You left the dog, and you asked for the dog back.
Correct.
You abandoned the dog.
No, ma'am, I didn't.
If the dog came into this area now, who do you think the dog would go to?
Kevin, would you go get the dog, please?
Now, let the dog out.
[narrator] This is Judy Justice.
[narrator] Rhonda Jennings and Margaretta Taylor
are suing their former friend A’keila Al Asadi
for a chihuahua, property damage, and animal abuse.
[Kevin] Court, come to order. All rise.
Have a seat, please.
Judge, case 4068, Taylor/Jennings v. Al Asadi.
-Thank you. -[Kevin] You're welcome.
This case has to do with a dog and who should have the dog.
I have the dog.
No. And who should have the dog. I didn't ask you a question yet.
So, I'm gonna start with you, because right now, you have the dog
that we're talking about, which is a small chihuahua.
And the dog is in your custody.
And it has been in your custody since September 5, 2024.
-Correct? -Correct.
Prior to September 5, 2024,
it appears that the dog had been in the plaintiff's custody.
-That would be your custody. -That would be me.
[Judy] This is your mother. Your mother has a small part of this claim
that has to do with her door.
Why don't you sit down?
The main part of this case is about the dog.
You two met several years ago. Do you want to tell me where?
Um, we met online.
And there came a time, according to you,
that the defendant came to live in your house for a while.
That's correct.
In what month and year did that happen?
I want to say around the first week of June.
-July? -[Judy] Of what year?
Of 2021.
-That be about right? -[A'keila] No.
When did you come to live with her?
I went to Arizona in September.
When were you living with her? Month--
-[A'keila] In September. -In September
-of 2021. -Beginning of Sept-- 2021, yes.
[Judy] How long did you stay with her in her house?
It was off and on between September and December.
-Well, September to February. From Sept-- -[Judy] Shh, slow--
You're talking much too fast, madam, and you're not thinking about your answers.
-September, 2021-- -To February--
-[Judy] You stayed with her until when? -February 8th of '22.
[Judy] And while you were with her, you bought a dog.
Before, yeah, beforehand.
What do you mean before?
Well, after, while I was with her, I got the dog.
Careful what you're saying to me. You don't know where I'm going.
So, don't answer fast and then you have to back-track.
You got the dog while you were with her.
Correct.
So, I read the papers. Unless you want to change your answer.
Right?
I had spoken with someone about the dog before I got with her.
-[Judy] What does that matter... -Okay.
...to this case? You're just trying to figure out where I'm going.
I got the dog in November.
-While you were living with her. -[A'keila] Correct.
And then, you left her home. In what month and year did you leave her home?
February 2022.
-February 8th. -[Judy] Shh.
So, you got the dog in November.
The dog, you had for two months, December and January.
You left February 8th.
And when you left, February 8th of 2022, you left the dog with her.
Correct.
That's where we're at so far. That, you agree with?
I agree.
[Judy] When you got the dog in November 2021,
how old was the dog?
He was six weeks. Six to eight weeks.
So, when you left, she was eight to ten weeks?
Possibly, yes. More than likely.
Between February 8, 2022
and September 5, 2024,
how many times did you see the dog?
-[A'keila] I-- Okay. -Stop.
How many times did you see the dog?
-There was various of times. -[Judy] No, no.
I want you to think. Now we're in a court.
How many times did you see the dog between February 8th,
when you left the dog in her care, and September 5th? Think.
More than likely ten times or more.
-[Judy] Ten times? -Yes.
Or more, mm-hmm.
And when you saw the dog those ten times,
was it for extended periods of time or short periods of time?
They were long periods of time.
When you saw the dog for long periods, in whose home was that?
Hers and my house.
[Judy] How did it happen that she came to your house
when you saw the dog at your house?
He would spend time with me, and she would come over.
[Judy] You mean, without her?
Both of them. She would drop him off.
[taps pen on bench]
Pay attention to me.
When she came over to your house with the dog,
was the dog with the three of you?
Correct.
[Judy] She didn't come over and drop the dog at your house,
she came over with the dog, and the three of you were at your house.
Correct.
Okay. Between February 8, 2022
and September 5, 2024,
how much money did you give her for the food for your dog?
Over a thousand and some dollars.
How much money did she give you for food for the dog?
I don't think it was over a thousand and some dollars.
I want to say maybe about $500.
-[Judy] But she gave you money. -She gave-- Yes.
-Was the dog taken to the vet? -Yes.
[Judy] Did she pay those bills, as well?
No. Most of the time it was a zero-zero balance,
so there was nothing to pay, because she had insurance on the dog.
But I do have what I have paid for the vet bill.
So, she gave you some money for the dog.
Yes.
Now, what happened in September 2024,
September 5th, when she came to get the dog?
We had been going back and forth on texts.
She was saying that she was gonna come and get the dog.
Now, mind you, even though I told her that I was gonna give her the dog back,
I really wasn't gonna give her the dog back.
[Judy] Now you're explaining something that I haven't read yet.
-[Rhonda] Okay. -Who do you live with now?
-Self. -Where?
Chandler, Arizona.
-[Judy] What kind of premises? -[A'keila] Apartment.
-What kind of work do you do? -I'm a psychic medium.
[Judy] You work out of your home?
-Yes, ma'am. -[Judy] How long have you been there?
Three years.
-How long have you been in that apartment? -Three years.
When was the first time you asked for the dog back?
If the dog came into this area now, who do you think the dog would go to?
He goes to me because I've trained him.
I've loved him and taken care of him from the time I had him.
-Just a second. -[A'keila] Okay.
You may be right. And what if he didn't?
[narrator] Rhonda Jennings and Margaretta Taylor
claim their former friend, A'keila Al Asadi,
is wrongfully keeping their chihuahua, Nana.
A'Keila is countersuing them for travel costs.
When was the first time you asked for the dog back?
The beginning, when she went--
-[Judy] Give me-- -Went from June.
From June, when she had him, when she went to Florida.
[Judy] Shh. June of what year?
Twenty-three. She left June of--
-June of 2023. -[A'keila] Yes, ma'am.
So, the first time--
Just a second. The first time you asked for the dog back
was about four months after you left and left her with the dog.
[A'Keila] Correct.
[Judy] You've had your apartment for three years.
-Yes, ma'am. -[Judy] Okay.
So, you asked for your dog back in June when she went to Florida.
Evidently, that didn't happen.
I'd like to see the text that you sent her asking for the dog back in June...
That's not true.
It wasn't in June I asked for the dog back.
Just a second. You said you asked for the dog back in June.
Let me see when she asked the dog back.
It was January when I asked for the dog back.
[Judy] January of what?
January of twenty... Well, she was supposed to--
Just-- Not "supposed to." I asked you a specific question.
You left the dog in February 2022.
When was the next time that you asked for the dog back?
January the 9th of 2023. 2023 is when I called the police
for the police report to get the dog back.
-[Judy] So, that was a year later. -Yes.
-Now, between January 2023... -[A'keila] Mm-hmm.
...and you knew where she was all of this time,
what happened between January 2023
and September 5, 2024?
She kept giving me the runaround about coming back to Arizona.
She was supposed to come back to Arizona from Florida in June 2023.
She left in June 2023, going to Florida.
I had a trip to go to Memphis for myself.
I told her I would pay for the dog to go to Florida with her,
doing the work that I do. From there, she told me she would be coming back--
She was going to her mother's party for something in June and August.
So, I asked her, once she returned from the party,
she could bring the dog back.
What I find fascinating, madam, is that at most,
this dog was with you full time for a couple of months.
-The dog is now almost three years old. -Yes.
And you're trying to tell me that you love this dog
and you think that the right thing after three years of living with the plaintiff--
He wasn't living with her for three years.
-[Judy] Who was he living with? -He was living with both of us.
She didn't have him the whole three years.
That's not what you told me a moment ago.
Let me tell you what you told me.
What you told me a moment ago was you saw the dog at least ten times
in a two-and-a-half year period.
And you saw the dog either at her house,
when you went to visit, when you saw her,
and the three of you would be at your house.
Once I moved into my apartment, Your Honor, I would have my dog.
I have my dog back.
Tell me, during what months you had the dog in your apartment.
I had my dog from February-- Well, the second week of February,
third week of February, all the way to she left to go to--
[Judy] The third week in February, let's say February 20th. What year?
-Twenty-three. -Until when?
All the way to maybe, like--
Not "maybe like." Think before you talk.
You had the dog from February, let's say the 20th, 2023...
when you left, you left the dog with her.
That would be February 8, 2022. So, that was a year past,
and then, you had the dog February 20th, 2023
you say, for a period of time in your house.
-Yes, ma'am. -What period of time in your house?
From February all the way to December 2023.
[Judy] To December 2023?
It was off and on from February 2023--
What does that mean, off and on? I don't understand.
If I had a trip to go to, he would go to her house to take their time.
'Cause I didn't have time to take him to a kennel.
How much time did the dog spend in your house?
From February to December '23.
Sounds to me as if during the dog's whole life so far,
he has had one primary caretaker,
although, you said he lives with you for almost a year.
I could very well find that you've abandoned the dog,
'cause actually, I don't believe that you had the dog
for all that time in February 2023.
Now, who do you think, if the dog came into this area now,
who do you think the dog would go to?
He goes to me, because I've trained him from the time I had him.
I love my dog, I take care of him from the time I had him till now.
-Just a second. You may be right. -[A'keila] Okay.
[Judy] And what if he didn't?
-I'm just curious. What would be-- Shh! -My dog's friendly--
Friendly, friendly. That doesn't mean much.
Now, did the plaintiff see the dog today?
No.
Okay. You do understand that there are a couple of things going on here.
-Right. -[Judy] She certainly owned the dog.
And the only thing that I could find, to be honest with you,
because I'm unsympathetic with her, as you could probably tell.
Correct.
[Judy] Because as a puppy, she left the puppy.
It's not as if she didn't have another place to go.
She has an apartment, she says, for the last three years.
So, she had a place to leave the dog.
And if she was using you as a sitter, that's one thing.
But if she left for months at a time, that's something completely different.
She did give you some money to take care of the dog over the three years.
Correct.
[Judy] So, that shows some intention.
But if I don't believe that the dog lived with her for a full year in 2023,
which I have my reservations about,
because I've read both her papers and yours,
-you think-- What? -Your Honor?
I've had my dog from February to December 2023
because my family met him in December, 2023.
Bup-bup-bup. I'm gonna read you your answer, madam.
Even you say you don't have him all of 2023.
You say a lot of things happened. My mother died, my sister died,
I've had a lot of stuff, turmoil in my house
so that I wasn't able to have-- That's what you say in your answer.
-Right. -Right. Correct.
[Judy] So, I can actually go both ways in this case.
Because quite frankly, I don't like to treat living pets
as just real property, like a pen or a calculator.
They live with people, and unfortunately, sometimes things happen,
and the owners have to give them to somebody else.
But you know, they form attachments to the people they live with.
Now certainly, if it's for a vacation, it's for a week,
it's for two, it's for three, that's one thing.
Before I get to the dog, I'm going to allow to make the decision
as to whether I find that the dog is yours and you can continue to have it,
or that you abandoned the dog and it goes to the plaintiff.
I'm gonna do that in a minute. Would you stand up?
You're part of this, because it is your claim that when she came to your house,
she banged on your door and broke your door.
Just let me see up here, Kevin.
Is it a friendly baby?
He will bite.
He will bite. [laughs] I know. That's why I'm asking.
He's bit me plenty times.
[narrator] Rhonda Jennings and Margaretta Taylor
are accusing their former friend, A'keila Al Asadi,
of wrongfully keeping their chihuahua, Nana, after A'keila abandoned him.
Okay. That's the only nexus that you have to this case?
'Cause you own the house and she broke the door.
That's what you claim. Anything else?
Yes. I want to tell you how long the dog stayed at my house.
[Judy] I didn't ask you that. I may, but I didn't ask you that.
Can I see pictures of the damage that you're alleging she did to the door?
And that took place in September, September 5th.
Yes.
[Judy] Were the police with you when you got there?
I called them before I got there. They called me before they showed up.
What I'm asking you is, did you go to the door--
-Yes, ma'am. -[Judy] Let me finish the question.
So, you did. You went to the door before the police arrived.
-No, ma'am. -Then let me finish the question.
The question is, did you go to the door before the police arrived?
-No, ma'am. -[Judy] Okay.
Is there a police report?
Oh, the police report. I didn't get the police report from Florida.
I only have the police report from Arizona when I reported it.
I just want to see the police report on September 5th.
Do you have that? Yes or no?
-No, ma'am-- -[Judy] Do you have a police report?
-No, because-- -[Judy] Not "because."
Nobody has a police report. Now you can sit down.
Because she was the one that called the police.
-I understand. -Right. She was the one that called--
You can both get a copy of the police report.
-Right. -[Judy] Either one of you can get it.
I don't know what they did. 'Cause they sat in the car the whole time.
The police did. They sat in the car the whole time.
In what month and year did you go stay with your mother in Florida?
Can I back up a little bit?
When she said she had the dog in February 2023,
I was actually staying, because I lost my apartment,
I was actually staying with a friend in February 2023, with Nana.
When did you go and stay with your mother?
When did I go stay with my mother was in June 2024.
June of twenty-twenty...
I'm sorry, 2023.
Now you can stand up.
Your daughter came to stay with you in June 2023.
June, to be exact, 2023.
-And when did she stay with you until? -Until present.
-[Judy] She's still there? -Yes.
[Judy] When she came in June 2023, was the puppy with you?
Yes.
And the puppy stayed in your house with your daughter
-from June 2023 until September 5th. -Yes.
-[Judy] Until September 5th. -Yes.
-Of 2024. -Yes.
[Judy] During that time, did the defendant
ever come to the house other than September 5th?
No.
Between June 2023 and September 2024,
you never saw her?
Never.
[Judy] Okay. Between June 2023 and September 2024,
did you ever bring the dog to her house?
No.
So, what you're saying is that between June 2023
and September 2024, she did not see the dog.
No. I haven't seen her in two years.
[Judy] That's sort of at odds with what you just testified to.
Just a second. That the dog was with you all of 2023.
-You do understand that. -Yes, ma'am.
I meant to say 2022.
Just a second. You do understand that that's what you testified to.
Yes, ma'am. I got the years mixed up. It was February '22 when I moved into--
Blah-blah-blah, you're babbling.
-Okay. -[Judy] You're babbling.
Is it true that you did not have the dog in your custody
from June 2023 until September 2024?
Correct.
Is it true that you did not see the dog between June 2023 and September 2024?
-Correct. Correct. -[Judy] Is that true?
-You abandoned the dog. -No, ma'am.
-Oh, yeah. -[A'keila] She was sending pictures.
-Perfect. -I was staying in touch, Your Honor.
[Judy] Okay. Now, I don't know.
You willing to let the dog make a decision as to where the dog is happy?
Yes.
Great. Kevin, would you go get the dog, please?
-Your Honor, can I say something? -[Judy] No.
As a matter of fact, both of you go sit down. You, too. Sit down.
Just let me see up here, Kevin.
Is it a friendly baby?
He will bite.
-[Judy] He will bite? -Sometimes.
[laughs] I know. That's why I'm asking.
He bit me plenty times.
That's why I'm asking. All right.
Kevin, what I want you to do is put the dog down on the floor.
-And unzip the little cage. -[Kevin] Mm-hmm.
I would like the two of you to stand in front of your desk
and stand in front of your desk.
Front. Right there. Perfect. Now, let the dog out.
-I never been bit-- -[Judy] Shh. Don't speak.
Now, do me a favor. Sit down on the floor, everybody.
-On the floor. -Hang on.
And don't speak.
Don't speak.
[whispers] Hey, booboo, hey. I missed you.
Get mama. Get mama.
Nana, here you go, mama.
I didn't-- I said, don't speak.
The dog's going home with you to Florida.
Okay. Clearly, I see who the dog is most attached to.
-He's happy with her-- -You can go over and sit down with him.
Go over and sit down with him.
Go over and sit down with him. Perfect.
Makes my life so much easier.
[bailiff] You can go back here.
Matter of fact, who the dog's most attached to.
-He's happy because he hasn't seen them. -I'm not speaking to you.
Okay. Money owed for airline tickets, hotel bills, and Uber cars
is your counterclaim for going to get the dog.
That's dismissed.
Judgment for the plaintiff, the dog is returned to you.
-We're done here. Thank you. -[Kevin] This court is adjourned.
I know that she made the right decision.
Because I fell in love with him.
I felt like she abandoned him.
You know, she-- I want to say it was me to take care of the dog.
Maybe have some kind of attachment to me.
Um, but I knew all along that I was the caretaker of this dog.
We haven't had a decision by dog in quite some time.
-That was good, yeah. -A couple, few years.
-Makes it easy. -[Judy] Two things.
You know, I've always felt as if dogs have feelings.
And people have to be cautious and careful
and think about the feelings of their dog as not just inanimate property.
Clearly, that dog was very attached to the plaintiff's mother.
But had no interest at all in the defendant.
[laughs] But what I was thinking was the defendant says that she's a psychic.
Well, if she was a good psychic, she would've known not to come here today.
[laughs] Oh, man. All right, well.
[narrator] Have you been cheated?
Go to JudyJustice.tv.
[theme music playing]