On Patrol: Live starring Richland deputies sued by A&E, calling it a 'blatant rip-off' (2024)

COLUMBIA — While cameras follow some Richland deputies for On Patrol: Live, A&E Television Networks is suing the show's producers for copyright infringement.

A&E's lawsuit calls the recently aired live police show a "blatant rip-off" of the network's own Live PD, saying it is filmed under the same format with many of the same hosts and participating law enforcement departments.

Cameras will still be on this weekend for the live program, filming Richland deputies and officers from other participating law enforcement agencies in real-time while they patrol.

Richland deputies will continue to be on the show’s regularly scheduled times 9 p.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, according to the department’s public information officer Maria Yturria.

The Richland County Sheriff’s Department is aware of the lawsuit filed against REELZ, Yturria said, noting that the litigation does not involve the sheriff’s department.

“RCSD will continue to be on the show’s regularly scheduled time,” Yturria said in a statement. “The show continues to provide a unique and transparent view of what deputies do daily.”

A&E calls the new live police show a “blatant rip off” and “clone” of Live PD, according to a lawsuit filed Aug. 30 in US District Court, Southern District of New York. The lawsuit was filed against ReelzChannel, Big Fish Entertainment, and its production arm Half Moon Pictures.

Live PD, which also featured deputies from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, aired on A&E between 2016 and 2020. The show was cancelled in 2020 amid nationwide protests against police brutality following the killing of George Floyd.

On Patrol: Live, a show under the same format and produced by the same company, Big Fish Entertainment, first aired in July 2022 on Reelz.

The court complaint says “Big Fish (the show’s former producer) created a clone of Live PD featuring the same primary hosts, content, format, segments, and more, and sold that virtually identical show to REELZ, a cable network seeking its first breakout hit, which then aired the show over AETN’s repeated and vociferous objections.”

Former Live PD hosts Dan Abrams and Sean “Sticks” Larkin signed on to host On Patrol: Live, alongside Richland County Deputy Sheriff Curtis Wilson, who is also the co-anchor of TV station ABC Columbia's Good Morning Columbia and was featured on Live PD.

Along with Wilson, the lawsuit noted that On Patrol: Live brings back some deputies who were followed on Live PD including Master Deputy Addy Perez and now-Captain Danny Brown from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.

The new show also has the same segments in the same format as Live PD including “Crime of the Week,” Missing,” and “Wanted.”

The lawsuit said the mass marketing for the new show bounced off the reputation of Live PD, with numerous reports calling it a “reboot” saying they were “bringing back” Live PD. The lawsuit noted that Abrams thanked the “Live PD nation” for “its patience” and said the “show will be back.”

Big Fish Entertainment did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Reelz declined to comment on the pending litigation.

“ReelzChannel, LLC, has not been served with nor had an opportunity to review the Complaint in detail, and thus has no comment at this time beyond denying liability and expressing its ongoing commitment to On Patrol: Live,” the spokesperson said.

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