The working title of this film was Harness Bull. Vice Squad was released in Great Britain under the title The Girl in Room 17. According to a March 27, 1947 Hollywood Reporter news item, the novel Harness Bull was first purchased as a property for Sol Lesser and Edward G. Robinson's production company, Thalia Productions. A later Hollywood Reporter news item dated May 6, 1952 reported that Vice Squad was the first film to be produced by the newly formed Sequoia Productions, which comprised a partnership between producers Sol Lesser, Jules Levy, Arthur Gardner and Arnold Laven. The news item adds that the film was initially set in San Francisco, CA.
       As noted in the Hollywood Reporter review and other contemporary sources, Vice Squad was shot on location in downtown Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Pacific Coast Highway and Long Beach, CA. Lux Video Theatre aired a version of the story on January 24, 1957, starring Pat O'Brien and Gloria Jean.