During the last week of principal photography in Cleveland, production was briefly halted on two separate occasions due to exchanges of gunfire in neighborhoods near the set.
Though he's never seen in the film, a Detroit police officer named Gil Hill is mentioned a couple of times during the course of the events leading up to the trial. This was the same Gil Hill who would become famous as Inspector Todd, Axel Foley's boss in the Beverly Hills Cop movies. Following his retirement from the Detroit Police Department, he went into politics as a Detroit City Councilman, and later, President of the Detroit City Council. During his time as a police officer, he was involved in the "White Boy Rick" case.
Richie Merritt had apparently never heard of Matthew McConaughey and was oblivious to his A-list celebrity status when he agreed to do the film.
Richie Merritt, who plays White Boy Rick, grew up in Baltimore County. The actor's thick Baltimore accent is obvious at certain points in the film, despite the character being from Detroit, MI.
The film is set in Detroit, Michigan, but production and filming took place in Cleveland, Ohio.