Title- Death Row
Author- garrettelliot
Disclaimer- Nope, but I thought about suing for custody of Chris Meloni, just don't know where to file the papers. Dick Wolf is da man. (Maybe flattery will get me somewhere.)
A/N- This is my first posted fan fic. Hope you like it. Please R and R. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

All prisons smell the same, no matter the age of the building. From the day the first inmate arrives, the odor permeates the facility. It is the reek of despair, of desperation, of hopelessness.

Dr. Renee Wilson had never gotten used to the smell, the oppressive feeling of walls closing in. Even though she knew she could leave at anytime. She hated these death row interviews and afterward she always needed a shower. These men, their crimes, their desolation settled over her skin, like a layer of some foul oily substance she couldn't wait to wash away.

She looked up at the sound of chains rattling in the hall. She stood as the door opened and a manacled figure walked in followed by the guard.

"You have one hour until yard time Doctor." The guard said. "I'll be right outside if you need me."

"Thank you, officer." Renee sat and gestured to the prisoner to do the same. He took a seat like he owned the room. This one would probably be arrogant, proud of his crimes.

Thank you for your willingness to participate in this study." She said.

"I didn't have a more pressing engagement." He said pleasantly. There was no trace of arrogance in his manner. "My time is yours until Friday."

"I've read your file. You plead guilty and refused a lawyer or a deal for a lesser sentence. You've never appealed your conviction and specifically requested that there be no stay of execution. One might assume you have a death wish."

"I'd much rather live to ripe old age and die in my sleep. But I killed thirteen men and I'd do it again. I broke the law and the death penalty was fair. Those pedophiles got just punishment for their crimes and Friday night so will I."

"Tell me about the men you killed, why did you chose them?"

"Each one was tried for child molestation and each got off on a technicality. The system could not stop them and they had to be stopped."
"So you became judge, jury and executioner. Some might see that as a god complex."

"A god complex." He chuckled pleasantly. "Doctor, I have no delusions of godhood. I'm just a man."

"A man who decided life and death for others."

"Those monsters stole the innocence of their victims and the courts let them walk. I couldn't let them go on hurting children." He stated calmly.

"So you killed them."

"So I killed them."

"Do you feel any remorse over your actions?"

"Am I sorry they're dead? No. I am sorry the system failed their victims, that there was no other way to stop them. I have blood on my hands that will never wash away, but it is not innocent blood, Doctor."

"Isn't guilt or innocence for the courts to decide?"

"When was the hearing on the guilt or innocence of their victims? You show me that verdict and I'll concede the possible innocence of those men."

"You shot each man in the forehead at close range. Did you want to watch their faces as they realized death was immanent?"

"There was no satisfaction in what I did, Doctor. A condemned man has time to prepare himself for the inevitable. I wanted them to be prepared."

"You turned yourself in even though you were not a suspect. Why not go on killing? Surely there were more men who fit your criteria."

"An officer was shot attempting to bring in a suspect for questioning. I couldn't risk injury to another cop."

"You made a full confession without the presence of an attorney and mounted no defense. Do you regret that move now?"

"What I did, no matter how necessary, was indefensible. Any defense a lawyer would have come up with would have been a lie."

"The truth is very important to you, isn't it?"

"Truth is the only thing I have left. Not a bad epitaph, 'Truth, the only thing he had left'." He smiled.

"You identify yourself as devote, yet you have refused all visits from clergy, why is that?"

"I sincerely regret my actions, but I saw no other way. I've made my peace with God."

"Do you see yourself as God's instrument, working on his orders?"

"Doctor," He smiled. "I'm not a religious fanatic. God didn't tell me to kill those perverts. Aliens don't transmit messages to me through my microwave and my Rice Krispies don't say anything but 'Snap, Crackle, Pop'. The only voice in my head is mine."

"So you made a conscious decision and you felt it was reasonable at the time. Do you still feel that way, in retrospect?"

"Murder is never reasonable, Doctor. There was simply no other way to protect their future victims."

"You assumed there would have been more victims."

"Once a pedophile starts molesting he doesn't stop. You know that as well as I do, so don't patronize me. I'm not insane. I knew exactly what I was doing and I was fully aware of the consequences of my actions. I made a choice to kill and I did."

"If you felt justified in your actions, why accept the death penalty? When you plead guilty, the DA was prepared to take the death penalty off the table. You refused."

"I believe in the rule of law. The punishment for premeditated murder is a needle in the arm. Selecting, stalking and executing are as premeditated as it gets. I chose to step outside the system and break the law. The law must be upheld and applied fairly or anarchy will result."

"It has been suggested that a conspiracy of silence existed within the police department, which allowed you to kill so many men." He smiled at the word conspiracy.

"There was no conspiracy, Doctor. My actions were mine and mine alone. I got away with so many, because I never was a suspect."

"Several anti death penalty groups are calling for clemency on your behalf. Do you think the governor will grant it?"

"I've asked the governor no to do so."

"These groups say the death penalty is not a deterrent. What are your thoughts?"

"Well I certainly won't be killing anyone after Friday, will I?" He smiled easily. "I'd say that while threat of the death penalty may not prevent the first murder it use certainly cuts way back on recidivism."

"Are you afraid to die?"

"I died years ago, Doctor."

The door opened and the guard said, "Times up."

"Thank you for your time." Renee said as they both stood. "May we continue tomorrow, Mr. Stabler?"

"I'll look forward to it, Doctor and please call me Elliot.

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A/N – I love Elliot but I also love to be mean to my characters. Please feel free to tell me I'm so going to hell for this one, cause to tell you the truth I think this sealed my eternal damnation. Please read and review, I'm writing in a vacuum here. I have no beta so I could use the input.