Please be seated. Hello, Your Honor. Hello. This is the case of<i>
Morrow v. Curry.</i> Thank you, Jerome. You're welcome. Good day, everyone. Miss Morrow, you say
you've been living
a lie for 30 years. You stand before
the court today ready to finally find out
whether your biological father is the man you grew up
believing to be your dad or if his brother,
the defendant, Mr. Curry is your father. Yes, Your Honor. Now, Mr. Curry you admit
to sleeping with
the plaintiff's mother one time after a wild
night of partying. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: But you say,
you don't believe you're her biological
father because there were other
possibilities as well. Yes, Your Honor. Now, Miss Morrow how did you come
to the conclusion that your uncle might
actually be your
biological father? Well, recently... The man that I thought
was my biological father did at DNA test himself
after 30 years and it came back that
he wasn't my father. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) Um... So, basically for 30 years I lived this lie thinking
that he was my father, which, I never met him until, I was about seven years
old at a court hearing <i> for child support
or something.</i> <i> My mother brought me
with her.</i> I briefly stepped off
the elevator, she said, "Amanda,
this is your father." Um, he said, "Hi.
How are you?" That was it. I never heard from him again
until I was 15. Randomly, a letter
came in the mail from him saying that, "I'm your father.
I want to be in your life. "I'm sorry I wasn't there.
I wanna fill the... "Make up for not
being there." And it all just started
from there and... It was very hard for me
to let him in, so I was very hesitant about having him
in my life. After a year of just
talking on the phone,
we, my mom... Went to Connecticut
for me to meet him. My grandfather was dying,
so I met him around that time that my grandfather was dying. We had lunch. Um... Spent the afternoon together
and that was it. JUDGE LAKE:
How old were you then? I was 16. JUDGE LAKE: <i> So pretty much
your entire life you had
no real relationship</i> <i> with the man you believed
to be your biological father.</i> My mother said that
when she was pregnant
he walked away. That he didn't want
anything to do with me. So I never had a father
in my birth certificate, <i> I never had a father
in my life.</i> <i> But I always knew...</i> JUDGE LAKE: <i> But...</i> KENNETH: <i> You see,
my brother always...</i> You understood him
to be your father? That's the person
you thought... My brother always believed
that he was her father, until just recently when
he got this DNA test done, that's when I found out, that apparently
he wasn't either. But there's a question
as to the validity of the test
that he took. Because he left
the sample sitting
around for a while. Tell me what
happened there. So your brother took
a DNA test? Correct and before
sending it in... He didn't, I guess,
apparently didn't
have the money to send it in
to get the results, so he left it sitting around
for a month or two. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) So this was an at home test? AMANDA: Mmm-hmm.
He purchased it. And he left his sample
sitting where for a month? He said in his car
for a couple of weeks. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) And then when... Conflicting story there.
He told me he left it
on his refrigerator. And he told me
he left it in the car
for two weeks and then when he mailed it,
it got mailed back to him 'cause there wasn't
enough postage on it. And then he mailed me
my part of the kit, <i> so that's when
this all started.</i> When he mailed me
the part for me, he mailed me two samples. One for my mother,
one for me. So, I called my mother.
I said, "Mom, you know..." We were supposed to be
going down to visit her
in a week or so. I said, "Listen, Dave
bought a DNA test, "'cause he always had
questionable doubts,
you know. "He said he's my father
but he just wanted proof. "Well, I have
a DNA kit here. "I'm sending in my sample." And I said that, "If there's
any doubt that
he's not my father, "I need to know now
before I come to Florida "find out the results
and things will hit the fan "when I find out that
you lied to me." And that's when
she came out and said, "Amanda, I never wanted
you to know the truth. "When I was young, I was
gang raped by three men "and you're a victim
of that rape and Dave
is not your father." (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) AMANDA: I didn't believe
that story. Yeah. So, I wouldn't
believe it either because... AMANDA: He was one of them. I was the first one
to sleep with her. I slept with her
one time. JUDGE LAKE: You slept with
Miss Morrow's mother? Correct. Then I introduced her
at a party to my brother. When she started
sleeping with him. Why not say,
"I don't know who
your father is?" Why say this David Curry
is my father, from time 15 you let me
meet him, go to his mother's funeral, meet his family,
spend Thanksgiving
with his family. <i> She would never have
told me the truth until</i> this David finally
decided he wanted
to do a DNA test. So, she told me
on the phone, and I kinda was like, you know, it hit me,
I was upset. I mailed it in, overnight. I told David
I mailed it in. He still didn't pay
for the payment. So you were holding out
hope that this man really
was your father because all these years
you believed him to be and you'd established
a relationship somewhat
with his family? I'm close with
their niece. His niece, David's niece,
their other brother's
daughter. I'm close... I didn't meet Amanda
until she was 15, 16. 16. At Thanksgiving
at my house. It's not that I wanted
him to be my father, but I wanted to know
who my father was. <i> June 6th, I got the email.</i> DNA results were in. I clicked on the link
and it says that
he's not my father. So then at some point you are told that
the man you thought
was your father, he didn't send in the sample
in a timely manner. AMANDA: No. Correct. That's why... JUDGE LAKE:
When did you...
When were you told that? I mean I kinda
knew that. 'Cause he kept saying,
"Oh, I'm getting it there.
I'm getting it there." But I... I had to still
had that hope. It's just that,
it was correct. So, after that happened,
about 20... Finding out that he wasn't my father,
for that 24 hours
it was just... I was a wreck.
I was very emotional. Upsetting like, I'm like,
"Wow, I have a child, "that I can never say
'Well, you have
a grandfather.'" <i> My husband lost
his father when</i> <i> he was very young,
so my son has no grandfather.</i> <i> And it's not, it's not that...</i> It's just... I need to know these
things for, the sake of my son,
health wise and where we come from
and everything. So for 24 hours I sat there
emotionally crying, like, devastated that I will
never know who my father is. And his niece who
I'm close with said, "Hey, Uncle Ken
knows some things." And that's when Ken
reached out to me
and told me that he slept with my mother,
another man slept
with my mother. Um, another man
slept with my mother. Um... And another man. KENNETH: And another
man. Yeah. Um, he... All in the same
time frame. Told me the name
of the other man that David <i> and he both thought
was my father all these years.</i> JUDGE LAKE:<i>
So, all of these men...</i> KENNETH: <i> Correct.</i> On top of that
you do a DNA test with the man you
believe to be your father and there's an issue
with the sample? KENNETH: Correct. AMANDA: Correct. So it's just confusion
all around? Correct. So, look, we use
DNA diagnostics, a laboratory... Mmm-hmm. ...to perform all of
the DNA testing for<i>
Paternity Court.</i> And we wanted to ask Dr. Baird, our lead
scientist there, if the sample
would have been tainted. This is what he said. <i> The sample you refer
to is clearly
not an ideal sample.</i> Generally, if a DNA
sample is compromised, you will see that in
the results in the e-grams, to show that it's not
appropriate for testing. I recommend that this
sample be recollected to ensure reliable results. So, as you can see... (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) That sample was
likely compromised because it was not
sent in in a timely manner. Right. So, we did have... The man you believe to be
your father tested again... (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) JUDGE LAKE: <i> ...under
the right conditions.</i> And we'll have that
result later, okay? So let's now understand how you came to realize
or came to know that your uncle
could be your father? Who told you that? Um, when he
told his niece... I did. (CHUCKLES) His niece told me,
"Listen, you need to
talk to Uncle Ken." And he told me that. But my... What I want
to know is... Why nobody said these... Told me this when you
met me the first time, that you slept with my mother? You know, you also knew... That's not stuff that you tell
a 15-year-old girl. AMANDA: Yeah. Confront
my mother is what... (CHUCKLES) You know,
but when I was 16... See the issue with me is
the only the one time and then introducing
her mother a couple of weeks, you know, after that, meeting my brother,
meeting these other guys, I just didn't think
the time frame could
fit for me. But then my wife
put a picture of
my daughter next to a picture
of Amanda and first thing
my wife said was,
"Well, I don't know. "You know,
very well could be." The other issue is
the other man that
my mother was dating at the same time that
she was dating his brother, I guess when I was 16
when we came up to visit, <i> David came to visit me
as well,</i> at my grandparents' house
and his friend drove him. This friend is who is the
the other man that could
potentially be my father. And he always
knew about me. When I found out his
name from Ken, I actually looked up
online and contacted him. And what did he say? AMANDA: "Oh, yeah
I've always known about you. "I always thought you
could be my daughter." When, I...
He's like, "We've met. "I met you when David
came to see you.
Think back, when you were 16. "Remember a man bringing
David to come visit you? "I was that man."
He's like,
"When I looked at you, "I thought you could
be mine." KENNETH: Yeah. Oh, my goodness! But he figured
if my brother... ...signed the paternity papers
and he wanted to cop to it, "Well, let him."
So what kind of man is that? (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) When you met her,
you thought this was your niece
but she could be
your daughter? No, no.
When I first met Amanda, I thought she looked
a lot like this other guy
that we're talking about. So when you met her
for the first time, were you thinking
in your mind,
"This could be my daughter," or you immediately said,
"This could be one
of the other guys"? No, no, it never
crossed my mind
until just recently when my brother
said that he had taken
this DNA test and it came back
that he wasn't the father. JUDGE LAKE: Okay. Then I said to myself, "Well, there's a slim chance."
You know? This is piecing together
as you go along, it's piecing together
for you as well and your wife holds out
the picture and show it to you and you start saying,
"Oh, my goodness!" "Very well could be
my daughter." "If my brother's
not her father, "and she looks like
everyone in my family, "and she has similar
health issues..." KENNETH: There's only one
conclusion to come to. -"...then maybe I am." I also look a dead ringer
for my mother, so it's hard for me
to compare myself
to anybody, but when I looked up
at this other man who didn't want
anything to do with any of this... I pulled up his
picture online and I... I think I look like him. But, it's, it's... My baby pictures
I look like him. But he wants...
When I called him, he said, "Yeah, I know, but
I don't want my family
knowing anything. "I don't want part of this."
He's like,
"What do you want from me?" I said, "I don't want...
I'm not looking for a daddy, "I'm not looking for
a grandfather for my son. "I'm looking for where
I come from, my closure." (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) My mother, I read a message
David sent to me that my mother sent
to David stating, "I hope you do the DNA test,
so I can spit in your face "for doubting that
she's your daughter." Um, and I also
read that he signed
a paternity agreement when I was just about
18 months old, which
I have a copy of. He... Let me see that. Jerome? I went to the courthouse
to find this myself and I never knew about it and he signed stating
that he is my father. But, he's not on my
birth certificate because
he didn't do the DNA sample. This is in fact
an acknowledgment
of paternity signed June 27th, 1985. AMANDA: Mmm-hmm. So he signed
and acknowledged he's your father. AMANDA: But did not
take the DNA test. KENNETH: Yeah. But the fact that
he signed that and not on my birth
certificate is because he
didn't do the DNA test, so... My whole life
I've been embarrassed that I don't have a father
on my birth certificate. AMANDA: That I don't have...
I never had... Listen, do not be embarrassed. This is nothing for you to be
embarrassed about at all. (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) What's hard for me too,
is just... At my wedding I didn't
have a man to give me away. <i> At my birth of my son,
I didn't have parents there.</i> <i> I didn't speak to my mom
throughout my pregnancy</i> <i> because it was just
too much for me.</i> And, you know it's sad
because she didn't
come to my wedding, she didn't come
to the birth. She did come after
because my husband
contacted her and said, "Look,
let's start over." You know? So what are you
hoping for today? What are you hoping
these results... AMANDA: Just to know... Just, I need closure
to know where I came from, who's my father?
I'm not looking for
somebody to be my dad. I'm 30 years old.
I've lived my life, you know. I've grown this long
without a father, I'm okay. I just want to know
where I came from. Health reasons, heritage. So I can tell my
son one day... What nationality he is, you know, or what health risks
are on his side of the family. JUDGE LAKE:<i>
I understand.</i> KENNETH: <i> She needs to find out
who here real father is.</i> Yes. Mr. Curry, what
are you hoping for, today? I'm hoping if it turns out
that I am her father, that we can have
a good relationship. I mean, we already do.
(CHUCKLES) But, um... It would also be bittersweet
at the same time that not knowing that or
not even thinking it
for 30 years, so... We live 15 minutes apart
and I have never got
together with my family. Except for when
I was 16. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) AMANDA: <i> He's one town
over and...</i> JUDGE LAKE: <i> Wow.</i> <i> ...the only one I get together
with is his niece.</i> I mean, even when
I've gone to his niece's
baby shower, the family just always,
"Oh, you're David's daughter. "Oh, you're David's daughter."
He wasn't there. But, I mean... It's just a shame that, like,
if I'm family, why haven't they
acknowledged me when
I live 15 minutes from them, except for his niece,
that's it. I don't know where
it's gonna go from here. JUDGE LAKE:
Well, I'll tell you what. In order to move forward
we need the results. And, so, Jerome, I think
we are ready... (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) ...to find out the truth. These results were
prepared by DNA Diagnostics
and they read as follows. JUDGE LAKE:
In the case of<i>
Morrow v. Curry</i> as it pertains
to the paternity of Miss Amanda Morrow, I has been determined that Mr. David Curry is not your father. JUDGE LAKE: So, now
it has been confirmed that in fact David Curry
is not your biological father. Are you ready for
the next result? If you need to sit down,
ma'am, please feel free. I'm okay. Thank you. You okay? JUDGE LAKE:
In the case of<i>
Morrow v. Curry,</i> as it pertains to
30-year-old Amanda Morrow... Amanda, Mr. Kenneth Curry is not your father. (SOBBING) (AMANDA SNIFFLES) I'm sorry, sweetheart. (SOBBING) I just don't understand
how someone could
do this to their child. How do you lie
to your child? Now I'll never know. How do I tell my son
this growing up that I don't know
who my father is? I just want closure.
I want this to end. I just want to know.
I want to sleep at night and not have nightmares... There's one other guy,
Amanda, that I wasn't
able to locate. Um, I will most certainly
continue looking for him. (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) Thank you. JUDGE LAKE:
Thank you very much,
Mr. Curry. Thank you for that. Miss Morrow, do not
ever give up. I know this was not
the news you wanted today. I just want to know
the truth. (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) If you ever need
this court room again, we're here to help you if there's someone else
you'd like to have tested
or that agrees to have tested and we'll provide
resources for you to help you process
and get through this, okay? AMANDA: Thank you. JUDGE LAKE: We wish you
the very best of luck. Thank you. Court is adjourned. (AUDIENCE CLAPPING) Jerome, can you please escort Miss Morrow
and her husband
up to the bench please? There are times it feels
like you're running
into a brick wall. You've been blessed
with a really strong guy here. But if you have
to take that wall apart brick by brick, I know he's gonna
help you move 'em. He has. Isn't that correct? Definitely. You understand? (SNIFFLES) Yes, ma'am.
