March 8–14, 2019 Brooklyn Paper • www.BrooklynPaper.com • (718) 260-2500 AWP 9
All rise: Judge Michael Corriero serves as one of three judges on the syndicated television court show “Hot
Bench,” airing weekdays on CBS.
‘Bench’ press
Local jurist stars on TV show
By Natallie Rocha
Brooklyn Paper
He’s so hot right now!
Brooklyn Heights Judge Michael
Corriero dispenses justice five days
a week on his hit daytime television
show “Hot Bench,” much like he did
during his decades-long tenure as a New
York jurist.
Corriero spent 28 years in the criminal
courts of New York State, 16 of them
presiding over Manhattan’s Youth Part,
a special court he created to bring attention
to young offenders being prosecuted
as adults. He continued his work with
the city’s youth after retiring in 2008,
when he became Executive Director of
Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York
City, and then established the New York
Center for Juvenile Justice.
Then an old friend, Judy Sheindlin
— known nationwide as the honorable
Judge Judy — asked him to lend his
talents to her syndicated show featuring
a panel of three judges.
Now Corriero sits on the “Hot Bench”
next to two other judges — Judge Patricia
Dimango and Judge Tanya Acker —
and the trio reach a whopping 3.2-million
viewers each weekday.
The native New Yorker now splits
his time between Los Angeles and
Brooklyn Heights, but found time to
chat with this paper about his influences
and his love for the city’s biggest
borough.
Natallie Rocha: What inspired you
to study law?
Michael Corriero: I grew up across
the street from the Manhattan court system
— they called it “the Tombs.” I was
always curious about what was happening
in that building. I would play a game
with my buddies where we would try
and get past the officers and play in the
bowels of the building. We would see
the officers and defenders of criminal
law at the corner of Baxter and White
Street and it was really the entire atmosphere
that drew me in.
NR: What draws you to juvenile justice
reform?
MC: What drew me in initially was
wanting to work with young people who
found themselves outside the letter of
the law. If people saw me at the corner
of Mulberry and Hester Street when I
was 15 or 16 years old, they never would
have imagined that this kid would grow
up to be a judge. I grew up on the mean
streets of Little Italy and I had to navigate
big points in time where one step
in the wrong direction could obstruct a
meaningful career. I am fortunate and I
always want to communicate how valuable
education is. In this country, we believe
that knowledge is power. We believe
in the idea that no matter who you are or
where you come from, you can succeed.
Neither my mother nor my father had a
formal education, but they recognized
how valuable education was.
NR: Growing up, did you ever get
out of Manhattan to explore Brooklyn?
MC: Brooklyn was always a place
I wanted to be. When I was young, I
wanted to go to Coney Island with my
friends during the summer. My mom let
us take the subway to the beach. There
was one part of the subway where it
was an elevated ride and you could see
all of Brooklyn and the neighborhoods,
it was beautiful. Brooklyn was like its
own country.
Brooklyn Beat Hot Seat
Favorite restaurant: Antica
Pesa in Williamsburg (115 Berry St.
between N. Seventh and N. Eighth
streets). It is owned by a Roman family
and they have one of the same
name in Italy.
Favorite spot: The Brooklyn
Heights Promenade. Since it’s my neighborhood,
I like to walk the dog and jog
through there. It gives you a nice perspective
of Manhattan — seeing it all
is a dreamlike experience and it is the
best in the early morning. It is what defines
Brooklyn Heights.
Favorite landmark: As a judge, on
my way to work at the Supreme Court, I
would drive across the Brooklyn Bridge.
The architecture was almost like the
gates to a medieval city and it always
inspired me.
“Hot Bench” airs weekdays on
WCBS-TV Channel 2 at 9 am.
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Judge Michael Corriero
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