The scene is Baltimore. Twice every three days another citizen is shot, stabbed, or bludgeoned to death. At the center of this hurricane of crime is the city's homicide unit, a small brotherhood of hard men who fight for whatever justice is possible in a deadly world. David Simon was the first reporter ever to gain unlimited access to a homicide unit, and this electrifying book tells the true story of a year on the violent streets of an American city. The narrative follows Donald Worden, a veteran investigator, Harry Edgerton, a black detective in a mostly white unit, and Tom Pellegrini, an earnest rookie who takes on the year's most difficult case, the brutal rape and murder of an eleven-year-old girl. Meanwhile, Baltimore is plagued by racial tensions and a drug epidemic, and the detectives often feel that the rising tide of chaos is about to swamp them completely. Originally published 15 years ago, Homicide became the basis for the acclaimed television show of the same name. This new edition--which includes an introduction, an afterword, and photographs--revives a classic of its kind, a riveting tale about the men who work on the dark side of the American experience.