tell me the conversation that
you had with Ms. Hartzel and
tell me when that conversation
took place.
>> Okay.
It would have been one of the
last days in October or the
first day in November.
>> Judge Judy: Did you call her,
or did she call you?
>> I believe she contacted Mandy
and then I called her.
>> Judge Judy: And I would like
you to tell me what you said to
her and what she said to you.
>> I had told her at that point
that I had two days to come up
with just under $1,100 to make
sure I could keep the home.
She told me to figure out
exactly what I needed and to let
her know.
We would go from there.
Within a day or so of the first
conversation, we came up with it
was just under $1,100, so she
was gonna give me $1,100.
We were on our way to her place
of employment to pick up the
money, and, at that point, I
actually received the phone call
from the person I was buying the
home from, telling us, "Forget
about it."
If I go to make the deposit,
they're not gonna accept the
money.
So when I got there, I explained
to her the situation.
>> Judge Judy: Did he tell you
that there was a problem with
the house...
>> No.
>> Judge Judy: ...when you met
with him?
>> Not at that point.
>> Judge Judy: When did he tell
you that there was a problem
with the house?
>> Two days later, when I was
going to give him the next check
and deposit it into the
landlord's account at the bank.
>> Judge Judy: How many checks
did you give him?
>> Two.
>> Judge Judy: What were the
denominations?
>> The first one was $1,000, and
the second one was $1,100, on
November 3rd and 5th.
>> Judge Judy: So, you gave him
the $1,000...
>> Yes, ma'am.
>> Judge Judy: ...and then
$1,100 the next day, so it was
really $2,100.
>> Correct.
>> Judge Judy: And did he cash
those checks for $2,100?
>> He cashed the first one.
The second one, I actually
deposited into his landlord's
account at the landlord's bank.
>> Judge Judy: You mean where
you were going to buy?
>> Correct.
>> Judge Judy: What happened
with that money?
>> It went and paid the house
payment, and then the first --
>> Judge Judy: Just a second.
It paid the house --
Did you move in to that house?
>> We had been in the house
already.
I had lost my job at the
beginning of October.
>> Judge Judy: Just a second.
So she lent you, in total,
$2,100.
>> She didn't lend me anything.
This was a child-support
agreement.
>> Judge Judy: Now I want you to
tell me the child-support
agreement.
>> Okay.
>> Judge Judy: I want to hear
the child-support agreement...
>> Okay.
>> Judge Judy: ...with her.
>> No problem.
Every penny she gave me, when we
got our income taxes, we were
supposed to take that dollar
amount and mail it into the
child-support office so her son
got credit for making that
payment and it would come off
his back child support.
>> Judge Judy: Did you do that?
>> Tax time isn't here yet.
>> Judge Judy: Just a second.
Is that the arrangement you made
with her?
>> For the --
>> Judge Judy: No, no.
Look at me.
Is that the arrangement you made
with her?
>> Yes, ma'am.
For the $1,100, it was.
What happened was the first
$1,000 she gave me, like I said,
on the day that I showed up and
I told her that I can't make the
house payment, they told me it's
too late, she gave me the $1,000
because I would need the money
to move in somewhere else
anyway, okay?
Later that day, the landlord
called me and said, "Hey, if you
can get the money in today,
we'll go ahead and do that."
At that point, I'd already
deposited the check.
That's when I contacted Debbie
and I said, "Hey, if you can put
the money into their account to
cover the house payment, when
this check clears, I'll give you
that part back.
>> Judge Judy: Did you give it
back to her?
>> I did not, because with the
conversation she had had with
Mandy to go ahead and use the
other $1,000 towards paying
other bills to get caught up,
because it was gonna be a month
before I saw a paycheck, and
that total amount of $2,100 was
gonna be mailed into child
support to come off the $7,100
owed.
>> Judge Judy: He'll pay his own
child support.
You pay her back her money.
How old is your son?
>> 37.
>> Judge Judy: Time that he was
not a deadbeat and took care of
his own children.
It's time.
>> He's only in arrears because
he was in prison for five years.
He's been paying since then.
>> Judge Judy: You get a reward
for that?
Then he should have been paid
twice as much.
>> He pays child support plus
only $25 towards arrearage, so
it's hard to get it paid down.
>> Judge Judy: You make
children.
You're supposed to take care of
them.
And you don't get a break when
you're in jail.
You're in jail because you did
something yourself.
It's not as if you got a
disease, if you had serious
surgery, you couldn't work.
You did something wrong.
Your children still had to eat,
right?
>> Right.
>> Judge Judy: When he was in
jail, did she get any child
support at all?
>> I did help her very much, and
I also took the two boys quite
often.
>> Judge Judy: Well, that
doesn't make any difference.