LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT is a spin off of NBC's incredibly popular and long running crime drama, LAW & ORDER. SVU focuses on sex crimes and, instead of spending half the program's hour with the cops and the other half with the lawyers, this series stays with the police and the criminals they pursue for most of the show. SVU takes place in New York and stars Christopher Merloni and Mariska Hargitay as Detectives Stabler and Benson, two partners who uncover some of the city's most shocking crimes.