There are few television shows with as lengthy of tenure as Law & Order: SVU. After running for over 20 years, the series has featured dozens of actors at the height of their fame or shone a spotlight on those just starting out. Treat Williams was one of many actors to grace the small screen, offering his immense talents to the drama during its 13th season. In episode 10, Spiraling Down he plays retired Football superstar, Jake Stanton in one of the first depictions of the devastating effects that multiple concussions can have on professional — and amateur — athletes.
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Like most SVU entries, the episode begins with an adjacent story. A fourteen-year-old runaway, Vicki, is forced into prostitution when her boyfriend turns out to be a pimp. After an altercation, she calls her father, a friend of Detective Amano, who quickly taps Benson for help finding the wayward teen. After finding Vicki, the detectives set up a sting operation to catch any and all of the men who have forced themselves on the minor and end up catching a much bigger fish than they intended, former All-American quarterback, Jake Stanton.
Sports enthusiasts in the precinct are quick to whisper about Stanton – “20 years ago, he was king of New York” — who seems every bit the retired giant. Stanton is barrel-chested, tall, and broad. Treat Williams lights up the screen, effortlessly breathing life into Jake Stanton, a charismatic and bravado filled character. Jake enthralls the precinct with stories about his time in the league, but even as he reminisces about his glory days, details slip through the cracks.
Jake seems completely taken aback by his arrest and insists that the officers have got it all wrong. From the very beginning, something doesn’t sit right with Benson. Her suspicions only increase when Jake reveals that he doesn’t carry a driver’s license. In its place is a simple piece of paper telling him to call home — and his protective wife, Georgia. When she reaches the precinct, Georgia corners Olivia, insisting that her husband isn’t in his right mind due to repeated brain injuries sustained as a professional football player. She tells Benson, “I’m not saying he didn’t do it; I’m saying that if he did, he doesn’t know.” She continues, “Most nights after 6 pm he has no idea where he is.”
Georgia holds nothing back, telling Olivia that, over the last few years, Jake has nearly bankrupted them. They stopped traveling after Georgia found him naked and confused in the hotel hallway, unaware of where he was, she blocks doors to keep him from escaping, and Jake refers to everyone as “Big Guy”, unable to recall names. Georgia says that in the evenings he loses all sense of self. It seems the only thing that Jake can truly remember is how to be a football star, everything else is frustrating and difficult for him to follow.
Breaking several rules, Olivia calls in a favor from defense attorney Bayard Ellis — the incredibly talented Andre Braugher (Brooklyn 99) who confirms her suspicions; Stanton is mentally unfit to go to trial. Ellis speculates that Jake has Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a fatal brain disease that is closely associated with traumatic brain injury as well as dementia. CTE has a slew of primary symptoms: memory loss, impulse control, poor judgment, aggression, depression, insomnia, and uncontrollable muscle spasms. While Jake doesn’t exhibit all of the symptoms, he displays enough of them for reasonable doubt and Ellis takes the case. Unfortunately, there is no way to prove CTE while the patient is still alive, only through an autopsy can it be confirmed, so Ellis has to prove his theory with essentially no evidence.
Spending time with Jake is enough to confirm the condition to Ellis, he sees the many ways that his client is struggling with CTE. Treat Williams does a spectacular job portraying the tragic illness. The moments of confusion and frustration are subtle. Long before Jake reacts you can see Williams building the emotion in his eyes and body language, it’s fascinating to see the festering emotions before the inevitable explosion. There are ample moments to appreciate how beautifully acted Williams’s performance is as Jake regularly forgets talking points and grows frustrated with the conversations happening around him. The only way to make an impression on him is to stick with the football metaphors and hope Jake remembers that Ellis is on his team.
When the case goes to trial, things don’t look good for Jake. With no way to prove CTE until death, Ellis has to show that Jake is mentally unfit for prison. Backed into a corner, Ellis keeps the trial running late into the evening, a period that Georgia has confirmed to be the worst for Jake’s ability to recall. Jake struggles to recall even minor details — like how long he’s been married or jersey numbers — but he does manage to make his way through the questions, that is until Ellis starts to push him. After an onslaught of questions Jake breaks, he confuses the fourteen-year-old Vicki for Oliva, can’t recall Ellis’s name, and even forgets what day of the week it is. He pleads with Ellis to stop, torn between anger, frustration, and tears he begs to go home. Yet again Treat Williams is masterful pulling at heartstrings with those baby blue eyes.
The jury thinks so too, and Jake is cleared of all charges, though he seems totally unaware of what actually happened. He joyfully asks his wife, “So I didn’t do it?” and in a moment of lucidity, her expression is enough to make him question everything that just happened to him. As the media swarms, Jake is overwhelmed. Head swimming, he steals a policeman’s firearm, pressing it against his temple as tears roll down his cheeks. Jake looks at his wife one last time before turning the weapon on a nearby officer, who fires several rounds into his chest. By committing suicide by cop and preserving his brain, Jake may yet prove that he was truly innocent after all.
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