Jeanine Ferris Pirro (born June 2, 1951) is a former prosecutor,judge, and elected official from the state of New York, who is currently a legal analyst and television personality. Pirro is the host of Fox News Channel’s political commentary television show Justice with Judge Jeanine which premiered in January 2011. She is also a contributor on other Fox News shows and NBC's Today. She previously hosted a television court program, Judge Jeanine Pirro, later known simply as Judge Pirro.
A Republican from Westchester County, Pirro served as a county court judge before serving as the elected district attorney of Westchester County for 12 years. As a district attorney she gained considerable visibility, especially in cases regarding domestic abuse and crimes against the elderly. She was the first female judge on the Westchester County Court bench. Pirro was the Republican nominee for New York Attorney General in 2006, losing to Democrat Andrew Cuomo (a fellow Albany Law alumnus).
Judge Jeanine Pirro (known simply as Judge Pirro since the premiere of its second season) is an American arbitration-based reality court show, presided over by retired Westchester County, New York, District Attorney Jeanine Pirro. The series debuted on The CW on September 22, 2008.
Synopsis
As with other court shows, such as Judge Mathis and Judge Judy, a former judge serves as an "arbitrator" (dispute solver), and awards the litigants monetary judgments, of up to $5000, which is paid in full by the program's producers.
Production
Judge Jeanine Pirro was recorded in Chicago at NBC Tower, the NBC network's Chicago broadcast base and home to the related courtroom series Judge Mathis, and is produced by Telepictures Productions, distributed in syndication by Warner Bros. Greg Mathis, who presides over the aforementioned Judge Mathis, serves as this series' consultant.
Upon its premiere, Judge Pirro was made part of The CW Daytime programming block; meaning that, while technically a syndicated series, it only aired on CW affiliates. Following its first season, The Tyra Banks Show was pulled from national syndication and took over Judge Pirro's place in the CW Daytime lineup, resulting in the series moving to Fox-owned stations, along with regular syndication outside of Fox O&O markets.