Court TV offers the very best, most entertaining moments from the American legal system for our viewing pleasure. (If it weren’t actually real, it’d sound like something from a 20th-century dystopian sci-fi parable looking ahead to what the 2000s might hold.) From live trials to true crime documentaries, panel-based discussions to news coverage, Court TV has everything a person might possibly want to see surrounding the justice system in America. Just one question: How do you find Court TV on a DirecTV guide? What channel is it on? Here’s how to find it.
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Pick your choice of ESPN+, Hulu, and Disney Plus. Plans start as low as $4.99/month for ESPN+ only.
Free trial available. Watch 75+ channels, including local channels and special premium channel offers.
Take a 7-day free trial and stream more than 70 channels live. Record your favorites with unlimited DVR.
Court TV Channel Guide
Want to know the real reason you’re having a hard time finding Court TV on DirecTV? It’s not actually carried by DirecTV. The former home for Court TV, also known as TruTV, is found on channel 246. That said, you won’t find Court TV on this station. To watch the network, you’ll either need an antenna or a streaming device. The channel is available to stream for free on Roku, YouTube TV, Pluto TV, and other streaming television providers. If you have an antenna, you can find it on one of the sub-stations listed below.
| City and State | Sub-Station Channel Number |
|---|---|
| Atlanta, GA | 17.2 |
| Baltimore, MD | 2.5 |
| Bakersfield, CA | 23.2 |
| Baton Rouge, LA | 47.1 |
| Birmingham, AL | 42.4 |
| Boise, ID | 6.5 |
| Buffalo, NY | 4.2 |
| Butte, MT | 4.5 |
| Charleston, SC | 12.1 |
| Charlotte, NC | 36.3 |
| Chicago, IL | 38.3 |
| Cincinatti, OH | 9.2 |
| Dallas, TX | 32.1 |
| Denver, CO | 59.3 |
| Des Moines, IA | 13.4 |
| Detroit, MI | 7.4 |
| Duluth, MN | 3.4 |
| Fayetteville, AR | 36.1 |
| Fort Myers, FL | 22.6 |
| Hartford, CT | 20.2 |
| Houston, TX | 32.1 |
| Jackson, MS | 12.4 |
| Kansas City, MO | 50.2 |
| Knoxville, TN | 7.3 |
| Las Vegas, NV | 13.4 |
| Lexington, KY | 18.4 |
| Little Rock, AR | 11.2 |
| Los Angeles, CA | 39.1 |
| Memphis, TN | 50.2 |
| Miami, FL | 27.2 |
| Milwaukee, WI | 21.1 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN | 11.2 |
| Missoula, MT | 8.5 |
| Mobile, AL | 5.4 |
| Nashville, TN | 4.4 |
| New York, NY | 31.3 |
| Norfolk, VA | 49.4 |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 62.3 |
| Omaha, NE | 3.2 |
| Orlando, FL | 27.2 |
| Phoenix, AZ | 15.4 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 16.3 |
| Portland, OR | 32.3 |
| Raleigh, NC | 47.2 |
| Sacramento, CA | 29.2 |
| St. Louis, MO | 11.2 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 13.3 |
| San Antonio, TX | 41.5 |
| San Diego, CA | 69.3 |
| Savannah, GA | 3.3 |
| Seattle, WA | 2.3 |
The History of Court TV
©Beautrium/Shutterstock.com
First launched in the summer of 1991, Court TV has been on the air for over 30 years now. Originally called Courtroom Television Network, the channel was the result of a merger between two existing stations with live courtroom coverage. (American Trial Network, owned by Time Warner and American Lawyer Media, and In Court, owned by Cablevision and NBC.) Lawyer and founder Steven Brill brought the two together under one shiny new roof. Three million cable subscribers could tune in to see true crime shows, talk shows with legal analysis, and live footage of prominent trials.
The new network was moderately popular for the first few years of the ’90s. Then, something major happened: The trial of the Menéndez brothers. This hugely controversial, headline-grabbing criminal case had the masses tuning in to Court TV. Viewership was way up, and it only continued to climb with the O.J. Simpson trial in 1995. If the network was a moderate success before, it was a real smash now. Brill and NBC both took this newfound success as an opportunity to sell their shares and leave the network.
As the ’90s gave way to the 2000s, Court TV began filling in gaps in its programming with syndicated reruns of crime-themed shows like Cops, Forensic Files, and Homicide: Life on the Street. In 2006, Time Warner gained full control of the network. In 2007, they announced the channel would be rebranded to TruTV. It went off the air in January 2008 and stayed gone for more than a decade. However, the channel recently returned to form under the ownership of Katz Broadcasting (itself a subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company). It’s been back on the air since 2019.
Court TV Sister Stations
| Bounce TV |
| Bounce XL |
| Brown Sugar |
| Court TV |
| Court TV Legendary Trials |
| Ion Mystery |
| Grit |
| GritXtra |
| Laff |
| Laff More |
| Scripps News |
| Defy TV |
| Ion Television |
| Ion Plus |
Court TV Programming
©History-Computer.com
Now that we have a clearer picture of what Court TV is and how to watch it on DirecTV, let’s go over some of the most popular programming from the broadcaster today. From its syndicated true crime series to its live coverage and discussions of ongoing trials, the network offers a great mix of both current and historical events in the world of the American legal justice system. Here’s what you can expect to see on an average day on the station.
Syndicated Shows
The inherent problem with a network like Court TV is this: there’s not always some big breaking news event to cover. Court’s not in session 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For this reason, the channel must fill in the spaces in its programming blocks with some syndicated shows from other networks. These usually air early in the morning or late at night (and on the weekends). Some of the most popular offerings include Corrupt Crimes, Escaping Polygamy, I Survived, and Forensic Files.
Live News
During the late mornings and early afternoons, Court TV switches from syndicated shows to live news coverage. If there’s a high-profile trial going on, much of this live news coverage will pertain to that. If not, these morning news shows will stick to rounding up some of the biggest and most important legal news of the day. It’s packaged under the name Court TV Live. It airs for ten hours every weekday.
Talk Shows
Court TV also has a couple of talk shows that air just before and right after Court TV Live. These shows are based more on panelists’ opinions rather than hard facts. In the mornings, it’s Opening Statements with Julie Grant. In the evenings, it’s Closing Arguments with Vinnie Politan. Together, these two bring the grand total of current event coverage on the station to twelve full hours. That’s certainly a lot of courtroom talk, but it’s what the people want to see. This is Court TV, after all.
Trial Coverage
When there’s a big, important trial going on, consider all these programming types moot. Court TV will switch its daily programming over to round-the-clock coverage of the trial proceedings for your viewing enjoyment. Some recent examples include the Florida v. Tim Ferriter trial, the Iowa v. Ivan Brammer trial, and the Texas v. Kaitlin Armstrong trial. If it’s juicy enough, the network will later re-air the proceedings under its Legendary Trials banner.
