Real-life officers are followed by a camera crew, cinéma-vérité style, in a gritty up-close look at police work and the consequences of crime. The result: one of Fox's longest-running series (it premiered in March 1989). It also spawned a number of police-reality imitators. Initially filmed only in Broward County, Fla., the series went on to show officers in locations across the country.
