Washington D.C. / Baltimore Teachers and Other Area Mentors to be Honored by Television Host Judge Glenda Hatchett

Washington D.C. and Baltimore area residents will be able to nominate local teachers and mentors for awards and prizes under a new contest announced today by Sony Pictures Television's syndicated courtroom series "Judge Hatchett," hosted by Judge Glenda Hatchett. Judge Hatchett's "Reach for a Better Future: Inspiring Excellence Tour," is open to all local residents and will honor two area mentors from Washington D.C. and Baltimore (one teacher and one general mentor) who have inspired others to excellence.

Anyone can nominate local mentors for the contest by submitting a nomination form before October 14, 2005. Nomination forms can be downloaded from www.judgehatchett.com or they can be sent via mail, fax or e-mail to those who call the tour's organizer, Very Special Events, at 858-485-1171. Each honoree selected from the nominees will receive a plaque and a $200 Simon Visa Giftcard for The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City. In addition, a donation of $1,000 will be made to the winning teacher's school in his or her name.

"Each of us has had mentors -- people in our lives whose character traits and actions motivated and inspired us," said Judge Glenda Hatchett. "So many generous individuals demonstrated those positive leadership qualities in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and now, more than ever, we need to celebrate that type of selfless concern for our fellow citizens."

The winning mentors in each category will be honored at an awards ceremony at The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City (1100 S. Hayes Street in Arlington) on Saturday, October 22. Judge Hatchett will appear in person to present each honoree with their awards and speak briefly about inspiring excellence. As part of the event at the mall's Center Court, local community organizations will also be present to discuss their programs and encourage the community to get involved.

In addition to Washington D.C., Judge Hatchett's "Reach for a Better Future: Inspiring Excellence Tour," will also visit malls in Atlanta, Pittsburgh and Detroit during the month of October to honor local mentors.

The television series "Judge Hatchett" is currently in its sixth season and airs Monday - Friday in Washington D.C on FOX affiliate WTTG at 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., and in Baltimore on UPN affiliate WUTB at 2:00 and 2:30 p.m. In addition to hosting the series, Judge Glenda Hatchett is also the author of the national bestseller, Say What You Mean and Mean What You Say (Harper Collins, 2003), based on her extensive professional experiences as a jurist and her own personal experience as a mother of two boys.

Hatchett served for nine years as the chief presiding judge at Georgia's Fulton County Juvenile Court. Through her innovative creative sentencing, she sentenced trouble teens to work at community organizations and businesses to expose the youths to positive role models and inspire them to make changes in their lives. She is nationally recognized as an authority on legal, social and juvenile issues, and frequently lectures throughout the country.

The Fashion Centre at Pentagon City is owned and managed by Simon Property Group, Inc. Simon Property Group, Inc., headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, is a real estate investment trust engaged in the ownership, development and management of retail real estate, primarily regional malls, Premium Outlet® centers and community/lifestyle centers. The Company's current total market capitalization is approximately $40 billion. Through its subsidiary partnership, it currently owns or has an interest in 295 properties in the United States containing an aggregate of 201 million square feet of gross leasable area in 40 states plus Puerto Rico. Simon also owns interests in 51 European shopping centers in France, Italy, Poland and Portugal; 5 Premium Outlet® centers in Japan; and one Premium Outlet® center in Mexico. Additional Simon Property Group information is available at www.simon.com.

Sony Pictures Television is one of the television industry's leading content providers. It produces and distributes programming in every genre, including series, telefilms, theatrical releases and family entertainment for network and cable television, as well as first-run and off-network series for syndication. SPT (www.sonypicturestelevision.com) is a Sony Pictures Entertainment company.

SOURCE: Sony Pictures Television

CONTACT: Bryan Byrd, +1-310-244-3790, bryan_byrd@spe.sony.com, or Teni
Halburian, +1-310-244-6340, teni_halburian@spe.sony.com, both of Sony Pictures
Television

Web site: http://www.judgehatchett.com/

Web site: http://www.simon.com/

Web site: http://www.sonypicturestelevision.com/