can only watch him suffer until
01:59it is killing us mr barba his parents can't agree on whether to keep him alive or end his suffering
02:07ada rafael barba decides to take matters into his own hands why why can't he just die why
02:15he can't when drew's mother can't bring herself to pull the plug rafa ushes her out of the hospital
02:31room and does it himself no one was expecting the story to take a turn like this although rafa has
02:37been known to play fast and loose with procedure he's never put his career in such serious jeopardy
02:43the episode marks the end of his time as an svuda what are you gonna do would it be unbearably corny
02:51if i said i'm going to do what i must yes it would
02:54but i understand number eight ryan o'halloran our perp scribbled more than we thought i didn't see it
03:05until i pulled the rig from the car one down three to go he's gunning for revenge against
03:11everyone who betrayed csu technician dale stuckey is a pain in the neck from the moment he arrives on
03:17the scene but we were still caught off guard when he's revealed to be a murderer ryan o'halloran has
03:23been a recurring character on svu for six years but he becomes one of stuckey's victims when he finds
03:30evidence of stuckey's other crimes at that point in the episode the audience still has no idea that
03:36stuckey is the killer thanks to some excellent misdirection you didn't think i could do anything
03:41right
03:42stuckey what have you done but you can't figure that out huh big mr detective o'halloran's sudden
03:53stabbing seems to happen out of nowhere we were sad to see him leave the series but we certainly can't
03:59say the same about dale stuckey captain he just assaulted me you have to write him up only one
04:04getting a rip around here is you dale he just accosted me if elliot puts your head through a wall
04:10i'm gonna have to do a lot of tiresome paperwork get out of my squad number seven esther labotte
04:16this poor girl lived in misery and terror and her death is unbelievably tragic esther's father is a
04:24religious fanatic and he starves and abuses all nine of his children william bought five hot dogs
04:29and broke them in half for the kids well maybe he's low on cash look the kids all look underweight and
04:35what happened in that house in new jersey wasn't about poverty or cutesy outfits the labotte family
04:41is its own patriarchal cult esther is so malnourished that everyone assumes she's a teenager even though
04:47she's actually 27 years old she refuses to press charges against her parents but detective rollins
04:53isn't about to let this case go she tracks down the labotte house and the situation quickly escalates
04:59into a shootout hold your fire hold your fire hold fire hold fire
05:03most of the labotte children make it out but not esther the revelation of how she died is somehow the most
05:16disturbing part of the episode you fired the bullet that killed esther labotte
05:22number six lauren cooper we only get one episode with fbi agent cooper but
05:46that doesn't make her ending any less jarring i would have been proud to help you call her the
05:50bastard who murdered 24 women that would have satisfied me that wasn't good enough she enlists
05:58the help of the svu detectives to track a serial killer and rescue his last victim but we soon learn
06:04that she already murdered the murderer herself the team is unable to save the victim in time and her
06:10death hits agent cooper hard you okay
06:12no
06:16like i said i'm not used to dealing with victims feeling guilty for her role in the incident and
06:24unwilling to go to prison cooper takes her own life right in front of benson and lake those who fight
06:30monsters should make damn sure they don't become one the moment is shocking enough but olivia's reaction
06:39is what really stays with you number five sister peg this killing is so senseless and so out of left field
06:47fans still aren't over it peg devotes her life to helping the most downtrodden people i start handing
06:53them over to the police they stop coming and i can't do my job what exactly is your job trying to
07:00keep them smart and safe like you she makes semi-regular appearances on the show in season 3 through 8
07:08then in season 12 the showrunners bring her back apparently just to kill her off if you're here to
07:14save some souls like those three are beyond help actually sister peg's doing a different kind of work
07:18for the lord check that out i found those hidden in someone else's locker at the shelter sister peg is
07:23in the wrong place at the wrong time when jenna fox the daughter of a murder victim shows up at the
07:29precinct with no warning jenna starts shooting at the men responsible for her mother's death then
07:35firing randomly around the room she kills peg and elliot is forced to shoot her as she bleeds out in his
07:41arms the audience is left stunned at what they just witnessed number four mike duarte like sonja paxton
07:49captain duarte starts out as an antagonist in the svu squad room but he eventually wins over his fellow
07:56cops a veteran of the bronx gang unit he's called in by the chief to aid an investigation anyone ever call
08:03you classy gotta go she your zookeeper or something detective muncie speaks her mind and everybody
08:11else's well it's nice to see you so relaxed it must mean you have leave he and benson clash at first but
08:17they soon learn to work together and develop a good rapport some fans even speculated that duarte
08:23could be a love interest for olivia unfortunately his time on the show is short-lived ask your papa
08:29will do that to you that's like a bed bug you know i finally understand why you are the way you are
08:44he's ruined hundreds of lives after just four episodes he's attacked by gang members in a
08:49convenience store and murdered it's a brutal killing that happens just as the audience was starting to
08:55get attached he wanted to take away everything i've built i couldn't allow that to happen number
09:02three kathy stabler as the wife of detective elliot stabler kathy was a regular fixture on svu for over
09:10a decade starting with episode one she's a loving mama and a patient wife and although she and elliot go
09:17through some tough times they work it out in the end when the stablers return to new york in season 22
09:23kathy unexpectedly becomes the victim of a car bombing i tried to kill her
09:30tried to kill kathy no one saw this coming she survives the initial attack and appears to be
09:36recovering then suddenly takes a turn for the worse later in the episode and took her into surgery but
09:41it was too late i didn't get to say goodbye she dies off screen and if you want to find out who killed
09:54her you'll have to tune in to law and order organized crime what a thankless ending for such an important
10:01character hey kathy i'm okay i'm just so tired number two ed tucker she couldn't wait to get rid of me
10:12now i need an order of protection against you we need to talk walk with me i'm not going far in early
10:20seasons ed tucker showing up on the scene always means trouble for our heroes however over time he slowly
10:27turns into one of the good guys he and benson even start a relationship though they eventually go their
10:33separate ways that's why it's such a shock when like sister peg and kathy stabler he returns for one
10:39episode what are we doing here you can't tell my wife just to be killed off in season 21 he reveals that
10:51he has brain cancer and later we learn that he took his own life to spare his new wife from having to
10:57care for him it's a devastating revelation suffering live it's not how we want to be remembered i know
11:11it's just a lot of rain in one place before we unveil our top pick here are a few honorable mentions
11:18elias barrera a seven-year-old boy became a pawn in a dealer's deadly scheme who is he a relative
11:25outraged citizen how old is he 12 names thomas james goes by tj anyone see it happen best we can put
11:32together he tried to join a group of kids playing ball simon marsden olivia's brother never caught a
11:37break in his entire life found the body in a motel room no signs of foul play he was using he he told me
11:45that he was sober he was telling you the truth i had to guess he'd been clean for quite a while
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12:05your phone make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications number one mike dodds the
12:13writers really pulled the rug out from under us with this one deputy chief dodds appoints his son
12:18mike to be benson's second in command early in season 17. anti-crime crown heights okay dad before
12:24that special forces you signed up out of college right after 9 11. can't tell you how proud i am
12:29of this kid yeah thanks but i am new to special vix i know i have a lot to learn it takes mike a little
12:36while to settle into his role but soon he's right at home at svu in fact the audience gets the
12:42impression that he's going to become a permanent addition to the team later he decides to join the
12:47joint terrorism task force but before he leaves he's shot in the stomach i blew it dad no no no you
12:54didn't i didn't search the guy i should have known better you saved a woman and two children you know
13:04after this you can put the hero thing aside for a while in the hospital mike suffers a stroke and
13:11severe brain damage and his father makes the difficult choice to take him off life support
13:16the entire incident is a shocking blow to the detectives the deputy chief and the fans what the
13:21hell was he thinking that he wanted to be like his father a hero which character's death tore you up
13:31let us know in the comments below my dad always said he wasn't scared of being dead he was scared of
13:36dying that kid is dying every day he's taking his folks with him do you agree with our picks check out
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