CRIT-O-MATIC TV REVIEW.

Byline: David Kronke

``Close to Home''

(CBS Channel 2; 10 tonight)

Logline: Shocking crimes that could happen on your street are the focus of Jerry Bruckheimer's latest procedural. Jennifer Finnigan stars as Annabeth Chase, a Midwestern attorney prosecuting heinous suburban crimes.

Pros: Finnigan manages an almost impossibly deftly winning performance that treads a keen tightwire between hard-core prosecutor and sympathetic mother. Tonight's pilot is a particularly grim look at abusive husbands and their horribly manipulative grasp over their captive families.

Cons: So the show's about crimes in Chase's neighborhood that are so bad that eventually, she'll make enough money and be able to move to a better area? Pretty much all crimes occur close to somebody's home; so this show's emphasis on white-bread folks is both condescending and alienating toward a larger audience.

In a nutshell: CBS refused to provide a second episode for review, even at this late date, when even the WB's ``Related,'' which got off to a late production start, provided three hours for consideration. Procedurals of this sort are a virtual no-brainer these days - even the bad ones are pretty good - so what are the producers hiding from us?

Our rating: 1/2

'Frontline' looks at O.J. verdict It was 10 years ago Monday that the verdict in the O.J. Simpson came down. The former star football player was acquitted of murdering his wife and her friend. The reading of the verdict was one of the most-watched events in history. Tonight, PBS presents ``Frontline: The O.J. Verdict,'' on KCET, which examines the trial and how the prosecution was in trouble early.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) JENNIFER FINNIGAN

(2) no caption (O.J. Simpson)