01x43 - COVID Infection Controversy/Music Video Fail

[bunniefuu]

Who assaulted you and when?

Um, she did.

Basically, she came to me,
telling me she wanted to talk to me.

Things escalated
and that's when she attacked me.

She went for my hair.

I tried to get her hair.

So you were each pulling
each other's hair?

Yeah.

[announcer] This is Judy Justice.

[theme music playing]

[announcer] Twenty-year-old
Elizabeth Burciaga-Evans

is suing former roommates
Tamara McClenton and Tayote Taylor Jr.

for an unpaid loan and an as*ault.

[Kevin] Come to order. All rise.

Be seated, please.

[Kevin] Hello, Judge.

Case 1073, Burciaga-Evans
versus McClenton, Taylor Jr.

- Thank you.
- You're welcome.

- [Judge Judy] Ms. Evans.
- Yes.

- These used to be your roommates?
- [Elizabeth] Yes.

- [Judge Judy] You had a boyfriend.
- Yeah.

- [Judge Judy] That's you?
- Yeah. That's him.

And he was friendly with you.

Yes, ma'am.

So the four of you decided
to rent an apartment together?

- Uh-hmm.
- [Judge Judy] On what date?

Uh, November 7th.

- 2020?
- Yes.

[Judge Judy] And at the time,
according to your complaint,

the defendants didn't have
their half of the move-in money.

- Correct.
- [Judge Judy] Which was how much?

Their part was 1,245.

[Judge Judy] And they were supposed
to give it back to you?

- You put in the full amount of money?
- [Elizabeth] Mm-hmm.

[Judge Judy] Uh-huh is not an answer.

- Yes is an...
- Yes. Correct. Sorry.

[Judge Judy] Great.
And their response to that,

'cause I'm gonna take this case in pieces

'cause that's part
of what you're suing for.

- Correct.
- [Judge Judy] The $1,245.

Now, who wants to tell me...

you acknowledge
that you didn't have the money

to put down when you came in?

- Yes, Your Honor.
- [Judge Judy] Yes?

And you acknowledge that you told her

that you would give her the money
at some point?

- [Tamara] Yes.
- Did you give her the money?

Not yet, Your Honor.

[Judge Judy]
So then you still owe the money?

- Partial.
- [Judge Judy] What part?

Well, we had been paying
for groceries and everything

and cooking for them.

It was pretty much like
having two extra kids.

And so out of that money,

she said that that can be, um, deducted

from the money that we owed her.

- I did not say that.
- [Judge Judy] Oh, just a second.

- [Elizabeth] Sorry.
- Well, if...you know,

forget about cooking for them
or cleaning up after them.

That wasn't an arrangement.

And that's not even
what you say in your answer.

Do you remember
what you wrote in your answer?

Yes.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
It had nothing to do with cooking

and taking care of them like children.

Did you keep receipts from all the food?

No, Your Honor.

[Judge Judy]
[laughs] Then how are you supposed to know

how much you owe them?

She said that she was
keeping track of it in her...

How could she keep track
if you were going shopping?

Because I was going with her.

She was with us every time
we went grocery shopping.

- So she...
- Well, if you went grocery shopping

and you were paying, you got the receipt.

I didn't find the need to keep it

- because she was keeping track.
- Well, then that's your problem.

Was that the arrangement you made
with her that they would go about...

- No, Your Honor.
- [Judge Judy] No, of course not.

All right. So then you owe $1,245.

That's for starters. [sighing]

And then you want damages

for an as*ault and harassment.

I don't know about the harassment.

Who assaulted you and when?

Um, she did.

She came to my door one day,
um, telling me she want...

[Judge Judy] What door?

[Elizabeth] My room door...my bedroom door.

Okay. On what date did you move out?

Uh, July 1st.

- Exactly July 1st.
- [Judge Judy] July what?

Uh, 2021.

And on what date did this incident happen

where she came to your door?

- June 6th.
- [Judge Judy] I'm listening.

Um, basically, she came to me
telling me she wanted to talk to me.

I said okay.

We had went out to the living room.

- We ended up talking.
- Slowly.

[Elizabeth] Sorry. Sorry.

We had went to the living room.

We ended up talking about
how she was telling me

her husband felt uncomfortable
in the kitchen.

He felt that we were watching him
through our door and weren't...

we weren't doing that,
so I had to tell her we weren't.

Things escalated.

She ended up getting upset
and that's when she attacked me

and I had to defend myself.

Well, how did she attack you?

She went for my hair and...

[Judge Judy] What...

she started pulling my hair
and like dragging me.

She went pull your hair,
and back and forth?

[Elizabeth] Mm-hmm. Yes.

And what did you do?

[Elizabeth] I tried to defend myself by...

- [Judge Judy] How did you do that?
- [Elizabeth] Fighting back.

Well, tell me what you did.

[Elizabeth] I tried to get her off of me
and tried to get her hair to like...

[Judge Judy] So you were
each pulling each other's hair?

- Yeah. Yes.
- Okay.

- Did either one of you go to a hospital?
- No.

[Judge Judy] Did either one of you
see a doctor?

No.

Did you stay in the apartment on June 7th?

Uh, it was June 6th.
But, no, I had left right after the fight.

[Judge Judy] So you never moved back
to the apartment?

[Elizabeth] No, no. I did.
But I had left that day to...

[Judge Judy] Oh. So were you there
on June 7th is my question.

- Yes, I was. Correct.
- And were you there on June 8th?

- Mm-hmm.
- 9th?

- 10th?
- [Elizabeth] Mm-hmm.

- 11th?
- [Elizabeth] Correct.

- [Judge Judy] 12th?
- Yes.

[Judge Judy] 13th? All the way up to July?

- Correct.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

So, so far they owe you $1,245.

So we're finished with your claim.

- Um, correct.
- [Judge Judy] Yes.

Yes.

[Judge Judy] Now I have a counterclaim.

The counterclaim is about lost wages
and something about COVID

and for filing a false restraining order.
Let's go.

We had contacted COVID
through Elizabeth on, I believe,

it was between January 1st of 2021

and January 6th, 2021.

A lot of people contracted COVID
from each other.

[Tamara] Yes, Your Honor,
but she failed to let us know that

she had lost her taste and smell
a few days after noticing,

after we had all played monopoly
and a drinking game all together,

drinking off of the same bottles.

During that time,
she didn't have her taste or smell

but she failed to let us know.

- Yeah... [mumbling]
- [Judge Judy] Was she tested?

- [Tamara] She did get tested.
- [Judge Judy] According to...

according to what you know,
did she test positive for COVID

and then failed to tell you?

Yes.
She told us a few days after her results.

[Judge Judy] Oh.

[Elizabeth] That's incorrect.
That's incorrect.

I...I had let them know
the day I lost my taste and smell.

I said I didn't know if I had COVID or not

so I'm going to get tested
as soon as possible.

I have my test results.

I got tested literally a few days later,
on the 6th,

and I came back positive,

and I let them know that
I wasn't able to taste or smell though.

I didn't know if I had COVID or not
for sure though,

but I...I told them, "I'm sick.
Just wanna let you guys know

I can't taste or smell,
but I'm not sure if I have COVID or not."

And before I had, um... like I got sick,

she was already sick with the cough
before that too,

and she was working.

I have right here she...
her telling me that if I was sick

because she felt sick,
and that she was getting the chills,

and then at her job,
there's all kinds of COVID cases.

- So...
- [Judge Judy] Can I see that, please?

Yes.

You said to her, "I'm gonna get tested

but I'm not gonna say anything
to anybody at my job

because I don't want them to tell me
to come back after I get the results."

Am I reading this right?

Yes, you are.
[Judge Judy] [scoffs]

[announcer] And later today...

When did you advise them
that you had the completed video?

[Chad] We never got to that point.

She took advantage of the...
the one time that I went on vacation.

I would think that she would call Angie
if an emergency happened.

[Judge Judy] Well, I don't care
what you think.

[theme music playing]

[announcer] Twenty-year-old
Elizabeth Burciaga-Evans

claims former roommates,
Tamara McClenton and Tayote Taylor Jr.,

owe for an unpaid loan and an as*ault.

Tamara and Tayote
are countersuing for lost wages

and filing a false restraining order.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
Well, this is written in December.

- Yes.
- [Judge Judy] Who is the green?

- That's me.
- [Judge Judy] So you wrote to her,

"You're probably not up
but do you all feel sick?

Not from the food."

What does this mean? L-M-A-O?

L-M-A-O. Uh, laughing my [...] off.

[Judge Judy] Oh, thank you.

"Like a cold sick."

[Elizabeth] Mm-hmm.

[Judge Judy] And then you say...

L-O-L. Laugh out loud.

"Laugh out loud. I have a little cough
that comes and goes.

Our job has new cases."

- This is in December.
- Yes, Your Honor.

[Judge Judy]
"Our job has new cases of COVID."

So you must have felt
as if you had a cold?

- Yes, Your Honor.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

"Every week this lady said right now
when I was working with her I said,

'Mm-hmm, I'm going to get tested.'"
That's you.

"I'm not gonna say anything to the job yet

because I don't want them to be like,

'Oh, my God,
come back after you get the results.'"

So you said...am I reading this right?

You said to her, "I'm gonna get tested

but I'm not gonna say anything
to anybody at my job

because I don't want them to tell me
to come back after I get the results."

So let me understand this.

What is your last name?

- McClenton.
- [Judge Judy] Ms. McClenton,

your countersuit against her is that

she had lost her taste and smell

and she didn't tell you right away, right?

- Correct.
- And as a result of that,

- you got COVID?
- After playing...

[Judge Judy] Just a second.
You...as a result of that, you got COVID.

And what you wrote
two and a half weeks before

is that you were feeling sick at work
but you weren't gonna tell anybody.

You were going to get a test

because you didn't want them to say,
"Goodbye.

Come back after you get the results
if you're not feeling well."

- Am I reading this right?
- Yes, you are.

- Your countersuit is dismissed.
- Okay.

[Judge Judy] Judgment for the plaintiff
in the amount of $1,245.

- Thank you very much. We're done.
- Thank you, Your Honor.

Court is adjourned.

I did not have COVID.

I just had a cold
that I received from my daughter.

I felt like she had it
and she didn't know.

We had a disagreement
on how she let us know

that her boyfriend
had put his hands on her.

I wouldn't understand
where they got that from at all.

I was like...as you can see
we're happy together.

If anything...
if she was gonna file anything,

she wouldn't until like weeks later,
months later.

You should have just filed it right away.

Never move in with roommates again.

[Sarah] That was really funny,
that the entire counterclaim

was all for something
that the plaintiff proved

the defendant herself did.

- Did.
- Again, clean hands.

You don't get to come here
and ask for help

when you yourself are committing
what you're claiming.

I have a feeling we haven't seen
the last of these COVID-related cases...

[Sarah] Mm-hmm.

...because I think
that people did a lot of

foolish things initially during COVID,
you know, didn't understand the nature

and seriousness of the disease.

But that's pretty serious
because December, January,

people knew how serious it was.
[Sarah] Mm-hmm.

And then to keep that to yourself
is a real problem.

It was interesting.

It'll be interesting to see
how the courts handle

the COVID litigations
that are gonna come out of this.

- [Judge Judy] Yeah. Right.
- Case 1070.

West, Oaths versus Porter.

All parties, please step forward.

[announcer] Lashavia West
is suing videographer, Chad Porter,

for the production costs of a music video
she never received.

[Judge Judy] You are miss?

- Um, Lashavia West.
- You have a band?

[Lashavia] No. I'm a music artist,
and I also put on events.

He's a promoter,
and we do a lot of events together.

Did the both of you hire
the defendant to do a video?

- [both] Yes, ma'am.
- [Judge Judy] When?

We've actually first paid him March 29th.

- Of this year?
- Oh, I'm sorry. March 29th, 2021.

- Yes, ma'am.
- And when was he

to produce the video?

Two weeks after it was videoed, April.
And...

- [Judge Judy] Okay.
- [Lashavia] And I have evidence of it.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
And when did he get the video to you?

I never received it to this date.

[Judge Judy] How much did you pay him?

We paid him $1,500.

You have a claim against him for $10,000.

- Yes, ma'am.
- Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy] How much was the total price

that you were supposed to pay him?

Uh, it was $1,500 for him
to film and sh**t.

- [Judge Judy] But he did film and sh**t?
- Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy] It's what you're telling me
that you never received

- a video from him?
- No, ma'am.

- [Judge Judy] Is that correct?
- No, ma'am.

[Judge Judy]
Tell me when they got the video.

[Chad] Uh, we sent her a rough draft.

- When?
- I think it was March 20...

- Uh, May. May. It was May 28th.
- [Judge Judy] Just don't speak.

- Don't speak.
- [Angie] May 28th.

May 28th. It was May 28th.
We sent her a rough draft.

And I explained to her
it was a rough draft,

and that it was more
that need to be done to it

and it's not the final copy.

- Did you ever make a final copy?
- [Chad] Yes. I have one. And it's here.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
Did you ever give it to them?

[Chad] No. No, ma'am,

because she said that she was suing me,

so I said,
"Let's take this to court then."

- But you have a final one?
- Yes, ma'am.

[Lashavia] I actually have
a clip of the full...

what was supposed to be the full preview
that I received a month and a half later.

[Judge Judy] Uh, listen to me.
I asked you a question.

I said, "Did you receive anything?"
You said no.

No. I didn't receive the video.
That wasn't the video.

That was what they called a full preview
but it wasn't a full preview.

[Judge Judy] So you did in fact receive
something from them?

After a month and a half later.

[Judge Judy] I don't care
whether it's a month and a half later.

Do you have a written contract with them?

No. We have an invoice.

[Judge Judy] Do you have a signed,
written contract with them?

- No.
- [Judge Judy] Does the invoice

specify anything other than the price
and say video footage?

- [Lashavia] Yes.
- May I see it?

[Lashavia] We also hired him for other...

- [Judge Judy] Just a...
- [Lashavia] behind-the-scene events.

Just a second.

Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy] Well, the whole price
was 1,750.

That includes the recap video.

I don't know what that means
and I don't care.

[Lashavia] That was the other footage.

We have also hired him
for other event footage that

- we had other events.
- [Judge Judy] Okay. Okay.

So the whole thing together
was $1,750 or...

- Fifteen hundred, ma'am.
- [Judge Judy] Fifteen hundred?

- And you gave him the fifteen hundred?
- [Lashavia] Yes. We...

[man] That was just the video.

- [Judge Judy] You acknowledge that?
- Yes.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
Would you take a look at this

and just show me where it says

it has to be delivered by a certain date?

- [Lashavia] Oh, I have a...
- Just a second.

- [Lashavia] Yes, ma'am.
- Just show me

that invoice and tell me

where on that invoice it says

- it has to be delivered by a certain...
- Nowhere on the invoice, ma'am.

- [Judge Judy] It does not? Okay.
- [Lashavia] No.

So it does not.

But that was the document
that was created at the time?

[Lashavia] Yes. His manager gave it
to me after we paid him.

[Judge Judy] That doesn't matter...

that's what you accepted,
without anything else.

That was the agreement.
He was gonna produce this video.

Now if you then say to him
in a subsequent text,

"I need it by,"

and he agrees to it by,

if we're going to modify that agreement

which was the invoice to produce a video

which he says that he has.

And you say that you modified
that agreement

that he agreed to, I will look at that.

And if you have it in a text message,
I'll look at it.

- Can I see it?
- Yes, ma'am.

This is from his manager, Angie.

Do...who's Angie?

By her telling everybody that I robbed her
and I stole from her

and that...that I'm a thief,

that's not true.

I... I... I sent her a copy and...

[Judge Judy] No,
you didn't send her a copy.

You turned off your phone.
You turned off your computer.

And she didn't get anything.

[theme music playing]

[announcer] Lashavia West claims
videographer, Chad Porter,

did not deliver the music video
she paid for.

Chad is countersuing
for defamation of character.

Okay.

So they sent you a preview of the video,

a full preview,

and you wrote back, "I hate it."

- Is that right?
- Yes. I sent the preview...

- [Judge Judy] Just a second.
- Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy] And that was in May?

- Yes, ma'am.
- [Judge Judy] That was in May.

When did you advise them
that you had the completed video?

Well, we never got to that point,

because I sent her a rough draft
and I told her

that we were gonna make the final copy,

and, um, she took advantage of the...
the one time that I went on vacation.

And I made it clear
when I was going on vacation

that I was turning my phone off
and my comp...

not taking my computer.

And, you know, I would think
that she would call Angie

if an emergency happened.

[Judge Judy] Well, I don't care
what you think.

When did you get her or notify her

that you had the final cut of the video?

I didn't because we were...

once she told me
she was gonna take me to court,

I stopped everything.

And because she was defaming
my name so much

- and... and... and...
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

So she never got a final cut of the video?

- No, ma'am, she never did.
- [Judge Judy] All right.

She's entitled to her money back, $1,500.

That's one.

Now the second part of this case
is for defamation.

So that resolved your $10,000 claim.

You get your money back from him.

Tell me about the defamation.

[Chad] Okay so,
once she... I think it was...

[Judge Judy] Date.

Date that you're claiming she defamed you.

The date that she defamed me
was June 16th,

which was two days
after I went on vacation

and made it clear
that I didn't have my phone...

[Judge Judy] Don't...don't tell me...
don't tell me what you made clear.

June 16th, I'd like you to show me

what she said to defame you.

Okay.

Okay.

It's... it's... it's tons of stuff
when she was defaming me, but...

- Okay.
- Okay.

All right.

Thank you, Kevin.

Okay. Well, it's clear that she's angry

that she didn't get the video in time.

- Excuse me. Last one.
- [Judge Judy] And she didn't...

We never set an exact time.

[Judge Judy] Well, actually

somebody who works for you did.

Okay. Um...

[Judge Judy] Because somebody...

- looks like April 29th.
- [Lashavia] Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy] "Also your video
will be ready this week coming.

You'll get a preview in a couple of days."

Was that what you wrote to her?

- [Angie] Yes. Uh...
- [Judge Judy] Yes. That's all.

That's your agent. It's the same thing.

So your agent suggested to her that...

Were you...was she suggesting
the draft though?

- The draft. Correct.
- [Judge Judy] Yeah. She said...

I'm just reading what I said here.
[Chad] Okay. Just...

[Judge Judy] "Also your video
will be ready this week coming."

- [Chad] Yeah.
- "You'll get a preview

in a couple of days."

- That's what it says.
- Okay.

[Judge Judy] That didn't come to pass.

- Okay.
- [Judge Judy] Okay?

And she's complaining about that.

I mean, that was the end of April.
Now we're talking about June 16th.

There is a certain,
I would assume, timeframe

in which you need one of these things

in order to do with it

what you want to do with it for publicity.

- Yes.
- [Judge Judy] So I don't see

anything here
that's purposefully defamatory.

She paid you...well, they paid you
the money, the $1,500.

- They didn't get delivery on time.
- Right.

[Judge Judy] It's irrelevant to me
whether you go on vacation

and turn your phone off
and turn off your computer

and turn off anything else.

She was angry that she didn't get
what was promised to her

by your company.

So your countersuit is dismissed
on the plaintiff's...

- May I ask you one thing though?
- [Judge Judy] Yes, of course.

The thing is is that, you know,

by her telling everybody
that I robbed her and I stole from her

and that I'm a thief, that's not true.

I... I... I sent her a copy and...

[Judge Judy] No, you didn't send her
a copy when it was due.

You didn't. You turned off your phone.
You turned off your computer.

And she didn't get anything for a month.
[Chad] E...

She didn't get anything for a month.

Your agent said to her,

"You will get the video next week."

That didn't happen.

The fact that you went away
on vacation is not relevant.

[Judge Judy] Your counterclaim
is dismissed.

[Judge Judy] You owe the $1,500 back.
- One thing...

[Judge Judy] That's my judgment.
Thank you very much.

- [Chad] Can I ask one thing?
- [Kevin] Court is adjourned.

- No. We're finished.
- [Chad] Okay.

Excuse me, Judge Judy.

The, um...

the damages and losses
for the $10,000 that we...

Fifteen hundred dollars.
That's my judgment.

- [Lashavia] I'll receive it.
- Good.

- [Lashavia] Thank you.
- You don't get the video though.

I'm fine...I didn't wanna use it no more.

- [Chad] She has the footage.
- [Kevin] This way, sir.

- [Lashavia] I love your show.
- [Judge Judy] Great.

- [Judge Judy] Me too.
- And you too.

Whatever the judge says is what I deserve.

I love Judge Judy
so I'mma rock with you on that, Judy,

'cause I got my money back.

I just really wanna see her make it

since she's in her 40s now, so...

And I'm not the only person.

He done this to other artists
in Houston as well.

She's known for scamming people
and it didn't work this time.

I still took a major, major loss.

Fifteen hundred dollars for a video,
that's no problem.

I don't mind that. She can have that.

His work just wasn't up to quality,

and it wasn't, um, for us.

And it was a very horrible,
horrible experience for me.

She hasn't even seen the final.

The final looks so much better.
The final looks fire.

It was horrible.
It looked like it was Snapchat.

I'm glad that she said
she can't have the video.

I'm not blessing her with my skills.

- Always have a delivery date.
- Always.

And deliver, 'cause he doesn't deliver.

Many people know that he doesn't deliver.

[Judge Judy] I know that you and I
may disagree on this point.

The invoice is not really a contract,
but this invoice

had exactly what they were going to sh**t,

when they were going to sh**t it,
the amount of money that was paid.

And then reliance on that invoice,

plaintiff paid $1,500.

The defendant, in reliance on the invoice,

actually shot the video.

The only thing that was missing
in that invoice

was the date of delivery.

And if time was of the essence,

that had to be in the contract.

[Sarah] I mean, it's always smart

especially if you're gonna rely
on a certain date.

I think that's where we might have
some disagreement,

is I think that the plaintiff's
detrimentally relied

on that invoice.

She booked event space
for a listening party or viewing party

that was never able to take place
due to not receiving the video.

- The video.
- [Sarah] So I think

she also had a couple claims
for getting paid back

- if she had already paid venues or...
- [Judge Judy] You mean...

you mean damages other than
the amount of money that she said.

- And I would agree with you...
- [Sarah] Mm-hmm.

if the invoice had a date of delivery.

I think people far too often think
that an invoice is a contract.

[Judge Judy] Is a contact.

When you come to a legal forum,

that's not the case.

And I think that to have both
and to especially have dates on it

if that's important to you
and time is of the essence.

I think that's the best lesson
from that case.

I agree.

[announcer] Are you a victim of a scam?



[theme music playing]