‘A.V.’s Most Wanted’ : Despite No-Frills Format, TV’s ‘Crime Scene’ Finds Success

There are neither slick hosts nor well-tailored clothes on the TV show “Crime Scene,” a local knockoff of “America’s Most Wanted.” There are also no fancy sets, no state-of-the-art computer graphics, no banks of operators answering phones and no dramatic crime re-enactments.

It’s just Capt. Tony Welch, commander of the Antelope Valley sheriff’s station, and Sgt. Bob Denham of the Sheriff’s Department sitting at a table in front of a poster of a large sheriff’s badge. On the table are a single telephone and a few pieces of paper the men occasionally shuffle.

If they have any video footage to show, it’s either a simple walk-through of a crime scene or something recorded by a surveillance camera.

But as plain-wrap as “Crime Scene” is, this twice-a-month cable show can lay claim to having helped nab a suspect, even though the show just debuted in February. The accused shooter in what authorities have called a racially motivated hate crime was arrested earlier this month after being featured on the program.

“The show was directly responsible for locating the suspect,” said Detective Chuck Ingram, the investigator handling the case. The suspect, Christopher Parker, is accused of shooting several rounds into a car carrying four African Americans.

“I think the show is excellent, (as is) anything that involves the community and the community gets involved with,” Ingram said.

Shown live from a small studio in the Jones Intercable offices in Palmdale, “Crime Scene” has also generated other tips that have been of interest to investigators. But the information provided by the public is not the only benefit of the show, Denham said.

“Crime Scene” also gives an opportunity for residents to hear about crimes occurring in their own neighborhoods and speak directly to the law enforcement officers who patrol their streets. “We’re always trying to find ways that we can have close contact and direct feedback with the community,” said Denham, who also serves as the show’s program coordinator. “By utilizing a live, interactive show, it allows us to put on a show that’s relevant and current.”

Welch described the program as high-tech, community-based policing. “We’re coming into their living room and we’re telling them something,” he said.

The show is aired live on Jones Intercable every other Monday. Discussions during the four half-hour episodes shown since “Crime Scene” began on Feb. 6 include jewelry store robberies and ways to avoid having your car stolen.

The hosts are the first to admit they are not yet quite comfortable in their new roles. They sometimes trip on their own words and speak in incomplete sentences while on camera. “It’s an experience being live,” said Welch.

This is not the first time the Antelope Valley Sheriff’s Department has turned to television as an aid to investigating crimes. For four years, ending in December, the department and Jones Intercable produced “A.V. Law,” a taped show that also allowed law enforcement officials to discuss local issues.

But the response to a live, call-in show produced by a Jones Intercable system in Oxnard was so positive that the cable operator suggested that a similar one be produced in Palmdale with the Sheriff’s Department.

“We were both looking for something that was a little more responsive,” said Jones Intercable’s Patricia Fregoso, “Crime Scene” producer. “After talking to the (Antelope Valley) Sheriff’s Department, we decided it was a better use of our time and their time to produce a live show.”

Denham agreed a live show would be more entertaining.

“If we had very current media-interest-type crimes, we’d be able to pull in more viewers,” Denham said.

“People watch more television than anything. People like watching television.”