History Recap / LawAndOrderS19E21SkateOrDie

A group of homeless men are found beaten to death under a railway bridge. The autopsy shows that all the victims had the number 377 carved into their bodies - the hallmark of the "Boxcar Basher", an unknown serial killer who targets homeless men. But on a closer look at the "Boxcar Basher" killings, Lupo and Bernard conclude that these murders are the work of a copycat. It's possible that one victim, Paco, was mistaken for the "Bipolar Roller": an eccentric skater who has schizophrenia. His real name is Jonah Applebaum and he earns good money from his image being used on a clothing line, although he chooses to sleep rough. The detectives think that the money might be a motive to kill Jonah. But a knife used to carve the victims is found among Jonah's possessions, so he is charged with all three murders.

* GratuitousRussian: To provoke Jonah, Cutter tells him that all the [=DAs=] are indeed Russian agents. To reinforce the deception, he whispers ''"ты глупый американски дрюки"''[[labelnote:tranlation]]"ty glupyy amerikanski dryuki", roughly "You stupid American dude"[[/labelnote]] in Jonah's ear.

Cutter convinces Jonah that all the [=DA=]s are Russian agents. Jonah flies into a rage and violently attacks Cutter; legally, this gives grounds for him to be forcibly given medication. Jonah, now stable, testifies that he committed the Boxcar Basher murders but did not kill the men under the bridge. After he told the Carpenters that he'd killed several people, he overheard them say that they needed to find a way out of the business, and later saw them take the knife. The Carpenters request a deal. Rubirosa and Cutter later tell [=McCoy=] that although Jonah's medication makes him too tired to skate, his condition is improving.

* CareerEndingInjury: Jonah suffered one while training as a professional pole-vaulter, and he believed that Russian spies were responsible.

Cutter convinces Jonah that he and all the [=DA=]s are Russian agents. Jonah flies into a rage and violently attacks Cutter; legally, this gives grounds for him to be forcibly given medication. Jonah, now stable, testifies that he committed the Boxcar Basher murders but did not kill the men under the bridge. After he told the Carpenters that he'd killed several people, he overheard them say that they needed to find a way out of the business, and later saw them take the knife. The Carpenters request a deal. Rubirosa and Cutter later tell [=McCoy=] that although Jonah's medication makes him too tired to skate, his condition is improving.

Cutter and Rubirosa investigate the possibility that Jonah's business partners Grant and Bob Carpenter could be responsible. Unknown to him, they'd been trying to shut down the clothing line, and they may have believed Paco was Jonah. The Carpenters are arrested when it's discovered that they have been Googling the Boxcar Basher, and the GPS on their phones places them near the scene of the murder at the time. Jonah gets out on bail - but then forensics results from his possessions reveal that he's the Boxcar Basher. With [=McCoy=]'s chances of re-election hanging in the balance over the mistake, Jonah is arrested again.

Cutter and Rubirosa investigate the possibility that Jonah's business partners Grant and Bob Carpenter could be responsible. Unknown to him, they'd been trying to shut down the clothing line, and they may have believed Paco was Jonah. The Carpenters are arrested when it's discovered that they have been Googling the Boxcar Basher, and the GPS on their phones places them near the scene of the murder at the time. Jonah gets out on bail - but then forensics results from Jonah's possessions reveal that he's the Boxcar Basher. With [=McCoy=]'s chances of re-election hanging in the balance over the mistake, Jonah is arrested again.

Cutter convinces Jonah that he and all the [=DA=]s are Russian agents. Jonah flies into a rage and violently attacks Cutter; legally, this gives grounds for him to be forcibly given medication. Jonah, now stable, testifies that he committed the Boxcar Basher murders but did not kill the men under the bridge. After he told the Carpenters that he'd killed several people, he overheard them say that they needed to find a way out of the business; and later saw them take the knife. The Carpenters request a deal, and although Jonah's medication makes him too tired to skate, his condition is improving.