Nice to know I'm not alone. And I was serious, I wasn't intending to bash anyone who enjoyed the show. I'm sure I've watched and appreciated shows that others might not. But I got through, apparently, 2 decades never having seen a particular TV show. I suppose that can be accredited to my lack of awareness of contemporary culture, or perhaps to Hollywood ability to so disenfranchise viewers such that some could be unfamiliar with their product, even after 2 decades. I'd say it's probably a bit of both, although the first is created by the latter in my case.
It was interesting at first. It had a cool perspective. It started with the crime and followed through as the story went through investigation and prosecution. The criminals in the first few seasons were a fairly diverse lot. Michael Moriarty left after four seasons. He said one of the show bosses was a tyrant and I forget who it was.
They lifted many of the stories from actual crimes. After Moriarty left, the show took a strong turn to the left. Plenty of other FReepers pointed out that the show’s emphasis became, “the white guy did it. The (minority) victim just wanted some government cheese.” It became an unitentional parody and unwatchable after the sixth season.