17th Precinct

The series takes place in the American city of Excelsior[1] (shot in Vancouver,[2] modeled on San Francisco),[3] in a world where science was never "invented", and instead of using "oil, electricity, [and] coal", mankind relies on plant- and fire-powered magic to run society.

[6] Donald Pynchon, Excelsior's executive prophet (a city government official concerned with making and interpreting city-wide prophesies), is murdered in a North Beach back alley on September 23, 2011.

Detectives Longstreet and Bosson (Bamber & Callis) are tasked with the case and determine that his murder was intentionally brutal, and it was unobserved due to a magical charm which deadened sound in the alley.

Unconnected with the Pynchon case, DCI Wilder Blanks (Walker) begins seeing visions related to the Stoics, "a group dedicated to the destruction of magic" in favor of "reason, rationality, and [...] science"—a laughable prospect, but one about which they are deadly serious.

Investigating a nuisance case in an apartment building, Barkley and Travers unwittingly allow the Stoics access to murder an otherwise protected tenant, a college professor of "advanced magical engineering and biology with an emphasis on power plant design."

[8] Moore's development of 17th Precinct was part of a two-year deal with Sony Pictures Television to "create and executive produce series projects for broadcast and cable through his production company Tall Ship Prods.

Ronald D. Moore (photographed in 2013) created 17th Precinct .