Marcus’s 19-year-old son, a promising student and community mentor whose tragic death is the story’s inciting wound.

The officer’s teenage daughter. Intelligent, curious, and emotionally vulnerable. A moral compass caught in the crossfire.

Jamal’s girlfriend. Loyal, passionate, and outspoken—serves as a grounding voice in Jamal’s life.

Jamal’s best friend, an artist navigating survivor’s guilt and activism.

Briggs’s longtime police colleague and friend, who becomes a complex figure during the investigation.

Ambitious and media-savvy. Balances political pressure with genuine beliefs about justice.

Represents Marcus. Calm, intelligent, with a quiet fire. Believes in justice but knows the system intimately.

Presides over Marcus’s trial. Tough but fair, she’s walking a political tightrope.

Oversees Marcus’s case. A skilled orator with a hidden agenda.

A local activist and podcaster who becomes Marcus's biggest defender—and a national voice.

A conservative cable news host who exploits the story for ratings and spins a distorted narrative.

An empathetic local journalist who begins digging deeper into the story, eventually uncovering buried truths.

A local pastor who leads a vigil for Jamal and becomes Marcus’s spiritual sounding board.

Marcus’s estranged sister, a nurse who returns to support him during the trial. Their fractured relationship mirrors his emotional turmoil.

Lily’s school principal who tries to maintain order after the prom tragedy and faces her own public backlash.

Briggs’s supervisor, under pressure from internal investigations and the public.

Investigates the corrupted body cam footage and uncovers institutional negligence.

A rookie cop who idolized Briggs and struggles with what comes to light after the incident.

A fellow inmate who becomes a mirror and moral compass for Marcus during his time awaiting trial.

Oversees Marcus’s facility and quietly observes the national spotlight from the inside.