03x44 - Labradoodle Litigation

[bunniefuu]

-You sold a dog and he didn't pay for it.
-Yes, ma'am.

The dog was sick and
I've been asking them to come get the dog.

-He said the dog had rabies.
-[dog barks]

It was just getting out of hand.

Where's the dog now?

I just gave the dog away.

The only sadness for me
in this entire case, is this puppy.

[narrator]
This is Judge Judy Justice.

[theme music playing]

Keyera Broomfield-White is suing
her husband's co-worker,

Aaron Coker, for the cost
of a Labradoodle.

[Bailiff Kevin]
Court, come to order. All rise.

Have a seat, please.

Hello, Judge. Case #3041,
Broomfield-White vs. Coker.

Thank you.

Miss White, the thrust of your case is
that you sold a dog

to the Defendant and he didn't pay for it.

Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy]
The Defendant has a couple of defenses.

One of which was that the dog was sick.

Yes, ma'am.

He had lots of vet bills for the dog.
And ultimately, those vet bills

far outweighed what he owed on the dog.
And he... is it your wife?

No, ma'am.

-[Judge Judy] Girlfriend...
-Friend, yes.

Your girlfriend... with whom you live?

[Aaron]
Yes, ma'am.

Okay. They had enough of the dog
and he says he gave it away.

Well, before I did that, I asked them
repeatedly, can they just come get the dog

because we were put in the middle
of a family triangle.

Let's start out with where you got the dog
and what kind of dog it is.

Yeah, so, I got the dog from my mom
on August 21st.

[Judge Judy] Okay. That's what I read,
August 21st of last year.

Yes.

How old was the dog
when you got it from your mother?

She was two months old at the time.

Okay. Would you step up, please?
Tell me your last name.

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

tell me when you bought this dog.

[Tina]
I believe it was June 28th, 29th.

[Judge Judy]
And how much did you pay for the dog?

Eight hundred.

How long did you keep the dog?
For just two months?

A little over a month, yes.

[Judge Judy]
Then, what happened to the dog?

I decided to sell the dog
to my daughter...

[Judge Judy]
Why?

I was going through some medical issues.

And I thought that I would be able
to handle it, but was completely wrong.

-And you sold the dog to your daughter.
-I did.

[Judge Judy]
How much did you sell the dog for?

Nine hundred.

So, you made a profit from your daughter.

No, ma'am. I also sold her a cage
along with the dog that I paid $125 for.

So, you sold her not only the dog
but the cage.

[Tina]
Yes.

-[Judge Judy] For $900.
-Yes.

And how much did your daughter pay you
for the dog?

-Nothing.
-[Judge Judy] Zero, right?

That's what I'm getting from here.
And then, Ms. White,

you decided that
you couldn't care for the dog.

Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy]
What month?

It was October.
I found out that I had conceived.

And the dog was not potty-trained.
The smell of it was making me really sick.

So, I decided to go ahead and
sell the dog myself.

I posted a post on Facebook
on October 17th.

You had the dog August, September
and October.

Correct.

[Judge Judy]
When did you take the dog to the vet?

I did not.

-[Judge Judy] The answer is, you did not.
-No.

When did you take the dog to the vet?

-[Aaron] Never.
-Bup!

[Judge Judy]
When did you take the dog to the vet?

I never took the dog to the vet.

[Judge Judy] So now, we have a dog
that you acquired in June

that had to be at least six weeks old.
So it had to be born

sometime late April or May.

It was born May 31st, 2022.

So, you took the dog when it was
four weeks old.

A little early to take a puppy.
Okay. And when you took the dog,

did you get paperwork that told you
what kind of shots the dog had had?

Yes, ma'am, I did.

[Judge Judy]
I'd like to take a look at the paper.

I see the dog was dewormed
on two occasions,

but I don't see any shots.

Okay, so, this is what
she wrote down here. So...

I don't care what she wrote down there.
You have a dog. The dog is a puppy.

It needs shots. It needs shots
before it can go around other dogs.

Do you mean you had no clue as to this?
And neither did you, Ms. White?

That the dog needed shots?

No. Um, actually, when me and him
made the agreement

for him to come and purchase the dog,
we had a phone call.

I don't care about a phone call.
I'm talking about...

You don't understand
what I'm saying to you, madam.

What I'm saying to you, your mother
had a dog that was born sometime in May.

She had the dog June, July,
between the two of you, August. Right?

You know that a dog, like a baby,
has to get injections, shots,

for rabies, for distemper.
Shots to make it healthy

so that if it's around other dogs,
it won't get sick.

Neither you nor your mother
took the dog to get... Put it down.

Unless you have shots to show me.

I'm not interested in anything other than
your neglect of this dog for six months.

That's all I'm interested in. Right now,
that's what I'm interested in.

Your neglect of this puppy for six months.

The dog was due for shots in September
when her insurance became active...

Let me explain something to you.

The dog wasn't due
when her insurance became active,

the dog was due when it's a puppy.
It gets puppy shots.

The fact that you didn't want to
give the dog shots until it got insurance

is not the dog's problem.
That's your problem.

The puppy needed puppy shots
within six months.

You had the dog for six months
between the two of you

and didn't take care of it.
And I don't understand that. What?

So, I definitely do apologize.
It was my first time having a puppy

and I didn't know that it needed shots.

You know in the chart that the dog
was dewormed.

That's all that you gave me.

I didn't know the type of shots the dog
needed, and that's ignorant...

Just a second. Then,
you look on the Internet.

You ask the breeder
from whom you bought it.

You ask people. You find out.
You don't do nothing.

It's a live animal.
You're supposed to take care of it.

Yes, I agree.

Good, I'm glad you agree.
Because his defense is,

that when he got the dog,
the dog got sick.

Ms. White, let me understand
your complaint.

You charged him $1,600
for a dog

you didn't pay for.
That you still owe the full price on.

Am I reading this wrong?

[Aaron]
No, you're not.

Don't help me, I don't need your help.

-Yes, ma'am.
-I need her help.

Yes, ma'am.

Yes, Your Honor. My agreement was
that I was supposed to pay my mom

the money out of the sale of the dog.

Just a second. You had the dog August,
September and October.

You paid your mother nothing.

I got the dog August 21st.
My mother and I made the agreement

that I would not immediately pay her
for the dog,

'cause we had just both moved to the area,
and I didn't have it.

-So, she knew that I did not have it...
-I don't care what she knew.

You didn't buy the dog from your mother
to resell it, I assume.

No. Originally, I was gonna keep the dog.
But I decided not to keep the dog.

But either way, our agreement was still
for me to pay her...

You sold him the dog for $1,600
and you didn't pay for it.

[theme music playing]

-Did you give the dog to him?
-[Aaron] Yes.

-[Judge Judy] No payment?
-None at all.

-[Judge Judy] Why?
-Well, because...

-[Judge Judy] "Well" is not an answer.
-I'm sorry.

You understand that I have problems
with your voracity already.

Okay.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Keyera Broomfield-White
claims her husband's co-worker,

Aaron Coker, owes for the cost
of a Labradoodle.

Aaron says Keyera sold him
a sick dog.

Okay. In addition to not paying for it,
which, that's between you and your mother,

has something to do with
the legality of your lawsuit,

because you can't sell something
that you don't own.

And you don't own it until you pay for it.
Right?

My real problem with the two of you
is you don't appear

to be people without any common sense
or brains.

How do you not know
that a puppy needs puppy shots

before it can be involved with other dogs?
Walk around, be near other dogs.

That it needs shots just like a baby does.

Your Honor, I was aware of the fact
that the dog

was supposed to go for shots in
September...

No, it wasn't supposed to go in September,
madam.

I got the dog August 21st from my mom.

My mom told me the following month
that the dog was going to need shots.

And that was only like a week or so
from August when we got the dog.

So, where did you get this idea
that this puppy that you had

didn't need shots before September?
Your daughter, a moment ago,

said September was the date because
that's when your insurance kicked in.

[Keyera]
September first, yes.

I got the idea from Tina, the person
I actually purchased the dog from.

She told me that the dog would be due for
its first shots the last week of August.

But the problem is, is that he told us
the dog had rabies.

And I researched that and there...

-Shh!
-[Tina] Sure.

-Who told you the dog had rabies?
-He did.

[Judge Judy]
I'm not talking about him.

[Tina] That's why he wouldn't pay,
he said the dog had rabies.

Let me explain something.
I don't know

whether the dog had rabies or not. I know
that you and your daughter were negligent.

And your daughter has no claim
because she didn't pay for the animal,

you did. You're not the Plaintiff.
You paid $800.

You sold it to your daughter for $900,
and you sold it to him,

without shots, for $1,600,
of which he paid you... five?

No, ma'am. We had an agreement
to pay the five.

-But I wasn't giving...
-[Judge Judy] Just a second.

-So, you paid nothing.
-[Aaron] Nothing. No, ma'am.

The first payment wasn't due until
I got paperwork and everything on the dog.

Okay. So, you got the dog in October.

October 17th. I'd like to see
the vet bills after October 17th.

I have that, and I got her rabies shot
certificate and things like that.

-This doesn't show me anything.
-[Aaron] Yes, ma'am.

This shows me a surgery consult...
I don't know...

No, he wanted to do surgery and...
Yes, ma'am.

This isn't a vet bill.
I've been doing this for 28 years.

So, if you're not gonna be able
to show me what I want,

don't waste my time with
the za-za-za on the machine.

Okay.

If you don't have it, you don't have it,
then just say you don't have it.

No, ma'am, I don't.

Why don't you have the vet bill?
We're not talking about forever ago, sir.

All you have to do is say to the vet,
I'm going to court,

I need a copy of my bill.

-Do you understand?
-[Aaron] Yes, ma'am.

Okay. Now, I want you to tell me 'cause
I'm not crazy about either one of you.

[Aaron]
Uh-oh.

You, because you were both negligent
with regard to this puppy.

You had no right to get a puppy
if the two of you

weren't emotionally or financially able
to take care of it.

You should certainly understand
that when you get a puppy,

when you buy a puppy...
Did you pay for it, by the way?

-I did. And...
-[Judge Judy] Okay.

And if you paid $800 for a puppy,
you ask certain questions.

I've had dogs in my life for 70 years.

Every time I purchase a dog,
the person from whom I purchase it

gives me a piece of paper that says
when the dog was born,

who the parents were,
when it got its first shot,

when it got its second shot,
when it's due for its third shot.

That's what you get.
And it's hard for me to comprehend

that neither one of you really
either understood it,

or just figured, well, I have a dog
for six weeks,

then I'm gonna sell it to my daughter.
I don't know if she'll want it or not.

She's gonna sell it to somebody else
for twice as much as I paid for it.

'Cause she sold it to him, allegedly,
for twice as much as you paid for it.

Sick! Sick! Where's the dog now?

Well, I repeatedly asked them
to come get it

I gave the dog to a friend of mine.

-Did you give the dog to him?
-[Aaron] Yes.

-[Judge Judy] No payment?
-None at all.

-Why?
-Well, because...

-[Judge Judy] "Well" is not an answer.
-I'm sorry.

You understand that I have problems
with your voracity already.

Okay. So, I just gave the dog away

after I repeatedly asked them
if they wanted the dog back.

Three dogs are in the house with us.

Which is what they call Katana,
which we call Lucky.

And then, I have a little small Chihuahua,
a miniature Chihuahua named Kamor.

And then, we have another dog
that is called...

What is her name... China.
Yes, so we have three dogs in the house.

Well, had three, now it's two.

When did you give the dog away?

It had to have been like December
sometime.

-[Keyera] Your Honor?
-[Judge Judy] What?

I wasn't just trying to double charge him
for the dog,

I was trying to get the money back
that I had put into the dog.

-My mom put that amount...
-[Judge Judy] Just a...

What did you put into the dog?

I had to pay a lease agreement
to have the dog.

Who cares? What does that...

-I paid $500...
-[Judge Judy] Who cares?

Well, when I was selling the dog, I was
looking to get my compensation back...

[Judge Judy] That has nothing to do
with him or the dog.

We agreed upon that price for the dog.

-He's not paying you anything.
-[Keyera] Okay.

He's not paying you anything.
He gave the dog away.

Would you tell me, the dog
got a rabies shot on October 31st.

-[Aaron] Yes, ma'am.
-What'd she need an x-ray for?

She was throwing up and
we were trying to figure out

what was going on with the dog.
She was sick.

So, we had to take her
to an emergency clinic,

-which I explained that to them...
-Just a second.

What emergency clinic?

It's called ... Hospital.

You look it up, get a number.
I'm going to ask you...

Yes, ma'am.

-...if Sarah called this vet hospital...
-Yes, ma'am.

...and you gave them authorization...
-The dog's name

-that you gave the dog is what?
-Is Lucky. Lucky.

-Lucky.
-[Aaron] Lucky.

Yes, ma'am.

...gave the vet hospital your name...
the dog's named Lucky.

Yes, ma'am.

How much would they tell me
that your vet bill

was for Lucky?

It was a thousand and twenty-two dollars
and some change.

Do me a favor. Call them.
I want you to find out, Sarah,

how much he paid and
what was done to the dog.

When you had the dog, Ms. White,
and you said

the dog was making all over your house,
and you had to get rid of it

because you couldn't stand the smell.
Didn't you think that the dog was sick?

No, she wasn't potty trained,
she was still a puppy.

But the smell of it was a lot for me
being pregnant.

It would cause me to be sick
and nauseous all the time.

He called me and was like,
why do you want to get rid of the dog?

I said, nothing's wrong with her,
she's really active.

I'm pregnant. Everything was fine. I told
him then I didn't take her for her shots

that she needed in September.
He was fine with that.

We agreed on the price.

Just stop there.
You didn't take her for her shots.

Yeah, in September,
like my mom had told me I needed to.

I did make him aware of that
before he even came up.

You do understand that if I find
that he, in fact, spent over $800

which is what your mother
paid for the dog,

over $800 in vet bills for this dog,
you get nothing.

-Do you understand?
-Okay.

'Cause you sold him a sick dog.

[theme music playing]

First of all, you didn't pay any money
for the dog.

I paid to have the dog in my home.

Who cares what you paid your landlord?
I don't care what you paid him.

No court cares what you paid your landlord
in order to have a dog.

Nobody cares.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Keyera Broomfield-White
is accusing her husband's co-worker

Aaron Coker, of refusing to pay
for the Labradoodle he purchased.

Aaron claims he had to pay for vet bills
because the dog was already sick.

You do understand that if I find
that he, in fact, spent over $800

in vet bills for this dog,
you get nothing.

Okay, but, Your Honor...

Her husband agreed
that the dog maybe got sick

because the dog was eating
out of the cat bowl,

drinking the cat water from a stray cat.
That will make a dog sick, right there.

[Judge Judy]
Absolutely.

After the husband told me that,
I already knew what it was.

Okay, Your Honor, as far as the shots,
I understand

that the dog was supposed to go and
get its shots. And I did know that,

and that's why I let him know that
there was shots that I did not give...

It doesn't matter to me.
It doesn't matter.

I just want you to know
that I made him aware of it.

And he was fine with the fact
that the dog needed shots

and paying for the shots
that the dog needed.

Paying for shots doesn't cost $1,000.
It doesn't cost $1,400.

It only costs that kind of money
if the dog is sick.

And she was sick.

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

Your Honor, that's not
what they informed us.

I have three different messages and
three different things that they told us.

I'm gonna see if I can get a response
on the phone.

If I can, if he paid anywhere near $800
to the vet

to take care of a sick puppy,
end of story.

Hi, this is Sarah Rose and I'm a law clerk
for Judge Judy Sheindlin

with the show Judy Justice, and
we have a case in front of us right now

regarding Aaron Coker and
his dog, Lucky, who came in.

And I just needed a write-up of what
he paid as well as what the dog received.

Okay. So, you have no record of him then.

Okay, no problem.
Thank you very much for your help.

[Judge Judy] The fact that you never had
a dog before, that you didn't know,

that you were pregnant,
that you were nauseous...

all is meaningless to the dog
that was neglected. Meaningless.

Now you can sit down.

[Keyera]
Your Honor, I have a question.

I don't answer questions,
I ask questions. Yes?

They had no record of Aaron Coker
or Lucky.

This was less than a year ago.
You can get a vet bill.

[Aaron]
Yes, ma'am.

-You knew you were coming to court.
-Yes, ma'am.

Ms. White, first of all, you had an animal
that you hadn't paid for,

so you had no right to sell it.
I actually find that your conduct

and your mother's,
although not intentionally,

negligent with regard to this dog
was in fact negligent.

And you sold him the dog that
he got rid of after he took it to the vet,

'cause I believe he probably took it
to the vet because she was sick.

Did you have a cat?

There was a stray cat outside.
They would sleep next to each other

outside, um, in the back yard.
The cat and the dog.

They would just be out there taking a nap
together when I went outside.

You do understand that puppies
can get sick from other animals.

Cats or dogs, they don't discriminate

whether it's a cat or a dog
that has an intestinal bug.

And you have a cat outside
that you feed outside.

Yes, Your Honor, I'm not denying
that the dog needed its shots.

I know that it needed its shots. And
I know that it could've contracted worms

because worms is something they can get.
I learned that after the fact.

Or other things.

The dog was completely healthy
when I gave him the dog.

He even sent me a picture of the dog
playing with his other dog

when he received the dog.

Maybe. Maybe, and maybe the dog got sick
hanging around with his other dogs.

They changed the story
three different times.

And I have all the messages of them
changing their story every time

for what was actually wrong for why they
wouldn't pay me the money for the dog.

First of all, you didn't pay any money
for the dog.

I paid to have the dog in my home.

Who cares what you paid your landlord?
I don't care what you paid him.

No court cares what you paid your landlord
in order to have a dog.

Nobody cares.
You didn't pay for the dog.

There is a certain amount of fairness,

that if your mother is owed money
for this dog,

and even though she was
neglectful of this animal,

he really had no right to turn around
and give it away to somebody else.

And I'm not so sure that after he got
a six-month-old dog well again

with all the shots, that there was
no money exchanged

with regard to the dog.
I'm not so sure, sir.

Well, I didn't charge anybody.
I asked them numerous times.

They wouldn't come and get the dog.
It was just getting out of hand.

[Judge Judy] It was getting out of hand

because, sir, you hadn't
paid them any money.

When were you to make
your first payment?

Like November 10th or 11th.

-Okay. And you had the dog until December.
-[Aaron] Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy]
Why didn't you make your first payment?

Because the dog was sick and
I been asking them to come get the dog.

First, you can't tell them to come and
get the dog because you bought it.

You bought it without a contract
that said it had a health guarantee,

a health warranty.
That doesn't mean she's getting a penny

-'cause she didn't pay for the dog.
-Okay.

You had an arrangement with her to pay her
in November and you didn't do it.

-Yes, ma'am.
-[Judge Judy] Now, stand up a second.

Did your daughter agree to pay you back
after she got paid from him?

-She did.
-[Judge Judy] You see, my problem is

I could dismiss your case, then
your mother would have to come back

because she's the actual owner
'cause you didn't pay for the dog.

There is no way that you're getting
twice as much as you paid for the dog.

But I don't think, Mr. Coker,
that you're being honest.

You certainly didn't bring me the proof.
You certainly didn't bring me evidence

that was either in your possession or
capable of being in your possession.

And I don't think that these people
in Buford who spoke to her

were lying to her when they said
they don't have you in their system

with a dog whose name is Lucky.

Then you have to pay something
for this dog that you just gave away.

Because I'm not so sure
that you just gave it away.

The only sadness for me
in this entire case

is that this poor puppy had,
by the time it was six-months-old,

four different owners.
All of whom were neglectful.

You, you, and I don't know
about the person

that you ultimately gave the dog to...
I don't know whether that person

is gonna be using or abusing her because
according to you, he got her for free.

And even those shelters
that really have rescue animals,

they charge something
because they want people

to have a certain financial investment
in taking care of a pet

before they give you a pet.
So, that you gave

what was an expensive dog
to this person for free,

is something that I don't buy,
like I don't buy the vet bill.

You get $100 for the dog.

Judgment for the Plaintiff
in the amount of $100.

That's it. Next time,
take better care of animals.

[Bailiff Kevin]
This court is adjourned.

I mean, it was a fair judgment.

I wish I had brought the right document
with me that I didn't, so...

He lied about having the bills and
he gets to get away with not paying it.

It was a family feud between the mother
and the daughter.

And now the mother's standing
with the daughter now, so...

She was completely healthy
and he knows that.

She was sick, she was small.

He just didn't want to pay that much
for a dog.

I'm happy she found a great home.

That was one of the few cases in my career

where I really had a tough time
making a judgment.

Yeah. And I don't necessarily disagree
with your judgment in the end.

I know it was meant to be sort of
a wrist slap to the Defendant, of course,

for being, you know, a little untruthful
in multiple parts of his story.

But technically, the Plaintiff
was not the right Plaintiff.

You really can't at the last minute
just substitute one Plaintiff for another.

They were just foolish and neglectful
of this puppy.

And got it for all the wrong reasons.
His story about this $1,400 vet bill

was untruthful.
And I knew it was untruthful

because if you print up
that piece of paper, the...

Vet logo would be right all over that.

The logo was on top and it doesn't say
"range of treatment, proposed bill."

It looks that way when a Defendant
prepares their own statement...

And makes a copy of it. Right.

[narrator] Are you a victim of an as*ault?

[theme music playing]