The WORST episodes of The First 48
Every episode of The First 48 ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of The First 48!
Follows detectives during the hours immediately following a homicide.
#1 - Gangland
Season 21 - Episode 50 - Aired 4/16/2020
A young man is gunned down at a troubled apartment complex that comes under federal investigation after a rap video goes viral.
#2 - Childhood Friend/Magic Bullet
Season 21 - Episode 65 - Aired 12/3/2020
In St. Louis, a man is shot in his apartment with only his girlfriend with him, but she claims she had nothing to do with it. In Tulsa, detectives need a childhood friend of the victim to tell the truth about the shooting in front of her home.
#3 - Cover Story
Season 21 - Episode 62 - Aired 11/5/2020
A man in Tulsa calls 911 claiming his girlfriend shot and killed herself, but detectives discover evidence suggesting foul play.
#4 - Tell No Tales/Unfair Fight
Season 21 - Episode 64 - Aired 11/19/2020
In Tulsa, a father of two is gunned down in broad daylight when an attempt to stand up for his cousin backfires. When an unidentified woman found shot and burned resembles a suspect in a recent home invasion, New Orleans detectives suspect a connection.
#5 - Escape Plan/Path of Terror
Season 21 - Episode 60 - Aired 8/20/2020
A mother is stabbed to death and Gwinnett detectives must find her missing son who might be the only witness. Tulsa detectives need to find out if there is a link between the murders of a pregnant woman and a young man shot at the same apartment complex.
#6 - Skipping School/Gamer
Season 21 - Episode 61 - Aired 8/27/2020
In Atlanta, a 23-year-old man is shot dead in front of his friends after a bad deal. When a 15-year-old high school student is found on the stairs of an apartment filled with kids, witnesses need to tell the truth so Tulsa Homicide can get to their shooter.
#7 - Old Flame/Bad Behavior
Season 21 - Episode 59 - Aired 8/13/2020
When a late-night shootout leaves a young man dead in Tulsa, Okla., the investigation leads to a woman from his past; when a Marine veteran is shot, detectives must determine if it is self-defense or not.
#8 - Death in Desire
Season 21 - Episode 63 - Aired 11/12/2020
In New Orleans, detectives make a gruesome discovery inside a car that was set on fire; Det. Ryan Vaught hopes the last person who spoke to the victim can lead him to the killer.
#9 - Point of No Return
Season 21 - Episode 58 - Aired 8/6/2020
When two friends are found executed in a car on a dark dead-end street, the investigation leads detectives to an unlikely suspect.
#10 - Night of Lies
Season 21 - Episode 57 - Aired 7/30/2020
In Mobile, Ala., the search for justice in the shooting death of a young man in a crowded parking lot has unfortunate consequences.
#11 - Silent Rage/Tainted Love
Season 9 - Episode 24 - Aired 8/19/2010
In Harris County, Deputy Jason Brown is called out on Easter Sunday to investigate the brutal shooting of a woman who was a school bus driver and mother of two. Meanwhile, Harris County Sergeant Sidney Miller takes on the murder of a young father, shot dead in a courtyard.
#12 - The Standoff
Season 21 - Episode 52 - Aired 4/23/2020
Tulsa Homicide responds when a father of three is gunned down at his job by suspects who end up in a standoff with police.
#13 - Out of the Darkness
Season 21 - Episode 86 - Aired 8/26/2021
In Tulsa, two families devastated by domestic violence look to detectives to find justice for their loved ones.
#14 - Triggered
Season 21 - Episode 43 - Aired 2/27/2020
Detective Ronnie Leatherman returns to Tulsa homicide to investigate the death of a man who crashed his car in a shopping center.
#15 - Jealous Heart/The Jump
Season 21 - Episode 41 - Aired 2/20/2020
In Mobile, Ala., a beloved mother of four is killed when she can't escape her past; an Atlanta detective on his first crime scene must find out why two young friends were gunned down in broad daylight.
#16 - A Murder in Mobile
Season 18 - Episode 21 - Aired 8/3/2017
When a homeless man is gunned down on the sidewalk, Mobile detectives discover a petty motive.
#19 - Street Law/Standing Up
Season 10 - Episode 18 - Aired 2/17/2011
After a year with the gang unit, Detective Kevin Ruggiero returns to Miami Homicide, investigating a drive-by shooting that left two men dead. He has little to work with until he learns that one of the victims was a founder of a local gang. Then in Louisville, Detective Kristen Downs responds to the shooting of a 17-year-old boy. When she learns that his friends witnessed the shooting, she has to convince them to overcome their fear of retaliation in order to bring him justice
#20 - The Good Son/Jacked Up
Season 9 - Episode 23 - Aired 8/12/2010
Harris County/Birmingham - When a 16-year-old boy is murdered at his family's roadside taco stand, Sgt. Henry Palacios is faced with one of the most tragic cases he has ever seen. Palacios is hot on the trail of his suspect, when another shooting turns the case on its head. And in Birmingham, Detective Marcel Walker investigates the death of a 29-year-old car mechanic, killed when a late-night tune-up turns deadly. When he gets a tip that the suspect is about to skip town, Walker launches a major manhunt.
#21 - Life Snatched
Season 9 - Episode 22 - Aired 8/5/2010
Miami - Det. Anthony Reyes and the homicide team are investigating the murder of a middle-aged mother of four, shot to death in a random robbery outside a public storage facility. With no witnesses to the actual shooting, detectives must rely on surveillance footage, which could be the key to solving their case.
#22 - Heart of Gold/Last Breath
Season 8 - Episode 23 - Aired 9/8/2009
A woman is stabbed multiple times. Once detectives arrive they realize they are familiar with the victim. They turn to friends and family to help isolate a killer. A dieing man speaks his final words to his sister after he was shot. Will his words lead to his killer?
#23 - Johnny Black/Stranger Than Fiction
Season 8 - Episode 22 - Aired 9/1/2009
In the first of two homicides less than ten blocks away, detectives head out to the shooting of man in the middle of the day. They investigation leads to a suspect who is a friend of the victim. Then, shots ring out and a young man is gunned down by a man on a bike. When a witness comes to them, they have a hard time believing her story. Is truth really stranger than fiction?
Watch Now:Apple TV#24 - The Code
Season 21 - Episode 67 - Aired 1/14/2021
Tulsa detectives investigate the Neighborhood Crips to solve the murder of a young man trying to leave the gang.
#25 - Truly Lost
Season 21 - Episode 66 - Aired 1/7/2021
When two young men are shot and killed in a car, Gwinnett County Homicide turns to the survivors to learn the truth about what led to the shooting.