I don't got no money to be giving away.
May I cross-examine the witness?
You can't say nothing. Okay.
[ Laughter ]
You must be out your mind.
I dropped it off. He didn't even inspect it.
He called me as soon as he inspected it, though.
I think the dress owner did it.
Come on, now, we've been telling the truth the whole time.
When you said, "I don't owe her anything,"
the whole room went, "What?"
[ Laughter ]
Hey, it's a big world out there,
and it's filled with people that just don't see eye to eye.
See, that's where I come in.
See, I ain't got a law degree,
and I'm way too fly to wear a robe.
But this is where common sense presides -- in my house.
Court is now in session.
[ Chuckles ]
-- Captions by VITAC --
All rise for the Honorable Judge Steve Harvey!
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
Okay. Let's get started.
This is the case of
Carley Perkins vs. Glenda White.
Carley is suing sister-in-law Glenda for $2,146.61
for an unpaid cruise.
Glenda says Carley's husband
gave her the cruise as a gift,
so they're even.
Let's start with you, Carley.
You have 30 seconds to state your case.
I am here today because
my sister-in-law
went on a cruise with us
that I paid for -- $2,146.61.
$600 is pain and suffering.
She needs to bring me my money and bring it fast.
Okay. Glenda, your turn. You have 30 seconds to respond.
I'm here today 'cause my sister-in-law claims
I owe her some money for a cruise that she asked me
to go on -- her and my brother.
I don't owe anything.
I think she's just being a Petty Betty.
Okay. Well, how did this whole cruise thing come about?
I booked this cruise in 2020 with my best friend
and her husband.
The pandemic hit. They canceled the cruise.
So, in the meantime, my best friend died from COVID.
So I was like, "Who better to go on this
than my sister-in-law?"
She had just lost her boyfriend.
And I was like,
"She can just pay me every month
and we can go get our joy back."
Do you recall this happening this way?
No. I recalled her calling me and asking me
about going on the trip, and I really didn't want to go,
but my brother in the background hollered,
"Sister, I want you to go.
I got you. I got you.
Whatever you need, I got you.
I'mma pay for everything.
You don't have to worry about it."
So I'm like, "Okay."
He wanted me to go,
and I know he's totally scared of water.
So, like, he wanted me to go, so I was like, "Okay."
Your brother's scared of water?
Yeah. He was scared I was gonna push him
in the water and get that life insurance check.
[ Laughter ]
You -- You said that out loud?
[ Laughter, applause ]
No, he said it out loud.
So he wanted her to come 'cause he was scared of the boat
and the water and his wife.
All this attempted murder and all this here,
I didn't sign up for this.
This just ain't the show I envisioned.
I don't -- I don't want to do murder, drugs, kidnapping,
stuff like that.
I just want to do -- I want to have fun and go home.
[ Laughter ]
I got a bailiff that ain't got a gun.
Your brother tells you that he wants you to come
and he got you. Right.
Did you hear this conversation, Carley?
I did, but let me correct something.
We agreed for her to pay $76.23 per month
to pay me this cruise money back.
You -- You all agreed to something?
Yes, sir, we had a verbal agreement. No, sir.
Oh, yes, baby, we had a verbal agreement. No, sir. No, sir.
Come on, now, Glenda, keep your story together, baby. Okay.
No, sir, we didn't -- we didn't agree to anything.
No, sir, we didn't.
Okay, hold on.
"Cruise to Cozumel
Agreed Payment Plan.
Cost of cruise -- $1,546.61.
Payment plan -- 20 months,
$76.23."
I'll do the math for her if she need me to.
I don't need you to do anything for me.
I'm not paying anything. Well, you need to bring me...
I don't -- I don't owe you anything. ...my money is what
you need to do. No, ma'am, I don't owe you anything.
You need to be paying me my money, girl.
Well, let me ask you a question, though.
What agreement do you remember?
I remember my brother asking me, did I want to go,
or would I go, and I agreed to him saying,
"I got everything. You don't have to worry about anything."
He even paid for the parking, so I-I don't -- I mean...
This package is already paid for.
Already paid for.
How much was that? $1,546.61 per person.
When you all booked the trip for the four original people,
had you sent the money in already?
Yes, sir. I paid up front.
So -- So in total, $1,546.61 times four.
$6,186.44 for the four people in the package.
Correct. So now you're thinking
Glenda should be responsible for the other $1,500,
because you're trying to recoup your other $1,500? Yes, sir.
She invited a friend.
I was like, "Okay."
The friend called me immediately and paid her whole portion.
What's the friend's name? Angie.
And she paid you how much?
$1,546.61.
She paid you in full. Paid me in full.
It was tax time.
Check came in, par-ty!
[ Laughter, applause ]
You know somewhere between January and May,
some parties 'bout to pop off.
[ Laughter ]
Now, wait a minute, Steve. When we parked,
she got the old lady gang hopping out the car.
She got three other women she done brought on this cruise.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
It was actually me and two -- three of my friend girls.
We was like -- Okay. At first it was her understanding
that you will be coming with Angie.
Right. Now, explain to me
where did two other people come from?
Well, everybody -- we went to talking about it,
so they wanted to come.
Wanted to come? So we was like, "Okay,
we'll get a room together,
we get all one -- get a suite together,"
which would make it cheap for us. So did you all get
a different package?
Right. We got a whole different package.
Who -- Who got this different package?
Angie got the package together for us.
Now, Carley said Angie sent her her full amount, $1,546.61...
Well... ...immediately.
I-I don't know why Angie would've did that,
because me, Angie... Because it's the right
thing to do. ...and my other friends
were in one room together. The balcony suite.
So we all were on one plan.
The cruise was $354.
There's a package on the boat where four people can get
in one room and each person paid $354?
Yeah. For four days?
And we had a balcony room.
You had a balcony room?
I don't know what happened to her room or what --
I don't know what she talking about,
'cause we did ours all together.
Okay, excuse me.
Look, I-I got -- I got --
I gotta work this in my head,
'cause I'm just trying to figure out
who is making money by letting you come on their boat
for four days for $354,
eat all this food at the buffet.
It ain't good no way.
[ Laughter ]
Everything taste like it come out the microwave.
Did you all spend any time on the cruise together?
Did y'all see each other?
Well, I think we ate together maybe one time, 'cause --
That's because Big Daddy told her,
"Look, I'm tired of all this animosity. Y'all will put --"
Who is Big Daddy? My hubby.
[ Sarcastically ] Oh, my husband.
[ Laughter ]
I get an allowance and everything.
I don't work. He let me retire.
He owns an 18-wheeler,
and I just ride all over the world with him.
So she think, because I get an allowance,
she can tap into that.
Big Daddy might be my sugar daddy,
but I'm not your sugar mama.
So you get an allowance? Yes!
And let me tell you, Steve -- I-I'm sorry, Judge Harvey.
Go ahead, you -- I don't care.
[ Laughter, applause ]
I cook -- and I can cook.
I clean.
I cater to Big Daddy in every way.
I got the honey pot.
I got them yams. Okay.
We from Mississippi. You know what them yams is.
Oh, yeah.
You pay for them yams.
[ Laughter ] Yeah.
[ Laughter, applause ]
Boy, this story got me feeling some kind of way.
[ Laughter ]
Well, ladies,
I need some clarification for all of this here.
So, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our independent witness,
Barry Perkins, better known as Big Daddy.
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
I need some clarification for all of this here.
So, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our independent witness,
Barry Perkins, better known as Big Daddy.
[ Cheers and applause ]
There's Big Daddy.
[ Cheers and applause ]
There's Big Daddy.
[ Cheers and applause ]
My man.
Hey, babe.
[ Cheers, applause ] [ Laughs ]
This is the first time
a witness has ever got a standing ovation.
[ Laughter, applause ]
Now, how long have you been married to Carley?
Seven years.
And have you found their relationship to be nice,
friendly towards one --
Oh, most definitely. Yes, sir.
Well, until...
Until this.
Now, make sure you say the right thing, now.
Unh-unh, no. See?
See, what you doing now is called witness tampering.
Oh.
That is against the law.
And I don't know a lot of laws, but I do know ones
that'll get you put in jail.
I'm not proud to say this, but I've been...
I know the law.
[ Laughter, applause ]
Let me get your understanding about
this whole trip situation.
How did you see it in your mind?
I'm really in a tough situation.
Yeah, I know you are, man.
You know, this my wife, this my little sister.
I love them both.
This is my go-to girl
when I want them homemade salmon croquettes
and the homemade butter biscuits and the rice.
Can't nobody do it like my sister.
I ain't had it in a couple months, Steve.
[ Laughter ]
You heard it, Steve -- Can't nobody do it like his sister.
Yams! Yams! She can't cook salmon croquettes
or homemade biscuits. Yams, don't forget the yams.
Yams and the honey pot.
[ Laughter, applause ]
I asked my sister to come on the trip
because what was going on in her life.
Her finances weren't just straight right yet,
so I let her know that I had her.
Now, I work hard,
but I don't got no money to be giving away.
My "I got you" was, "I got you to get there right now
since you don't have it,
but when you get it, you know, you gotta pay me back."
Uh, no.
No. No. Wait a minute.
No. No?
Unh-unh. Unh-unh?
No. Don't "I got you" mean "I got you"?
Like if you say, "Come and eat dinner with me.
You don't gotta worry about nothing. I got you."
I would've never put it on a payment plan,
so I didn't know my wife put her on a payment plan.
Steve: So -- May I cross-examine the witness?
You can't say nothing.
Okay. [ Laughter ]
She want to cross-examine the witness.
You must be out your mind.
[ Laughter ]
Imagine my everyday life.
Yeah, this is hard for you right now.
Yes, sir. I'mma let you go.
You can step down, BP.
Thank you, man. Appreciate you.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Now -- You know what, Judge Harvey?
Honestly?
Yes, ma'am.
If we could go back and do it all over again,
I would have still chosen her to come on this cruise with me.
I love you.
Like, I don't want to be here with you like this.
She strikes me as a genuine person.
Yeah, she is.
Did y'all have a good time on the trip?
I did not. I wanted it to be with her.
We were supposed to -- This is memories, experiences.
I wanted this to be an experience together.
And because she was acting funny and stuck up
and act like Big Daddy can pay for everything --
Oh, hold, hold, hold, hold, hold, hold.
See, here's what you want to say --
You wanted it just to be y'all.
Yes. You didn't like
them other women on the trip.
Them ain't your girlfriends.
Them old ladies ain't my friends.
You don't know nothing about them.
She planned a whole -- So now hold up, hold up, hold up.
So, see, here we go now.
Oh, that's what's wrong.
See, you wanted your girl, Glenda,
and your husband to yourself...
And Angie. ...and having to share her
with her girlfriends that you ain't all that cool with,
and now you done spent all this money
for some people jumping in here that you ain't even cool with.
Now we got the problem with that.
I don't know them.
I didn't care that they came.
I know you don't know them.
See, Glenda, she just wanted to be with her girl.
But since you with your little --
"the Golden Girl" crew
and y'all over there acting all stank,
getting over there, playing dominoes without everybody else,
now she's sitting over there feeling some kind of way.
Like, "I'm just raw meat
when I was the one that invited you over here
in the first place.
But now you come on the trip,
and now you act like you don't know me,
because you're over there with them three skanks.
And you act like your ass ain't with me."
That's what was happening.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Listen to me.
If you could do this all over again,
how would you like for it to have turned out?
I would like for me, my husband, her,
and whoever she wants to choose.
Can we just start all over?
Does that make sense to you? Yeah.
I've reached a verdict.
[ Cheers and applause ]
My ruling is for the plaintiff...
Hm!
...but I'm gonna give it to you
under this one condition.
I am ordering you, your husband,
you, and a person of your choice
to go on a trip, another cruise,
and do it the right way.
You ain't got to pay nobody money,
'cause the court now is awarding you $7,000
for the cost of a fully paid cruise.
Go on the cruise and have a nice time.
Do you understand?
Yeah. Why are you not smiling?
[ Cheers on applause ]
If you want to go on a cruise,
we are sending you on a cruise.
On behalf of the defendant and the plaintiff, $7,000.
That's my verdict. Thank you.
And that's the way I see it.
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
I would like to tell Judge Harvey thank you.
I just want my friend back.
And at the end of the day, that's all that matters to me,
that we get a redo
and hopefully we can rekindle this relationship.
Something fell on the dress.
But we tried to wipe it.
Then you tried the club soda,
and next thing, "Oh, Lord."
[ Laughter ]
[ Cheers and applause ]
Okay, so let's get started.
This is the case of
Adam Davis vs. Mariam Ahmed.
Adam is suing Mariam for $9,800,
because a rental dress she wore was stained beyond repair.
Mariam claims she's been wrongly accused
and she didn't do the damage.
Let's start with you, Adam.
You have 30 seconds to state your case.
Your Honor, I'm here today because Mariam,
a former client and a former friend,
owes me $9,800.
I helped her rent a dress
for a South Asian-styled photo shoot,
and she permanently damaged the dress due to her negligence.
My wife and I had to take money out of our savings
to pay for the dress so that I wouldn't ruin
my relationship with my dress connect.
Mariam, it's your turn. You have 30 seconds to respond.
Your Honor, I was dragged in here today
by my former photographer and "friend,"
who's accusing me of staining a dress that I did not stain.
This dress is really important to my culture.
It's beautiful. It's called a lehnga,
and I would never lie about staining it.
Okay. Let's start with you, Adam.
Tell me a little bit about this friendship.
You were friends before this?
So, she was friends with my wife,
and we all became friends, like,
so much that my son calls her Aunt Mariam.
Like, we were really close. It was great.
Everything was amazing.
And then one day, she was at a wedding,
and she sent us a picture.
She's like, "I really love this look.
I want to have, like, this old money-style shoot."
And I was like, "Okay, sure, we can find that. I know someone."
So I reached out to my connect,
said, "Give me about a week or two,
and I'll be able to get it for you.
No worries, just tag me.
You won't have to pay me."
I said, "Cool."
Dress was amazing.
It was, like, a really heavy dress.
It probably weighed 20, 25 pounds.
Had gold on it, was green.
Looked really, really good.
And I showed it to Mariam.
She loved it. Hold on one second.
Let's slow down a little bit.
Let -- Let me go back over here.
Now, Mariam, let me ask you a question.
What type of photo shoot were you looking for?
I'm half-Hispanic and half-Pakistani,
so I wanted to be more in tune with my culture.
So I wanted to book a shoot that would show
a Pakistani dress that resonates with my culture.
Was this for any particular reason?
So, I work a basic 9-to-5 job, really boring,
so I wanted to expand out into my creative side,
work on photo shoots, do more creative direction.
So this is kind of my way of getting towards that.
Do you have a package or anything that you offer?
So, we do have a package.
I submitted documents to the court of evidence
showing the type of package she paid for. All right. Let's take a look at that.
Oh, you got a mini shoot for $350.
Yes, sir. All right.
That's a basic package.
"No props or backdrop provided.
One outfit.
Location of your choice, one roll of film."
Okay, so now tell me about the day of the shoot.
What are we doing here?
So, the day of the shoot, everything is great.
There's music playing. I ordered some Thai food.
Everyone's joking around, having a good time.
You ordered some Thai food?
Yes, sir. Oh, yeah.
It's perfect food for a shoot.
Really? I love the rice.
The rice was real good. I've done about 900 photo shoots...
[ Laughter ]
...and I'll be damned.
That's probably why I hate them. Yeah, you gotta try --
Ain't nobody ever ordered no damn Thai food.
[ Laughter ]
So tell us about the photo shoot.
So, photo shoot's going great.
Set up the backdrop.
And mind you, we weren't supposed to provide
a backdrop due to the package, but we did that
'cause she used to be the friend -- keyword "used to be."
And she was like, "Can we do one more location?"
And I was like, "Yeah, we can."
She's like, "Well, I just got my Tesla,
so we can shoot in front of that."
And I was like, you know, "We kind of -- We're low on time,
but we can do that just for you."
So we shot in front of her Tesla,
and we came back inside, and me and my wife had to go
to another engagement --
Well, now, hold on, hold on. Before you go there,
let's see the photos of this dress we're talking about.
[ Spectators murmur ]
Okay, so this is called a lehnga?
It's called a lehnga, correct, yeah.
Oh, that's a full shot of the dress.
So, how did you wrap up the photo shoot?
How did we get to the -- what -- what happened?
So, what happened is we had to go to another engagement,
and Mariam was like, "Well, I kind of have to change."
She's like, "Do you have like 30, 40 minutes?"
And I was like, "No, we don't got that type of time."
And she was like, "Well, I can take it on Monday
and drop it off."
So I said, "Okay, cool."
And I get a call on Monday,
and then I get a picture of the dress,
and it had a big stain over the whole front of it.
It was like black, and there's a picture --
I didn't do it. Wait a minute.
I didn't -- Hold on, let me bounce over to you.
Let me hear your side of when you offered to bring the dress.
Okay. So here's what actually happened.
Huh. Huh.
So, I had to take the dress with me -- like, on me --
and then drive all the way home and take it off myself
when I needed help getting out of it,
since it was like -- literally felt like a million pounds.
It was a really heavy dress.
But he just told me, like, "Oh, we don't have time.
We don't have time." But you said you got it, though, right?
You said you would take care of the dress, right?
Yeah, but the point is, is that you told me to take it with me.
So what I did was I had to drive with the dress on,
and then as soon as I got home, that's when I took it off.
And it took me probably an hour to get it off
just because it was so busy and heavy, I couldn't --
It was hard to do it by myself.
It took a hour... Yeah.
...to take the dress off?
Yeah, it was harder taking it off than putting it on.
Tell me why, 'cause I'm -- Just based on my experience.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
[ Laughter ]
We done drove all the way to the house,
it ain't gonna take no hour.
[ Laughter ]
So h-help me with this part of it. How...?
The dress has about 20 layers, so you can't necessarily
just step out of it.
And then, before I left,
they gave me a garment bag to put the dress in.
So I put the dress back in the bag.
And since it was the weekend, his shop --
the owner's shop wasn't open yet.
So I put it in my car.
And then that Monday, when the shop opened,
you know, I have a 9-to-5, so I had to go early
and then drop the dress off.
Now, when you went to the shop early,
was somebody there?
Yes, the owner was there.
So he was there waiting for me to -- to get the dress.
So I got the bag from my car, handed it to him,
and I said, "Thank you," and left.
And he didn't even inspect it or anything.
He just took it and was like, "All right, thanks."
And then I left.
Okay. Do we have a photo of the stain?
Yes, we do. [ Spectators gasp ]
[ Spectators murmur ]
Let me start with you, Adam.
Did you see this stain during the photo shoot?
I didn't. I didn't see it at all,
during the photo shoot or anything.
Let me ask you a question, Mariam.
Did you see this stain during the photo shoot?
No, but I -- but, Your Honor,
I saw different colors and different shades,
so I assumed it was already like that.
[ Spectators murmur ]
[ Laughs ]
♪♪
Let me ask you a question, Mariam.
Did you see this stain during the photo shoot?
No, but I -- but, Your Honor,
I saw different colors and different shades,
so I assumed it was already like that.
[ Spectators murmur ]
All right, let me see another picture of this dress.
Give me the -- We have a side-by-side.
[ Spectators murmur ]
How did you find out about this stain?
So, I got a call and a text message
almost immediately after she dropped off the dress.
I want to say 20 minutes later.
And he was like,
"Hey, there's a stain on this dress.
You need to clean this.
You know, we need to figure out how to get this cleaned.
If it doesn't come out, you're gonna have to pay for this."
And I was like, "Oh, okay."
And what did you do at that point?
So right then, I called Mariam,
and she wasn't answering any of her calls.
But the thing is, it's not just calls.
These were, like, messages on Snapchat, like, everything.
Like, he was just blowing up my phone.
All right, let's see these text messages.
Okay. "What is this?
The dress looked nothing like this when you left."
"It definitely didn't look like this when I returned it!"
Then you said, "So it looked fine when it left the house
and magically looks funny when you turn it in?"
Then she said, "Bro, I've been at work.
Chill out."
Then you said, "$9,800 is way more important
than your job, bro." No, unh-unh.
No. Then what happens?
So, then we ended up
taking money out of our savings and paying for it.
I mean, it couldn't be cleaned?
It couldn't be cleaned. They cleaned it twice.
Now, I have an invoice.
Let me see this invoice.
So you paid in full $9,800?
Yes, sir.
Out of your pocket?
Out of my wife and I's savings, yes, sir.
Oh, your wife? This is your wife?
Yes, sir. Well, come up
to the witness stand, please. Okay.
[ Applause ]
Okay. What's your name?
Ashton.
Tell me what you know about this situation.
So, I'm the photographer.
I take the photos.
I've been doing photography since like 2018,
and I worked with her before,
and I've never had any issues like this
with her or any other client.
I know the dress was clean when it left my house,
and then it wasn't.
And we're starting a new family.
We have a 4-year-old.
We want to have another child.
We're trying to get a house, and that big chunk --
it's gonna take so much time to re-save it
because of her carelessness, and it's just unfair.
Let me ask you a question.
When they left, they left before you.
Correct? Correct.
Did you sit down and have some more Thai food?
No.
Weren't you just a little hungry, though?
I was hungry, but I was wearing --
That's all, that's all! I was wearing a waist trainer.
I couldn't even breathe. Listen to me, listen to me.
I'm just -- We're just piecing this together.
I'm not accusing you of anything.
Okay.
So we got to be missing something,
because everybody admitted that when we left the photo shoot,
there was no stain.
Everybody has said this.
So here's -- here's what I think happened.
I think it was going good for you.
[ Laughter ]
I think you said, "This one right here
gonna change the game for me."
Photo shoot over, they in a hurry,
they got to go, it's late night,
probably had to go pick up the baby or something like that
over at your mama's house.
Your mama said she ain't gonna keep the baby past nine,
because we got to go to bed, and plus "Family Feud"
come on at 9:30. Right. Yeah.
Ain't no way in hell...
[ Laughter, applause ]
...we're gonna have this baby over here.
I got to watch Steve, 'cause "Family Feud" come on 9:30.
[ Stomping foot ] Come get the baby.
Soon as they left,
you was trying to get out that dress,
but you had to go home.
So you just packed up a little bit of food,
just a little bit.
You didn't pack up no food?
Nope. So we ate it there.
[ Laughter ]
I'll do the story any way you want to do it.
Did you not eat some food when they left?
I just want the truth, that's all.
I didn't eat any food.
You didn't eat any food... No.
...until when?
I ate as soon as I got out of the dress.
Unh-unh. I --
Unh-unh.
I'm giving you a chance to just --
Come on, now, we've been telling the truth the whole time.
Something fell off the fork.
Something fell on the dress.
You didn't do it.
But we tried to wipe it, and it just kept getting bad.
Then you tried the club soda, and it just kept --
And next thing, "Oh, Lord."
You with me at all on this?
I'm with you, but I didn't know how much the dress costed,
and I didn't stain it.
So, for me, when I dropped it off, he didn't even inspect it.
He didn't even inspect the dress.
He called me as soon as he inspected it, though.
But he should have inspected it while I was there.
I think the dress owner did it.
[ Spectators murmur ] Why would they do that?
I think the dress owner did it.
It makes more sense. He ruined his own dress.
Why would he do that?
Let me have you go sit back down. Ashton: Okay.
Because I got just a little more thinking I'm finna do here.
Thank you very much. Thank you.
You don't know how the stain got on this dress?
I don't know.
So you handed the bag to the man,
and you thinking in 20 minutes, he put the stain on the dress,
then called him and said something's wrong?
Yeah. [ Spectators murmur ]
Why would he do that?
Well, why would I stain the dress?
But if the dress left there with no stain on it,
and you had it for how many days?
I had it for two days, and I didn't touch it.
And you didn't touch it? Didn't touch it.
But you ate when you got home.
After I had put the dress in my car
so that I knew not to forget to drop it off,
that's when I ate.
You put the dress in the car, then went back in the house
and ate?
From what I recall, yes.
[ Spectators murmur ]
Did you say, "From what I recall"?
Yes.
[ Laughs ] That's it? Yes.
That's -- That's what you're going with?
Yes.
All right. I've reached a verdict.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Now, because this is a young couple with a child,
they want the $9,800 back that they had to pay for the dress
for your cultural shoot.
Once you took the dress and then you said you'd return it,
and for two days you are now responsible for the dress,
and something happened while that dress
was in your possession.
My ruling
is for the plaintiff for $9,800. Thank you.
[ Cheers and applause ]
That's my verdict.
And that's the way I see it.
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
I feel like his ruling was unfair towards me,
just because I know for a fact that I did not stain the dress.
But at the end of the day, I'm just gonna go back
to making money and minding my own business, so...
My father told me, "When you leave, you can't come back."
When I flunked out of college, my mom begged him,
could I stay there for 90 days.
On the 89th day, Slick Harvey walked in there and said,
"Where you going tomorrow?" [ Laughter ]
[ Cheers and applause ]
All right. Let's get started.
This is the case of
Antoinette Spero vs. Dominick Esteban.
Antoinette is suing her son Dominick
for $10,000 in back rent after two years of nonpayment.
Dominick says he moved back home to pay off his debts
and wants his mom to cut him a little slack.
Let's start with you, Antoinette.
You have 30 seconds to state your case.
I am here today suing my son,
my lousy son, that owes me way over $10,000 for back rent,
groceries, utilities, and I want it to stop.
I'm tired, and he needs to step up to the plate and help me.
I've been a single mother since he's been born,
and it's been a tough road.
But I done it, because I put him first.
It's time that he puts his mommy first.
[ Applause ]
Dominick, it's your turn.
You got 30 seconds to go and get this case over with.
Judge, I love my mama very much,
and I'm gonna take care of her when she gets old and frail.
But I don't owe her any money, let alone $10,000.
Yes, she has taken care of me for the last 33 years.
Woman: Damn! 33.
But who is supposed to take care of her
for the next 33 years? 33.
That's the thing.
How is that helping me with my rent today?
[ Applause ]
[ Spectators murmur ]
[ Laughter ]
No reason, just wanted to do it.
Antoinette, has he always lived with you?
No, he moved out a couple of times.
And then he would come back just briefly.
And anybody welcome to come to my house to stay.
My door's open, but you got to contribute in some way.
Oh, okay. Yeah. Okay?
He moved in approximately two years ago
and promised -- just promised --
that he's gonna pay me some rent.
We didn't have an official thing.
He's my boy. I love him.
He's my only one.
Okay. Yeah.
That's the way it used to be.
What'd you do here, Miss Antoinette?
What, you lost weight and stuff?
I did, sir. I lost 120 pounds. I see you, you look good.
[ Cheers and applause ] Yes, sir.
Yeah. Thank you.
That's really nice. Good, congratulations.
Yes. Thank you.
Dominick, let me ask you this.
So, why'd you move back in?
Broke up with a girlfriend.
So I hit her up and said,
"Hey, Mama, is it okay if I come back
and live with you for a little bit?"
And she opened up her doors for me.
So, you had a problem with this girlfriend.
Why -- Why didn't you get your own place?
Mm-hmm. Thank you.
I had debt that I needed to pay off.
Thank you. I-I put myself
in a lot of debt in the past,
and I've learned the hard way.
So now it's take care of the debt while I can,
while I'm living at home,
and then when I move forward, I'm debt-free.
This debt, tell me a little bit about this debt
you're talking about.
I went to college, found out about a year later
that it definitely wasn't for me, school wasn't.
But I ended up having $22,000 worth of student debt.
So since then, I've paid it all off.
I'm about to pay off my car by the end of the year.
Got a couple credit cards left, and then I will be zero.
Good to go.
How about my debt? When he moved in,
was it his objective to pay everything off and not pay you?
No, he was supposed to come up with a little payment plan.
He'd pay his stuff and he's gonna pay me.
That's the way it goes in life.
How much was he supposed to pay you?
$1,000, and that was rent and food and utilities.
$1,000 a month.
You get utilities, food, and rent?
Yes. Yes. It's for a split.
Yes, exactly.
So what happened to this $1,000? Tell me about that.
I started off well, but I've kind of faded off a little.
Ooh, you lying to the judge. You started what?
[ Clears throat ] Well, how much have you paid your mother?
Do I have to say it out loud?
Yeah. Spectators: Yes.
About 900 bucks' worth.
Mm. [ Spectators gasp ]
So, now, why won't you pay her the money?
I'm trying to finish off my debt.
Once I do that, I'll be out by the end of this year.
You have to have a balance.
But I'll be out by the end of this year
and then I'm cool.
I'll -- I'll take care of her and everything like that.
After -- After the end of this year?
That's my goal. I'm ready to get out by December...
The end of the year. ...if not earlier.
Can I ask you a question?
Do you have a job?
Yeah, I'm a real-estate agent.
I'm doing quite well. [ Spectators gasp, murmur ]
Yeah, he --
Did you say you're doing quite well?
Just recently. With real-estate, it's sales.
So it's something that it ebbs and flows.
That's why there was times
where I helped her out at the beginning, then it slowed --
How long you been doing real-estate?
Since -- About two years now.
But you can't find a house for yourself.
You find it for everybody else...
[ Applause ] Ouch.
...but not for you?
[ Applause ]
Look, I know. I know it sounds terrible, especially on paper. Mnh-mnh-mnh.
It's not -- It's not like I'm a bum, though. It is terrible.
Like, I do stuff around the house.
This lady nonstop, it's walking the dog --
You do stuff around the house?
Okay. Tell me what it is you do.
I walk the dog, her second child, twice a day.
Wait a minute. We have a video?
Yeah, of me walking Lola.
Just wanted to make a quick point,
since my mom's always saying
I'm not doing anything around the house.
I'd like to introduce you to Miss Lola right here,
my mom's dog,
who I'm taking for a walk before I head in to work.
That's your evidence?
[ Laughter ]
Boy, you losing so bad right now.
[ Laughter, applause ]
We have a video? Yeah, of me walking Lola.
Just wanted to make a quick point,
since my mom's always saying
I'm not doing anything around the house.
I'd like to introduce you to Miss Lola right here,
my mom's dog,
who I'm taking for a walk before I head in to work.
That's your evidence?
[ Laughter ]
Boy, you're losing so bad right now.
I'm trying. I -- I'm trying.
You're walking the dog before you went to work?
Her dog. My dog.
That I got for her for Mother's Day. Because her dog is her second child.
Starting to become her favorite. Uh-huh, kind of hurts
a little bit. You know, Judge?
So, you're -- Okay, so give me a list.
So you walking the dog. What else?
I've walked the dog, I dust, I vacuum
at least twice a day. Without not being told.
You submitted a list to the court?
No, I submitted a list. Oh.
Yeah, I wanted to write down everything that I did.
Oh, well, let's see this list you submitted.
Because it's not free work.
I mean, yes, it's for my mama --
Okay, well, let's see what you got.
It's for my mama. But you live in my house, though.
But time is money. Time is money...
Oh, I got it. ...at the end of the day.
Daily dog walking,
$40 a day for two years --
$29,120.
You mowed the lawn
for $25 a week,
six months each year.
That's $1,300.
Shoveling snow at $75 an hour.
We don't have no sidewalks!
What you shoveling? Twice a month
for six months, $1,800.
Household chores,
$150 at two times a month
for two years.
You dust, vacuum,
deep clean the bathroom,
load/empty the dishwasher,
wash dishes, fold laundry,
take out the trash,
pick up dog toys
for a total of $39,420.
Mnh-mnh-mnh. This is the monetary value
that you've placed on all this stuff that you do.
Yes, Your Honor.
Time is money.
Miss Antoinette,
I've got a grand total of $39,000
over the past two years
that he's attributed to his duties.
Just a wild guess, of 33 years,
how much you think you may have spent?
[ Scoffs ]
What that list would be, probably times 1,000.
Do you have a room here at this house?
Yes, I do.
What's it like? Not bad.
[ Scoffs, laughs ] I keep it up most of the time.
What's the room look like, mom?
Oh-ho, you want to go there?
Do we have a picture?
[ Spectators gasp, shout ]
Oh, come on.
Where -- Where is even the sheet on the bed? Come on.
Okay, that's overexaggera-- I was moving a whole bunch of stuff in that day.
That looks terrible. That's ridiculous.
Let me ask you a question, man.
Why are we here?
I just want her to realize that, yes, she --
we are working now and everything like that,
and she has taken care of me,
but I'm gonna take care of her.
I'm her only child.
Oh, no. Unh-unh-unh.
Look, man, listen.
You agreed to pay your mom $1,000,
and it's supposed to cover rent, groceries, and utilities.
That's one hell of a deal. Spectators: Yes.
Mr. GQ probably takes two, three showers a day.
You got time to shower three times -- Yes.
If I'm going somewhere, yeah. And that's my water bill.
Got a networking event, I gotta go to work,
or something like that.
And that's my water bill.
I don't have time to take three showers a day. Mm-hmm!
I got to go to work.
Oh. Work. I don't even like two showers a day.
I'mma be real with you -- When I wake up,
I been asleep, I don't sleep that hard.
[ Laughter, applause ]
You know, now, during the night, me and Marjorie
was playing WWF or something, you know...
[ Laughter, applause ]
I might have to get up, you know, bathe
or something like that.
But -- But if that ain't happening,
I just wake up and brush my teeth
and take my ass to work.
[ Applause ]
And you know what? I go to work, and he's still asleep.
I come home, he's home before me. That's not --
How's that?
How does that happen? Real-estate is not
a 9-to-5 job.
Yeah. It's not at all,
so if somebody's calling me -- But you're not working
when I am home. I am, though!
Just because I'm not... You're working your mouth.
...there's stuff still going on.
Yeah. There's plenty of stuff
in the background that she's not seeing.
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Just because I'm not doing physical labor...
Yeah. But I don't see it.
Thank you, thank you. I got you, man.
Thank you. Mm-hmm.
Thank you, Judge. 'Cause times is different.
Amen. You can accomplish a lot with a computer.
Right.
But you know what the problem, though, is?
Is some things still just don't change.
And when you promise somebody something,
that counts for something.
Spectators: Yes! [ Applause ]
You lost this when she started talking.
[ Laughter ]
[ Sighs ]
As a matter of fact, you dove off the cliff
as soon as I said, "You have 30 seconds
to state your case." [ Laughter ]
When you said, "I don't owe her anything,"
the whole room went, "What?"
[ Laughter ]
You're going down so hard right now.
[ Laughter ]
I've reached my verdict.
[ Cheers and applause ]
I wish there was a deal
where I could have gave my mom and dad $1,000,
I stay there, it cover rent, groceries, and utilities.
My father told me, "When you leave here,
you can't come back."
When I flunked out of college, my mom begged him,
could I stay there for 90 days.
He said, "All right."
He let me come from college.
On the 89th day... [ Laughter ]
...I kid you not, Slick Harvey walked in there and said,
"Where you going tomorrow?"
Yeah. Yeah.
My mother said, "Slick, give him time."
He said, "I told that boy 90 days.
I do what I say I'm gonna do.
He gotta learn to do what he said."
I was gone.
You got a blessing.
You got a mom that's taking care of you.
And then here you come to court with this,
your household contributions for two years.
My brother, this is called life.
Thank you. You don't -- You don't
get paid for living.
[ Applause ]
Mm-hmm.
[ Applause ]
Hey, man, listen.
You already knew when you came in here
this wasn't gonna go good.
My ruling is for the plaintiff,
Miss Antoinette... Thank you.
...for the sum of $10,000. Thank you, Your Honor.
[ Cheers and applause ] Thank you.
And you have to pay her back.
Normally, the court --
I help out people when I see them struggling.
But you said, "I'm in real-estate,
and I'm doing quite well."
Well, "quite well" better produce $10,000 for your mother.
Now, you got another house that you're finna close on right now?
Actually, when I get back, yeah.
Around about how much would you get it for on that closing?
From that closing? Yeah.
[ Exhales ] About 7 grand?
About 7 grand. $7,000, $8,000.
Yeah. So when you close, you need to give her that $7,000.
[ Cheers and applause ]
I heard it before.
I can't put my foot in my mouth here.
I know you heard it before,
but, see, this a little bit different right here,
'cause we have a way to track everything,
and then he may be losing more than that.
I can't do jail time or nothing like that,
but we are in Atlanta.
You could accidentally get your ass whupped in the park.
[ Laughter, applause ]
Yes, yes.
My ruling is for the plaintiff for the sum of $10,000.
Thank you.
That's my verdict.
And that's the way I see it.
Thank you, Judge Harvey.
Judge, can I -- can I say something
that might change your mind?
I got you a little gift. Can you say something?
You brought me a gift?
I know you like Opus 6 as your go-to,
but I heard that this one -- Oh, yeah, I like cigars.
I heard that one's your all-time favorite.
Oh, no, he's trying to suck up now. Yeah, that's real nice.
It's a Siglo VI. Oh, that's a Siglo VI?
Oh, my man! Yes, sir.
My hands are sweaty. You got me all nervous.
That's all right. There's nothing wrong.
I like that, yeah. Thank you, man.
No problem. That don't change
a damn thing I said, though.
[ Laughter, applause ]
[ Cheers and applause ] Whoo!
Yes, honey!
Yeah!
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪