Plot Synopsis

This reality show follows homicide detectives from around the country as they race to solve mysterious and harrowing murders before their time runs out. On Thursday, August 21, 2014 from 9-11pm ET/PT, A&E broadcast a two-hour special, "10th Anniversary: The Case That Haunts Me." This landmark program features several well known FIRST 48 detectives retelling the most haunting cases from their careers. Through interviews, recreations, and real case materials, these true crime stories from Memphis, Minneapolis, and Broward County reveal the personal and professional challenges faced by the most veteran investigators.

Season 15 of THE FIRST 48 premiered on Thursday, November 5, 2015 at 9pm ET/PT on A&E, immediately following a 12-hour marathon of encore episodes (9am-9pm). In the season opener, which is also the show's 300th episode, on the floor of an abandoned house, a young woman is found naked and strangled to death. As the investigation unfolds, Atlanta-based detectives Scott DeMeester and Vincent Velasquez must act fast before their suspect kills again. The rest of Season 15 follows homicide detectives from the nation's top police departments in cities like Minneapolis, Tulsa, Atlanta and New Orleans are followed in real time during the critical first 48 hours of a murder investigation. The story unfolds as they race to find leads, witnesses, and evidence -- before they disappear.

On Thursday, December 1, 2016 at 8pm ET/PT, A&E premiered the 16th season of THE FIRST 48, immediately following a five-hour marathon (3-8pm) of encore episodes. In the season opener, "Deadly Premonition," after a young woman has a deadly premonition, the New Orleans homicide team discovers her killer may have killed before.
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Season 23 of THE FIRST 48 premiered on Thursday, November 3, 2022 from 8-10pm ET/PT on A&E. In the two-hour season opener, "Unforgotten: Mothers and Sons," two murders within hours of each other at the same apartment complex leave Mobile Homicide scrambling to find the culprits.