Wondering where Mehcad Brooks’ Detective Jalen Shaw has been on Law & Order? After back-to-back episodes without the fan-favorite investigator, viewers finally got an update during the April 3, 2025 episode. A quick exchange between Riley and Lt. Brady confirmed Shaw’s ongoing illness—and reassured fans that his return is just around the corner.
Here’s what we know about Shaw’s absence, his illness, and when he returns to the 27th Precinct.
Is Mehcad Brooks’ Detective Shaw leaving Law & Order and where is he?
Detective Jalen Shaw, played by Mehcad Brooks, has not left Law & Order. He was absent from the April 3, 2025 episode, “A Perfect Family,” and the March 20 episode, “Folk Hero,” due to illness.
Shaw’s absence was addressed in both episodes. In “Folk Hero,” Lt. Jessica Brady questioned, “Do we really believe Jalen’s sick or did he just want to miss the longest CompStat meeting in history?” to which Det. Vincent Riley replied, “No, he’s really sick. Big guy got hammered.”
Riley also mentioned that Shaw had to wait in the ER for hours for a “chest scan.” In “A Perfect Family,” Brady confirmed, “Jalen’s still sick, it’s just me and you,” while speaking to Riley at a crime scene.
When will Jalen Shaw return to Law & Order?
Detective Shaw returns in the next new episode of Law & Order, titled “Inherent Bias,” airing on April 10, 2025. He temporarily stepped away due to an unspecified illness.
Mehcad Brooks and Reid Scott, who plays Det. Vincent Riley, share a strong on-screen dynamic that will resume with Shaw’s return. Brooks said in an October 2024 interview with CinemaBlend, “Reid is my brother from another mother, like we were long lost brothers split up at birth. I’ve never gotten along so well with somebody so fast, and he says the same thing.”
He added, “We have the same sense of humor, both really sarcastic and sardonic. We have a lot of similar interests. We’re both Scorpios. We just get along as human beings, and we both work really hard at our jobs.”
Law & Order airs Thursdays at 8/7c p.m. on NBC.