NBC's Law & Order eyes true crime stories

NBC has announced plans to expand its Law and Order brand to dramatize real life crime stories in a new anthology series called Law and Order; True Story. Currently in advanced development, the scripted series will follow American Crime story in chronicling famous real life cases.

Developed by veteran producer Dick Wolf, the series will focus on a different real-life crime story every season following in the vein of FX’s Ryan Murphy-created widely acclaimed drama. The Network announced that the first season would dramatize the Menendez brothers’ trial of 1989.

Law & Order True Crime Anthology inspired by the Menendez Brothers' Trial

Law and Order’ True Story will chronicle the trial of Lyle and Erick Menendez, who were convicted of killing their parents in 1996, after three trials, and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

The case, which ran for more than seven years shocked the nation with the scintillating drama that was the trial capturing the attention of the nation for the entire period it lasted.

On the trial preceeding, members of the public are reported to have arrived at the courtrooms as early as 4 am to guarantee a seat in the courtroom to witness the case. The private life of the Menendez was turned into a private fair.

Jose Menendez, a movie executive, and his wife Kitty Menendez were shot by their two sons, who were supposed to be out watching a movie, in the television room of their palatial six bedroom mansion whose previous occupants included the illustrious likes of Elton John and Prince.

Eyewitnesses described the scene of the murder as having have been so gruesome that the itb led the police to suspect initially strongly the mafia.

What made the story even more compelling was the apparent close-knit nature of the family with reports that they called each other up to several times daily even for mundane things like reporting exam results.

Revelations of a possible lifetime of sexual abuse suffered by the two sons at the hands of their father and accusations against their mother who they claimed was a mentally unstable drug and alcohol abuser during the trial only increase the allure of the upcoming series.

This is not the first time the riveting story of the murders will be told on the small screen with Tri-Star Television in association with Zev Braun pictures recounting the story of the heinous crimes in a four hour mini-series in 1994.

The gripping horror-tale nature of the story was not lost on the executives at NBC with Wolf, who will executive produce the show through his Wolf Entertainment company, describing the story as being more scintillating than most crime fictions.

The series also extends Wolf’s long and prosperous association with the franchise having been an executive producer for the franchise since 1990.

The Series hopes to ride the current wave of renewed public interest in the true crime genre resulting mostly from the efforts of FX and Murphy on their show American Crime Story whose just-concluded first season focused on the recreation of the trial of OJ Simpson.

Other true crime stories riding the wave have included HBO’s 'The Jinx’ and Netflix’s 'Making of a Murderer.'