Frank Caprio, the retired Providence Municipal Court judge known globally as the “nicest judge in the world,” died on August 20, 2025, following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 88.
Caprio served as a judge in Providence, Rhode Island for nearly four decades, from 1985 to 2023. His compassionate approach to justice earned him worldwide fame through his television show “Caught in Providence” and viral social media clips that garnered over 1 billion views.
The judge’s death was announced in a statement on his official social media accounts, which have over 3.4 million followers. “Beloved for his compassion, humility, and unwavering belief in the goodness of people, Judge Caprio touched the lives of millions through his work in the courtroom and beyond,” the statement read.
Caprio was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in December 2023, shortly after his 87th birthday. In a video message at that time, he called it “an insidious form of cancer” and asked followers for their prayers. Just one day before his death, he posted a video from his hospital bed saying he had suffered a “setback” and again requested prayers.
His courtroom style was marked by a unique blend of humor and empathy. Caprio often invited children to sit with him behind the bench during cases and considered the personal circumstances of those appearing before him. In a 2017 interview, he expressed hope that people would understand that justice can be dispensed “without being oppressive.”
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“I hope that people will take away that the institutions of government can function very well by exercising kindness, fairness, and compassion in their deliberations,” Caprio said.
The television show “Caught in Providence” received four Daytime Emmy nominations during its run, with Caprio himself earning two nominations last year. Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein, co-presidents of Debmar-Mercury, which produced the show, paid tribute to Caprio’s “unique brand of compassion and common sense approach.”
Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee ordered flags to be flown at half-staff through the day of Caprio’s interment, calling him a “treasure” who connected with people as “a symbol of empathy on the bench, showing us what is possible when justice is tempered with humanity.”
The Providence Municipal Court was renamed after Caprio in October 2023 following his retirement.
Coming from humble beginnings in the Federal Hill neighborhood of Providence, Caprio worked multiple jobs growing up, including shining shoes, delivering newspapers, and working on milk trucks before attending Providence College and Suffolk University School of Law.
Caprio is survived by his wife of nearly 60 years, Joyce Caprio, their five children, seven grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. His son David thanked fans for their love and support, noting that it was “the love and support he received from all of you that lifted his spirits and boosted his soul to find the strength to fight on and outlive his diagnosis by a year and a half.”
In his memory, his family urged people to “spread a little kindness” – a fitting tribute to a man who made compassion his hallmark both in and out of the courtroom.
