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A return to law and order
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September 10, 2009
 By Billy Suter
The 15th season of the longest-running crime series and the second longest-running drama series in the history of American television, is scheduled to start on SABC3 at 10.15 on Thursday night.
It's one of the best crime-drama series on the box, LAW & ORDER, and the new season is a 24-parter.
The brainchild of Dick Wolf, Law & Order follows a crime, usually adapted from current headlines, from two separate vantage points.
The first half of the show concentrates on the investigation of the crime by the police; the second half follows the prosecution of the crime in court.
In New York, when a crime is committed, the victims are represented by two distinct, yet forever intertwined, forces. There is the police department, represented here by the 27th precinct Homicide Detectives. It is their job to investigate the crime, collect evidence, interview witnesses and then, when the evidence points to a suspect or suspects, place the suspect(s) under arrest.
The matter is then taken over by the prosecutors of the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
There everyone works under the watchful eye of District Attorney John "Jack" James McCoy, played by Sam Waterston.
Together they discuss deals, prepare the witnesses and evidence and conduct the people's case in the trial. Both teams work with the Medical Examiners' Office, crime lab and police and District Attorney psychiatrists.
"Matters are rarely resolved easily, or for the people involved, satisfactorily. Crimes are committed which frequently create public unrest and controversy; race, morals and beliefs are frequently challenged and manipulated, the guilty can go unpunished and the innocent be ruined forever," says a spokesman for SABC3.
The detectives and prosecutors are weary, cynical, flawed, human and vulnerable. And yet they are somehow still dedicated to their jobs, to make the guilty answer for their crimes and gain some sense of justice for the victim and the victim's family.
The cast includes Elisabeth Rohm as Serena Southerlyn, Epatha Merkerson as Anita Van Buren, Jesse L Martin as Ed Green and Dennis Farina as Joe Fontana.
Meanwhile, on DStv's Sony Entertainment Television (channel 113), THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN celebrates 16 years on air - time in which it has featured more 3 170 episodes and some 5 620 guests.
Tonight's episode, at 10pm, is scheduled to have Letterman chatting to US actor, producer and director Billy Crystal, while John Fogerty is set to perform a number from his recent album, The Blue Ridge Rangers.
At 10pm tomorrow, the show will turn the spotlight on actor Neil Patrick Harris, of the comedy series How I Met Your Mother, who is set to discuss his role as host of this year's Emmy Awards, which take place on September 20.
Also on tomorrow's show is comedian Steve Mazan, who gives a taste of his routine in studio.
Musical guests will be Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros, performing a track from their CD, Up From Below.
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