This story contains mentions of sexual assault. If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call National Sexual Assault Hotline by calling 1-800-656-4673. The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN) Hotline can connect you with your local rape crisis center. You can also access RAINN's live chat at https://www.rainn.org/get-help.
After 26 years and 27 seasons on the air, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit has amassed one of the most loyal audiences on television, but few have proven their loyalty to Olivia Benson and her unit quite like Leighhann Carroll.
Carroll, a 37-year-old high school teacher from Virginia, is in the upper echelon of fandom, and her recent story viral posts on TikTok showed how much the long-running procedural drama means to her.
The teacher uploaded a video to social media showing the new tattoo, which stretches from her left knee to her calf and reaches her ankle.
The ink reads “itcjssboacehinyctddwitvfamoaeskatsvutatsdd” in Courier font, which resembles a typewriter.
Embarrassed? Well, any Law & Order: SVU fan won't be, as the letters correspond to the first letters of the voiceover that introduces each episode:
“In the criminal justice system, sex crimes are considered especially heinous. In New York, the dedicated detectives who investigate these brutal crimes are members of an elite unit known as the Special Victims Unit. Here are their stories.”
The letter “dd” at the end of the tattoo symbolizes the famous participant in the show. “dun-dun” sound effect.
Carroll proudly showed off her tattoo in the post as the intro played on the TV in the background. The video instantly went viral on TikTok and has received nearly 7 million views as of November 6th.
Inspiration for the tattoo came to Carroll several years ago when she saw a post on social media about someone who had created a friendship bracelet with the same letters, she says. TODAY.com.
She decided to translate this idea into a tattoo and specifically chose a typewriter font to match the “detective vibe” of the series. She's not the first to do this: Other Law & Order fans have done it video display their similar tattoos.
Personal devotion to the series began in Carroll's mind long before the bracelet appeared on her feed.
“I’ve been watching it since ’99, literally since it aired, September 20, if I’m not mistaken,” she says. (She's not wrong.)
She remembers growing up without cable and says one of the few shows she watched was “SVU.” She and a childhood friend imagined themselves Olivia Benson played by Mariska Hargitay and Elliot Stabler played by Christopher Meloni.
Carroll is associated with Olivia Benson and her commitment to helping victims of sexual assault.
“She cared about everyone, even the times when she was uncomfortable and had to work with people who didn’t share her politically,” she notes. “The writers have done a great job of showing that victims matter. How you feel about a situation doesn't matter when it comes to helping others, especially victims of sexual assault.”
Her other favorite character is Fin Tutuola, played by Ice-T. Carroll appreciates how supportive he is of his son and being an ally to the LGBTQ+ community.
On October 13, Carroll sent the tattoo artist the letters and the idea of running them horizontally down her leg as a death sentence. Her tattoo artist was perplexed when he received the message.
“When she asked me what the letters were, I replied: “I won’t tell you, but I will make a sound.” And I said, 'Hell yeah,'” Carroll says. “She was like, 'Oh my God, it's Law & Order: SVU!' She knew exactly what it was when I said it and it just shows how many fans there are out there.”
In just 10 minutes, the “SVU” tribute was forever etched into her skin. She later showed the ink to friends and family, who she said were surprised. The vice principal of her school playfully rolled her eyes and shook her head when she saw this.
“I thought, 'I'm going to go somewhere with this tattoo.' And look who I'm talking to!” (Her students were especially excited when the video received 6.7 million views thanks to the term “67” took over TikTok.)
Carroll was shocked by the response on social media, with the video receiving 1 million views in just one day. “I thought, ‘I think I’ve found my people,’” she says of TikTok going viral. “All the comments were amazing. I was so happy to see that they were mostly positive.” There were critics, but she adds that many fans were impressed and laughed at the joke.
While the tattoo is a fun way to express her love for SVU, Carroll admits she has a deeper connection to the ink and the series.
“I think another reason this show really resonates with me is that one in four women have been sexually assaulted,” she says, a statistic supported by an article published in the National Library of Medicine. website. “Me including myself.”
“I'm a weightlifter. I'm not necessarily a small person. I'm 6'1 and I never thought this would happen to me,” she continues. “I always thought that if I was in that position, I would fight back or put them in their place. And I froze. Olivia's character tells people that all the time on the show.”
Carroll became emotional as she explained how Olivia's repeated message that sexual assault victims are not to blame helped her.
“I have to remember that people are people and all we can do is survive. As she tells a lot of the victims on the show, the whole point was that you got out of it. You made it to the other side. It's just an unfortunate but good connection to this character.”
She also applauds Hargitay for using her platform to talk about sexual violenceespecially rape kit backlog.
“This is real life,” Carroll says. “These are real (stories). Obviously, you know the little disclaimer at the beginning, but these are still real situations. These are real events that women especially have to go through.”
