You were interested in her daycare?
- Yes, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
I have video footage of the children with me and I have pictures.
I don't recall none of this.
You don't?
Hmm.
Oh, my God.
You have a bad memory.
There are some people that just will never get it,
and they will go through life never getting it.
[announcer] This is Judy Justice.
[theme music playing]
[announcer] Daycare owner LaKesha Thomas
is suing her former client Ka'Leshia Friar
for one month of daycare services,
fraud, and breach of contract.
[Kevin] Court come to order.
[Judge Judy] Have a seat, please.
- Hello, Judge. - Hello.
Case number 1116, Thomas versus Friar.
- Thank you. - [Kevin] You're welcome.
Ms. Thomas, how long have you had a daycare center?
Since 2006.
[Judge Judy] And are you licensed?
I am licensed right from the start.
- In what state? - Georgia.
[Judge Judy] How many children are you allowed to have in your daycare facility?
I'm allowed to have six in the daytime and six at nighttime.
[Judge Judy] Give me the hours that you watch children during the day.
- From 5:30 to... - [Judge Judy] In the morning?
5:30 AM to 5:30--to--PM.
It's 12-month--12 hours there, but it's nine hours, per child.
What does that mean?
[LaKesha] I can get for children for nine hour--
up to nine hours because I'm a family home daycare.
How many children could you have fulltime
as children in the home at one time?
At one time, six children.
- [Judge Judy] During the day? - During the day. Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] And when you say six at night,
does that mean overnight,
that they stay overnight or part of the night?
That means, I guess, part of the night.
- [Judge Judy] You don't know? - 3:00 PM.
[Judge Judy] Do you usually have children who stay the night?
- [LaKesha] No, ma'am. - So it's just really during the day
that you take care of up to six children a day?
Yes, ma'am.
My night hours are 3:00 PM
to 11:00 PM or 4:00 PM to 12:00 AM.
Okay. And you are paid additionally for that?
Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] Do you usually have six children in your program?
- Yes, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] Since 2006,
would you estimate
that most of the time you have maximum capacity children?
Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] Ms. Friar, the first time that you went to the plaintiff's home
to--for a place for your two children, did you go during the day?
Yes, ma'am.
And how many children were there?
I'll say four, five--four or five.
[Judge Judy] Okay. This is about money that you claim is owed to you
for taking care of the defendant's children?
Correct.
[Judge Judy] And for falsely disputing the charge.
So I'm gonna start with Ms. Friar, how old are your children?
Now? They're um one and five.
[Judge Judy] Now, you are originally from Texas?
- Yes, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] You were moving to Georgia?
Yes, ma'am.
Month, day, and year?
[Ka'Leshia] Month? Um, I moved...
in September--hmm.
September--I really don't know the date.
It was like September 10th of 2020.
I contacted her a month before--
I mean, two months-- almost three months, June 2020.
[Judge Judy] To tell her that you were moving
and that you were interested in her daycare?
- Yes, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
And did you go to see it before you enrolled your children?
Yes, ma'am. I actually went to see her and we--I told her that I got a...
In what month? Was that in September?
Oh, that was--when I went to go?
Oh, it was September. Yes, ma'am.
Do you remember what date in September?
I'll say--I will say like the...
[Judge Judy] Do you know when in September?
[LaKesha] I do.
Around the 10th through the 12th.
When did your children start in her daycare?
[Ka'Leshia] I'll say the--it was after the 14th.
Yeah, the last week of September.
Give me the date.
the 20--I think it was the 28th.
Yup, 28th.
[Judge Judy] That's when they started?
Yes, ma'am.
- Both fulltime? - [Ka'Leshia] Yes, ma'am.
It was actually past fulltime.
- [Judge Judy] Okay. So fulltime. - Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] And then you agreed with her,
according to what I read about
how much she would be paid every two weeks
- to take care of the children? - Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] And what was she supposed to be paid each--
two weeks to take care of the children?
Three hundred and fifty-two.
- [Judge Judy] Bi-weekly? - Bi-weekly.
[Judge Judy] Did you sign a contract?
Uh yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] Do you have a copy of the contract?
- May I see it, please? - [Kevin] Okay.
[Judge Judy] What is this Loan AND/OR Daycare Tuition Re-Payment Form?
My Loan and Daycare Tuition Form is for parents
who cannot pay me on my stated Monday tuition payday,
or if a personal loan is loaned to anyone.
And the Daycare Tuition Re-Payment Form
is because Ms. Friar couldn't make Monday payments.
- My tuition is due on Mondays. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
But she says you made an arrangement with her to pay $352 bi-weekly?
Was that your agreement with her?
That was my agreement with her up until January.
- Just a--just a second. - [LaKesha] Sorry.
Was that your agreement with her?
- Yes, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
- And you started September 28th? - Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] And did you make bi-weekly payments through October 28th?
[Ka'Leshia] No, ma'am.
I--actually, October 23rd was the last time
she'd seen my children because my...
[Judge Judy] Just a second.
You were actually there for four weeks?
- Yeah. Well--yeah--no. I... - Yeah, four weeks.
[Ka'Leshia] I was--yeah, I was there actually four weeks.
[Judge Judy] Your children were there for four weeks?
Not too long.
- Uh-hmm. - [Judge Judy] Just a second.
Were actually physically in the location for four weeks?
Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] So if your children were there for four weeks,
you should have paid her $704?
Did you pay her the $704?
[Ka'Leshia] Yes, ma'am. I paid her that amount.
I paid bi-weekly.
[Judge Judy] What I wanna know is did you pay her $704?
Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] And those payments you did not have reversed at a bank
- or anything else? - No, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] You actually paid her 704?
Yeah, we did it through CashApp.
[Judge Judy] How much did you receive from the defendant
between September 28th and October 23rd?
That's a question.
When did you marry?
We're in that process at this time, now getting married.
- [Judge Judy] So you're not married? - Right.
- So the answer is you're not married. - [D'Vontae] We...
You're married or you're not married?
People know when they're married or when they're not married.
[theme music playing]
[announcer] Daycare owner, Lakesha Thomas,
claims her former client Ka'Leshia Friar is responsible
for one month of daycare services after Ka'Leshia disputed the charges.
- Look at your papers. - [LaKesha] Okay.
I wanna know how much you were paid for those four weeks?
It should have been 704.
The registration fee is $65 per child.
[Judge Judy] Just a second--no j--
Yes, ma'am.
Understand something.
I asked you a question.
I said how much were you paid by her between 9/28 and 10/23?
The bi-weekly should have been 704.
That's correct.
[Judge Judy] How much did you receive from her in total?
- 704 plus 130. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
So you received what you started to say was a registration fee plus the 704.
Were any of those charges reversed by a bank?
Those charges were--two weeks...
- [Judge Judy] That's either yes or no? - Yes. Yes, ma'am.
Which two weeks?
[LaKesha] The week of October 24th, that week.
- [Judge Judy] You mean the week for... - The two weeks prior to that.
[Judge Judy] So, she reversed one payment of 352,
is that what you're saying to me?
She reversed two payments.
Ms. Friar stated she was--
her children were with me until October 23rd.
That's not true.
They came another week in October and they came three weeks in November.
- So, I don't know where... - [Judge Judy] Just a minute.
Do you know if they were there, actually, physically there?
In my presence. Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] Really?
- May I see your record? - [LaKesha] You can. Yes, ma'am.
Sure.
Here's November. Here's October.
I have video footage of the children with me
and I have pictures of the children with me.
I would love to see...
- [LaKesha] After October 23rd. - I would love--just a second.
I would love to see it.
Absolutely.
[Judge Judy] Now, before I look at that,
and it's not that I wouldn't like to look at it,
which I probably will.
Do you wanna rethink of when your children were last there?
They weren't there?
October 23rd of 2020.
Oh, my God. Okay. I have text messages too.
[Judge Judy] She says that they were there,
that's Arthur and KeShawn?
The name's Arthur and Kashten.
[Judge Judy] Arthur and Kashten? Okay.
Well, I only have October, through October 3rd,
the 26th through the 30th.
That's one week.
Oh, there's November.
I have through--well, you have it through November 19th.
So you have video showing me the children there after October 23rd?
- Yes, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] I'd like to see it.
Yes, ma'am.
Just type on Judy Justice, if she wanna press that one
- and she can see the timestamp - [Kevin] Timestamp?
[LaKesha] Yes, sir.
[Kevin] This one right here, Judge. The one--top, top right.
[Judge Judy] Well, I have one photo here on October 29th.
I mean, she could've got the photo anywhere.
- And timestamped it? - [Judge Judy] Just a second.
No. It says October 29th, 10:25 AM.
Okay. She could have--she probably...
[Judge Judy] Are these your children?
Um, I can't see.
Oh, wow.
- [Ka'Leshia] Yeah, they're mine. - Yeah. Okay. Good.
That's a video, Your Honor.
What?
That--if you go back.
- [LaKesha] Yeah. - That--this is a video,
it's a screen recording of a...
Would you do me a favor?
See if you can negotiate that for me.
- Yeah. Okay. - [laughter]
You can see here, it says home, November 10th, 9:58 AM.
[LaKesha] My birthday.
[Sarah] This is just...
- [Judge Judy] Got it. - [Sarah] Yeah.
- [Judge Judy] That's her? - [Sarah] She screen-recorded
a security footage or something.
- You mean... - It's timestamped it's...
...the security footage from her house?
Yeah. It's timestamped at November 10th, 2020 at 9:58 AM.
[Judge Judy] Got it.
Do you wanna see the video?
[Ka'Leshia] I mean, she could've found the video and screen-recorded it.
Oh, my God.
I could easily screen-record this right now.
[Judge Judy] Okay. So I want you to prove to me
that you were not in Georgia after September 23rd.
Um, do you want me to go through my phone?
I don't care how you prove it to me.
I want you to look in your phone and show me
that you were not in Georgia after September 23rd.
[LaKesha] Okay. Can I show you text messages
from my last conversation, please?
- It's October 23rd. - [LaKesha] Thank you.
- Hmm? - October 23rd.
October 23rd.
- Oh, this is a different phone. - [Judge Judy] Hmm?
This is a different phone. It's--I got a whole 'nother phone.
Uh-hmm. I'm ready.
Everybody who can't find something finds a whole other phone.
- They get a whole other phone. - Yeah.
[Judge Judy] Something happens to their phone?
- I got that from somewhere. - Who's that?
[Ka'Leshia] My husband.
[Judge Judy] Stand up.
- How you doing, ma'am? - [Judge Judy] Stand up.
Did you move with your wife from Texas to Georgia?
No, ma'am, I did not.
- [Judge Judy] Where were you? - In Texas.
- [Judge Judy] What were you doing there? - Working.
And why did your wife go to Georgia?
[D'Vontae] Well, she wasn't my wife at the time.
I met her during this process.
[Judge Judy] What date did you meet her?
[D'Vontae] I would probably say September 18th or so.
[Judge Judy] Where did you meet her?
How did I meet her? (chuckles) Uh, on a website.
- But she was in Georgia at that time? - [D'Vontae] No, ma'am.
I was not in Georgia.
- [Judge Judy] No, she was in Georgia? - Yes, ma'am.
[Judge Judy] She was in Georgia when you met her on a website?
- Yes. - Don't touch him.
- So you met her on a website? - Uh-hmm. Yes.
When did you marry?
[D'Vontae] Um, we're in that process at this time, now getting married.
- [Judge Judy] So you're not married? - Right.
- But I mean... - Is that--so the answer...
- [D'Vontae] I'm saying we're... - ...is you're not married.
You're married or you're not married?
People know when they're married or when they're not married.
You understand, like, I'm saying we're in that process right now
as far as we are going to the court for that?
- [Judge Judy] Hmm? - Because I have to get some things off
of my--in order to get married.
Sir, either you're married or you're not married.
You are currently not married?
Currently, right, which I answered.
Either you're married or you're not married.
[D'Vontae] I mean, you asked me the question.
I gave you the answer to begin with.
Then just answer the question. You...
- [D'Vontae] I gave you that... - She said, "This is my husband."
- Right. - It is.
No, it's not your husband.
[D'Vontae] I mean--but-- common law married.
- [Judge Judy] No, there's no... - Common law marriage would make that..
[Judge Judy] It doesn't exist. It doesn't exist anymore.
Oh, well, according to the staff of police in Texas,
- it does exist in Texas. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
The only time common law may exist in some jurisdiction is
'cause it's outlawed in most, is when you live open
and notoriously with someone for a period of either...
- [D'Vontae] Right. - ...10 or 20 years, or more.
- Hmm. - Oh.
[Judge Judy] Then you can be considered in some jurisdictions,
maybe in some remote state.
But most states have outlawed common law marriage.
- [Oh, well, I'm just... - [Judge Judy] Okay.
...giving you the information that was given to us.
[Judge Judy] And just give the information.
- Okay. - [Judge Judy] So you're not married?
You met in September of 2020.
2020. Right.
[Judge Judy] She was in Georgia, you were in Texas?
- [D'Vontae] Yes, I was. - Okay.
Were you working in Texas?
- Yes. I worked in Texas. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
What were you doing? What kind of work?
Um, I do music.
I'm an entrepreneur in the music business.
[Judge Judy] Had you known her before?
[D'Vontae] No, ma'am, I did not.
[Judge Judy] So you met her online?
That's what I gave you the information of earlier.
Okay. When was the first time you met her in person?
Um, probably, um, February?
So you met her in September.
September, October, November, December,
do--you didn't see her Christmas time?
- [D'Vontae] No. - [Judge Judy] What about Thanksgiving?
- Did you see her on Thanksgiving? - No. No. I don't celebrate holidays. No.
[Judge Judy] When you were communicating with her, was she in Georgia?
Yes, ma'am.
Did you know where she was living in Georgia?
No, ma'am.
Oh, I did not know exactly where she was living, that's it.
[Judge Judy] Did you know if she was working?
Yes. She was working at that time.
During Thanksgiving or Christmas,
did she ever tell you that she stopped working?
Yes.
[Judge Judy] When did she tell you she stopped working?
[D'Vontae] Um, October somewhere, whenever the kids had symptoms of COVID.
They had to be released from, uh, go through the 14 days, uh, of COVID.
And she had to do a extra 14 days, so that makes four-week--four weeks
that she had to sit for COVID and she eventually lost her job.
Do you remember what date that was?
[D'Vontae] Around October 23rd, around that...
- [Ka'Leshia] 25th. - Or 25th, somewhere around that.
[Judge Judy] Okay.
On November 11th.
"Hey, we're gonna there around 9."
I don't recall none of these messages.
- [Judge Judy] You don't? - No.
[Judge Judy] Hmm. You have a bad memory.
Yeah.
Bad memory, and nasty.
[theme music playing]
[announcer] Daycare owner Lakesha Thomas
has accused her former client,
Ka'Leshia Friar of owing for one month of daycare services.
Ka'Leshia disputed the charges with her bank,
claiming her boys did not attend the daycare that month.
[Judge Judy] Can you show the witness please,
the video of the children from November 10th?
Was there ever a time that the defendant's children
- were out sick? - No.
[Judge Judy] Did she ever tell you that they were out sick?
- [LaKesha] No, ma'am. - [Judge Judy] Okay.
I assume that if your children were sick and you were out with them for a month,
that you took them to see some sort of pediatrician or urgent care?
Can I see proof of that?
[Ka'Leshia] Actually, I went to a hospital
and we didn't have Medicaid or nothing like that.
[Judge Judy] Well, they would give you a...
No. They just gave us a not-- they didn't have COVID.
What's the name of the emergency room that you went to?
I don't know, Your Honor.
I just barely moved to Georgia.
It's like South something, South Georgia Hospital.
[Judge Judy] Tell me on what date you reversed the charges
on checks that you were giving to her?
I reversed the charges?
Yeah, did you ever reverse charges?
I, um, actually talked to Kesha
and let her know that--what was going on
before this time and she was cool.
She was like, "All right. You know, you're a cool person, la, la, la."
And there's no...
[Judge Judy] I just asked you a simple question.
I said did there come a time when you reversed charges
in a bank for money that you had paid her?
I contacted my bank.
[Judge Judy] That's what I'm asking you.
- Oh. I let them know... - [Judge Judy] And what...
On what date did you contact your bank
to tell them to reverse the charges on the check?
January, 2021.
[Judge Judy] January what?
Um, 7th, I guess.
28th.
No, 7th.
[Judge Judy] Well, if according to you,
the last time that your children were there was on October 23rd,
why would you be reversing charges in January?
'Cause she was still getting my money from me.
My kids wasn't there the four weeks
- so why should I pay her? - [Judge Judy] Just a sec.
What I'm asking you is you had to have paid her?
Was she on an automatic payment?
- Yeah. - [Judge Judy] So what you did was
you told the bank to stop making automatic payments?
But you didn't stop in November?
You stopped the end of January?
You didn't stop in November?
According to you, you stopped in January.
Because she said she was gonna stop them.
Okay. Now, I'll see the e-mail...
- Text message? - [Judge Judy] Yeah.
[LaKesha] Okay.
There we go.
[Judge Judy] On November 11th...
- Uh-hmm. - [Judge Judy] ...at 5:19 in the morning.
"Hey we're gonna be there around 9."
- [Ka'Leshia] Uh-hmm. - [Judge Judy] "GM, OK we'll be here."
At 5:35 AM, you respond "We just woke up."
"No worries, we'll be here."
I don't know where Cash Cup is, and she didn't either.
If you find it, let me know.
And then on November 20th, "They're not coming."
I don't recall none of these messages.
- [Judge Judy] You don't? - [Ka'Leshia] No.
[Judge Judy] Hmm.
You have a bad memory.
Yeah.
Bad memory, and nasty.
Bad and nasty.
- November 20th... - [Judge Judy] Bad and nasty.
If I...
- Sit. - [Ka'Leshia] Uh-hmm.
- Would you... - [Judge Judy] Sit--you--sit down.
- I mean, so why did you made... - Sit down.
Stand up?
[Judge Judy] So, what you want me to think about
looking at this is, is that the plaintiff
who's been in business since 2006, and has kids,
you said she had four or five when you went there to visit,
that she somehow got somebody to change the digitalized date stamp on a video
and she somehow created text messages with you
going back--oh, my God,
for October 7th,
that is a child that belongs to you?
That's my child.
[laughs]
Right.
They've got all these text messages go all the way back to October 1st
from the same number.
Do you understand?
- I understand is that... - [Judge Judy] Walk away.
Sit.
- You said stand... - [Judge Judy] Don't.
Which one you want me to do?
I didn't ask you to stand. I said did you--do you understand?
- Oh, do I understand? - [Judge Judy] Do you understand?
They go all the way up to November the 20th,
that she made all that up?
- It's 2020. - And, you know,
there are some people--
there are some people that just will never get it,
and they will go through life never getting it.
And the sad part of it, is people that go through life
who never get it are gonna teach that to their children.
Judgment for the plaintiff in the amount of $1,900.
- We're finished. - [Kevin] Court is adjourned.
Thank you.
- She was wrong. - I'm glad justice was served.
She did Photoshop.
People told me that folks would come up with
whatever they wanna come up with to get out of it, so...
You can do anything to a iPhone.
I don't even know and I don't even care. (laughs)
And I ain't going through this again.
I'm glad this over.
[Sarah] See, I told you, there's some upside
of learning all the technical timestamps
and location stamps, and things like that.
The plaintiff really had it all together
and she had her evidence and it was very clear
from the timestamp on the video and the photo that it was at her home.
It had a location on a map that you could see and a specific time.
And it just shows that technology can be useful sometimes.
Okay. Yes.
I'm sure it would be very helpful if someone could teach me
how to use those things.
Until that time comes,
I'm going to have somebody sitting right over there
who could get it for me.
I don't know, I really tried but I find it very difficult to master.
I've just learned how to send an email,
which for me is a giant leap forward in some--into this century.
- I'm doing my best, we have time. - [Judge Judy] Thank you.
[announcer] Want justice?
Go to JudyJustice.tv.
[theme music playing]