Cole Phelps is now a rookie detective with the Traffic Squad in L.A.P.D.’s Central Division, which serves the majority of downtown Los Angeles. The station Watch Commander, Mel Fleischer, introduces Phelps to his new partner, Stefan Bekowsky. Phelps also meets Roy Earle, the flashy Chief Detective in Administrative Vice (usually shortened to Ad Vice), the L.A.P.D. unit that concentrates on activities such as gambling, drugs, pornography, and prostitution.