TNT's "Cold Justice" has Strong Debut

[JamesG]

TNT Orders Unsolved Mysteries Unscripted Series
1/9/2013
by Philiana Ng


TNT has given a series order to a real-life "Cold Case" series.

Tentatively titled "Cold Justice", the unscripted effort will follow two female investigators Kelly Siegler and Yolana McClary, as they delve into murder cases that have gone unsolved for years.

TNT is eyeing a late summer launch for the eight-episode series.



"Cold Justice", from Wolf Films and Magical Elves, will be executive produced by Dick Wolf, Dan Cutforth, Jane Lipsitz and Tom Thayer.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/liv...-series-410426

[Zlatko]

Finally, a series that looks into unsolved murders. Hopefully the show is popular enough to create a trend.

There are far too many shows that look into solved crimes. Unsolved cases need more media attention.

[JamesG]

"Cold Justice" premieres Tuesday, Sept. 3, at 10/9c on TNT.

[JamesG]

"Law & Order" Producer Dick Wolf Enters True Crime Territory with "Cold Justice"
Sep 2, 2013
by Liz Raftery


There's a new crime-fighting duo coming to prime time this fall, but the cases they're investigating have been dormant for years and sometimes even decades.

On TNT's "Cold Justice" (premiering Tuesday at 10/9c), the latest endeavor from "Law & Order" creator Dick Wolf, prosecutor Kelly Siegler and crime scene investigator Yolanda McClary team up to reopen unsolved small-town cases that have gone "cold" despite the best efforts of local law enforcement.



"When things go cold, families automatically think that nobody cares anymore," McClary tells TVGuide.com.

"And that's so far from the truth. The police departments, they care, they just are at the end. They're not sure where else to take this. And from not just the standpoint of the case, but also for the family, to let them know there are people out there who care, even beyond the agency there in your town."







It was Siegler — who's tried nearly 70 murder cases and never lost — who decided her career would make a good TV show when she was working at the Harris County District Attorney's office in Houston, Texas.

"When I worked at the DA's office in Harris County, I was assigned to work on cold cases for about 10 years," she explains. "And in doing that, I realized how many cases there were in small counties that could be solved if the local guys could just get some help. Dick Wolf was the first one who saw the potential and the personality and liked the idea, and because of him, Yolanda and I are here today."







Though the women didn't know each other until they began working on the show together two years ago, they quickly formed an effective team.

"In all honesty, Kelly and I are kind of personally like salt and pepper, black and white," McClary says. "We are such opposites, and it makes it very entertaining. ... I love to shop, and she goes, 'Oh my God, do I have to?' So it's actually quite comical. But we think exactly alike when it comes to crimes and scenes and victims and witnesses. So that's where we come together really, really well."







In the premiere, the women travel to Cuero, Texas. to re-examine the death of a woman that had been ruled a suicide in 2001. But her family members and the lead investigator on the case were never convinced, and suspected that her husband was actually responsible for her death.

In one of the more raw moments of the episode, McClary and Siegler bring the woman's daughter back to the scene of the crime to aid with their investigation.



"I've always been a really strong person, and it is very emotional because ... in a sense we are making them relive this, and we're reopening it," McClary says.

"And it's difficult. I'm not even going to lie for a second about that. I've probably cried more on this show and dealing with the family of the victims than I probably did my entire career. It is very emotional to listen to them and to feel what they're going through."







Unlike scripted police procedurals, the show adopts a warts-and-all approach when showing the more frustrating aspects of case-solving. For viewers who are used to neatly packaged conclusions on fictional crime shows, it's surprising and maddening to learn how often cases go cold simply due to a lack of resources.

"When it's a scripted show, you always want to have this happy ending," Siegler tells TVGuide.com.

"But our show is real. It's reality, following us from the beginning to the end on this and seeing what really happens with a real case, your ups and your downs and your emotions. ... In the real world — which Yolanda and I have spent our whole careers in — you have unsolved cases all around you, overwhelming you. They never go away. You never forget about them, you never give up. But you have lots of unsolved cases. I can remember plenty from my career."



Adds McClary: "Everything is real. You're watching this from the beginning to the end. Any case that's being looked at, it's going to be the last shot for this case, doing whatever can be possibly done for it. This is truly the last shot. And so, there's a lot that goes with that. There's a lot of stress on everybody, lot of ups and downs. Being able to see this from the beginning to the end is completely different than any show that's out there."

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Cold-Jus...y-1069805.aspx

[JamesG]

TNT’s "Cold Justice" Debuts Strong
by DOMINIC PATTEN
Wednesday September 4, 2013


On TNT, the Dick Wolf-produced "Cold Justice" debuted at 10 PM Tuesday with strong unscripted numbers for the cable station. The procedural series pulled in 2.9 million viewers total with 942,000 among adults 25-54.

The only reality series to debut closely for TNT was "Boston’s Finest", which garnered about 1.3 million viewers when it debuted on February 27 of this year, when DVR numbers are factored in.



"Cold Justice" follows female investigators Kelly Siegler, a Texas prosecutor for 21 years who has successfully tried 68 murder cases, and Yolanda McClary, a crime scene investigator, as they dig into cold murder cases.

Wolf, Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz and Tom Thayer executive produce.

http://www.deadline.com/2013/09/owns...debuts-strong/

[Zlatko]

This show has got be one of the best true crime shows in recent year. Superb stuff thus far.

Fingers crossed that TNT keeps this show.

[JamesG]

TNT Reality Show "Cold Justice" Gets Murder Confession
9/18/2013
by Michael O'Connell


Who says reality contributes nothing to society?

TNT's "Cold Justice" prompted a Texas man to confess to a 12-year-old murder within days of the series' Sept. 3 premiere. Ronnie Joe Hendrick, 41, pleaded guilty to the 2001 gunshot murder of girlfriend Pamela Shelly, a crime ruled a probable suicide until it was dug up by "Cold Justice" star Kelly Siegler.





The former Texas-based prosecutor and her ex-Las Vegas police detective co-star Yolanda McClary found evidence implicating Hendrick while shooting the pilot in fall 2012. Attention surrounding the show's premiere prompted a mistrial, but Hendrick changed his plea Sept. 10 and received a 22-year prison sentence.

"This was definitely a unique situation," says executive producer Jane Lipsitz, who produces "Cold Justice" with Magical Elves partner Dan Cutforth as well as Dick Wolf. "Because so much time had passed between filming the pilot and going to trial, it was able to coincide with the airing."





Premiering to 2.9 million viewers, "Cold Justice" scored one of cable's top 10 unscripted launches of 2013 and bucked the trend of such recent TNT reality misfires as "72 Hours", "The Hero" and "The Great Escape".

The network has not yet ordered a renewal, but producers already are scouting cases for a sophomore run. Lipsitz says they've been flooded with inquiries from viewers close to unsolved crimes.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/new...fession-630471