In the late 80's and early 90's, true crime shows involving reenactments and law enforcement became popular in no small part due to 'Unsolved Mysteries'. Some of the shows proved popular and became well known. 'America's Most Wanted' or 'Rescue 911' for instance. 'Top Cops' was in the mix.
The format varied. Some were an attempt to put criminals behind bars and resolve cases with the public's help. While others focused on telling resolved stories from the perspective of the police involved. That was 'Top Cops' bread and butter.
Co-created by a former cop - Sonny Grosso - the show was filmed in the vicinity of Toronto, Canada and featured some notable actors in early roles doing the reenactments. The actual police officers and detectives would introduce and narrate their actual cases. The dramatic retelling of events would sometimes involve bits of action, tragedy and valor.
Two or three "cases" would make up an individual episode. There would be an efficient summary at the end highlighting the officers, end result of the crimes, suspects. With a hard-edge narration by Don Francks and a suspenseful music score.
Running for four seasons on CBS and it's affiliates, 'Top Cops' was a fun show to watch highlighting the highs and lows of law enforcement across the United States. Coming in the 90's there was a bit of cheesiness to the proceedings sometimes, but there was also decent acting and solid suspense. It also paved the way for many modern examples of the true crime television genre.
