In Law & Order Season 24 Episode 3, we learned something new about Vince Riley when his troublesome brother came to town.
His brother Matt has been a thorn in his side throughout the entire incident, starting with his expectation that the detectives would bail him out.
Ryan Eggold played the annoying character perfectly, and Riley finally made the right decision by the end of the episode, but having police officers helping their troubled family members is a trope I don’t want on my screen anymore for a while.
Vince Riley isn’t the first Law & Order detective to have a family member get into trouble
This trope is common in the Law & Order universe, especially in Law & Order: SVU, where it’s been used twice.
Not only does SVU’s Amanda Rollins have a troubled sister that no one likes, but Benson also has a half-brother for whom she keeps giving up everything.
In both cases, trying to be with the family only puts the detective at risk of losing his job.
Rollins is probably the most ridiculous, as she almost followed her sister to jail and framed her for murder.
But I remember holding my breath and praying that Benson wouldn’t ruin everything for herself as she kept leaving class room meetings about the current case to rescue her half-brother and get him out of trouble.
Let me just say, after the way SVU handled it, I’m tired of this particular trope!
Beyond that, why is Blue Bloods the only show where I’m sure the police wouldn’t let a self-destructive family member off because of this relationship?
It does no good for a self-destructive person to be continually bailed out.
It is also detrimental to the image of police officers who constantly try to make changes disappear or otherwise protect their families from the consequences of their actions.
These tropes also propagate negative stereotypes about addiction
Another problem with this Law & Order trope is that it reinforces the negative idea that people with addiction problems are manipulative, selfish liars.
It’s true that some people who abuse drugs or alcohol are manipulative and selfish, but not everyone is like that.
Addiction is a serious mental health problem and I am sure law and order will not stop people from seeking help.
But when the series shows police officer after officer bending over backwards to help an addicted sibling (why is it always a sibling?) who is clearly manipulating them, it paints an uneven picture, It may prevent some people from seeking support to stop them.
Oddly enough, another Dick Wolf show is constantly pushing back against these stereotypes.
Chicago Med did a great job with Hannah’s mental health storyline, including her temptation to use drugs and her decision to attend a North American conference.
Rollins herself did this because of her gambling addiction (although her addiction relapsed, leading to a silly story about her working undercover in a gambling ring).
However, when it comes to addict siblings, it’s annoying that the Law & Order series tells the same story over and over again.
The worst part is how obvious the manipulation is
In real life, those who manipulate others into paying for drugs or bailing others out are often skilled con men who can use charm as needed to get what they want.
However, these drug-addicted siblings are very much aware of this, and Matt Riley is one of the worst offenders.
Throughout the episode, it’s clear not only that he’s going to screw his brother, but how he’s going to do it.
He kept making promises he had no intention of keeping, only to change his mind and back out of the deal at the last minute.
When he turned off the spy cameras because he “didn’t want to be a snitch,” Riley lost faith that his brother would turn things around.
He should tell Nolan to do whatever he has to do on the gun charge, drop it all, and find the evidence he needs for his case some other way.
Instead, Riley gave him chance after chance and used promises of innocence to get his brother to cooperate.
He nearly ruined Nolan’s case by asking his brother to serve as a witness, only for Matt to pass out on the witness stand.
Riley should have at least warned Nolan that his brother has a history of backing out of these deals at the last minute, so that Nolan would be prepared that Matt wouldn’t say anything useful during the oath.
Thankfully, Riley came to his senses after Matt’s final performance in court, but by then, the damage had been done.
I cheered when he told Matt they were going to proceed with the drug charges. Hopefully Vince has learned his lesson and won’t fall for Matt’s shenanigans again later in the season.
That’s part of this tired trope. Manipulative characters never disappear unless they die or are killed.
Rollins has to reject her sister at least three times before we get rid of her for good. Hopefully it won’t take that long for Matt to get the message.
Law & Order fanatics, what do you think? Does this trope bother you as well, or do you think it’s just par for the course in police procedure?
Come to the comment area to express your thoughts!
Law & Order airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC and Fridays on Peacock.
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