Courtney B. Vance hopes his new legal drama series '61st Street,' continues the conversation on police reform

George Burns/AMC

In the new AMC drama series, 61st Street, Courtney B. Vance stars as Franklin Roberts, a lawyer working to prevent Tosin Cole‘s character, Moses Johnson, from becoming a victim of Chicago’s infamously corrupt criminal justice system. In addition to telling the all-too-familiar story of “a Black man’s life in jeopardy at the hands of police,” Vance says he hopes the show continues the real-life conversation on police reform.

Speaking with ABC Audio on the history of police in America, Vance says, “Their job was to keep African American males in line, so that is the idea of protecting and serving.”

The series’ plot —