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Did you look at this truck
before you leased it from the defendant?

2
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I did.

3
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What issues did you point out?

4
00:00:06,133 --> 00:00:08,433
Tires, electrical problems.

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I pay for all of that stuff.

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No.

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Do you have any such facts?

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No, just-- I just felt like
it was a waste of my time.

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You are not alone.
Most litigants feel like that.

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[announcer]
Today onTribunal Justice.

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[theme music playing]

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[announcer]
Previously onTribunal Justice.

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The defendant is a truck driver
who leased one of your tractor trailers.

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Yes.

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[Adam]
And he returns the truck.

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He said it was a lemon,

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00:00:52,233 --> 00:00:54,400
and he said that
it was your problem to deal with.

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You said there was nothing wrong
with the truck when you gave it to him,

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and that you're suing him
for the $1800...

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-Yes.
-...for those two weeks of non-payment

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and $3,200 for misuse of your funds

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for buying four used tires
instead of new ones

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and doing something
with the muffler,

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but most certainly not putting
a new one on like you paid for.

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00:01:12,633 --> 00:01:17,400
Mr. Thomas,
you maintain that since you were

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the renter of the truck,
you weren't responsible for anything.

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He's responsible for all of the repairs.

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That makes no sense.

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Sometimes when you repair a vehicle,

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in order to save money,
they use used parts.

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That's not fraud.

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It costs me, for a regular car to buy
a tire, three, four hundred dollars,

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and you're gonna tell me
for tires for that truck,

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it's only costing four, five hundred
dollars a tire for a brand-new one?

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But there are some that you can get
somewhere around about five hundred bucks.

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-And that's about the cheapest.
-How about 856 for one tire?

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[announcer]
And now for the conclusion.

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So when you got this receipt,
you knew they weren't new tires.

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You had to know it
because it would have cost you

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00:01:56,767 --> 00:02:00,333
about $3200 for four new tires.

41
00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:03,667
But I also wanna say something
'cause in your papers, sir,

42
00:02:03,734 --> 00:02:07,734
you said, during week three,
Al had the truck and he called you.

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00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:10,265
He said it was acting up.
You said he was a mechanic.

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He looked at it and he said
it needed new tires and a muffler.

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00:02:14,233 --> 00:02:16,700
He gave you the cost
for the tires and the muffler.

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00:02:16,767 --> 00:02:18,734
You didn't think twice about it.
You sent him the money.

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00:02:18,800 --> 00:02:20,266
He said he was gonna take care of it.

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00:02:20,333 --> 00:02:22,166
Then you said here,
at the end of week five,

49
00:02:22,233 --> 00:02:23,700
he dropped the truck off to you.

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00:02:23,767 --> 00:02:24,667
He didn't.

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00:02:24,734 --> 00:02:25,734
You just testified here

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00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:28,500
that you had to send two guys
to go get the truck from him.

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00:02:28,567 --> 00:02:30,033
It was parked in his lot.

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00:02:30,100 --> 00:02:32,800
So he did not drop the truck
off to you at week five.

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00:02:32,867 --> 00:02:36,333
Now, you say that you examined it,

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00:02:36,400 --> 00:02:40,100
and he didn't put on all brand-new tires,
which is what you paid for.

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So now let me go to the pictures
'cause I was looking at this,

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00:02:42,900 --> 00:02:44,633
and I looked at the tires on here.

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It looks like he went out,
bought four tires that look new.

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I don't know if they're brand new.

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They look new.

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And he gave you a bill for 2640,
and you sent him the money.

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00:02:55,633 --> 00:02:58,066
I sent him the money
to put the new tires on the car.

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00:02:58,133 --> 00:02:59,233
[Patricia]
You did, no doubt.

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-And--
-Whatever those...

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00:03:00,834 --> 00:03:04,533
Okay, how about we use
the word "replacement tires"?

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Because there's no evidence in this record
that indicates to me

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the word "brand-new,"

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00:03:11,233 --> 00:03:16,266
and my view is that
since you were only charged $500 a tire,

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that you kind of knew
that those were not gonna be brand new.

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This document indicates to me
that the tires that were purchased

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were not brand new
because they're well below,

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almost half the price
of a brand-new tire.

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00:03:27,934 --> 00:03:31,266
Now, did you buy four new and four used
or just four tires?

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00:03:31,333 --> 00:03:33,800
I bought four tires
and they were different prices.

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00:03:33,867 --> 00:03:36,533
I said, "Well, you have
expensive ones and cheap ones."

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He said, "Well, I don't really
have the money right now.

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Can you get the cheapest ones?"

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That's what I got.

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Okay, so you bought four new tires
at the cheapest price,

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which were 500.

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[Alvin] Correct.

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00:03:46,867 --> 00:03:48,867
And so they were brand new,
but he didn't buy the top of the line.

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00:03:48,934 --> 00:03:49,800
Correct.

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00:03:49,867 --> 00:03:51,333
[Patricia]
So where did he misuse the money?

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00:03:51,400 --> 00:03:53,033
That's what I think was confusing me.

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00:03:53,100 --> 00:03:55,100
He took the money you gave him,
and he bought the tires.

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00:03:55,166 --> 00:03:58,233
The confusing part
is that he didn't buy new tires.

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The tires that's on here right now,
those are used tires.

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00:04:01,066 --> 00:04:01,900
You can see that. Look at that.

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00:04:01,967 --> 00:04:04,100
[Patricia]
Maybe because they were the cheaper tires.

92
00:04:04,166 --> 00:04:06,066
Maybe they were not brand new.

93
00:04:06,133 --> 00:04:07,066
-Also--
-[Patricia] Hang on.

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00:04:07,133 --> 00:04:08,667
I'm not a over-the-road driver,

95
00:04:08,734 --> 00:04:12,066
so tires tend to last longer
over the road.

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00:04:12,133 --> 00:04:14,834
I haul gasoline,
so it's much heavier.

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00:04:14,900 --> 00:04:17,000
And the yard that I park in
is a gravel yard.

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00:04:17,065 --> 00:04:18,767
[Patricia]
I want another question I wanna say.

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00:04:18,834 --> 00:04:20,100
The Hertz car analogy.

100
00:04:20,166 --> 00:04:22,633
When you pick up a car,
you look at the car.

101
00:04:22,700 --> 00:04:25,900
You say, "There's a scratch here.
I'm not paying for that. Mark it off.

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00:04:25,967 --> 00:04:28,467
You got a cracked windshield.
Let's mark that off."

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00:04:28,533 --> 00:04:31,967
Did you look at this truck
before you leased it from the defendant?

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00:04:32,033 --> 00:04:32,900
I did.

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00:04:32,967 --> 00:04:34,700
And did you point out
that there were any issues?

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00:04:34,767 --> 00:04:35,600
[Alvin] Yes.

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00:04:35,667 --> 00:04:36,567
What issues did you point out?

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00:04:36,633 --> 00:04:42,000
Tires, electrical problems,
the horn, the windshield.

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00:04:42,066 --> 00:04:43,000
[Patricia]
What was wrong with the windshield?

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It was cracked.

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00:04:44,066 --> 00:04:45,600
[Patricia]
Did you have a conversation with him

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00:04:45,667 --> 00:04:48,667
regarding the problems with the truck
when he first took it?

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00:04:48,734 --> 00:04:51,600
And I paid for everything
that he said that needed to be done

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00:04:51,667 --> 00:04:53,133
in order for him to drive the truck.

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00:04:53,200 --> 00:04:54,166
I pay for all of that stuff.

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00:04:54,233 --> 00:04:56,367
Same thing about the tire. I...

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00:04:56,433 --> 00:04:58,533
[Patricia] Go ahead, pause.
Did he pay for those things?

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00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,266
The horn, the windshield, were those
taken care of before you took the truck?

119
00:05:01,333 --> 00:05:03,000
He paid for some of them,
not the windshield.

120
00:05:03,066 --> 00:05:05,200
So you were driving
with a broken windshield?

121
00:05:05,266 --> 00:05:06,367
It was on the passenger side.

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00:05:06,433 --> 00:05:08,934
My company said that
I could go ahead and drive it

123
00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:12,633
as long as the tires
were replaced, the horn,

124
00:05:12,700 --> 00:05:15,867
and it had to get some electrical wiring.

125
00:05:15,934 --> 00:05:19,800
Now, so your position is that
before you drove that truck off any lot,

126
00:05:19,867 --> 00:05:22,734
the horn was fixed,
the electrical was fixed.

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00:05:22,834 --> 00:05:23,767
What about the muffler?

128
00:05:23,834 --> 00:05:26,500
Well, the muffler was there
when I first started driving.

129
00:05:26,567 --> 00:05:28,133
It just rotted out. The truck was old.

130
00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:30,233
In three weeks, you lost a muffler?

131
00:05:30,300 --> 00:05:32,400
It rotted out. It, like, just rusted out.

132
00:05:32,467 --> 00:05:33,867
It was already rusted.

133
00:05:33,933 --> 00:05:35,967
Like, you don't get up
and look at the muffler.

134
00:05:36,033 --> 00:05:36,967
It just broke off.

135
00:05:37,033 --> 00:05:39,433
Did you put a muffler bill in here
for the new muffler

136
00:05:39,500 --> 00:05:41,900
or for the replacement muffler
that you bought?

137
00:05:41,967 --> 00:05:45,166
No. No, it was just
a road service call for the muffler.

138
00:05:45,233 --> 00:05:47,567
So when you returned the truck to him,
it had no muffler on it?

139
00:05:47,667 --> 00:05:48,500
Yeah, it did.

140
00:05:48,567 --> 00:05:51,000
So how did it get on there
if the other one rust--

141
00:05:51,066 --> 00:05:52,367
rusted off like that?

142
00:05:52,433 --> 00:05:53,300
[Alvin]
It rusted down.

143
00:05:53,367 --> 00:05:54,867
-I have a picture of it.
-Oh, like that, then.

144
00:05:54,933 --> 00:05:55,867
-[Alvin] And--
-What happened?

145
00:05:55,933 --> 00:06:01,000
The service guy came and looked at it.
He had to leave. I was at Chevron.

146
00:06:01,066 --> 00:06:02,667
Yeah, I don't really...

147
00:06:02,734 --> 00:06:07,834
Tell us what photograph you have
that shows that the muffler that fell off

148
00:06:07,900 --> 00:06:08,834
was not on the truck anymore.

149
00:06:08,900 --> 00:06:09,734
Right here.

150
00:06:09,800 --> 00:06:10,633
Is it this one here?

151
00:06:10,700 --> 00:06:12,333
-Am I looking at the same picture?
-[Alvin] No.

152
00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:14,834
-[Eric] That's the new muffler.
-[Patricia] This is the new one.

153
00:06:14,900 --> 00:06:16,734
This is the one that he sent me.

154
00:06:16,800 --> 00:06:19,066
Sir, can I please get that,
just so that I don't have to look for it?

155
00:06:19,133 --> 00:06:22,166
[Eric]
I paid for roadside service to fix,

156
00:06:22,233 --> 00:06:24,133
and they did not fix it.

157
00:06:24,200 --> 00:06:26,066
Yeah, because you think
you can pay what you wanna pay.

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00:06:26,133 --> 00:06:27,533
Gentlemen, gentlemen, gentlemen.

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00:06:28,767 --> 00:06:31,000
[announcer]
Coming up onTribunal Justice.

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00:06:31,066 --> 00:06:34,300
I either believe him that he kept it
for two weeks in his yard

161
00:06:34,367 --> 00:06:36,233
and you sent somebody to get it,

162
00:06:36,300 --> 00:06:39,734
or I believe
the inconsistency in your papers,

163
00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:41,900
which say he drove it
and dropped it off at you.

164
00:06:41,967 --> 00:06:45,066
And I see you wanna raise your hand.
Right now, you're not losing.

165
00:06:45,133 --> 00:06:46,834
Is there something you think
that's gonna help you,

166
00:06:46,900 --> 00:06:48,533
or is it gonna make you sink?

167
00:06:53,332 --> 00:06:55,200
[theme music playing]

168
00:06:55,266 --> 00:06:58,933
[announcer]Eric Brown is accusing
truck driver Alvin Thomas

169
00:06:59,000 --> 00:07:03,633
of misusing the funds
he gave Alvin for truck repairs.

170
00:07:03,700 --> 00:07:06,900
Alvin claims the tractor trailer truck
was a lemon,

171
00:07:06,967 --> 00:07:10,900
and he's not responsible
for the cost of repairs.

172
00:07:10,967 --> 00:07:13,900
So this is the one you had on
that the roadside people--

173
00:07:13,967 --> 00:07:16,166
This is the one that they fixed roadside?

174
00:07:16,233 --> 00:07:18,066
-No, they came--
-That's the one

175
00:07:18,133 --> 00:07:19,934
where it came off at a roadside.

176
00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:22,667
Okay, this one came off,
and this is the one you put on.

177
00:07:22,734 --> 00:07:23,567
[Eric] Correct.

178
00:07:23,633 --> 00:07:25,467
-This one's blue, this one's not.
-[Eric] Correct.

179
00:07:25,533 --> 00:07:26,667
-[Patricia] You did it.
-[Eric] Correct.

180
00:07:26,734 --> 00:07:27,867
[Patricia]
So you paid for this directly yourself.

181
00:07:27,934 --> 00:07:29,433
Correct. I paid for that one.

182
00:07:29,500 --> 00:07:30,767
And I paid for the other one

183
00:07:30,834 --> 00:07:33,000
that he said that they fixed
side of the road,

184
00:07:33,066 --> 00:07:34,100
and they did not fix it.

185
00:07:34,166 --> 00:07:35,567
And how much did that cost you?

186
00:07:35,633 --> 00:07:39,266
That one, that one right there
cost me 963.

187
00:07:39,332 --> 00:07:42,233
The one that he sent me
with roadside assistance,

188
00:07:42,300 --> 00:07:44,533
it started out at 653,

189
00:07:44,600 --> 00:07:48,767
and then he told me
that he worked it down to 453,

190
00:07:48,834 --> 00:07:52,800
and I cashed out him the money
for 453, for the roadside assistance.

191
00:07:52,867 --> 00:07:54,367
Okay, so,
and if I'm understanding you then,

192
00:07:54,433 --> 00:07:56,967
what you're saying
is roadside assistance did nothing.

193
00:07:57,033 --> 00:08:00,467
Or at least you don't even know
that they came because all you know

194
00:08:00,533 --> 00:08:02,734
is that he asked you for $453.

195
00:08:02,834 --> 00:08:03,667
Correct.

196
00:08:03,734 --> 00:08:04,734
-[Patricia] You sent it.
-Yeah.

197
00:08:04,800 --> 00:08:07,233
When you got it back,
what was on there was this thing here.

198
00:08:07,333 --> 00:08:08,200
[Eric]
The old one, correct.

199
00:08:08,266 --> 00:08:09,600
-[Patricia] That was old.
-[Eric] Yes.

200
00:08:09,667 --> 00:08:13,200
[Patricia] So, what did
roadside assistance do when they came?

201
00:08:13,266 --> 00:08:17,600
They came, looked at the problem, left,
went and got a chain and chained it up.

202
00:08:17,667 --> 00:08:18,567
I got you.

203
00:08:18,633 --> 00:08:20,667
They didn't come with their own muffler
for your truck and stick it on.

204
00:08:20,734 --> 00:08:21,667
Right, when you call--

205
00:08:21,734 --> 00:08:24,633
[Patricia] Do you have a bill
to that extent that shows what they did?

206
00:08:24,700 --> 00:08:26,300
I have it right here on my phone.

207
00:08:26,367 --> 00:08:27,834
[Patricia] What is that?
What am I looking?

208
00:08:27,900 --> 00:08:30,934
This is where I sent him,
I sent him $478.

209
00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:32,834
I'm not doubting
that you sent the money.

210
00:08:32,900 --> 00:08:33,799
I just wanna know--

211
00:08:33,866 --> 00:08:36,700
I sent him $175
for roadside service,

212
00:08:36,767 --> 00:08:41,332
$183 for the muffler,
and $120 for the labor.

213
00:08:41,400 --> 00:08:44,900
That's what he told me it was
for that particular thing.

214
00:08:44,967 --> 00:08:46,133
That's when I sent him the money.

215
00:08:46,200 --> 00:08:48,066
[Patricia] Okay, but that doesn't mean
he gave you a new muffler.

216
00:08:48,133 --> 00:08:51,867
All that means is the guy showed up.
The service charge to show up was 175.

217
00:08:51,934 --> 00:08:53,467
Whatever he did to...

218
00:08:53,533 --> 00:08:56,500
You know when you take the car some place
and it takes them an hour and a half

219
00:08:56,567 --> 00:08:58,300
to tell you that they
don't know what's wrong,

220
00:08:58,367 --> 00:08:59,834
-they bill you for that hour and a half.
-[Eric] Yeah.

221
00:08:59,900 --> 00:09:02,867
[Patricia]
That's the service charge for 123,

222
00:09:02,934 --> 00:09:05,300
and the 183
that you're talking about

223
00:09:05,367 --> 00:09:09,633
is them chaining this altogether,
so I don't see where the problem is.

224
00:09:09,700 --> 00:09:13,533
They disposed of four tires.
There were four tires on the car. Done.

225
00:09:13,600 --> 00:09:15,967
I don't know where you're
asking for anything else.

226
00:09:16,033 --> 00:09:17,800
And at this point,
I don't have any other questions

227
00:09:17,867 --> 00:09:19,600
'cause now I'm not confused.

228
00:09:19,667 --> 00:09:23,266
And the $900 for the leasing,

229
00:09:23,333 --> 00:09:26,500
I either believe him that he kept it
for two weeks in his yard

230
00:09:26,567 --> 00:09:28,533
and you sent somebody to get it,

231
00:09:28,600 --> 00:09:31,967
or I believe
the inconsistency in your papers,

232
00:09:32,033 --> 00:09:34,667
which say he drove it
and dropped it off at you.

233
00:09:34,734 --> 00:09:37,266
And I see you wanna raise your hand.
Right now, you're not losing.

234
00:09:37,333 --> 00:09:39,066
Is there something you think
that's gonna help you,

235
00:09:39,133 --> 00:09:40,533
or is it gonna make you sink?

236
00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:43,834
I have a text showing
that the truck is in my yard

237
00:09:43,900 --> 00:09:45,000
and you can come and pick it up.

238
00:09:45,066 --> 00:09:45,934
He spoke with my--

239
00:09:46,000 --> 00:09:49,200
How long before he picked it up
was that text?

240
00:09:49,266 --> 00:09:51,600
Probably about three weeks,
four weeks, something like that.

241
00:09:51,667 --> 00:09:54,200
-I would love to see that text.
-[Alvin] Okay. [chuckles] All right.

242
00:09:54,266 --> 00:09:56,233
[Patricia] Byrd?

243
00:09:56,300 --> 00:09:57,700
[Byrd]
Where does it start?

244
00:09:57,767 --> 00:09:58,600
[Alvin]
Well, I had to get to it.

245
00:09:58,667 --> 00:10:01,633
-Okay, there's June 20th. All right.
-Okay, see that, July the 22nd?

246
00:10:01,700 --> 00:10:02,533
-Mm-hmm.
-Right.

247
00:10:02,600 --> 00:10:03,700
-Thanks, Byrd.
-From the 20th.

248
00:10:05,100 --> 00:10:06,433
[Byrd]
It starts June the 20th.

249
00:10:07,900 --> 00:10:10,834
-Then the next one is July 22nd.
-Okay, thanks.

250
00:10:10,900 --> 00:10:13,967
So we have one text here
dated Monday, June 20th,

251
00:10:14,033 --> 00:10:16,934
and it says, "Have to get towed
to station and back to the yard.

252
00:10:17,000 --> 00:10:18,166
I believe the turbo is going."

253
00:10:18,233 --> 00:10:20,533
It was gonna cost me
over $2,000.

254
00:10:20,600 --> 00:10:23,633
Don't start adding things in here
that are gonna confuse it.

255
00:10:23,700 --> 00:10:24,633
[chuckles]

256
00:10:24,700 --> 00:10:26,834
Then we have Friday, July 22nd,

257
00:10:26,900 --> 00:10:30,800
"Al, were you able to talk to the guy
about the space for the truck?

258
00:10:30,867 --> 00:10:33,633
If not, I will get someone
to move it in the morning."

259
00:10:33,700 --> 00:10:35,767
-What was the date on that?
-July 22nd.

260
00:10:35,834 --> 00:10:38,667
So you, sir, say,
"Al, were you able to talk to the guy

261
00:10:38,734 --> 00:10:40,200
about the space for the truck?

262
00:10:40,266 --> 00:10:42,800
If not, I will get someone
to move it in the morning."

263
00:10:42,867 --> 00:10:43,834
You can't talk.

264
00:10:43,900 --> 00:10:46,667
"Truck key is over
the top of the driver's seat

265
00:10:46,734 --> 00:10:49,133
in the cubby to your right,
above your head when you sit,"

266
00:10:49,200 --> 00:10:50,734
blah, blah, blah, and that's it.

267
00:10:50,800 --> 00:10:53,200
That's in return, that I had been
calling him a couple of times,

268
00:10:53,266 --> 00:10:57,533
asking him for the keys for the truck,
and then he didn't respond back to me.

269
00:10:57,600 --> 00:11:01,400
So then, at that point, I did,
I called because he is true

270
00:11:01,467 --> 00:11:03,233
that his manager did call me and say,

271
00:11:03,300 --> 00:11:05,934
"Hey, man, I need the space in my--
in that yard for my truck."

272
00:11:06,000 --> 00:11:07,533
Okay, that's good. Thank you.
That helps him.

273
00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:09,100
Here you go.

274
00:11:09,166 --> 00:11:10,133
Thank you, Byrd.

275
00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:13,600
So I'm going to end with that and--

276
00:11:13,667 --> 00:11:15,934
I have one more question, Mr. Thomas.

277
00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:19,667
So as you stand here right now, sir,
after hearing the questions

278
00:11:19,734 --> 00:11:22,600
posed to the plaintiff
regarding the tires,

279
00:11:22,667 --> 00:11:25,967
whether they were new,
whether they were just new to the vehicle,

280
00:11:26,033 --> 00:11:28,900
whether they were replacement tires,
could you understand how

281
00:11:28,967 --> 00:11:30,166
there was a misunderstanding about that?

282
00:11:30,233 --> 00:11:31,066
Yes, sir.

283
00:11:31,133 --> 00:11:32,467
[Adam]
And you're not attributing bad faith

284
00:11:32,533 --> 00:11:33,767
to the plaintiff on that fact, are you?

285
00:11:33,834 --> 00:11:35,000
-No. No.
-[Adam] Okay.

286
00:11:35,066 --> 00:11:36,333
Thank you. I have nothing further.

287
00:11:36,400 --> 00:11:38,233
-[Patricia] Now we're on the new case.
-[Tanya] We're doing the B case.

288
00:11:38,300 --> 00:11:42,200
So now we have Mr. Thomas
in your suit against Mr. Brown

289
00:11:42,266 --> 00:11:44,533
for $3,000 for lost wages,

290
00:11:44,600 --> 00:11:47,033
since you were forced
to miss two days of work,

291
00:11:47,100 --> 00:11:50,633
due to the lawsuit
that Mr. Brown filed against you,

292
00:11:50,700 --> 00:11:53,867
specifically regarding those tires
and the misuse of funds.

293
00:11:53,934 --> 00:11:56,367
You typically work
12 to 15-hour shifts,

294
00:11:56,433 --> 00:11:59,967
and you're here because
you lost work over that lawsuit.

295
00:12:00,100 --> 00:12:02,467
I asked you one question,
which was whether or not

296
00:12:02,533 --> 00:12:05,066
you believe it was bad faith
on the part of the now defendant,

297
00:12:05,133 --> 00:12:08,567
Mr. Brown,
bringing his lawsuit regarding the tires.

298
00:12:08,633 --> 00:12:10,633
You said,
"No, it was a misunderstanding."

299
00:12:10,700 --> 00:12:11,967
That's my only question.

300
00:12:12,033 --> 00:12:16,100
[Tanya] That's a big deal because
lawsuits cost people time and money.

301
00:12:16,166 --> 00:12:18,200
It's the cost of a lawsuit.

302
00:12:18,266 --> 00:12:22,533
However, if you want somebody
to pay you for the time

303
00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:25,033
that you have to spend fighting a lawsuit,

304
00:12:25,100 --> 00:12:27,567
then you've gotta show that
they didn't have any good reason

305
00:12:27,633 --> 00:12:29,700
for bringing the lawsuit,
that they made it up.

306
00:12:29,767 --> 00:12:33,333
So, for instance, if you had
to take time off of work

307
00:12:33,400 --> 00:12:36,266
to defend against a claim
that you damaged the truck

308
00:12:36,333 --> 00:12:38,100
and you never rented the truck,

309
00:12:38,165 --> 00:12:39,367
you know, let's just say he's making it up

310
00:12:39,433 --> 00:12:41,367
because you guys had a fight
about something else,

311
00:12:41,433 --> 00:12:42,734
then we would consider it.

312
00:12:42,800 --> 00:12:44,934
But we can't really.

313
00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:49,633
I mean, for my part, you can't just
give people money for coming to court

314
00:12:49,700 --> 00:12:51,300
because, you know, that's what we do.

315
00:12:51,367 --> 00:12:55,133
Like, when you have a good faith dispute,
this is what you're supposed to do.

316
00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:56,867
So did you ever suggest,

317
00:12:56,934 --> 00:12:59,233
"You know, look,
you're really, really wrong,

318
00:12:59,300 --> 00:13:01,100
you don't have any basis for suing me"?

319
00:13:01,166 --> 00:13:02,100
Did you ever say that?

320
00:13:02,166 --> 00:13:04,266
I couldn't.
He never said anything to me.

321
00:13:04,333 --> 00:13:07,900
In your complaint,
you say that your plan for this $3,000

322
00:13:07,967 --> 00:13:11,066
is to open up a savings account
for your young boy...

323
00:13:11,133 --> 00:13:13,200
-Oh!
-...who wants to be an orthopedic surgeon.

324
00:13:13,266 --> 00:13:16,066
I don't need the exclamation. [laughs]

325
00:13:16,133 --> 00:13:18,400
I don't need the exclamation.

326
00:13:18,467 --> 00:13:23,166
That's a noble and lofty goal,
but we can't give you a verdict

327
00:13:23,233 --> 00:13:25,400
simply because you're gonna do
something nice with the money.

328
00:13:25,467 --> 00:13:28,734
What you've gotta show
is a legal entitlement to the money,

329
00:13:28,800 --> 00:13:31,100
and, you know,
unless you've got facts

330
00:13:31,166 --> 00:13:33,767
that indicate
that he just made all of this up,

331
00:13:33,834 --> 00:13:36,400
I don't know that there's much
that we can do for you on that point.

332
00:13:36,467 --> 00:13:37,633
Do you have any such facts?

333
00:13:37,700 --> 00:13:40,600
No, just-- I just felt like
it was a waste of my time.

334
00:13:40,667 --> 00:13:43,600
[laughs] You are not alone.

335
00:13:43,667 --> 00:13:46,567
Most litigants feel like that,
but that's not enough

336
00:13:46,633 --> 00:13:48,934
in order to get somebody
to pay you for your time.

337
00:13:49,000 --> 00:13:50,165
Judge DiMango.

338
00:13:50,233 --> 00:13:52,066
Truck drivers don't work every day,
do they?

339
00:13:52,133 --> 00:13:53,066
-They couldn't possibly.
-[Alvin] No.

340
00:13:53,133 --> 00:13:56,333
There's a law that says that they can
only work certain number of days.

341
00:13:56,400 --> 00:13:57,900
So I don't really have any way of knowing

342
00:13:57,967 --> 00:14:00,133
whether those would have been
the two days you would have worked,

343
00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:01,233
not work, maybe you were off.

344
00:14:01,300 --> 00:14:05,266
So because of lack of proof
on your end, I'm not comfortable

345
00:14:05,333 --> 00:14:07,633
awarding you lost wages
because I don't really know

346
00:14:07,700 --> 00:14:09,300
if you were scheduled to work those days,

347
00:14:09,367 --> 00:14:11,567
whether you weren't,
and if I'm not mistaken,

348
00:14:11,633 --> 00:14:14,734
I looked through several documents
where you gave your wages,

349
00:14:14,800 --> 00:14:18,367
and they varied anywhere from, I think,
900 and something to--

350
00:14:18,433 --> 00:14:20,934
One of them was 18,
but most of them were around 11.

351
00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:23,967
So I don't really have any proof
that you would have made $1500...

352
00:14:24,033 --> 00:14:25,567
-Mm-hmm.
-...on each of those days.

353
00:14:26,800 --> 00:14:29,100
[announcer]
Coming up onTribunal Justice.

354
00:14:29,166 --> 00:14:30,734
You know what happens
when a truck driver

355
00:14:30,800 --> 00:14:33,433
takes your tractor trailer
that has bald tires,

356
00:14:33,500 --> 00:14:35,834
doesn't have a fire extinguisher,
got a cracked window.

357
00:14:35,900 --> 00:14:36,834
-Right?
-Yes.

358
00:14:36,900 --> 00:14:40,066
The truck gets impounded, gets towed,
and you gotta pay for all the repairs,

359
00:14:40,133 --> 00:14:41,433
and you gotta pay for the tow.

360
00:14:46,667 --> 00:14:50,700
[theme music playing]

361
00:14:50,767 --> 00:14:54,333
So based on those two factors
and the fact that the plaintiff,

362
00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:56,033
I don't believe,
acted in bad faith either.

363
00:14:56,100 --> 00:14:58,934
I think he really felt confused
and entitled.

364
00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:00,834
I'm comfortable
with where I'm gonna go on this,

365
00:15:00,900 --> 00:15:02,633
without revealing it.

366
00:15:02,700 --> 00:15:05,800
So, gentlemen, we're going to retire
to deliberate in this case.

367
00:15:05,867 --> 00:15:08,200
Court stands in recess.
Parties are excused.

368
00:15:08,266 --> 00:15:11,133
[theme music playing]

369
00:15:11,200 --> 00:15:14,266
I find it frightening that,
in this day and age,

370
00:15:14,333 --> 00:15:18,166
that you can lease a vehicle
without any inspection,

371
00:15:18,233 --> 00:15:22,266
with bald tires,
with mufflers that are falling off,

372
00:15:22,333 --> 00:15:25,600
knowing that the vehicle
is gonna be used to transport gasoline.

373
00:15:25,667 --> 00:15:28,000
I mean, it's frightening,
and from the defendant's perspective,

374
00:15:28,066 --> 00:15:30,367
it's frightening that someone
with his experience, 15 years,

375
00:15:30,433 --> 00:15:31,700
would take the truck.

376
00:15:31,767 --> 00:15:34,667
Quite frankly, there's no written lease.

377
00:15:34,734 --> 00:15:38,500
So whether it was $750 a week to lease,
as the defendant said,

378
00:15:38,567 --> 00:15:41,300
or $900 a week, as the plaintiff said,
we don't know.

379
00:15:41,367 --> 00:15:46,133
There's no evidence that these tires
that were purchased were new,

380
00:15:46,200 --> 00:15:49,100
as in never used before.

381
00:15:49,165 --> 00:15:50,133
[Tanya chuckles]

382
00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:53,033
What we have is,
they were new to the truck.

383
00:15:53,100 --> 00:15:58,165
What the plaintiff took that to mean
is open to interpretation.

384
00:15:58,233 --> 00:16:01,600
And that's the reason why the defendant
eventually answered my question

385
00:16:01,667 --> 00:16:04,600
and said, you know,
he understands it was a misunderstanding,

386
00:16:04,667 --> 00:16:08,533
which is, by the way, why I believe
his counterclaim needs to be dismissed,

387
00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:11,166
and likewise, the defendant's.

388
00:16:11,233 --> 00:16:14,767
Now, this is Mr. Brown's case
for $3,000

389
00:16:14,834 --> 00:16:16,233
for the two days of missed work,

390
00:16:16,300 --> 00:16:18,266
likewise, needs to be dismissed.

391
00:16:18,333 --> 00:16:19,300
That's my position.

392
00:16:19,367 --> 00:16:22,800
I'll start with Mr. Thomas's case
against Mr. Brown.

393
00:16:22,867 --> 00:16:25,033
I agree with you.
It should be dismissed.

394
00:16:25,100 --> 00:16:26,800
There's no evidence of bad faith.

395
00:16:26,867 --> 00:16:30,667
And as for Mr. Brown's case
against Mr. Thomas,

396
00:16:30,734 --> 00:16:34,567
for the reasons you pointed out, Adam,
I would also say it's gotta be dismissed.

397
00:16:34,633 --> 00:16:36,734
There was a definite misunderstanding

398
00:16:36,800 --> 00:16:40,900
about whether or not the parts
that were going on the truck

399
00:16:40,967 --> 00:16:45,133
were going to be new
as in brand new or new to the vehicle,

400
00:16:45,200 --> 00:16:46,066
as you point out.

401
00:16:46,133 --> 00:16:48,100
I think that they
engaged in that same confusion

402
00:16:48,165 --> 00:16:49,300
during the examination.

403
00:16:49,367 --> 00:16:51,533
The plaintiff said
it was his assumption that they were new,

404
00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:54,233
and when the defendant
used the term "new,"

405
00:16:54,300 --> 00:16:56,500
he meant as in new to the vehicle.

406
00:16:56,567 --> 00:16:58,800
"Replacement"
would have been more accurate.

407
00:16:58,867 --> 00:17:03,867
As to the two weeks
where there was no payment,

408
00:17:03,934 --> 00:17:07,532
not only do I not have evidence
about whether it was driven or not,

409
00:17:07,599 --> 00:17:10,300
but it was the plaintiff's burden
to your point,

410
00:17:10,367 --> 00:17:13,066
to show a pattern of payments
that would at least

411
00:17:13,133 --> 00:17:15,532
let us come
to some reasonable conclusion

412
00:17:15,599 --> 00:17:17,767
about what was owed,
and I don't even know that.

413
00:17:17,834 --> 00:17:19,233
I just think that the plaintiff hasn't.

414
00:17:19,300 --> 00:17:21,900
He hasn't presented evidence
sufficient to convince me.

415
00:17:21,967 --> 00:17:25,300
It's easy for me, as well, to start
with the second case, the B case,

416
00:17:25,367 --> 00:17:28,266
and in the B case, he never does
indicate, never has any proof

417
00:17:28,333 --> 00:17:30,934
what he would have made that day,
whether he would have worked that day.

418
00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:32,967
So, for me, he did not meet his burden

419
00:17:33,033 --> 00:17:36,767
of establishing
that he was out of pocket $3,000.

420
00:17:36,834 --> 00:17:38,567
No evidence that
that's what he would have made

421
00:17:38,633 --> 00:17:40,333
even if he were working those days.

422
00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:41,967
So, to me, that should be dismissed.

423
00:17:42,033 --> 00:17:45,000
With regard to the main complaint,
I think much of the confusion was,

424
00:17:45,066 --> 00:17:47,867
as I said up on the bench,
not using the word "replacement"

425
00:17:47,934 --> 00:17:52,000
in both the writing that we have
as well as their speech to one another.

426
00:17:52,066 --> 00:17:54,266
The money that
he gave over to the plaintiff

427
00:17:54,333 --> 00:17:57,834
was used in precisely the manner
in which he wanted it to be used.

428
00:17:57,900 --> 00:18:00,700
Because the 5,000 is not really
an out-of-pocket amount,

429
00:18:00,767 --> 00:18:06,467
it's him creating a number
for misuse of this $2600.

430
00:18:06,533 --> 00:18:08,066
He still has those tires on his truck.

431
00:18:08,133 --> 00:18:11,700
Yes, the $1800, once again,
no proof that he was paying

432
00:18:11,767 --> 00:18:13,934
what he was paying,
how often he was paying it.

433
00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:17,200
So he was really deficient
in his proof on all points.

434
00:18:17,266 --> 00:18:19,367
And I wanna dismiss that as well.

435
00:18:19,433 --> 00:18:20,800
-Great.
-All right. Unanimous. Thank you.

436
00:18:20,867 --> 00:18:23,400
[theme music playing]

437
00:18:23,467 --> 00:18:24,734
Court is back in session.

438
00:18:24,800 --> 00:18:27,100
Parties are reminded
you're still under oath.

439
00:18:27,166 --> 00:18:28,233
-Thank you, Byrd.
-Mm-hmm.

440
00:18:28,300 --> 00:18:31,200
I'm gonna start, Mr. Brown,
with your case against Mr. Thomas.

441
00:18:31,266 --> 00:18:33,166
Part of the reason
why it seemed a little confusing

442
00:18:33,233 --> 00:18:36,500
from our perspective is 'cause it was,
and the reason it was confusing

443
00:18:36,567 --> 00:18:39,533
was because you came in as a plaintiff
without the necessary evidence.

444
00:18:39,600 --> 00:18:42,433
You had no lease, no written lease
to indicate when it started,

445
00:18:42,500 --> 00:18:45,533
the lease started, when it ended,
whether mileage was included,

446
00:18:45,600 --> 00:18:47,667
who's responsible for repairs,
nothing.

447
00:18:47,734 --> 00:18:50,834
And accordingly,
it makes our job impossible.

448
00:18:50,900 --> 00:18:54,266
You're the owner of this business,
whether it's a trucking business or not.

449
00:18:54,333 --> 00:18:58,533
And moving forward,
you gotta give some serious consideration

450
00:18:58,600 --> 00:18:59,900
to how you wanna run that business,

451
00:18:59,967 --> 00:19:04,300
especially a business
that you know involves heavy machinery

452
00:19:04,367 --> 00:19:09,100
that's transporting flammable liquids
and materials around the country.

453
00:19:09,166 --> 00:19:12,300
You know what happens when a truck driver
takes your tractor trailer

454
00:19:12,367 --> 00:19:15,200
that has bald tires,
doesn't have a fire extinguisher,

455
00:19:15,266 --> 00:19:17,433
got a cracked window,
doesn't have those things, right?

456
00:19:17,667 --> 00:19:18,533
You know what happens.

457
00:19:18,600 --> 00:19:19,500
Yes.

458
00:19:19,567 --> 00:19:20,800
[Adam]
The truck gets impounded, gets towed,

459
00:19:20,867 --> 00:19:23,967
and then you got a truck driver
out there who has to walk home,

460
00:19:24,033 --> 00:19:27,266
and you gotta pay for all the repairs,
and you gotta pay for the tow.

461
00:19:27,333 --> 00:19:29,100
So you have a real financial interest

462
00:19:29,166 --> 00:19:31,600
in making sure that you tighten things up
with your business.

463
00:19:31,667 --> 00:19:35,200
As far as your claim for $5,000,

464
00:19:35,266 --> 00:19:37,266
3,200 for misuse of funds,

465
00:19:37,333 --> 00:19:39,867
I think that we pretty much
figured that out.

466
00:19:39,934 --> 00:19:42,533
It can be viewed as a misunderstanding.

467
00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:45,133
The tires were new to the vehicle.

468
00:19:45,200 --> 00:19:46,700
There were no representations
that they were new.

469
00:19:46,767 --> 00:19:49,433
And I know, Mr. Brown,
that you don't agree,

470
00:19:49,500 --> 00:19:52,333
but unfortunately, as the plaintiff,
you got the burden of proof,

471
00:19:52,400 --> 00:19:54,300
and you just didn't
make it in that regard.

472
00:19:54,367 --> 00:19:57,800
As far as the $1800
for the two weeks of non-payment,

473
00:19:57,867 --> 00:19:58,900
here's the problem.

474
00:19:58,967 --> 00:20:02,166
If we had a lease, we would know
what the actual weekly rate was.

475
00:20:02,233 --> 00:20:04,266
You said 900, he said 750.

476
00:20:04,333 --> 00:20:05,266
How do we know?

477
00:20:05,333 --> 00:20:07,333
Well, we could know
if you presented us

478
00:20:07,400 --> 00:20:10,967
with proof of his payments
that we had here, which you didn't.

479
00:20:11,033 --> 00:20:14,100
The recordkeeping
was unfortunately miserable.

480
00:20:14,166 --> 00:20:17,533
So we couldn't even come up
with what the actual weekly number was.

481
00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:23,100
So as a result of all of those reasons,
your case against Mr. Thomas is dismissed.

482
00:20:23,166 --> 00:20:25,900
Mr. Thomas,
your case against Mr. Brown,

483
00:20:25,967 --> 00:20:28,200
where you're seeking $3,000,

484
00:20:28,266 --> 00:20:31,400
we understand losing time from work,
never easy.

485
00:20:31,467 --> 00:20:34,700
And you had admirable goals,
what you were gonna do with the money.

486
00:20:34,767 --> 00:20:36,867
The problem is that
you answered the question honestly

487
00:20:36,934 --> 00:20:39,834
when I asked you whether or not
you thought there was bad faith.

488
00:20:39,900 --> 00:20:43,033
If there was bad faith, we might be able
to take that into consideration.

489
00:20:43,100 --> 00:20:46,000
And thank you for your honesty,
because we knew it wasn't bad faith.

490
00:20:46,066 --> 00:20:49,467
Even if you said it was, you thought so,
we weren't gonna believe you anyway.

491
00:20:49,533 --> 00:20:51,500
It was a misunderstanding
regarding those tires.

492
00:20:51,567 --> 00:20:53,433
Next time,
and hopefully there won't be one,

493
00:20:53,500 --> 00:20:56,300
but if there is, you gotta
get your materials together.

494
00:20:56,367 --> 00:20:58,233
You gotta run that business
a little better.

495
00:20:58,300 --> 00:20:59,533
Thank you both for your time.

496
00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:01,133
Both your cases are dismissed.

497
00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:02,100
Thank you.

498
00:21:02,166 --> 00:21:04,734
[Byrd] This case is now concluded.
Parties are excused.

499
00:21:04,800 --> 00:21:05,834
You may step out.

500
00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:12,300
Not real happy
with the decision that they made,

501
00:21:12,367 --> 00:21:13,900
but I do understand.

502
00:21:13,967 --> 00:21:15,133
That's their decision, so...

503
00:21:15,200 --> 00:21:19,367
If I'm gonna spend $2600,
I'm gonna put new tires on a truck,

504
00:21:19,433 --> 00:21:23,500
whether it's a 2005 or 2022.

505
00:21:23,567 --> 00:21:25,633
Well, I mean, I put new tires on there.

506
00:21:25,700 --> 00:21:28,767
They just, because I haul fuel
and I'm in a gravel yard,

507
00:21:28,834 --> 00:21:30,600
they get chewed up really fast.

508
00:21:30,667 --> 00:21:32,533
If you need tires,
you change the old tires out

509
00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:33,700
and put new tires on there.

510
00:21:33,767 --> 00:21:35,834
He didn't know anything about trucking.

511
00:21:35,900 --> 00:21:37,500
He said he was gonna meet with me.

512
00:21:37,567 --> 00:21:41,533
I waited an hour or so at their--
at their yard, and he didn't show up.

513
00:21:41,600 --> 00:21:43,700
And so I just said,
"Okay, well, you know what?

514
00:21:43,767 --> 00:21:44,767
I'll take you to court."

515
00:21:44,834 --> 00:21:47,467
I mean, I think we should
have had a contract.

516
00:21:47,533 --> 00:21:48,967
Definitely changed the way I do business.

517
00:21:49,033 --> 00:21:51,467
I got the truck out now,
and so it's the same way.

518
00:21:51,533 --> 00:21:53,900
Now I do have a lease
and I got all that stuff in.

519
00:21:53,967 --> 00:21:55,533
I'm gonna just tighten it up
a little bit more.

520
00:21:55,600 --> 00:21:57,633
I'm happy that it's over.

521
00:21:57,700 --> 00:22:00,333
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