ABC Image Group LA(LOS ANGELES) — Two Sides, a new true crime docu-series about police brutality, executive-produced by Viola Davis, will debut January 22.
The How to Get Away With Murder star will also narrate the hour-long, four-part series, airing on TV One. The series will examine four cases of African-Americans who died as a result of police action from 2014–2015: Eric Garner in New York, Sandra Bland in Texas, Ezell Ford in California, and John Crawford in Ohio.
“This is a way for us to humanize these victims and not make them just a statistic,” said Davis and co-executive producer Julius Tennon in a joint statement.
“We also have to look at the other side of the story – our law enforcement’s point of view. Let’s come together and have a conversation around these issues so that we can come up with real solutions that will lead to positive change.”
D’Angela Proctor, TV One Head of Original Programming and Production, says the ongoing protests against deadly forced used by law enforcement factored into the network’s decision to produce the series.
“Inspired by courageous acts such as NBA Champions LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, who donned ‘I Can’t Breathe’ shirts in honor of Garner during pregame warm-ups, and the NFL’s Colin Kaepernick, who kneeled during the anthem prior to games for an entire season to raise awareness of police brutality, we wanted to utilize our platform to shine a light on this pressing issue,” she says.
The series also features commentary from contributors including Rev. Al Sharpton, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and attorney Christopher Darden, who was a member of the prosecution for the O.J. Simpson murder case.
Copyright © 2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.