Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a spin-off of the crime drama Law & Order, follows the detectives who work in the "Special Victims Unit" of the 16th Precinct of the New York City Police Department, a unit that focuses on crimes involving rape, sexual assault and child molestation, as well as any crime loosely connected with any of the three, such as domestic violence, kidnapping and child abandonment. Since its debut in September 1999, the series has followed the career of Olivia Benson, as she progresses from the rank of Detective, working with a partner (initially Elliot Stabler, and later Nick Amaro), to Lieutenant, replacing Donald Cragen as Commanding Officer of SVU. The unit also has a prosecutor assigned from the District Attorney's office, and frequently interacts with medical e