EXCLUSIVE: Judge Judy Sheindlin is used to laying down the law in the courtroom, but she said it's just as important for parents to lay down the law at home in a new interview with Fox News Digital ahead of the release of season three episodes of "Judy Justice."
Sheindlin, who starred on "Judge Judy" for 25 years and now adjudicates cases on Amazon Freevee's "Judy Justice," said it's important to avoid being a "wishy-washy" parent, and that kids should know what's expected of them.
For example, when it comes to tricky teenagers, Sheindlin advised parents to enforce those curfews.
Above all, she said parents should avoid being their child's "friend." Because if children view their parents as pals, there goes the respect.
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"So my advice to parents is you're not supposed to be friends," she told Fox News Digital.
"Parents sometimes run into trouble when they say, 'we just want to be our kids' buddy,'" she continued. "But children require rules, just as the adults do. I mean, the country is in the state it's in now because the rules get blurred… But it's always been my view that babies feel swaddled in the womb - they're close. And that's why they teach mothers and fathers of newborns, how to swaddle their baby, tight when they're infants, because they feel secure in that tight blanket. And as you mature, you sort of loosen that blanket so that children develop their wings. They crawl, then they walk. But you're never supposed to get away from basic rules."
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The popular TV judge impressed upon parents that children will emulate whatever they see at home.
"Every parent, unless you're psychotic, you want your children to grow up to be responsible, law-abiding, productive citizens and mates and friends," Sheindlin said. "And it's a parent's responsibility to take care of building that morality from at home. That's not anybody else's responsibility. That's not a school's responsibility. That's not a community's responsibility. I've always believed that teaching morality is what children learn from emulating their parents. So if you have amoral parents, then that's what their children will emulate, because that's what they know."
Even little white lies should be avoided, she warned.
"So, parents don't want their children to grow up to be anything but successful human beings," she said. "If you're on the phone, the phone rings and your 6-year-old picks it up and it's your mother-in-law, and you say to your child, 'tell her that I'm not home.' Well, that sounds innocent enough, doesn't it? But what you're really teaching the child in that moment is it's okay to lie. My parents, my parents, I look up to you just told me it's okay to lie. Similarly, if your child hears you, if you're not telling the truth, that's what the child is going to grow up to be."
Sheindlin's son Adam Levy, who serves as a judge on "Tribunal Justice," created and executive produced by Sheindlin and which also streams on Amazon Freevee, said that her no-nonsense attitude translated at home. And while he bemoaned that he could never get away with a lie in her presence, he credits her with having helped him become a better judge.
"I became the cross-examiner that I am because of her," he told Fox News Digital. "Growing up, whenever I was a little off, if I told a lie, if I tried to cover something up because I did something wrong, she always knew. She knew. And it wasn't just that she had that sixth sense, which she did, but she was able to ask a series of questions that ultimately I was unable to answer."
"I would get all confused, and she knew that I was lying," he continued. "I knew that I was lying. I've just been able to translate that into my own style over the last 25 years. And the other thing that she taught me is someone has to take control of the courtroom. And typically it's the person who is most prepared, will control their space within the courtroom. And that's what I do."
"So what you're supposed to do is you're supposed to set an example for your children," Sheindlin concluded. "You're supposed to teach them. Teach them how to do the right thing. You know, I always said to my kids, if you do the right thing, you're not guaranteed that the right thing will happen at the end of the game. But I can almost guarantee you that if you do the wrong thing, life has a karma. And it will one day come back and bite you in the ass. And they all remember it."
"Judy Justice," which recently won its second Daytime Emmy for "Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Program," premieres with four new episodes on Prime Video and Amazon Freevee on Monday, August 5. An all-new episode will premiere each weekday through October 25. Season 2 episodes of "Tribunal Justice" are also expected to start streaming on Amazon Freevee. Amazon has not yet announced a date.
Asked what she does in her free time when she's not deciding court cases, Sheindlin described her day-to-day as "boring."
"I just work out on the treadmill for a little bit," she told Fox Digital. "I'm trying to get back at it. I have a crummy shoulder, so my physical therapist just left, and I'm sitting and talking to you with ice on my shoulder."
"When I'm not working, I'm sort of in a vegetative state," she joked. "One day bleeds into the next."
But, she enjoys her large family and said they keep her "very busy."
