Known for impassioned hearings that have gone viral, Judge Frank Caprio reflects on his experience working in Providence Municipal Court for 38 years.
By Kelly Chase
Millions recognize Judge Frank Caprio from his viral YouTube videos, where he approaches parking and traffic violation disputes in Providence Municipal Court with empathy and compassion. The videos posted online are excerpts from the television show “Caught in Providence,” which originally aired on PEG access television in Rhode Island before it went into national syndication in 2018. All episodes feature real cases, real people, no scripts or actors.
In one case, available on YouTube (and which has amassed 26 million views), a young man named Muhammad walks into the courtroom to dispute a traffic violation. Caprio learns that Muhammad is from Syria, studying in the United States, and planning to pursue his master’s degree. When Caprio asks if he will go home or stay after his studies, Muhammad says, “I will definitely stay here and try to make some difference . . . because the United States helped me, and I will do something in return.”
Caprio learns more about the traffic violation and decides to dismiss it as it is Muhammad’s first offense. “This country is a country of immigrants,” says Caprio to Muhammad, noting that his father was born in Italy. “Different nationalities all came to this country and started off from ground zero like you are, and they made success not only in their own life but in their children’s lives, and the fact that you said you want to give back to this country is very meaningful to me, and I think you are going to be successful.”
This is how the courtroom proceedings typically go: Caprio asks questions to better understand the defendant and what caused them to run a red light or to speed. Oftentimes, he pulls out reasonable stories, and other times, the defendant sees the evidence and realizes they were in the wrong. “These are not crimes of moral turpitude, just traffic and parking violations,” says Caprio. “What I hope to demonstrate is that having compassion, respect, and understanding for ourselves and for others can yield more positive results in business and in life.”
Caprio also felt strongly about shaping public opinion about the judiciary. “Most people who came into the court, it was their first and only experience with the judiciary,” says Caprio. “I thought it was always very important that they be treated with respect and understanding as opposed to being harsh and dogmatic.”
Caprio credits his views to his upbringing. He was born in Providence in 1936. His father, who emigrated from Italy, took whatever jobs he could find and eventually landed a steady job as a milkman. “I would have to wake myself and my brother at four o’clock in the morning to go to work with him on the truck before school,” says Caprio. “[My father] was a very strong believer in education, and he wanted to make sure we stayed in school. If we complained on the job, he would say, ‘If you don’t want to do this for the rest of your life then you stay in school,’ and we did.”
Caprio graduated from Providence College and Suffolk University School of Law. He served as a judge in Providence Municipal Court from 1985 until 2023. “Caught in Providence” was born because the judge’s brother, Joe Caprio, was working on various projects as a videographer. However, as the story goes, he was running out of interesting content. “My wife said, ‘Go down to the courtroom, there are plenty of stories there,’” says Caprio. It took some convincing, but eventually, the show started on PEG access television in Rhode Island, and in 2000, it was picked up by ABC station WLNE-TV.
The shows are undoubtedly heartwarming, and many end on uplifting messages that make viewers feel hopeful. Because of that, clips from the show were often shared on social media and by newscasters around the country, and in 2018, it went into national syndication. “Although we began filming the courtroom for informational and educational purposes, I was not playing to the camera or doing anything for the show,” says Caprio. “I just did my job as a judge and spoke from the heart, tempered by my life experience and that of my family.”
The show ceased filming when Caprio retired in 2023. There is a season of clips available on Amazon Prime, and many more available on YouTube. When asked about his legacy and what he hopes others glean from his messages over the years, Caprio says it’s not hard to be kind to one another, and there’s nothing more essential to our well-being. “We all live together, and being able to have compassion and understanding for the people you interact with is very important in life,” says Caprio. “Try to place yourself in another person’s shoes, think how you would want to be treated if you were in this situation, and most importantly, don’t take yourself too seriously.”
In February of 2025, Caprio released his first book, “Compassion in the Court,” which recounts his life, career, and motivations for bringing greater empathy to the bench. His book is available in bookstores and online.
