Law & Order Season 4 Episode 12 Snatched

Detectives Briscoe and Curtis investigate the disappearance of eight-year-old Tommy Richardson from a neighborhood park. The boy's mother, Debbie, left him there while she went to run errands, and when she returned, he was gone. The detectives question Debbie and her estranged husband, Tommy's father, Ron, who both have different ideas about who could have taken the boy. As they gather more information, they find out that Tommy had been talking to a man in a van, and they begin to suspect that he may have been kidnapped by a pedophile.

Meanwhile, ADA McCoy and ADA Ross are worried that the case may not hold up in court, as they don't have any physical evidence or witnesses to the crime. They decide to bring in a psychologist, Dr. Charles Webb, to help them understand the mind of a pedophile and figure out who may have taken Tommy. Dr. Webb gives them some clues, including the fact that pedophiles often have jobs that allow them to be near children, and that they often have a specific type of child that they are attracted to. Based on this information, the detectives start to investigate local pedophiles and soon come across a suspect named Arthur Tunney.

Tunney fits the profile that Dr. Webb described, as he works as a school janitor and has a history of molesting young boys. When they search his house, they find evidence that he may have taken Tommy, including a picture of him from the park and a map of the area with the park circled. Tunney is arrested for kidnapping, and the detectives must work quickly to find Tommy before it's too late.

The case takes a tragic turn when they learn that Tunney had already killed Tommy and buried him in a shallow grave in the woods. The detectives and ADA McCoy are devastated by the news, and must now focus on building a case against Tunney for murder. The trial is difficult, as Tunney's lawyer argues that there is no concrete evidence linking him to the crime. However, thanks to the work of the detectives and the testimony of Dr. Webb, Tunney is found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.

The episode ends with the detectives and ADA McCoy discussing the importance of their work in protecting children from predators like Tunney. They know that they can't bring Tommy back, but they hope that by putting Tunney behind bars, they can prevent him from hurting any other children. It's a somber reminder of the difficult and often heartbreaking work that law enforcement must do every day to keep our communities safe from harm.