03x86 - Miles Apart and Shared Home, Shattered Family

[bunniefuu]

While you were together,

you both purchased a truck.

That's correct.

-You're paying the loan.
-Mm-hmm.

Well, why would you do that?

I guess I was in a relationship
and thought that he deserved it.

You know, if I didn't get him
what he wanted, it was a guilt trip.

-You think that's fair?
-Yes.

[narrator] This is Judy Justice.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Emily Pardue is suing
her ex-boyfriend, Scott Lytle,

for an unpaid loan and harassment.

[Kevin] Court come to order. All rise.

Have a seat.

Hello, Judge. Case 3117,
Pardue versus Lytle.

[Judy] Ms. Pardue, you and the defendant

-have a child together?
-Yes, ma'am.

-[Judy] How old is the child?
-He's five.

-When did you and Mr... Lytle?
-[Scott] Lytle.

[Judy] ...live together?

We got together in 2017.

Moved in almost immediately.

He was incarcerated
for the first 18 months.

In what month and year
was he incarcerated?

It was in August.

[Judy] Was your son born yet?

He was not. He was born in August of '18.

[Judy]
Okay. This is what your case is about.

You indicate that,
while you were together,

you both purchased a truck.

-It's titled in both your names.
-Yes, ma'am.

-[Judy] Is that correct?
-That's correct.

It is still titled in both your names.
Is that correct?

-[Scott] That's correct.
-[Emily] I have the title

-if you'd like to look at it.
-[Judy] Yeah, I'd like to see it.

[Emily] Well, it's a copy, but yeah.

[Judy] Are you telling me
that you sold him the truck?

-No.
-[Judy] Well, what is this?

[Emily] Is that where I signed it?

Yeah, I was forcibly forced to sign that

-at one point.
-[Scott] No, she wasn't, Your Honor.

Shh. I don't want...

When did you sign this?

-I'll be honest, I don't remember exactly.
-Year.



Okay. The title to the truck
is currently in both your names?

-Yes, ma'am.
-[Judy] And you drive the truck?

Correct.

[Judy]
Okay. So it is your claim, Ms. Pardue,

you were living together,

-as a family with a child.
-Mm-hmm.

[Judy] He wanted a truck.

You were working. Where were you working?

I was working at the hospital in Alpena.

-Doing what?
-A phlebotomist.

[Judy]
And what kind of work were you doing?

I was an oil change tech at Pennzoil.

[Judy] So, you wanted a truck,

and you loaned him money.

It's an old truck.

How much did the truck cost?

The original loan was 28..., uh, 6,800.

-[Judy] To buy it?
-Yeah, to buy it.

And that was in what year?



And the truck is 2003, 2004?



[Judy] And he paid that money back to you,

and then you say you took out $10,000

-for him to make repairs on the truck.
-Yes, ma'am.

[Judy] That doesn't make sense to me.

If it doesn't make sense to me,
it's not true.

Why would you put $10,000 into a truck

years after you paid $6,800
for the whole truck?

Truck doesn't appreciate in value.

You can buy another truck for $10,000.

So you wanna tell me
when you took out this loan?

-Give me the date.
-Um, it was May of 2021 for the $10,000.

-And you were living together at the time?
-Yes, ma'am.

[Judy] Because you stopped living together
in what month and year?

Officially, it was May of '23.

So you lived together
for another two years.

You wanna tell me
what you spent that money on?

-Um, I...
-[Judy] Just a second.

Sorry.

[Judy] It wasn't on parts for the truck.

I want you to know that I know.

You seem like an intelligent young woman.

You're a phlebotomist.

Nobody in their right mind

would take out $10,000

to put into a truck

that's decades old

that you only paid $6,800 for.

Now, you may have used it
for some other things.

Maybe he used it for some other things.

He may have used some of it
to fix the truck.

But he didn't use $10,000 worth of parts
to fix the truck.

You wanna start again?

-I have the receipts.
-[Judy] Receipts for what?

The 6,800 for the motor.

Um, there was also
for the turbo that he purchased.

And all the other parts
that were purchased.

[Judy] Well, why would you do that?

I guess I was in a relationship
and thought that he deserved it.

I mean, there was also
a lot of feeling uncomfortable

from domestics and that kind of stuff.

The guilt of, you know,
if I didn't get him what he wanted,

it was a guilt trip.

Okay. Can I see the proof of the loan?

Where you took it from.

Tell me about this, Mr. Lytle.

[Scott] Uh, so we got the truck in...

-In both your names.
-Both our names.

-We paid it off. Um...
-[Judy] Just a second.

Well, this is an application for the loan.

That's what they gave me
for proof of loan.

Well, show me your proof of payments.

Where you make the payments.
What are the monthly payments?

Um, the payments are 232.

And I do have this as like a,
the months that he did pay me

-until November.
-No, no. I don't wanna see what you paid.

I wanna see from the bank
where you pay the money every month.

'Cause you are paying the loan.

He was giving you money,
according to you, for a very long time,

but you're paying the loan.

Here's this one.

-[Judy] What's 116 and 113? What is...
-[Emily] I've been splitting them in half.

Since November,
his child support's come through

and he's quit paying me the payments.

So I've been splitting it
from the child support.

How much is he paying
in child support payments?

[Emily] 499.

-[Judy] A what?
-A month.

And prior to the 499 a month,
he was paying for the truck?

Mm-hmm.

[Judy] Now, you took him to court
for child support.

We're still, yeah, in the process
of custody and child support.

But we're talking about child support.

'Cause Mr. Lytle says
that he was giving you money

to help with support for the baby
as well as for this loan.

Mr. Lytle, how much money
were you giving her?

I was giving her $325 a month.

-You have proof of that?
-I do not.

Well, then we can ask Ms. Pardue.
Was he giving you $325 a month?

Yes, he was.

Okay. So he was giving you $325 a month.



leaving $114 a month for child support.

Yeah, before I got the judgement
against me for child support.

Okay. So, you have the truck.

And she has the bill.

-You think that's fair?
-Um, yeah, I do.

[Judy] Why?

Well, she stopped
letting me see my child...

[Judy] That has nothing to do with me.

Not letting you see your child
is for another court.

Your visitation is not for me.

When they go over his figures

and they see that
they're taking half of his paycheck...

He also has child support
on another child too.

Did you know about that
when you had a child with him?

-[Emily] I did.
-[Judy] Well, then that's on both of you.

You know. He has to find
something else to do to occupy his time.

[narrator] And later today...

That's the money
we took out for appliances.

-Took it out from where?
-[Vicky] From my checking.

We shopped around

and that's when he decided
to use Samsung credit,

but we still had that cash.

So what did you do with the cash?

I don't know.
You'd have to ask Mr. Hilden that.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Emily Pardue claims
her ex-boyfriend, Scott Lytle,

owes for an unpaid loan and harassment.

Now, you think it's reasonable
for you to have the truck

-and for her to have the debt?
-Yes. I do.

[Judy] Tell me why.

I paid her four hundred and...

Or it's... She actually
got that number wrong.

It's actually 562 a month
in child support.

She lives at home with her mom.

She barely has any bills.

I'm struggling to pay my bills.

How long have you been paying 562?

Since November.

I do have this. It's the 499

-from the child support.
-[Judy] Well, what is 562?

I'm not sure if that's the retroact back,

but this total here says 499.

[Judy]
But does it come right out of your pay?

-Yeah, they took half of my paycheck.
-[Judy] Okay.

I actually don't think
that his position is unreasonable.

That when he was giving you money
for the child in a lesser amount,

he was able to pay for this truck
that's a jointly owned piece of property.

But I don't see that he has the resources

to pay you triple the amount of money
that he was giving you

and the truck.

Can you explain that to me?
How you think that that's reasonable?

He had asked me at one point,
since he feels the 499 is unreasonable,

to pay the truck payment and to give him
the rest of the child support back.

Because, at one point, I told him
I do not need the support.

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

-[Judy] You're living at home?
-I am.

-[Judy] Are you still working?
-I am.

Is that why you say
you don't need the child support?

Well, I had said at the time
that I didn't need it

because of the domestic issues
and whatnot.

I just, kinda just wanted
to wipe my hands clean, I guess.

You know, he still is his father, yes,

but, at the time, I just didn't
wanna deal with all of the extra.

Well, you have the right
to go and retrieve this truck,

sell it.

You're not gonna do that, I don't assume,
but you have the right to do that.

But when they go over his figures
and they see what his responsibilities are

and what his income is,

they're taking half of his paycheck.

He also has child support
on another child too.

Did you know about that
when you had a child with him?

-I did.
-[Judy] Well, then that's on both of you.

You know. He has to find something else
to do to occupy his time.

Well, he just mentioned that there was,
over half of his check was being taken,

-so I didn't know if that was part of it.
-[Judy] Just a second.

Is that in child support
for this little boy

-or for...
-It's both of them combined.

Well, that has nothing to do with her.

I didn't struggle to pay my bills

until the other child support
got added to the case.

Which was my rent money...

the truck money...

uh, groceries...

everyday living.

Well, I have
a certain amount of sympathy for you, sir.

She didn't fix the child support payment.

I do have a certain amount
of sympathy for you,

but it's clear that,
from what you're saying, silently,

that she did take out money
so that you could put money into a truck

that you now have sole possession of.

-Right?
-[Scott] Yeah.

And that seems to be unreasonable.

I mean,
your application shouldn't be to me.

Your application should be
before the judge

who fixed your child support payments

so that you don't have enough money
to live.

It's a set rate.
There's nothing I can do to lower it.

Oh, it's never a set rate.

Yes, there is something
that you can always do.

You can always go back
and seek a modification

on the grounds
that your circumstances have changed.

You can do that.

Okay. So, what's left on the loan?

There is 5,400, I do believe.

-Ms. Pardue.
-Yes, ma'am.

[Judy] If you watch this program
with any regularity,

you probably know
that I think that it's a terrible idea

for people who are not married
to buy property together.

Because if 50% of the marriages fail,

think of what the statistics are
for people who are trying it out.

You especially knew
that he had another child

when you started to live with him.

Not only did he have another child,
but he went to jail for 18 months.

He came out of jail,
you had a child with him.

-Is this your mother?
-[Emily] This is my mom, yes.

[Judy] Yeah. I'm sure she's unhappy
about, about the whole thing.

So, the truck is in both your names.

So, ordinarily,
I would tell you both goodbye.

However, he was paying the truck money.

You're paying for half now.

I think it's reasonable
that he pay at least half of the truck

that he has in his possession.

I don't think he can pay the whole thing.

And I don't know if he can
get his child support reduced.

And you were prepared to do that
for a while.

Okay.

$5,400.

$2,700 is half.

Pay off half the loan. Okay?

Judgement for the plaintiff.

$2,700.

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

I just tried to communicate with her.

She don't want anything
to do with me. So...

I mean, I hope we can work things out,
at least for the child,

so we can, you know, have visitation

and be civil for, for our son.

I just wanna see my child
and have nothing to do with her.

Just ready to move forward.

So I was following along
and I agreed

that he has physical custody of the truck.

So if you were gonna make him pay
for half the debt,

I would've gone a step further

and made the plaintiff sign over
her rights on the title to him.

Because if he paid
the full amount on the loan,

I think he should've been
the sole titled owner.

She did say,
she gave me a copy of the title

where she turned the title over to him.

I didn't know if that was official or not.

I don't know,
but she has the original title.

But she made a copy
of the original title.

Mm-hmm.

With her signature as seller.

Can she wipe that out?
Well, that's possible.

-I don't think that that's gonna happen.
-I don't think it's her intention.

That's why I think it would've just been
a good additional step

to say, "If you want him to pay the 5,400,

-or even half, the 2,700..."
-Right.

-"...you have to sign over title to him."
-I agree with you.

-Yeah. Good.
-I agree.

Case number 3094, Hilden versus Hilden.

All parties, please step forward.

[narrator] Hunter Hilden is suing
his mother, Vicky Hilden,

for the value of personal items
and online defamation.

-Mr. Hilden, this is your mother.
-Yes.

[Judy] And while the case
has a lot of nonsense in it,

it boils down to the following.

You and your mother, according to you,
purchased a home together.

The house is in both your names.

You moved into the house with your mother

and you and your mother came to a period
where you were on bad terms.

-It had to do with your girlfriend.
-Correct.

[Judy] And you say you were forced
out of the home.

And what you're really requesting

is money for the items
that you purchased in the house

that you left in the house
after you were forced to leave.

Correct.

[Judy]
And, Ms. Hilden, you have a counterclaim.

Counterclaim said that
when he left, he left his very large dog.

And you either want him
to pay for the maintenance of the dog

or you want him
to turn over the dog to you.

Yeah.

So let's deal with the dog issue first.

That was money taken out
to blow at the casino.

-To blow at the casino? $8,029?
-[Hunter] To gamble.

-Yes.
-No, the...

[Hunter] She continues
to have gambling issues.

Had gone through, probably,
about 100,000 in between.

Well, your mother didn't accumulate that
delivering packages.

-Where did you get $100,000?
-That was what she won at the casino.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Hunter Hilden claims
his mother, Vicky Hilden,

owes him for personal items.

Vicky is countersuing her son
for property damage

and a German Shepherd.

-Now, the dog is a German Shepherd?
-Correct.

[Judy] When was it purchased?

I believe about July of this last year.

And when you left the house,
you left with your girlfriend.

-[Hunter] Correct.
-[Judy] Where did you move to?

Right now, it's kinda still up in the air,

between my younger sister's
and my grandpa's.

-Okay. So you can't bring the dog?
-Correct.

Mr. Hilden, you let the dog stay
with your mother.

I don't have a choice in the matter.

-I've been told...
-[Judy] Good.

Well, then, very good.
Then I'm taking the choice from you

so you don't feel
as if you're abandoning the dog.

So that takes care of the dog.

Now let's take care of your appliances.

You moved into the house
and purchased the house with your mother,

month and year.

May of 2022.

And exactly what appliances do you believe

that you can establish
that you purchased for the house?

Well, I've got receipts
for the kitchen appliances,

the washer and dryer.

Washer, dryer, and kitchen appliances.
What kitchen appliances?

A fridge... refrigerator, microwave,

uh, dishwasher, and, um, stove.

-May I see the receipts?
-[Hunter] Yes.

-Mrs. Hilden, do you work?
-Yes, ma'am.

-[Judy] What kind of work do you do?
-I deliver packages.

-What kind of work does your son do?
-He works at a warehouse, forklift.

[Judy] Now, who purchased
those appliances?

[Vicky] I did.

-You did?
-[Vicky] Yes, I did.

Okay, let's see.

-All these things were financed.
-[Hunter] Correct.

Under my credit, under my name.

Some of which is still being paid on.

-Well, who's paying for them?
-[Hunter] Me.

[Judy] Show me proof that you're paying
for these items now,

since you left in November.

[Hunter] Okay.
Am I able to bring my phone out?

Whatever you like.

And you're making payments to whom?

To Samsung.

[Judy] I'd like you to tell me,
when you bring it up on your phone,

what's the balance owing.

Uh, currently, only about 500.

I've got all my statements
pulled up right now.

-And you paid off the rest?
-[Hunter] Correct.

Kevin, I'd like you to get
from Mrs. Hilden...

her proof that she purchased these items.

No, you didn't pay cash
for all the new appliances, madam,

of 8,029.50.

I don't know what that's for.

That's the money
we took out for appliances.

[Judy] Took it out from where?

[Vicky] From my checking.

We shopped around
and that's when he decided

to use Samsung credit,

but we still had that cash.

So what did you do with the cash?

I don't know,
you'd have to ask Mr. Hilden that.

So as far as the 8,600,

that was money taken out
to blow at the casino.

-To blow at the casino? $8,029?
-[Hunter] To gamble.

-Yeah.
-[Judy] The same month you bought a house?

-Uh, yes.
-[Vicky] No, the...

She had gambling iss... I mean,
she continues to have gambling issues.

Um, had gone through, probably,
about 100,000 in between...

then and now. So...

Well, your mother didn't accumulate that
delivering packages.

-No.
-[Judy] And you work in a warehouse.

Where did you get $100,000?

[Hunter]
That's what she won at the casino.

But she also put it back
where she won it at.

[Judy] I wanna know
what the 8,029.50 was.

-I'm not understanding it either.
-I'm not buying this

-taking out cash to buy appliances.
-[Vicky] Ma'am, when I...

when I put money down on the home,

and I was putting money down
as an investment

when I did win at the casino,
that was put aside,

and it's an odd amount.

That's because we were shopping around.

We took cash directly out to shop around,

but he ended up buying a bundle
off from the Samsung website.

And he ended up applying
for a Samsung credit card.

So that money that was originally
to go to the appliances,

I don't know where it went
because he had applied for credit.

We were getting the appliances

-through delivery a little at a time.
-So what you're telling me is

-you cashed this check and...
-It's a withdrawal slip, ma'am.

No, I'm not buying
any of this stuff here for cash.

That's not happening.

-How much do you earn at your job?
-About $20 an hour.

Okay. Kevin, can I see his phone, please?

It'll be under Overview or Statement,
so down that way.

[Judy] So there's $500 left.

And the appliances are in the home.

The refrigerator, yes.

The microwave, yes.

The stove, we've never had.
We never hooked up the stove.

[Judy] Why?

[Vicky] We work a lot,
so I don't cook like that.

We just never hooked up the stove yet.

I cook on a fryer or skillet.

We have not hooked up
the actual stove yet.

-And as far as...
-Washer, dryer?

Yes, washer and dryer.

-So, you use those things?
-Yes, ma'am.

[Judy]
And what is your intention, Mr. Hilden?

What do you think is gonna happen
with the joint ownership in this house?

Um, I was hoping to put it up
for a forced sale

and just cut ties completely.

Well, that's far beyond my pay grade.

Okay. So you have $556 left on these items

and I think that it's more than fair
that your mother,

if she's enjoying them and in the house,

that she takes care
of the rest of that bill.

[Vicky] Ma'am.

I have to show
that I paid for the washer and dryer.

[Judy] May I see?

$2,200 transfer
from Vicky Hilden to Hunter.

What was that for, Mr. Hilden?

It was for the washer and dryer. Yes.

So, what's left is for the other items,

$556 owing to Samsung.

-Is that correct?
-Correct.

[Judy] Okay. Very easy.

You're gonna take care
of the Samsung bill,

continue to use that,

and I would suggest
that you hook up the stove.

And on the claim,
I'm awarding the plaintiff $556.

On the counterclaim, you have the dog.

Thank you very much, this case is over.

[Kevin] This court is adjourned.

Just because I've been done dirty so long

and I just thought, finally,
something would come out of it.

I do gamble,
but I don't have a problem with it.

I don't think I have enough time
for the childhood traumas.

My door's closed.

No. She's dead to me.

What I found fascinating

was that he has a job
where he makes 20 bucks an hour.

-His mother delivers packages.
-Yeah.

Can't be high-income family.

And they purchased this house

and they put down
a substantial down payment.

-Yeah.
-Where did you get the $100,000 from?

-She must be a terrific gambler.
-Yeah, she must be.

Her bank account shows that
she transferred thousands of dollars

-to him.
-Oh, yeah.

-Fascinating.
-Almost $10,000 transferred to him.

-That we saw.
-Fascinating.

If I win 20 bucks in the slot machines,
I'm over the moon.

-$100,000. She must be pretty good.
-Not half bad.

Yeah.

[narrator] Want justice?



[theme music playing]