party or spectators. In fact, in February 2010, Brown himself was sued by one of his former television show litigants for alleged slander and fraud, but won the case because of the waivers the court show had its litigants sign prior to the televised proceedings. On the series, Brown had typically responded to most of the aforementioned behaviors by telling the litigants they'd be receiving a ticket or demanding that the litigant be arrested and thrown in jail for violating a statute that requires proper behavior and decorum in arbitration. Recurring roles The program also featured a news reporter and bailiff. Holly Evans was the bailiff from 1998 to 2006. Sonia Montejano replaced her for the rest of the run in 2006. Jacque Kessler was the show's news reporter from 1998 to 2010. Former Fox Sports and current MLB Network freelance reporter Jeanne Zelasko succeeded Kessler as the reporter in 2010. Ben Patrick Johnson was the show's announcer from 1998 to 2005. Rolonda Watts succeeded him as announcer in 2005. Popular musicians Coolio, Ike Turner, and Rick James have all been litigants on the show. As of 2014, Sonia Montejano now serves as the bailiff on the new panel court series Hot Bench, while Rolonda Watts now announces the long running series, Divorce Court. Salary It was reported in mid-2012 that Brown was the second highest paid daytime television personality, earning $20 million a year, only second to Judge Judy, who earns $45 million a year. In April 2013, however, following the show's cancellation, Brown disputed these reports claiming that CTD was only paying him $5 million a year. Resignation and issues with CBS As reported on February 27, 2013, by Broadcasting & Cable, CBS had told Brown that the salary amount they were paying him–of $20 million (though Brown disputed this, claiming that CBS had never given him a salary of any more than $5 million)—would be cut in the wake of his declining ratings, license fees, and advertising revenues. Ratings for Judge Joe Brown were declining during its last several seasons on the air. In the 2013 February sweeps, the show was down 20% to a 2.4 live plus same day rating from a 3.0 the previous year according to Nielsen Media Research. Brown refused to do the show under the new terms. Rather, he shopped his program to Byron Allen of Entertainment Studios. Station executives told Broadcasting