Law & Order

Executioner - S18-E9

Factual error: Yost attacks and kills an innocent man, believing him to be Dr. Horace Garrison, a physician who administered a faulty lethal injection to a condemned prisoner, reducing him to a vegetative state rather than killing him. The problem is, medical doctors never, ever participate in an execution except to certify death, a legal requirement. They do not, ever, take an active role in killing the condemned person.

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Suggested correction: I'm not sure where you're getting your information, but medical doctors are involved in lethal injections more than just certifying death. This is why so many groups were actively trying to stop the practice of medical profession involvement. In 2007, 17 states required physician involvement, which included doctors at times having to administer the injection.

Bishop73

The botched execution took place in South Carolina, which absolutely forbids medical practitioners to take an active role in killing a condemned prisoner. In fact, they are considering switching executing prisoners by firing squad instead of lethal injection, at least partly to distance medical professionals from the actual procedure leading to a person's death.

Remand - S6-E10

Character mistake: McCoy asks his witness, an expert geneticist, what the odds are that a DNA sample presented in evidence does not match that of the defendant. He answers "About one in two hundred." That is idiotic. If the DNA samples are identical the chances that the the sample presented in evidence does not come from the defendant is about one in two billion, not one in two hundred! A bright high school senior would know that, never mind an expert geneticist.

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Suggested correction: If the odds are 1 in 200, that means the accuracy of the DNA is 99.5%. If the odds are 1 in 2 billion, that means the accuracy of the DNA is 99.9999999995%, which simply isn't true.

Bishop73

In fact as any geneticist (i.e, anyone like me) will tell you the chances of two identical DNA "fingerprints" coming from two different and unrelated individuals are around one in two thousand million. Two billion. In fact the odds are much higher than that but we scientists don't like to make claims that sound unlikely or fantastic. The accuracy of DNA fingerprinting is, as you point out, 99.9999999995%. You correction is wrong and the posting is correct.

Except that's not what happened in the scene or what happens in real life. You simply don't understand what you're arguing. You're not a geneticist.

Bishop73

Battle Lines - S22-E2

Continuity mistake: Detectives Cosgrove and Shaw head to the hospital to interview a doctor which they do in a hallway. At one point the door behind the doctor is a single door then it changes to two doors and then finally when the detectives leave there is no door at all.

bnemirow

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Suggested correction: Dr. Mercer and the detectives stand at a T-intersection of 2 halls (Cosgrove and Shaw at the top arm of the T). In 2 shots facing Mercer head-on, a single door is at the end of the hall directly behind her. In a shot facing Mercer's right side there are double-doors beside her, to her left. The last shot of Mercer is head-on with the single door at the end of the hall. When the detectives leave in the shot from a new angle, we cannot see the hallway (at the right) where Mercer stood, only the opening to the hall (00:18:25).

Super Grover

School Daze - S11-E22

Plot hole: They speak of sending a high school shooter to state prison. But if he's under 18 surely he'd have to be held in a juvenile facility until he's old enough.

Rob245

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Suggested correction: This is incorrect for the time period. Until recently, 16 and 17 year olds who were charged as adults could get sent to State prison with adults. 2015 is when New York State decides to house 16 and 17 years olds in State prison in separate facilities.

Bishop73

Show generally

Factual error: Detective Nina Cassady (who was introduced towards the end of Season 17) frequently wears casual tops that show far too much cleavage for a police officer on duty. If she showed up for duty dressed like that she would be sent home to change.

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Absentia - S13-E13

Question: In one of the court scenes it states the date as the 26th of December. Upon a bit of searching it doesn't seem to fall as a holiday in the New York Supreme Court holidays calendar. While the day is generally observed as a holiday in many countries I am not sure about whether it is observed in any states of the United States?

Lummie

Chosen answer: December 25 is observed and some places close on the 24 (or just close early). The 26th is a normal work day.

shortdanzr

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