Justin Lubin In CBS's "Close to Home," the role of prosecutor suits Jennifer Finnigan's steely but sensitive gaze. Click photo for larger image. 'Close to Home' When: 10 tonight, KDKA. Starring: Jennifer Finnigan.

Right network, right time period, right actress, right audience: CBS's "Close to Home" (10 tonight, KDKA) has a lot going for it, especially an empathetic lead actress in Jennifer Finnigan ("Committed") and a better than average pilot episode.

True, it is yet another in a long line of CBS-grown procedural crime dramas from executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer ("CSI") -- at least four too many at this point -- but audiences continue to reward this formula by tuning in.

"Judging Amy" fans may still be angry at CBS for canceling that Amy Brenneman-Tyne Daly drama, but "Close to Home" touches on similar themes -- family life, raising children, protecting children -- but with little-to-no serialized story and a lot more suburban crime.

Kewpie doll Finnigan, who does the tough but understanding routine to great effect, plays Annabeth Chase, an Indianapolis prosecutor who wants it all, career and family, and even after countless TV shows on the topic, she's still surprised it's difficult to have both.

Annabeth is just back to the office from maternity leave and discovers a colleague is now her superior, and their boss (John Carroll Lynch) isn't overly sympathetic to Chase's needs for a mini-fridge to hold her breast milk.

Her first case is a doozy: A mother and her children are found locked in a house that catches fire. The villain isn't who it first appears to be, and Chase's case is by no means a slam dunk. She butts heads with her new supervisor, Maureen (Kimberly Elise), who advises Chase, "You better stop making decisions with your hormones or your emotions or whatever else it is you're not thinking with and start thinking like a prosecutor!"

The "Close to Home" pilot, being a Bruckheimer show, has a glazed, solid look, from the Hollywood-perfect suburban neighborhood, complete with paper boy, to a house that doesn't just catch fire, it explodes real pretty-like.

Finnigan's depiction of a determined protector of the innocent is oftentimes fierce. She's a true keeper, and this role suits her steely but sensitive gaze perfectly.

"The creeps don't scare me," she says. "It's the so-called decent ones who go to church and join the Rotary Club while they hide in plain sight, they're the ones who scare me."

Of course they do. And as long as viewers are concerned about their personal security (and TV news and its love of "home invasions" continue to ensure citizens are scared to death), they may well tune in for a weekly dose of the warm fuzzies knowing Annabeth Chase is on their side.