TV justice, Miami style

Miami now counts five former criminal court judges with TV shows, two of whom were nominated for a daytime Emmy this year. South Florida has more than its share of high-profile court cases and colorful characters, and the combination seems to make for must-see TV.

"I think it's the water," Marilyn Milian, who has presided over "The People's Court" for the last eight seasons, said with a laugh. "This is a big, vibrant town with a wonderfully diverse judiciary. You have to have a personality, and we have a lot of personalities on the bench."

Milian was nominated for an Emmy along with David Young, whose self-titled show just finished its first season. Also finishing her first year is Cristina Pereyra, host of "Final Verdict" on the Spanish-language TeleFutura network. Rounding out the Miami group are "Judge Alex" Ferrer and, coming soon to a TV near you, "Judge Karen" Mills-Francis.

None of these shows approach the ratings supremacy of courtroom TV queen "Judge Judy" Sheindlin, a former New York judge. But those Miamians on the air are considered a success, and their roots seem to play a role.

Gerette Allegra-Samiian, vice president of programming at Sony Pictures Television, said she discovered Young by watching TV coverage of him presiding over a trial of two airline pilots who were convicted of attempting to fly while drunk. Florida law allows live broadcasts of criminal trials, giving its judges exposure those in some other states don't get. She found Young to be compassionate and wise, "like your favorite uncle."

"Miami is a really colorful city. The judges get to see a lot of different situations, but it really comes down to the judge," she said. "They need to be likable. They need to be able to handle conflict. They need to be entertaining. At the end of the day, it's television."

Each of the Miami judges had a long legal career before TV came calling. As real judges they presided over murder and other serious criminal cases, but now they're doing the often humorous small claims lawsuits that are the bread and butter of courtroom TV.

Typical fare might include a woman suing her mother for stealing her identity; neighbors squabbling over whose dog dug a hole in their shared fence; brothers battling over a car trade that left one of them with a lemon.