Raising the Bar, Steven Bochco's Latest Show

L.A. Law & NYPD Blue Creator Offers Court Room Drama Full of Heart

Sep 1, 2008

Raising the Bar, created by Steven Bochco, is a show that gives lawyers and judges personality and heart.

Steven Bochco has won an unbelievable 10 Prime Time Emmy Awards. Bochco is the creator of such hits as L.A.Law, Hill Street Blues, and NYPD Blue. His latest creation is Raising the Bar. Raising the Bar premiered on TNT on September 1st, 2008 at 10 PM/9 PM central time.

Raising the Bar's Plot

The show concerns the inner workings of a courtroom in New York City. Most of the action actually takes place in the courthouse. The courtroom the show is concerned with is that of Judge Trudy Kessler. She must weigh justice swiftly. She does so with a touch of humor and quite a lot of heart. The cases shown are represented by members of the District Attorney Office and members of the Public Defender's office. The lawyers are seen working in the courtroom, communicating with their clients and each other, and figuring out the best way to get the result from the trial they want. Part of the action also takes place at a local restaurant/bar where the lawyers from both sides hang out. We see the lawyers interacting professionally in the courtroom often at odds with one another and later hanging out as friends at the bar.

In the premiere episode, Jerry Kellerman, one of the lawyers from the Public Defender's Office, must defend a man who has taken another man's camera. The defendant is schizophrenic and Kellerman tries to find a way to get the man the help he needs while keeping him out of jail. On the other side of the case is Michelle Ernhardt, an assistant District Attorney, who is working hard to balance her need to see justice served with her humanity. We see Kellerman and Ernhardt facing each other as adversaries in the courtroom and later as lovers in the bar.

Another case seen in the premiere episode is about a young woman accused of accosting a guard at the Welfare Office. Richard Patrick Woolsley works to defend her. He gets the case dismissed with the guard having an order of protection against the woman. She returns to the Welfare Office and again is confronted by the guard. She is arrested and sentenced to jail. Woolsley assists the woman further by getting social services to look after her grandmother while she is incarcerated.

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