03x93 - Wheels of Wrath Part 2

[bunniefuu]

She has given you no money,
is that correct?

-No money at all.
-And she repossessed the car.

-She is lying.
-You paid zero.

Everything that she is saying is not true.

Prove it to me.

Just because I can't prove it,
Judge Judy, that doesn't make it...

[Judy] Well, if you can't prove it,
I can't hear it.

-[announcer] This is Judy Justice.
-[theme song]

[announcer]
Previously on Judy Justice.

[Judy] Is what you ultimately
agreed to buy a 2004 Saturn Vue?

I end up getting the Saturn Vue,
but the contract that I signed,

I was supposed to buy the Chevy Impala.

If you're gonna try to tell me
that you were tricked...

-Yes.
-[Judy] ...stop wasting my time.

I don't want you to think that I'm stupid.

-No, ma'am.
-[Judy] You took possession of the Saturn,

went with her to Motor Vehicles,

signed the documents which would
indicate you're the owner of the Saturn.

I don't wanna hear Impala anymore.
You knew now what you were buying.

Yes. I was supposed
to give her $300 a month

for the car that I'm not
supposed to speak of.

I don't wanna hear anything else about it.

What makes it difficult, Ms. Judy,
is because the Saturn was garbage.

That's your problem.

-No, ma'am. It's not because...
-Well, I'm telling you it's your problem.

[announcer]
And now, the conclusion.

Illana Junious is suing
her former friend Carla Walls,

for the cost of a car
and filing a false police report.

[Judy] Okay. You got the car, you took it
to a mechanic, it needed some work,

it needed realignment,
it needed new tires, whatever.

And you called her and told her
that it needed this and it needed that.

And she said to you,
"Give the car back to me."

-Thank you.
-[Judy] Shut. Don't speak.

She said to you,
"Give the car back to me."

And you said, "I'm not giving it back to
you. I've already put money in the car..."

Don't speak.
"I've already put money in the car.

I've put in, whatever, tires, I've put an
alignment, I've put in $800 in the car."

She said, "I'll give you back that money."

-Thank you. Yes.
-[Judy] Shut. Don't speak. Don't speak.

"I'll give you back that money, less the
time that you had and drove the car."

-You have emails to prove that?
-I have lots of it.

-[Judy] Ah, just a second.
-Yes.

[Judy]
I'd like to take a look at it.

-Yes.
-[Judy] Shut. Don't speak.

-[Illana] Here you go... one, another one.
-Don't speak. Now.

-[Illana] Here you go, another one.
-Sir.

-[Illana] Okay.
-Stand up.

This is very important, you look at me.
Put down the papers.

Is the Saturn parked
in front of your house?

-Don't look over there. Look here.
-[Joseph] I'm looking.

[Judy] That's either a yes or a no.
That's not hard.

Is the Saturn parked
in front of your house,

or on the side of your house,
or in the driveway?

-No, ma'am.
-Where is it?

[Joseph] It is currently in a,
I wanna say, junkyard,

because when I drove the Saturn, it broke
down on me when we finally got it back.

[Judy]
Just a second. You got it back.

We're gonna get to that in a second.
That's another part of the...

-So, you got it back.
-[Joseph] Mhm.

[Judy] Because you were driving it...
Let's get this clear.

After it was registered,
you were driving it to work.

-Yes.
-[Judy] And one day you drove it to work,

and she repossessed the car
and the police were called.

-[Joseph] Yes.
-Police came for whatever reason,

-I get into that maybe later.
-[Illana] Yes.

They gave you back the car.

-Yes.
-[Judy] Yes.

And you continued to drive
the car to work in October.

-Yes.
-[Judy] October.

Don't shake your head, if you shake your
head, I'm just gonna dismiss your case.

-Okay. I'm sorry.
-[Judy] Do you understand?

You drove the car in October.
We are now in March of 2024.

You drove the car to work
through the end of the time

you were working for this company?
That's a yes or a no.

-No, ma'am.
-[Judy] What car did you drive?

The Chevy Impala.

[Judy]
Where did you get the Chevy Impala from?

[Joseph] The day that
I called the... on October 3rd,

I called my mother and asked her
did she come get the car from my job?

She said no.
And I said the car wasn't there.

And I found glass on the parking lot
where I parked the car.

How did you get the Impala,
is my question.

Because...the way I got the car
is because when I called my mom,

she called her and she came
and got me from work in the white Impala.

-[Judy] The plaintiff...
-[Joseph] Yes, ma'am.

[Judy] ...came and got you
in the white Impala, and?

[Joseph] She took me home
and I was told that they had an agreement

that I could use the white Impala for a
while to drive back and forth to work.

Just to use.

-Yes, ma'am.
-[Judy] And where was the Saturn?

I do not know where the Saturn was,
I do not know.

When the police brought it back
from her house after she repossessed it,

-where was it?
-[Joseph] I honestly...

[Judy]
This is all gonna be reasonable for me.

Because... the reason why I do not know

is because I was not at home
for a period of time, so...

-[Judy] Where were you?
-I was either going downtown

-or I was at some of my friends' house.
-Sit down.

-[courtroom laughs]
-[Judy] Sit down. You're useless.

-You're useless.
-He is.

[Judy]
But it all becomes clear.

Did you let him use the Impala
to go to work at any time?

The first week before
we even talked about the Saturn,

I did, because she was
supposed to be my friend.

I let her borrow my Impala for a week...

-On the 21st.
-...and then she came and talked to me

because I told her that Impala
is my son's car. He was 16.

I said, "Well, you can't keep this car,
you can get this one."

She said, "Well, I'll take this one."
So the Impala, I...

-but I never was gonna...
-[Judy] Just a second.

He drove the Impala
for a while to work, he said.

Maybe three days, I let him
borrow it for, like, three days.

-But that was way before this happened.
-[Judy] Okay. Okay.

-When did you repossess the car?
-October the 3rd.

[Judy] Okay. By October the 3rd, she has
given you no money, is that correct?

[Illana]
No money at all.

No money, and she can't prove
she gave you any money. Shh.

No...okay. No money at all.

[Judy] So, and she can't prove
she gave you any money.

-No.
-[Judy] You repossessed the car.

-I did.
-[Judy] After you repossessed the car,

the defendant knew
that you would repossess the car.

-Thank you.
-[Judy] Don't speak.

-Yes.
-And she called the police,

-and reported it stolen. Is that correct?
-[Illana] Yes. Yes.

-Stop.
-[quietly] I'm sorry.

[Judy] Is that correct?
We have the police report.

-I want you to... just a second.
-Part of... part of it is...

-[Judy] You called the police and you...
-Part of it is.

Just a second. You called
the police, reported the car stolen,

and you said to them,
"I think I know who stole it."

-That part is.
-[Judy] Yes, well then, just say...

That part is. But everything
that she is saying is not true.

I'm not talking about what she's saying.
I'm talking about what I'm saying.

[tense music]

She repossessed it
from where he had driven it...

-Every day.
-...to work.

-She vandalized that car.
-[Judy] I... just...

I don't care if she put it
in a bubblegum machine

and it came out looking like Daffy Duck.

-[courtroom laughs]
-[tense music]

[tense music]

[announcer] Illana Junious claims
her former friend Carla Walls

filed a false police report.
Carla admits to calling the police.

You called the police and said,
"The car was stolen.

I think I know who stole it."
That's what you told the police.

Forget what she says,
listen to what I'm saying.

Police report.
Is that what you told the police?

-Yes.
-[Judy] Okay.

And you went with
the police to get the car.

-Yes.
-Did you tell the police

-that there had been a sale of the car?
-[Carla] Yes, ma'am.

Now, you knew that the car wasn't stolen,
you knew that the car was repossessed,

because you didn't pay any money for it.

In any event, the plaintiff
was arrested for felony auto theft.

-That's not true though. But she's...
-[Judy] Can I see...

-She's manipulating everything.
-[Judy] No.

-Can I get [indistinct]
-[Carla] What was...

is she's manipulating the...
she's manipulating.

That when, on the 21st,
the reason why he was in the Impala,

because the Impala was the one
that I was supposed to buy.

-I don't care.
-[Carla] Yes, I did.

-I don't care.
-[Carla] Yes indeed. I did.

Just a second. I don't care.

-You're a grown woman. How old...
-I gave her money.

[Judy] You're a grown woman.
-People gave her money, on my behalf.

-She had my... and the car was fixed...
-[Judy] Just a...

-just a second.
-...on my behalf.

-[Judy] Just a second. Prove to me...
-And I asked her for my money back.

Prove to me that people
gave her money on your behalf

for the sale of the Saturn.
Prove it to me. Shut. Say nothing.

A witness or document, that people
gave her money on your behalf.

-Okay.
-The only reason why I can't

-is because the person that...
-[Judy] Where is...

I don't care why you can't.

-If you can't you can't. Put...
-[Carla] But, uh...

I told you to put the papers down.

Just because I can't prove it, Judge Judy,
that doesn't make it untrue.

[Judy] Well, if you can't prove it,
I can't hear it. This is a courthouse...

-[Carla] But she's manipulating...
-...and if you can't prove it, if...

-[Carla] ...everything.
-Okay.

-And she is lying.
-[Judy] What did you do with the Saturn?

-Thank you.
-She vandalized the Saturn.

Shush. I want you to tell me
what you did with the Saturn.

-Where is it?
-When the police gave it back to me,

Ms. Illana vandalized the Saturn,
the Saturn quit on the highway.

-[Judy] Madam.
-I don't [indistinct] but I...okay.

[Carla] She vandalize...
she was at the AutoZone,

she followed me all that day while we
were pushing the car out of the road.

She followed us, she vandalized
the car because she was mad,

because the police gave it back. She's the
reason why the Saturn is not working.

She is the reason, she cut the belt. I...

[Judy]
Madam, pay careful attention to me.

She repossessed the car
because you didn't pay for it.

-No, I did.
-[Judy] The car...

I don't want you to answer me.
You're not to answer me.

-Your son drove the car to work. That...
-One day.

-Every day, every day.
-Just a second, if you interrupt again,

I'm just gonna rule in her favor
on the whole case,

do you understand, to dismiss yours.
That you have a counterclaim,

it's gonna be dismissed,
if you open your mouth again.

-Okay.
-[Judy] Okay.

I don't know how you feel and how
in your convoluted mind you're right.

But you took a vehicle
and you allowed your son to use it

and he did in fact use it, I don't
care if he used it for a half hour.

You went to Motor Vehicles
and you signed on as the owner.

You paid zero, you were
supposed to pay $3,000.

What happened was, there was more
work that had to be done on the car

than you had anticipated, and you wanted
to reduce the price. It's not a new story.

I had to put in so much money,

and therefore I want a reduction in what
we agreed on, which was $3,000,

and she said, "Give me the car back."

She did offer to give you the car back
because you responded to it.

You didn't give her the car back,
you didn't pay her any money,

she repossessed it
from where he had driven it...

-Every day.
-[Judy] ...to work.

And if you don't know where the car
is now, she's entitled to her $3,000.

-That's so far... I... just a second.
-She vandalized that car.

I don't care if she put it in
a bubblegum machine

and it came out looking like Daffy Duck.

[courtroom laughs]

-[Judy] You hadn't paid a penny for it.
-Yes, I did.

[Judy] No. Shh. Don't say it. Prove it.
Prove that you paid any money for the car.

Even your texts don't say
that you paid any money for the car.

Okay. Now let's move on
to the next cause of action,

'cause I'm... originally,
I was just gonna throw it out,

but I see that I'm dealing
with somebody as thick as a wall.

Can I see the police report, please,

-where you were arrested for grand theft?
-Yes.

-I wasn't arrested...
[Judy] Good, then you have no claim.

-No, no, no. I do, I do. I...
-Just a second. Don't.

-[Illana] I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
-Let me see the police report.

[courtroom titters]

-They did come after me...
-[Judy] Don't speak.

[courtroom titters]

Okay. Police told you
if you didn't return the car,

they would arrest you
and take you to jail for auto theft.

-So you returned the car?
-Yes. But...

[Judy]
That... that's a yes.

-I did return the car.
-[Judy] Good.

But they did still come after me,
because I asked him,

I said, "I've never been in jail before."
So I said, "Call the sergeant or something

because I'm not going to jail
for something I didn't do."

Just a second. You returned the car.

-[Illana] I did but...
-And you didn't go to jail.

They sent it to the prosecutor's office.

-[Judy] May... just a second.
-They came after me.

-[Judy] May I see?
-For grand theft auto.

[Judy]
Just a second.

-Um, there you go.
-[Judy] Just a second.

What happened to the case?
You returned the car that day.

You went into your house,
police were there.

-They took the car back, from your house.
-Okay. Right.

Okay. And you went back into your house.

-[Illana] Right.
-And then you got something in the mail?

-Yes. In January... I think...
-[Judy] Just.

-Don't speak.
-Yes, I did. I did.

-May I see that?
-[Illana] I did.

-That's just the plea... okay. I'm sorry.
-Don't speak.

-Oh, just a second. You pled guilty?
-No, I did not.

-That's what it says.
-[Illana] No, I didn't.

Okay. But no, I have the dismissal letter

-because I showed her all the proof.
-[Judy] May I see that?

I did go before the prosecutor
and when I showed all the proof,

she said that she'll rethink it,
and then she dismissed everything.

-I didn't plead guilty for that.
-[Judy] Shh.

Okay. So the case was closed
and the case was closed

-in January of 2024.
-22nd.

[Judy] Were you contacted between the time
that the car was picked up at her house

and January of 2024 by the police?

-Yes, ma'am.
-When?

[Carla] I had got something in
the mail. I don't remember the date,

but, when I got it in the mail
and I saw that she was facing charges...

[Judy] Now, just a second.
What did you do with the document?

Did it say do you wanna pursue the charges
or do you want to drop the case?

I said that, Ms. Illana has children.
She has a daughter over there in China.

-[Judy] Just a second.
-I'm telling you what I said.

I want to know if you said
you wanted to pursue the case.

I did not want to pursue
the case on those merits,

-because she had a daughter...
-[Judy] I don't care.

[tense music]

Please, please, okay.
Give me a second.

[Judy] I just wanna know
where the car is now.

-[Carla] Give me a second.
-No.

-The car broke down [indistinct]
-[banging]

I want to know where the car is now.

[tense music]

[announcer] Illana Junious
wants her former friend, Carla Walls,

to pay for the 2004 Saturn Vue
she purchased from Illana.

Carla claims she made cash payments
towards the car and owes her nothing.

You said you didn't wanna pursue the case.

No, I did not.
I didn't wanna pursue the case.

[Judy] Okay. And do you have
any evidence to the contrary?

-[Illana] Um, at...
-"Um" is not an answer.

-Do you have any evidence...
-[Illana] I do. I don't have it here...

-...to the contrary?
-...but on her countersuit...

-[Judy] Okay. Very good.
-...she sent papers that...

Very good. The car isn't there anymore.

They don't have the car.
You sent it to a junkyard.

-Is that what you...where is it?
-No, ma'am. No, ma'am.

The car broke down.
She vandalized the car.

So where is the car now?

[Carla] I don't know. I... the car broke
down in front of, um... the car...

I wanna know the last time
you saw the car. Where was it?

[Carla] Okay. He wasn't with me
the last time I saw the car.

-No, no. When you don't tell...
-[Carla] But he was there

-the first time it broke down.
-...when you can't remember

-when I'm asking you important things...
-I remember where the car was.

-[Judy] The last time you saw it.
-Yes, ma'am.

-[Carla] The last time he saw it.
-[Judy] Shh.

Well then if that's not
the last time it was seen,

-then what do I care?
-[Carla] [indistinct] okay.

The last time I seen the car,
I was on my way home from...

I was driving the car,
the car broke down on me on...

-[Judy] Date.
-The date was October 29th.

-I was driving the car down [indistinct]...
-[Judy] And it broke down?

-Yes, ma'am.
-[Judy] Sit.

So you were driving the car
the month of October.

You were driving the car the month
of October if this was October 29th.

Now the car broke down
he said on October 29th.

No, ma'am. He's not...
the car broke down...

-[Judy] I don't care.
-Okay, ma'am, please, please, please.

-Okay. Give me a second.
-I just wanna know where the car is now.

-Give me a second.
-[Judy] No.

The car broke down the same day
that she gave the car back.

-The car broke down [indistinct]...
-[banging]

I want to know where the car is now.
Is it in a junkyard?

That's what he says. Is it trashed?
Is it in your house? Where is it?

The last time I seen the car,
I was pushing the car down South Street

because the car broke down
in front... again.

The car broke down in front
of Outback Steakhouse.

-I don't care.
-[Carla] We pushed... uh, wait a minute.

-I pushed the car...
-Just tell me where the last time

-that you saw the car.
-[Carla] I'm telling you...

[Judy]
I don't want a whole story. Where was it?

-I...
-Give me a street.

-I pushed it behind Outback Steakhouse.
-[courtroom laughs]

[Carla] Because it broke down on the
highway and so it wouldn't quite... so we...

I had to physically get out
and push the car off the highway.

And a couple of guys helped me
push the car off the highway.

So, is that the last time you saw the car?

Yes, ma'am.

[Judy]
Did you take the license plates off?

-No, ma'am.
-You left your license plates on?

Your license plates,
they're attached to your name?

Yes, ma'am.

[Judy]
I don't believe a word you're saying.

-Oh, my...
-[Judy] Judgment for the plaintiff

in the amount of $3,000,
your counterclaim is dismissed.

-We're done.
-[Kevin] This court is adjourned.

It's horrible how people
can manipulate the system.

-She did make a good decision.
-And they can manipulate evidence.

Nothing that she said
in there that was true.

Basically everything she said was a lie.

Her son was driving the car
every day to work.

The contract was about the Chevy Impala.
We had no contract for the Saturn Vue.

So they lied. But that's okay. I did get
the money for my car, so that's good.

I asked the prosecutor not to prosecute.

I told them that she got a daughter in
China and she got kids in high school.

She's a mother.
And I didn't wanna see her prosecuted.

I mean, basically I just started
crying about the situation

'cause I could've went to jail
for 350 days.

You know, my kids,
everything would've been gone.

You know, I just want to thank Judge
Judy for... because I mean, hey...

It's not what happens in life.
It's what you can prove.

And if you can't prove an incident,

then like she say, she can't...
she can't hear evidence on it.

So I couldn't prove my case.
I couldn't prove it.

Uh, no friendship there.
I can't be friends with people like that.

They lie, manipulate, and use people.
I can't be friends with stuff like that.

Good takeaway is that it's very important

if you're dabbling in the business
of selling used cars,

whether it's one, whether it's 15,
to have some level of specificity.

I mean, I saw glimpses of the contract,
or what they consider to be a contract,

and there's no mention of what the actual...
what you're contracting for.

There's no name of the car.

There was a little bit of specificity
regarding the payments,

but all of that is sort of null and void

if you don't know
what you're contracting for.

So to have very clear, cut out,
what you're contracting for,

what type of car, what year car,

maybe throw the mileage on there,
for sake of a full picture.

And then discuss whatever breakdown
of payment you were discussing.

How much it's gonna be upfront, how much,
if you're gonna allow monthly payments,

what the repercussions are
for not making those monthly payments.

And if that's your business,
like the plaintiff said,

was sort of a side business for her,
selling these used cars,

you would think she would have a boiler
plate template for that sort of thing.

It would've cleared up a lot of confusion
that we had here today about...

-You can get that online.
-Yeah. Yeah.

They have these things online.
Bills of sale for cars.

-Mhm.
-You know, just fill it out.

-In a contract, you need an offer.
-Mhm.

-[Judy] An acceptance of the offer.
-Mhm.

What the offer is about.

-Yes.
-[Judy] Whether it's about for property,

-whether it's about for services...
-[Sarah] Mhm.

-...whatever it is.
-[Sarah] Sure.

And the as is portion
is very important as well,

which is where you list in the contract,
in that part at the bottom,

sold as is or not.

-Whatever you agree upon.
-Whatever your agreement...

-whatever your agreement was.
-Sure.

[Judy] Anyway, but if... the general
rule is, if you buy a used car,

-then you're buying it as is.
-Mhm. That it is as is.

[Judy] And if there's a contract,
a written contract,

anything outside of that written contract...

Usually is not allowed.

-...it's called puffing.
-[Sarah] Mhm. Yeah.

[mockingly] This car was driven by a
little old lady to the Piggly Wiggly

-on Friday every week in Florida.
-Mhm. Yeah.

It had no mileage on it.

There's a reason that
used cars salesmen get a bad rep.

-[Judy] Right.
-For that sort of puffery...

-Right.
-[Sarah] ...that is allowed.

Well, that's not...
and that's inadmissible.

-[Sarah] Exactly.
-It's just what's inside...

What's in the four corners
of the contract.

-[Judy] Right.
-So it better be good.

[announcer] Have you been cheated?


[theme song]