Reunion Online

The season premiere of NBC's "Law and Order SVU" tackled the ongoing problem of backlogged rape kits sitting untested in police warehouses... delaying the prosecution of rape suspects. It was a problem brought to life in Los Angeles in 2009 and now actress Mariska Hargitay has started a foundation to help raise awareness and funds to get those rape kits tested.

By failing to test rape kits, we are telling victims that pursuing justice doesn't matter, that convicting violent perpetrators and taking them off our streets is not a top priority.

It took years. It almost broke her heart. Here, for the first time, Mariska Hargitay shares the tender story of how she adopted her two precious new kids.

TV's favorite cop on managing tricky marriage moments, ignoring her son's bedtime — and staying safe and sane when life is moving a little too fast.

A dinner with Joyful Heart Foundation officials and local supporters marked a homecoming for "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" star Mariska Hargitay, who was in town last week for a series of private appearances on behalf of the organization she founded.

Mariska Hargitay was in town for a series of private appearances, including a dinner at Neiman Marcus’s Mariposa restaurant Sept. 1, to raise awareness and funds for the Joyful Heart Foundation, which she founded out of a desire to heal, educate and empower survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse.

Law & Order star Mariska Hargitay had a sort of revelation while visiting Hawaii, and since then has been dedicated to helping abuse victims.

When Cristina Carlino launched Philosophy, she created a brand that was about more than cute packaging and nicely scented body washes (though the Falling in Love fragrance is pretty heavenly). In fact, the brand aims to inspire women from both inside and out, using product bottles to pass along messages of hope or friendship while using simple yet effective ingredients. Of course, behind Philosophy is a woman with a philosophy: create a better world, one small step at a time.

Hargitay is one cliché worth talking about. In the midst of 12- to 15-hour days of physically grueling shoots for Law & Order: SVU, Mariska finds time to be a hands-on parent to her four-year-old son, August; push the envelope to grow the Joyful Heart Foundation, her charity for survivors of sexual and domestic abuse—and chat with a reporter to explain how she has time to do it all.

Last night I watched the premier of a beautiful movie about an ugly epidemic. Telling Amy’s Story chronicles the years and incidents of domestic violence that led up to the fatal shooting of Amy Homan McGee, a mother of two who had finally found the courage to escape her abusive husband.