''I, Detective'' is an American

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

-style series that aired on Court TV (now

truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...

) from 2001 to 2006. For a time in early 2014, the show returned in reruns on sister network HLN. At first, it was retitled ''Detective Files'', but a month later, the show returned to its original title. The reruns have been repackaged to include updates at the end of some episodes on what became of the suspect(s) or parties involved since the final verdicts. As of late January 2015, the reruns now air on

Justice Network True Crime Network (formerly Justice Network) is an American digital multicast television network that is operated by True Crime Network, LLC, a limited liability company, which is owned by Tegna Inc. The network specializes in true crime, inve ...

Synopsis

Armchair detective An armchair detective is a fictional investigator who does not personally visit a crime scene or interview witnesses; instead, the detective either reads the story of the crime in a newspaper or has it recounted by another person. As the armch ...

s and

forensic science Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...

junkies get the opportunity to solve real cases. This half-hour series aired weekly and gave viewers the opportunity to follow clues, find evidence and learn how this information is used to solve some of the most intriguing criminal investigations. ''I, Detective'' combined the elements of documentary,

murder mystery Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a profession ...

, and

quiz show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating and narrating whe ...

s. Through an interactive series of multiple-choice questions, ''I, Detective'' challenged viewers to examine the same evidence, suspects, motives and witness statements that actual investigators consider in their quest to solve the crime.

Art Bell Arthur William Bell III (June 17, 1945 – April 13, 2018) was an American broadcaster and author. He was the founder and the original host of the paranormal-themed radio program '' Coast to Coast AM'', which is syndicated on hundreds ...

, Executive Vice President of Programming and Marketing said "The questions included in ''I, Detective'' give our viewers a chance to be active participants in the investigation. They examine the crime scene, evaluate evidence, and attempt to correctly answer questions that real criminologists and forensic specialists ask themselves as they solve a crime." ''I, Detective'' was produced by Michael Hoff Productions.I, Detective info
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IMDb IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

(accessed April 25, 2014)

Cases

The show has covered many infamous cases of the past like: Murder of Joey Fischer, Murder of Neal Rosenblum, Murder of Kristine Fitzhugh and Murder of

Mia Zapata Mia Katherine Zapata (August 25, 1965 – July 7, 1993) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist for the punk rock band The Gits. After gaining praise in the emerging grunge scene, Zapata was raped and murdered in Seattle in 1993 while ...

. The show also covered many

serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...

cases like:

Stella Nickell Stella Maudine Nickell (née Stephenson; born August 7, 1943) is an American woman who was sentenced to 90 years in prison for product tampering after she poisoned Excedrin capsules with lethal cyanide, resulting in the deaths of her husband, B ...

, Donald Piper, Roger Kibbe or the Bellevue murders.

References

{{Court TV 2001 American television series debuts 2006 American television series endings 2000s American reality television series 2000s American crime television series 2000s American documentary television series Law enforcement in the United States TruTV original programming