Hilda Marsden (Swoosie Kurtz) is the main villainess from "Crush," the antepenultimate episode of Law & Order: SVU's tenth season (airdate May 5, 2009). She is a Manhattan Family Court judge who presided over the domestic abuse case involving Kim Garnet, who was beaten by her boyfriend, Steve Walker, after he learned that Kim sent naked photos of herself to Ethan Morse. The photos were meant for Steve, but she accidentally sent them to Ethan, and it was Steve who sent them to everyone at school to humiliate Kim.
However, to the surprise of Benson and Miranda Pond (Kim's attorney), Marsden convicted Kim of distributing child pornography and sentenced her to a year in a facility for sex offenders in Wellsburg, Ohio. Marsden's heel persona was revealed due to her harsh sentencing, which led to Benson and Miranda attempting to look into her records to investigate her sentencing methods. The pair were stonewalled by the records department's senior clerk Ed Mangini, who later phoned Marsden regarding Benson and Pond's presences. After a face to face confrontation, the evil Marsden had Benson and Pond locked up for contempt of court.
Counselor Samantha Copeland provided Marsden's villainous reveal after having Benson and Miranda released. Marsden used her power as judge to target juveniles who committed petty crimes and sentence them to Wellsburg, with her motive being monetary. Her cousin is one of the owners of the facility, and for every prisoner sent there, Marsden receives a huge kickback. She had also paid Mangini to fill her docket with the petty offenders.
To catch Marsden, Stabler set up a sting where he posed as the father of a girl whose boyfriend (Ethan in disguise) totaled a car with her in it. Marsden tries the case and gives her trademark harsh sentence, and it was there that the rest of the unit entered and arrested Marsden for her various crimes. As she was led away in handcuffs, Marsden defended her evil actions, claiming that the teenagers she sentenced deserved to be put away and that she was the only one with the balls to stand up for what's right. It was confirmed that Marsden was disbarred and that she would be facing a life sentence in a federal prison.
Trivia[]
- Swoosie Kurtz also portrayed Queen Evilia in the film Storybook.
- Swoosie Kurtz also portrayed Binny Redwine in the film Sleep Easy, Hutch Rimes.
- Swoosie Kurtz also appeared on American Dad! as villainess Marylin Thacker.
- Hilda Marsden shares similarities to Motive villainess Natalie Rodman, as both were corrupt judges who gave harsh punishments to small-time offenders, doing so for money. Their fates are the main difference, as Natalie was killed for revenge, while Hilda was simply arrested.
Quotes[]
- "You know, I am so tired of these kids waltzing in here, thinking they can do whatever the hell they want and get away with it. Someone has to take a stand." (Hilda's rationalization for her harsh sentencing against Kim Garnet)
- "I know my rights, I'm a judge! I have done nothing wrong. These kids need to put away! It's people like me who keep this country safe. I have the balls to stand up for what's right, not like you lousy bleeding hearts!" (Hilda's justification for her self-serving actions during her arrest)
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