Kevin A. Ross (born 1963) is an American host of the syndicated television program America's Court with Judge Ross, a producer, communications strategist, and former California Superior Court judge.
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A Los Angeles native, Ross attended Gardena High School, where he was student body president and president of the District-Wide Association of Student Councils for the Los Angeles Unified School District. He went on to graduate from Morehouse College with a degree in Political Science, and received his juris doctorate from Southwestern Law School.
An internship working for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office at the height of the crack cocaine epidemic convinced Ross that victims and those living in underserved communities needed advocates to represent their interests. He decided to become a deputy district attorney, and later worked as a hardcore gang prosecutor responsible for implementing controversial civil gang nuisance injunctions.[1]
Ross entered politics in 1995, running for a seat on the Los Angeles City Council. Finishing third, his presence forced former LA mayoral candidates Stan Sanders and incumbent Nate Holden into a run-off. Although both courted Ross for his endorsement,[2] he gave his support to Holden, who won the election.[3]
Committed to continuing his civic involvement, Ross became a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, was appointed to the LA County Parks and Recreation Commission, and co-founded The New Leaders, an organization created to train and prepare the next generation of African American leaders locally and abroad.
It was also during this period when Ross began contributing op-ed pieces for publications including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Sentinel and Los Angeles Daily News.[4] He was named co-host of “The People’s Connection” on 103.9 KACE, before being given his own show on Disney’s KTZN 710 The Zone. The first talk radio station in the nation to focus exclusively on women, The Zone was unable to find a receptive audience. Eventually it became 710 Radio Disney before its current incarnation of ESPN AM sports station KSPN (AM).[5] While several on-air personalities lost their jobs, Ross was brought over to do his weekend program on Talkradio 790 KABC. There, he hosted and produced Keeping It Real with Kevin Ross until he retired from the airwaves to begin his judicial career.
While attending law school, Ross clerked for David W. Williams, the first African-American federal district court judge appointed west of the Mississippi. A fellow black Republican, Judge Williams would subsequently administer the oath of office to Ross after he successfully challenged a sitting judge on the then Inglewood Municipal Court.[6] At that time, Ross was the youngest elected judge in the state of California.
Ross was elevated the following year to the Superior Court through a unification ballot measure approved by California voters.[7] During his seven years on the bench, Ross handled over 60,000 cases, ranging from traffic and small claims matters, to sexually violent predators and murderers. After being profiled on KCET’s Life & Times Tonight, Ross began appearing on the PBS program to discuss legal issues from a judge’s perspective.[8] He also frequently spoke about the importance of Blacks becoming police officers, prosecutors, defense attorneys and judges to ensure the judicial system treated minorities fairly.[9]
In 2005 the Commission on Judicial Performance (CJP) removed Judge Ross from office, stating he violated judicial canons pertaining to defendants’ constitutional rights, public comments made on KCET, and his involvement in a television court show pilot.[10] Ross unsuccessfully appealed the CJP's decision to the California Supreme Court, a ruling that also made him ineligible to practice law in the state. [11] [12] Neither the initial Endemol and Tribune Entertainment produced "Mobile Court", nor the follow-up Twentieth Television program "Ross is Boss", was picked up by television stations for syndication.[13]
Reigniting his interest in media, Ross decided to start a communications company, become a blogger, and launch an eponymous Internet show on Blogtalkradio, a large citizen broadcasting network. "The Kevin Ross Show" became a leading current events and conservative political show on Blogtalkradio. It also ranked among the top five most popular shows on the social networking radio site.[14]
In 2008, Fox News Radio and BlogTalkRadio partnered to bring listeners "Election 2008: Battle of the Blog Talkers." Fans of FOX News Radio's "FOX Across America" selected their favorite BlogTalkRadio hosts from each side of the political spectrum during a weeklong, one-on-one tournament. Ross was chosen as one of the eight hosts, and ultimately won the contest representing the political right.[15]
At a 2009 business meeting with comedian Byron Allen to discuss an online media venture, Allen was so impressed with Ross that he made him a deal right on the spot to host a court show for Entertainment Studios. The following year, "America's Court with Judge Ross" was among the 2010-2011 crop of freshman programs in daytime. [16] The show, also seen on the Verizon FIOS network, has been renewed through the 2012-2013 television season.[17]
Along with serving as one of the producers on America's Court, Ross is president and CEO of 3BAAS Media Group, a media and marketing firm for clients interested in strategic messaging, branding and content creation. Ross also appears on various cable and radio outlets such as Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, Black Entertainment Television (BET), NPR and KJLH as a legal, political and social commentator.
Kevin Ross is married with two children and resides in the Los Angeles area.