Harper Anderson

Harper Anderson is the main supporting protagonist of the two-part Law & Order: Special Victims Unit story "Closure". Harper is a victim of a serial rapist who's originally determined to protect herself from trauma, then to get vengeance when the rapist slips through the cracks in the system.
She's portrayed by , in her Emmy-nominated role.
== Biography ==
What's known about Harper is she lost her mother to a painful illness, leaving her believing that's the worst experience she'd have in her life. She also dated Benjy Dowe and worked as a waitress. One night in 1999, in her apartment, while she slept with earplugs because of a Halloween festival, a serial rapist named Kenneth Cleary broken in while she was sleeping, pulled her gown over her face, and lied he had a gun to scare her into not moving. When he tried to kiss her, she recoiled, so Cleary beat her. He then raped her, violently thrusting her five times before ejaculating on her stomach. Acting "polite", after using her Rosie the Riveter shirt to wipe most of his semen, Cleary then made Harper get into a shower, forcing her to not look at her as he scrubbed her off in the shower and continued to molest and grope her. He then made her lay on the floor and count, harassing her by saying he wouldn't insist she not call the cops just before Cleary fled. Cleary stole her wallet, the shirt and Harper's heirloom ring from her grandmother. After smoking a marijuana joint to settle herself from the trauma, Harper called 911 and reported the rape.
She was taken to the hospital, bothered by the patrol cop enough to ask him to go to the cafeteria to leave her alone. She gave an informal statement to Detective Olivia Benson, had a rape exam conducted, was tested for STDs, and was given a morning-after pill. She went to the precinct and gave a complete statement of the rape throughout the night, ensured it wasn't her fault. The detectives recorded the details of the rape and her stolen belongings. Harper also described Cleary, as she glanced at him just before he forced her to look away again. Once questioning was finished, Harper stayed with Benjy, having refrained from informing him on the rape from not deciding yet how to tell him. Harper takes a shower and goes straight to work from struggling with the trauma, and out of Detective Brian Cassidy's spite for Benson over their one-night stand, he takes it out on Harper by pushing her about the joint. A peeping tom that saw Harper get raped leads them to a suspect, who's revealed to have only taken her wallet he found in the dumpster, empty of cash. Harper's brought over to identify him, but she's turned away from being told the detectives were wrong, Harper devastated Cleary was still at large. Harper never fully recovered from the trauma, even after therapy, yoga, and even cutting her hair. She would take runs out at night and still sleep with her shoes. She and Benjy eventually broke up, and Harper moved.
Six months later, another woman, Jane Tyler, was raped with the same M.O., using the same dialogue, down to a similar line Cleary would harass women with: "is this how you like it". Jane was questioned, and she confirmed she was raped, recounting uncanny details to when Harper was raped. Cleary was thankfully tracked because Jane pulled a gun to chase him away, and he broke his ankle running down the fire escape, resulting in his arrest. His lawyer on standby argued for his release, especially since Jane fell short with a lineup ID. The detectives instantly knew Cleary was guilty, as he possessed Harper's ring and Jane's watch that belonged to her father. The ring was given to his wife Meredith, as he'd make her wear jewelry for his own rises as a way if remembering the rapes and the women who suffered them. Cleary was confident and smug in interrogation, never admitting to rape, but shamelessly hinting it by misogynistic language. Benjy led the detectives to Harper's new address, but she refused to speak with them. After a second visit, she begrudgingly let them in, but she originally refused any ID in a lineup to put the rape behind her. She professed she didn't care for closure and said she's past her trauma. When Cassidy insulted her by saying Cleary "did" her, she shouted he was an ass, and Benson countered she wasn't fine. She insisted Harper do the ID, even if not for herself, then the detectives, because they needed her. Tragically, Harper couldn't identify Cleary even after hearing his voice. She was relieved at first, until Benson showed her her grandmother's ring. Harper was horrified, then devastated, as she swore she'd identify the rapist on sight. She wept over how she couldn't handle the rape happened after her mother's death, and Benson consoled her.
Cleary pled guilty to possession of stolen property, and Harper, having been winked at by Cleary when he was released, made it her personal mission to get Cleary imprisoned. She stalked his activities, harassed Meredith over the phone about his crimes, and even framed his mugshot in her kitchen. Harper would go to the shooting range for target practice with a Desert Eagle, admitting to herself she was afraid of Cleary and wanted her life back from her fear going away. She followed Cleary's movements until she saw him go into an apartment to rape Lori Thatcher, immediately calling 911 on a payphone. Harper didn't stop Cleary from raping Lori, but when he forced Lori into the shower, he was spooked by police sirens and pushed Lori down before running. Lori was found still scrubbing her drain with a toothbrush in shock before she recounted Cleary's predictable M.O. Tracing the phone calls from the payphone and to Meredith, Harper was questioned. She proudly professed all she did was legal, offered the detectives wine, showed them the framed mugshot, and defended her actions while lambasting them for falling short in theirs. Harper then escalated the placing flyers outside the Cleary brownstone, and she confronted Meredith by shouting she "enabled" Cleary. The moment Cleary insulted harper, she grabbed a pipe and smashed his windshield, resulting in her detainment. After she was released, while the police were tracking Cleary's rapes as far as Philadelphia, Benson was straightening things out with Harper. Benson questioned Harper's choices at the shooting range, and Harper criticized her for treating her like a victim still, harper saying she didn't want revenge and just to feel safe again. When they returned to her building, Meredith was there, and both women exchanged apologies. Meredith gave the police all the jewelry of the women Cleary raped, and was arrested. Harper confronted Cleary's lawyer and was with Meredith in testifying against him. however, she shouted at him her revolt over his crimes, in details that broke spousal privilege, resulting in a mistrial. Meredith was shaken, but Harper reassured her it wasn't her fault. The two women then came up with a plan: Cleary was shot by Harper, Meredith was bludgeoned to make it look like he hit her, and they scrubbed the crime scene with bleach to throw off the investigation. They then called the police and lied Meredith killed him in self-defense. The police didn't press charges, and the nightmare was over, Harper smiling from her victory.
== Trivia ==
* Harper is heavily inspired by Kathleen Ham, who was raped by serial rapist Fletcher Worrell. Kathleen collaborated to get the statute of limitations for rape outlawed, and Worrell escaped the trial and was on the run for years, raping even more women, before being arrested and imprisoned.
* Harper killing Cleary appears to be inspired by Laura Burney killing Martin Burney in Sleeping with the Enemy.
Category:Failure-Intolerant
Category:TV Show Heroes
Category:Female
Category:Feminists
Category:Honest
Category:Honorable
Category:Hope Bringers
Category:Karma Houdini
Category:Live Action Heroes
Category:Merciful
Category:Obsessed
Category:Neutral Good
Category:Pragmatists
Category:Rivals
Category:Stalkers
Category:Strategists
Category:Strong-Willed
Category:Successful
Category:Symbolic
Category:Sympathetic
Category:Truth-Seekers
Category:Vigilantes
Category:Tragic
Category:Victims
Category:Virtually Resourceful
Category:Vengeful
Category:Wrathful