You decided to move out.
He got back one night, drunk again.
Essentially tries to fight me.
Do you have a drinking problem?
When I'm around him, I do.
He actually punched my windshield.
He was driving and hitting me at the same time.
And instead of hitting him, I hit his window.
Why would you call his mother?
He actually had blocked me.
[Acker] You've known each other since sixth grade,
and you still think you're in kindergarten. Grow up.
[narrator] Now, on Tribunal Justice…
[main theme playing]
[narrator] Today's case was filed in Clayton, Missouri.
Your Honor, this is case #3059, Yungermann vs. Cline.
All parties have been sworn in. You may be seated.
-[Levy] Thank you. -[Britt] You're welcome.
Mr. Yungermann, you and the defendant were former best friends.
Uh, yes, sir.
You rented a two-bedroom apartment, according to your complaint.
-Correct. -[Levy] You both signed a lease.
So, you are suing the defendant for $3,632 for back rent
and late fees, because he did not pay his share of the rent
for the last three months of the lease that you two had together.
-Correct? -Correct.
Now, Mr. Cline, you acknowledge, according to your answer,
that you did not pay the rent for the last three months,
but claim that you don't owe the plaintiff anything
because you never asked him to cover those three months' rent.
Yes.
Mr. Yungermann, you're the plaintiff. Your burden of proof.
Can you tell us how long you and the defendant have known each other?
Uh, yeah, so, we met, I want to say, in maybe like sixth grade.
Um, we actually roomed together freshman year of college.
He actually dropped out, so he left a little bit early.
I stayed, got my degree.
And then, the plan originally was to move into a house.
But kind of, honestly, the same situation happened then.
[Levy] Okay, before we get into the situation,
-Sure, sure. -That's just the history.
Mr. Cline, do you agree with everything he's said?
Is there anything that's inaccurate?
We met each other in second grade.
-[Levy] Second grade. -Not sixth grade.
[Louis] I don't believe that is accurate at all.
Suffice it to say, it's been a real long time.
We might've known each other kind of,
but we weren't really friends in second grade.
That's okay. When was it that you guys signed this lease together?
Uh, it was like in August of '23.
[Levy] Twenty-three. And just so we're all clear,
according to the lease you provided, it was August 16th, 2023,
to August 15th, 2024.
And how much was the rent?
I think it was $1,480.
[Levy] How about $1,448?
That sounds, yeah.
And there were monthly expenses with that as well,
-that were tacked onto that. -[Louis] Correct.
There was a pet fee. He had a dog.
[Levy] What kind of dog?
-Chocolate Lab. -[Levy] All right.
It was a $50 pet fee, I think, $40 or $50.
And then, he paid an additional $100 each month.
And that was just due to him having a much larger room than me.
So, would it be fair to say the split was $624 a month from you,
$824 from the defendant. And then, on top of that
-were the additional utility fees. -Correct.
And Mr. Cline, with respect to the rent, how was it that you were paying the rent?
Uh, I started out paying from my card onto the app.
Once I missed a few payments, they didn't allow me to do that,
so then I started paying with a cashier's check.
[Levy] And there were a couple of bounced checks, as well.
-Well, no. No checks bounced from me. -[Levy] None.
Only direct payments I made from the app.
A direct deposit that there was insufficient funds?
-Correct. -[Levy] I understand.
Okay, so Mr. Yungermann, you signed the lease in August, 2023.
You move in. Things go pretty well in the beginning?
No. The first day Andrew actually moved into the unit,
we were hangin' out, you know, drinkin' some beers,
watchin' TV. He left the room, and one of my other friends called me.
He comes back in while I'm on the phone with my other friend
and starts getting mad at me because I tried to make plans
basically with my other friend group. And he didn't like that.
He's like, I just thought we were gonna hang out tonight.
He was gettin' all upset about it.
Then ultimately, it led to us going out that night.
And he actually punched my windshield, and cracked it and broke it,
and I had to pay to get it replaced.
[Levy] And what month was this?
[Louis] August.
[Levy] At the time, between August and December,
-were you employed? -Correct.
[Levy] How were you supporting yourself? What were you doing?
-Uh, logistics. -I'm not exactly sure what that is.
But that's okay, you had a job.
-Yep. Still have the same job. -All right.
Mr. Cline, August to December of '23. Employed?
-[Andrew] Yes. -What were you doing?
I was running a full-service car wash.
Were you working there? You were running it as a manager?
Yes.
The car wash position we was alluding to, he actually got fired from.
He didn't just willingly leave.
-Can I explain? -[Levy] Of course.
So, when I was working for the full-service car wash,
I worked there up until January 10th, actually.
The reason it was January 10th was because the original employer I had
was also a express car wash.
-I signed a non-compete with them, yes. -Non-compete?
We ended up going to court on January 10th.
I agreed to quit my job from the full-service car wash,
resulting in me not having a job from January 10th on.
Okay. Was there ever an allegation that you were acting inappropriately,
-or that you failed to perform any duties? -No.
I quit that job. I got another job afterwards,
and then they sued me for the non-compete…
The most important thing that I'm hearing, though,
is that you were not fired for cause.
-No. -[Louis] That's a lie.
He was fired. He worked for two separate car washes.
He says one thing, you say another.
-I know it's a credibility issue. -Sure.
[Levy] Maybe we'll figure it out, maybe we won't.
I want to focus on the money issue right now.
-Because you have $3,632 at risk. -[Louis] Okay.
So, the money issue started around the time,
I think, November to January, somewhere in that time period.
Because he was working at the first car wash
when we moved in together, and then he got fired from there.
He actually came into the apartment and said, "It finally happened,
they finally fired me." He wasn't getting a paycheck,
-so he was just working temp jobs. -Okay.
Temp jobs just wasn't enough to cover the rent on time sometimes.
So then, I, um, covered the portion of it, his portion,
-and he would pay me back later on. -Okay.
And then, he did find the other, second car wash job
around like mid-December to January.
Then, once he started getting paychecks for that, it got more consistent again.
But then, the non-compete thing happened
because of his original car wash job that he got fired from,
sued him, or sued for the non-compete,
and they had to settle that in court before he could start working there again.
I get it. Fine.
But the most important thing, of all of what you just said,
is that it was not for cause. Right?
-Correct. -[Levy] Fine.
Now, there were some personal problems that you had with the defendant,
according to your complaint between January and February of 2024.
-Correct. -Go ahead.
So, we went out for New Year's Eve, and Andrew was very intoxicated.
I mean, it was New Year's Eve.
I had multiple people coming up to me that night, my friends,
saying he seemed aggressive. He was trying to fight people.
I know. Hearsay, not really interested.
Sure. Get back to the room, Andrew pushes me on the ground.
Essentially tries to fight me.
I just go in my room, go to bed.
And then, I decide just from that situation,
and kind of all the other situations about him punching out my window,
the other arguments we got in, I'm just like,
I don't really want to talk to him anymore.
Got it. And Mr. Cline, did something happen on New Year's Eve…
Can I just touch on the whole window thing?
The reason that happened is 'cause he was literally hitting me.
He was driving and hitting me at the same time,
saying, you annoy the… out of me. I hate you!
And instead of hitting him, I hit his window.
I got it. Let's go to something…
He acts like he never does anything wrong and it's always me.
It's gonna be a common thing going on here.
[dramatic music playing]
[narrator] Coming up on Tribunal Justice…
You signed a lease. You don't get to not pay a lease
'cause you got mad at your friend.
You don't get to go swearing at somebody's mother
'cause he's drunk and starts beating on you.
[main theme playing]
[narrator] Louis Yungermann is suing childhood friend
and roommate Andrew Cline for $3,600 in rent and late fees.
But Andrew says if he owes anyone money, it's the landlord, not Louis,
and that Louis crossed the line when he threatened Andrew's mother.
Did something happen on December 31st, New Year's Eve?
Mr. Louis over here really wanted to go
to East St. Louis, Missouri, to go to a strip club.
I did not want to go. I'm too drunk to get in anyway.
I'm a little upset that he was upset with me.
So, I laid into him and yelled at him.
Hundred percent. Should I have done that? No.
Okay, I get it. So, there came a time when you decided to move out.
-[Louis] Correct. -[Levy] When?
So, it was, um, like I said, I wasn't talking to him for awhile
after the whole strip club incident.
And he actually almost got arrested that night.
I kind of helped him from getting arrested.
-[Levy] Keep going. -[Andrew] This guy.
-Anyway, he left that out. -Hearsay, hearsay.
If we had unlimited time, I'd love to hear the stories.
But we're gonna try to move forward
and figure out whether or not you're gonna get this money.
So, I was not communicating with him for a couple, probably a month and a half.
-[Levy] It was uncomfortable. -[Louis] It was awkward.
Um, so he got back one night, drunk again.
He currently wasn't working still due to the non-compete thing.
I had to wake up the next day, so I just opened my door
and kinda politely said, hey, can you keep it down?
I gotta work tomorrow. Then that kinda set him off like crazy.
Like saying, "The only way you're gonna shut me up
is if you blow my head off with a shotgun.
-I hope you kill yourself." -[Levy] Who?
Me blow his head off with a shotgun.
[Levy] Do you remember that?
-Oh, yeah. -[Levy] Okay.
He said he hopes I kill myself, that kind of stuff.
-[Levy] Were you drinking, Mr. Cline? -[Andrew] Yeah.
Mr. Cline, do you have a drinking problem?
When I'm around him, I do.
[Levy] Have you ever been arrested for DUI?
Yes.
[Levy] That resolved itself with some type of treatment?
No.
[Levy] You never had to go to a DUI course or nothing like that?
Nope.
Now, let's go back to the lawsuit.
June, 2024, you were already out in March.
April, May, June. You're out those months, you still pay your rent.
-Correct. -[Levy] In June,
according to your complaint, you tried paying your rent online
and you noticed an outstanding balance of $2,285.
Correct.
You called the property manager, and you found out
that he also failed to pay his utility bills.
So, to avoid eviction, you paid the outstanding rent,
late fees, utility bills, with a cashier's check for $3,097.
-Correct? -Correct.
-[Levy] You admit that, Mr. Cline? -Yes, sir.
[Levy] Fine. Judge Acker.
I don't really have a lot for you because the two of you have a lot.
But let me just ask you, Mr. Cline,
tell me what you think a lease means.
Uh, it's an agreement to pay for a certain period of time.
And is there a provision that says that, you know, you don't have to pay
when you get into a fight with your friend who you've known?
I don't think so.
Can we put up Exhibit Three, please?
Because as I see the facts of this case,
your liability doesn't really seem to be hard for me to resolve
because you in fact, at one point in time, were going to pay him.
[Andrew] No.
You never said you were gonna pay him?
Uh, are those real texts? I don't know that I sent those.
[Acker] You don't? You're disputing the veracity of the texts?
Let's put up Exhibit One, please.
This is evidence that the plaintiff submitted
about communications between the two of you
when he was trying to get his money
-for the rent. -[Andrew] Okay.
-[Acker] I'll let you read it. -[Andrew] Okay.
"This is the honest truth. I'm sorry this happened, Louis.
I really am." Sorry, I need some glasses.
"I thought I could just make it work. I thought I made a payment
to zero the balance out, and I made an honest mistake
where that payment went."
-Mr. Yungermann… -[Louis] Yeah.
-you submitted this text. -[Louis] Correct.
[Acker] Tell me what this purports to be.
'Cause the defendant's raised questions about its accuracy.
Correct. So, this is kind of the initial text that I sent Andrew
when I realized we were so back due on rent.
The amount, it was like $3,000 in back…
It was my portion of that month's rent plus what he owed from delinquencies.
And that screen shot is actually an email that he sent to the leasing office
in an attempt to try to negotiate some type of payment plan…
[Acker] Thank you. So, Mr. Cline,
-does that sound at all familiar to you? -No, I don't.
-I said that? -[Acker] Yeah, you said that.
-You know, you're in court today. -[Andrew] Yeah.
-Before you came to court… -Okay.
you swore out an answer, you signed it. And here's what you said.
You said, regarding this lawsuit, "I already had an agreement
with my property manager." What is the evidence of the agreement?
I guess I technically don't have any evidence for it.
So, you don't have any evidence for any agreement with the property manager.
You also said in your answer that the plaintiff
sent disrespectful and harassing messages to your mother.
I'm gonna pull up the text message.
You did reach out to the defendant's mother.
Yes, mm-hmm.
-Before we go back to Mr. Cline on that… -Yes.
'cause he seems to have some memory issues.
Mm-hmm. [chuckles] Too drunk.
-[laughs] You might be. -Yeah.
[Acker] You might be. At least you're a happy drunk.
Except when you're punching him.
[overlapping chatter]
Except when you guys are brawling.
Um, I don't want to make light of some of the allegations
that have been raised in this lawsuit. You had a DUI.
You coulda killed somebody.
You've admitted now to being severely intoxicated.
-But my point simply is… -[Andrew] Well, it was New Year's…
Listen, I don't want to talk about this like it's some cute, charming thing.
It was, a little bit. He's making it into more than it needs to be.
[Acker] It's not. So, let's move on.
-Mr. Yungermann… -[Louis] Yeah.
you mentioned that you reached out to the defendant's mother.
[Louis] Yes, I did.
[Acker] Why did you reach out to her?
[dramatic music playing]
[narrator] Coming up on Tribunal Justice…
Why'd you drop out of school?
-Why did I drop out of school? -[DiMango] Yeah.
Is this an indictment on everything bad of me?
[main theme playing]
[narrator] To protect his credit rating,
Louis Yungermann says he paid $3,600 in rent
for former friend and roommate Andrew Cline.
Now, Louis wants it all back,
but Andrew says he never asked for a handout
and claims his former friend went too far by harassing his mother.
-[Acker] Mr. Yungermann… -Yeah.
You mentioned that you reached out to the defendant's mother.
Why did you reach out to her?
He actually had blocked me through communication at this point.
So, I reached out to his mother just to see
if she would be willing to intervene at all.
Um, not necessarily pay the money he owed me,
but maybe help make a bridge and just get it resolved
without going through the court system, basically.
And she said no.
-[Acker] She didn't want to be involved. -Exactly.
At one point, didn't she suggest to you
that she wasn't in communication with him either?
She did say that, correct.
[Acker] Mr. Cline, where was the disrespect
that you say the plaintiff targeted towards your mom?
"You can only push a person so far till they… snap."
[Acker] You said that to his mother?
I did. It was… So, I reached out to her initially
to try to get the money, and it was just a rash reaction
to the amount of money that I was owed.
You reached out to her at one point for reasons that, to me, made sense,
which is that you wanted to show the court that you made an effort to collect.
-Correct. -I don't know why you didn't just stop.
He was right that I shouldn't have said that to his mom.
And I apologize for it, I shouldn't have said that.
But I was just frustrated because…
I accept his apology.
'Cause I know he doesn't actually mean it. He was upset.
Like, you've known each other since second grade, sixth grade.
You're grown men. You signed a lease.
You don't get to not pay a lease 'cause you got mad at your friend.
You don't get to go swearing at somebody's mother
'cause he's drunk and starts beating on you.
-Grow up. -Sure.
[Acker] Judge DiMango?
Well, I wish we were Divorce Court
because I'd love to get the two of you separated…
[Andrew] Probably get married over again.
…from one another, because you're like so total opposites.
And I think you both recognize what you shoulda been doing in this situation.
I think you recognize you shoulda been paying the rent.
Uh, no comment.
[DiMango] That's good. That's like taking the Fifth.
But when you say, I noticed a zero balance,
and you just go on with your life.
I'm thinking to myself. I wrote a note. I said, what did he think,
like the elves came and paid off the money?
Who else could've paid it but your former paisan here?
-Who else? Tell me. -[chuckles]
I guess it was the drunk little elves runnin' around.
They convinced me.
Well, it coulda been. Only you know that answer.
But no matter how it came about, the bottom line is,
I think that for you to say you didn't recognize
that he covered that amount is disingenuous.
Okay.
By the way, why'd you drop out of school?
-Why did I drop out of school? -[DiMango] Yeah.
Is this an indictment on everything bad of me?
-No, I'm just curious. -Why did I drop out?
Well, my father died when I was a sophomore in college,
and I kinda lost my mind a little bit.
Okay. To me that would be very difficult to lose my father
when I was in my sophomore year of high school, or college.
And he didn't show up to his funeral.
We're supposed to be best friends.
Did you not show up?
At that point, there was none of this issue.
I was still attending school in Springfield, Missouri.
[Andrew] We both were.
[DiMango] Listen… You see, Mr. I-didn't-do-anything-wrong?
I think you have to stand there and say, I shoulda been at that wake.
You were my best friend since second-slash-sixth grade.
Sure. No, I shoulda been there.
I don't deny that at all.
You just did. You just gave some excuse why you shouldn't have been
to your best friend's father's funeral.
It's something I should've done, I regret doing.
[DiMango] Finally, you're saying something about it.
It was a long time ago. I was working down there, going to school.
It was just a lot to kind of… It was last-minute notice type of thing.
-Not trying to make excuses. -[DiMango] You are.
Okay, you are. I mean, it just… Because people often think
-in these courtrooms, or in life… -Sure.
…that they did something wrong, or they did something inappropriate,
but as long as they have a good reason for it,
it kinda undoes it. And it doesn't.
I mean, we get that you're not a mean, evil, horrible person,
and that you wouldn't have done it for those reasons.
You had a legitimate basis. But it doesn't mean
that the impact on him is exactly the same.
-I understand, and if I… -[DiMango] That brings you both here.
The fact that this stuff gnaws away at any relationship.
And it comes to an end at some point, which is where this is.
But that doesn't change the financial obligation that you incurred
not so much with him, but with the landlord that he picked up.
So, do you think the elves paid your rent?
Well, according to Miss Tanya, over here,
apparently there were.
Did you call me Miss Tanya?
-[Andrew] Missus Tanya? -Where are you from?
Uh, St. Louis.
You thought there was more of a Southern thing?
-No, see, that's pretty Southern. -[DiMango] Yeah, I thought that.
You're charming in spite of yourself.
-[DiMango] I thought the same thing. -I'll take it.
So, would you say this is more about personal animosity
that developed over the years,
than really about the inability to pay $3,000 some-odd dollars?
[dramatic music playing]
[narrator] Coming up on Tribunal Justice…
You lied to us. You lied under oath. You do admit that now?
[main theme playing]
[narrator] Louis Yungermann claims former roommate Andrew Cline
failed to pay $3,600 in back rent,
so Louis paid it to protect his credit rating.
Now, he wants it all back. But Andrew says
he never asked Louis to pay anything, so that's on him.
Would you say this is more about personal animosity
that developed over the years
than really about the inability to pay $3,000 some-odd dollars?
Yeah, I agree with that. I think there's been things
that have happened all throughout our past
that has not been spoken about, and then comes to a boiling point.
[DiMango] We're gonna fix it. Judge Levy? Anybody have anything to say here?
I do. I just want to make it clear, when you come to court,
it's super important to tell the truth.
You said that you're not a liar. You accused him of being a liar.
I asked you very specifically whether you were fired from your job for cause
to come clean.
You remember the lawsuit that was filed against you,
Club Car Wash Operating LLC versus Andrew Cline,
filed on November 9th, 2023.
-Yes? -Yes.
Defendant, you, was terminated… for cause!
Specifically due to his unprofessional and inappropriate behavior
and lack of accountability in his role as General Manager.
That's the reason you were fired from your job, according to the lawsuit.
You lied to us. You lied under oath.
You do admit that now?
-I would have a discrepancy... -My brother-in-law once told me,
When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.
So, I'm gonna ask you. You want to explain to me
this sworn affidavit that says you were fired for cause,
or do you just want to say, I'm sorry, I didn't know you had that document.
If I knew you had that document, I wouldn't have denied it.
You are correct. Sorry I lied.
-I apologize. -[Levy] I appreciate that.
I have nothing further.
-Are we ready? -Mm-hmm.
We are going to retire to deliberate at this time. We thank you both.
All right. Thank you, guys.
Court is now in recess. Parties will be recalled.
[dramatic music playing]
The defendant's on the wrong path,
and he's been on the wrong path for a long time.
I don't know whether or not this exercise is going to make a difference in his life.
I hope it will. The evidence, I believe, is pretty compelling.
The plaintiff, consistent with the terms of the lease,
had to pay for the defendant's portion
because they were both jointly and severally liable for the rent,
and the defendant thought he was gonna come in here
and just give a whole nonsense story that we were gonna believe
and keep his fingers crossed.
I believe the plaintiff has made out his case
and that he is entitled to every penny he's asked for, $3,632.
Completely agree with you. When you sign a lease with somebody else
and they don't pay, then you're on the hook.
And that's the situation that the plaintiff found himself in.
And the defendant knows that.
You know, there's a whole bunch of personal animus
that led to them being here today.
The legal issues are far more simple than some of their personal difficulties.
There are difficulties on several levels here,
especially with the defendant, who I think really needs
to get a little more insight into what his problems are being caused by.
And I totally agree, the plaintiff is the kind of person
who meticulously sets forth everything he's supposed to be doing.
And I think the defendant recognizes on some level, at least in retrospect,
that, you know, his alleged defense did not hold any water.
So, the bottom line here is, the plaintiff is entitled
to everything he's asked for.
Um, and the defendant, I really think needs to look at his life.
Thank you. We're unanimous.
-[DiMango] Yeah. -Yes, indeed.
Court is back in session.
All parties are reminded that you're still under oath.
[Levy] Gentlemen, we have deliberated
and we have reached a unanimous verdict.
Mr. Cline, at almost 30 years old, you seem to be on the wrong path.
And if you find yourself ever in a situation when you're in a court
for something someone says you did on the criminal side, you tell the truth.
Even if the underlying offense wasn't serious,
a perjury prosecution is, and that'll stick on your record forever.
So, you gotta get yourself on the right path.
And if you need help, get that help. Just do it.
Okay, with that having been said, judgment in favor of the plaintiff
for the full amount, $3,632. That's the verdict of the court.
Thank you, Your Honor. Thank you.
This case has concluded. All parties are excused.
I drink as much as anybody else.
Every time he starts drinking, he gets mad, he gets aggressive.
Twelve-pack a week, or somethin' like that. It's not a problem.
I just thought he had changed. Clearly not.
Oh, I'll love him forever, whether he likes it or not.
[narrator] Got family drama?
Let Tribunal Justice decide your case.
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[main theme playing]