Michael: When we purchased
the Julian Price house, they told us that we'd not
only get the house, but that we were gonna get
the house and the hoarder. I'm gonna be really blunt.
This is no longer your home. All the stuff
must leave this house. These are brand-new --
brand-new. You've essentially undone
everything that's been done. -No! No!!
-For the first time ever, I may have a sheriff remove
the hoarder from the site. Whoa. I help people,
and I'm not helping her. That's why we're both being
pushed past our breaking point. -Stop talking!
-I am not! I'm done! -You understand --
-Earl, stop it! Leave me alone! ♪♪ I'm Sandra Cowart,
and I'm an interior designer. ♪♪ The Julian Price Hillside Manor, I would say,
is the perfect house. The style is
English Tudor, Greek Revival. It has 9,000 square feet,
4 floors. We used to drive by
every Sunday, and I would say to my husband, "Honey, a little house
like that, someday, is what I want."
[ Laughs ] ♪♪ I'm Walter.
Sandra is my sister. There's a lot of junk
in that house -- things she collected, things she picked up
off the side of the road. It was incredible to have
the privilege of living here, but there were many adaptations
that were necessary. In other words, if you were
on this end of the house, and you needed the Scotch tape
or the scissors, you'd have to go comparable
to the fifth house down the street to get it. So you learned very quickly to have many,
many, many phonebooks, lots of scissors and tape -- I mean, just
the fundamental things. ♪♪ I'm Earl.
I'm Sandra's brother. Her hoarding has
pretty well been... danced around, shall I say. We've tried
to address it with her, and she would tend
to change the subject. If you look up,
you see the ceiling, which is a plaster motif. We've tried to talk
to her about it, that she's, you know, a hoarder. These were all foreign,
Italian imported fixtures. Earl: I don't think she tends
to really want to admit that she has that, that issue. Sandra: There's a long back hall
with a little porch. I call it the Romeo/Juliet porch
'cause you can stand out there. "Romeo, Romeo,
wherefore art thou?" [ Laughs ] Earl: I understand it's --
You know, hoarding's a sickness. Sandra: Help, Romeo.
Rescue me. [ Laughs ] ♪♪ Earl: When Sandra first
bought the mansion, it was immaculate. Sandra: Because the house is
so well-designed and perfectly set up, it's just so healing to the body because of the fêng shui
of the energy. Earl: It was featured
in several articles in Greensboro. Walter: I've seen it
all dressed up and looking pretty. The raw bones are there for it to be a Downton Abbey
of Greensboro. I opened Cowart Designs
here in 1975. One whole floor has
the studio part. Earl: At one point in time, she was the prominent
interior decorator of Greensboro, North Carolina. She was<i> the</i> best. Sandra:
I had an incredible career. I've been very privileged. [ Voice breaking ] The clients
I've had have been marvelous. I had folks waiting two years
to get me to do their home. She was on top of the world. ♪♪ Sandra: In 1979,
somebody approached my husband, wanting to buy the house
and tear it down. And he says, "Well,
if you love me, you'll do it." I went, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. If you love me,
you won't ask me to do it." So he left. When her husband left her, I think that was
the first big blow. Sandra started
what we call curb killing. She would go out
and see things that folks had put out
to the street for trash. And I'll have to agree that,
you know, sometimes one man's trash is
another man's treasure. Well, Sandra seemed to find a whole lot
of treasures. You have every right
to look at all this and say, "My God.
You're a hoarder." But the truth is I do not
perceive myself as a hoarder. It's because it's a shock that the quantity is more
than a house. Earl: There was a lawsuit
that was involved, and her business seemed
to go downhill from there. Walter: A job didn't go well,
she was sued, and then lost
some of that reputation. That was the major blow,
I think, that put her over the edge. I'm Wayne,
and Sandra is my older sister. I encouraged her, at the time,
to sell the home. She had enough net worth
out of it to buy her a nice home paid-for, but she wasn't willing
to part with it. Earl: The last I heard,
it was over $2.1 million that was owed on the note. It finally caught up with her so that she could not make
the payments of the house. I am Patrick Haywood, a local attorney here
in Greensboro, North Carolina. The bank moved to foreclose,
and one of the defenses that she put forth was
that the bank did not actually have title
to the property. Sandra believed that
when the Federal government bought out and paid for
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, she believed that her house
and her loan was paid for. Patrick: She's remained there
for about three years fighting
the various foreclosures, which is pretty extraordinary
actually. It's a heck of a fight. My goal is to have
the legal system invalidate the foreclosure. My name is Michael. I'm the new owner
of the Julian Price House. Purchasing this home was
very, very complicated. Patrick: The legal document
that Michael signed would require him
to take the property as is, where is. He voluntarily accepted
the house with the hoard
and the hoarder -- a little risky
from a lawyer's perspective. A whole lot risky, I'd say. Sandra:
If it gets invalidated, then that puts me back
as the real owner of the house, which is what I want. Walter: I think she is ignoring
the reality, believing that she can somehow continue to live there, and it's just not possible. Now, that might make me cry.
[ Laughs ] Um...of course. You know, you don't devote
your whole life, 42 years to something,
without loving it. Michael: The Julian Price House
is Sandra's life. That's all she's ever known. I don't think she ever thought
this was really gonna happen, and so she never thought
about, "Where am I gonna go? How do I empty the house?" We own the house. We have got to empty
the house out, so we issued notice that she had 10 days
to leave the property, at which time
the sheriff would lock her out. Walter: When the day come
where the sheriff locked her out of the house, she had her van set up
for her to live in, and she has moved out
and living in the van and says that's
where she's gonna stay. Sandra:
That's a good girl. Earl: My two brothers
and I have sat down with her many times and tried to talk
to her about alternatives. She just
totally refuses to admit that she's gonna not be
living in that house. Sandra:
[ Speaking indistinctly ] Walter: My worst fear -- She'll stay in that van... and die. Michael: When we purchased
the Julian Price House, they told us that we'd not
only get the house, but that we were gonna get
the house and the hoarder. So, we've got quite
a big project on our hands. Yeah. I'm Dr. Robin Zasio. I'm a licensed
clinical psychologist, and I specialize in O.C.D.
and hoarding behaviors. What are we looking at,
like, 31 rooms? 31...ish? I don't even really know
what I'm dealing with 'cause I can't get
to the entire half of the house. My name is Matt Paxton. I'm an extreme-cleaning
specialist. This is the biggest hoard,
biggest house, most stuff. It's just overwhelming. So, we've got a woman
who's lost her house, she's severely in debt, and she's gonna have
to watch all of her stuff come out
and essentially go somewhere. Paxton: Correct. It's gonna be
a tough situation. I'm very nervous
with the situation. This is new to us. Usually, we're warning
the hoarder they could lose everything.
-Mm-hmm. The reality is
she's lost everything. She doesn't own
this stuff anymore. [ Grunts ] Sometimes, hoarding gets<i>
very</i> complicated. Yeah. And the reason
it gets complicated is because this hoarder has
delayed, delayed, delayed, delayed,
and I want to make sure that we all understand it
where you lose everything. <i> c</i> get to the point And the people that have
bought the house are being nice and letting her have time. Well, the new owners are here,
Michael and Eric. Dr. Zasio: Hi, Michael.
How are you? -Very good to meet you.
-Very good to meet you, too. -So this is new for us.
-Very new, and, you know, Matt and I were talking
a little bit earlier about how this process is going
to be so different for us. You guys, probably
two of the nicest guys on the entire planet, are gonna let her
make decisions. -Correct.
-You are going to let her sell, and you're gonna return the
money back from any proceeds. -Yes.
-Correct. At this point,
the plan is to figure out what can be sold to raise money
for Sandra to live on. Michael: I told her I would do
whatever resources I could to empty the house out
and get her the money and the contents to get
on her feet 'cause she
has nowhere to go. -So, where does she live now?
-She lives in her van. She's out in the back,
probably sleeping
in the van now. Why don't they take me
to see the house, and you go meet Sandra?
-That sounds good. Okay. Dr. Zasio: At this point,
I need to meet Sandra, find out what her thoughts are, and have her give me
a tour of the home. -Greetings.
-Hello, Sandra. Hope I didn't wake you.
-No, I'm just napping. -I'm here to help.
-Good. And I'm wondering
if we could try to take a tour
of the home so I can see
what we're in for. [ Dog sneezes ] Sure. Oh, my gosh, Sandra. -Mm-hmm.
-Wow! -You got a lot of stuff.
-Yes. Dr. Zasio:
Can I just ask you -- What happened
to your living room? It was broken into
over and over and over... -Mm-hmm.
-...and rampaged. Dr. Zasio:
People with hoarding behaviors who are struggling
with acknowledging the problem typically blame it
on someone else. I'm just gonna challenge you
a little bit here. Okay. You're sticking
to your story... Yeah. ...that this is not
your doing and that it's because
of thieves coming in and messing up
your stuff? -Right.
-It just looks like, even if people
did mess it up, there's still far too much stuff
in this house. Not for a shop,
not for a store. She's just basically saying
that, "I had a shop. I had to bring
all this stuff in, and I just have to relocate it." My question to you is -- For the things
that you want to keep... Mm-hmm. ...where is it gonna go?
-To a warehouse. And you have
a warehouse set up? Well, I'm in negotiations
with a guy for a warehouse. Dr. Zasio: Sandra has not yet
faced reality. She thinks that once we start
pulling the stuff out, that she's gonna be able
to hold on to it all. This information, I absolutely
have to pass on to Matt. Can I get permission to maybe
wander throughout the house? -Okay. All right.
-I'll be very careful. I'll be back. Okay.
-Okay. See you in two hours.
-Oh, geez! [Laughs] So she did work
down here at one point. Yeah.
This is where clients came. She was a designer,
a very successful professional at one point. This is all just samples. People would come down here
and design their houses. I don't even know
if I can squeeze through here. I'm wandering into room
after room after room... It's just getting worse
and worse as I go. ...and suddenly found myself
completely lost. Oh, roadblock,
complete roadblock. I'm going into the, what,
third floor now? It's like a magic castle. Like, everywhere I turn... -Servants' wing on the left.
-Okay. ...there's a different door. [ Crunch ] [ Gasps ] Whoa. Michael: There's three bedrooms
and one bath. -That way?
-Yes. Servants has
a bigger house than I do. [ Laughter ] Yeah, I think this is it. Oh, no. It's a hallway
that's completely barricaded. Ow! [Bleep] I have no clue where I am,
but I want to get out of here. Matt? Paxton: Yo?
Where are you? [ Laughs ] As I'm climbing up the steps,
I hear this little voice in the background,
and Dr. Zasio was actually lost upstairs. Thank God. Matt, I don't know
how you're gonna do this. Paxton:
If you can keep Sandra focused,
I think we got a chance. Okay, there's something
you guys need to know. She says that, right now,
she has three warehouses on hold,
and it is her expectation that it is going
to be routed to these warehouses. Dr. Zasio has told me
that Sandra has warehouses. Hey, Sandra. So I wanted to confront Sandra
very quickly. Our goals were
to get you in a safe place, hopefully liquidate
some of this stuff to make you some money. Paxton:
There's some stuff we can sell
right now in this house. I am bringing an auctioneer in
to rely on them to tell what can
and can't be sold. We do need
to empty the house. I mean, like it or not,
it's their house now. So [sighs]
here's my concern. I'm hearing that there might
be a warehouse or something. I have three on hold. This is
one of the most common things that we see with people
who are struggling with hoarding behaviors. Rather than make decisions
and get their stuff in order, they just store it. The reality is, they don't go
inside that warehouse and pull the stuff out. It goes there,
lock is on the door, to be forever forgotten. We're not a moving company. I'm gonna have to
put my foot down --
absolutely no storage. I won't be moving anything. This is
about finding you housing and making you some money. What's the most
important thing to you? I don't have a need for housing at all. May we please take
that off? No, I -- You do. You're living
in that van right there. You<i> do</i> have
an issue for -- No. I'm gonna live
in an Airstream. I will never --
Hear my words. I will never live
in a house again. I will<i> never</i> live
in an apartment ever. Dr. Zasio:
The bottom line is one of the three goals
that we have set, she's indicated,
"I have no interest in," and that is finding her
a home and an apartment. She has emphatically said,
"Don't even go there with me," which means
she can't take anything, which means everything goes. So whatever you can fit
in that Airstream -- How long is it,
a 12 foot or a 16 foot? No. 28.
-Great. And, again, I'm gonna continue
to bring you back. You should be focusing
on selling this stuff... -I am. I am!
-...not keeping it. I'm just in a place
where I can't take the hoard, [ Voice breaking ] you know?
-I got you. -You know what I'm saying?
-I'm -- totally. I'm worried
about her emotional stability when everything
either goes to auction, in a Dumpster
to be thrown away, or recycled. I think
she's gonna be devastated. [ Sobs ] [ Back-up alarm beeping ] ♪♪ Morning, everybody. All: Good morning. All right. This is a lot of people. Quite honestly,
we are in the biggest house I have ever cleaned. Never had this many Dumpsters, never had this many people, and I'm still
a little nervous, man. This house is massive.
-[ Laughs ] It's amazing. It's gonna take
over 1,000 man-hours to empty this house. Legally speaking, Patrick,
what are we looking at? The ownership of the property
has changed hands. Sandra fought
a valiant fight with the bank for a number of years. Today Michael and Eric are
the owners of the property. They are giving her
an opportunity to retrieve
some of her belongings and have an opportunity
to sell some, but Sandra is
an invited guest today. That's
the legal proceeding. Okay, so, legally speaking --
I'm gonna dumb that down. This is no longer
your home. We got to be
really clear on that. Paxton: This has been
a 5-, 10-, 15-year process, and Sandra has passed up
many, many, many opportunities to get help,
to find better housing, to sell the house, and it's really important
for families to understand, at some point,
if you don't accept that help, you will lose it all. And that's where Sandra is. And I don't mean
to be really blunt, but I have to be. <i>All</i> the stuff must leave
this house. [ Chuckles ] I don't want it
to be that way. [Laughs] We understand that,
but, as Patrick said, we are at a crossroads. I am here for you
every step of the way. I will say this -- Everything I have,
somebody wants it. Paxton: Her denial is bigger
than the Empire State Building. What we can do is
to get her to understand legally she has no rights. That is my only window,
and that's why I've
continued to push. That's why I've got
a lawyer here. That's why I have
a sheriff on site. For the first time ever,
I may have a sheriff remove the hoarder from the site because it might be
the best thing for her. I would just like to thank
Michael and Eric both for being concerned
for her stuff. I realize
they could have come in and just gotten rid
of everything in the house, but their compassion for Sandra
has shown through this. I'm excited
about seeing Sandra move to a new chapter in her life. [ Laughs ] But I want
to be really firm -- That chapter starts
in three days. We are on the very last page
of this chapter, and that's real. It's over. All right.
We ready to go, guys? All: Yes! -All right, let's do it.
-Thank you. ♪♪ I'm blown away
how much stuff is happening, how many guys are
rolling around. Just for scale,
I just want to stress, I've never seen anything like
this in my entire life. It's been
a really good morning. We have taken
10 Dumpsters out already. Sandra's actually behaving
pretty well. I'm hoping it actually slows
down, 'cause if it doesn't, this is gonna be
a 100-Dumpster house. There aren't
even enough Dumpsters in North Carolina
that we can get them in three days to do that. Sandra:
Those are not trash. Those are brand-new,
those chairs. Bring it over here
for me, please. Well, it's not moisture.
It's actually, mold. And this is wicker. I can't actually sell this,
and I can't donate it. Okay, and I'm not
asking you to. I'm telling you I want it. We're not focused
on finding you a place to live. You said that's off the table,
so we're respecting that. I think
where we're at now is to say you're holding on
to things that you don't have
a place for. And you don't know that.
I'm sorry. Paxton:
Sandra is a politician. She wants to make you believe
that her way is the way to do it,
but then, when you push her on, "Well, give me the details
of your plan," it's empty. There are no details. You don't know what I have. You don't know the perimeters
of what I have. She's basically like
a Trump hoarder. There's just no substance.
It's all talk. Sandra: So, let's just have
a give point, okay? You give that one to me. So you are going
to have, by the end of Tuesday, like 3:00,
3:00 p.m. Tuesday, transportation to get
all of these things out of here
that you're holding on to? You are gonna have
secured that? Because -- Michael. Is there any option
for her to keep anything
out of this house or on
the outside perimeters? Is there any option
for her to store it here? No, it needs
to be gone. -Okay.
-We need it off the property. -All right, so --
-So, then -- That hasn't been
the debate ever. Okay, so, then, I'm gonna go
with what you're saying. -Mm-hmm.
-I'm gonna keep my mouth shut. You want to keep it?
Great. I'm gonna put it up in your pile
on the side of the yard. -Mm-hmm.
-You've got till Tuesday at 3:00 to have someone pick it up.
-Okay. If they don't,
I'm tossing it. Deal? Okay. Yeah. -You cool with that?
-Yep. -Okay with it.
-Okay. -All right.
-All right. Here.
I'm proud of you. [ Laughs ] [ Indistinct conversations ] Woman: Flip them over.
Is there any stamps
on the bottom? Yeah, there's numbers
and stickers. Yeah, keep that. This is Evan. He runs EBTH, all right, which is
Everything but the House. They are
our auctioneer group. If you notice,
they're at every door, okay? Sandra: Uh-huh. They know not
what only has value, but what sells.
-Uh-huh. And that's really
what's important. What sells is
what's gonna pay your bills. -So, let me ask you this.
-Yeah? -Can we keep that chair?
-No. -Yes, honey.
-No, because -- -Why?
-It's broken up. First of all,
you don't have space. -That's a brand-new cushion.
-And for many, many reasons -- We haven't even gotten
into the house yet, and she's already putting
a halt to things. Sandra: Whoa, whoa.
Whoa, whoa. There's a moldy pillow
and a moldy bed frame, and she wants
to keep it all. Now, that's got
to be kept. Are you planning
on having a baby any time soon? I don't put babies in it.
I put design stuff in it. That's a keep.
That's a keep. -A rusted...
-Yes. Paxton: ...piss-pot? You ought to see it
at an antique show. The auctioneer just said,
"Get rid of it." -Well, she's not --
-The best auctioneer -- She's not gonna have
to live with it. It's mine.
-Time out. The best auctioneer
in the country just said it can't be sold. I'm not asking her
to sell it. I'm asking to keep it. I think we're still forgetting
what the reality here is. Uh-huh. Your new chap--
Look. Look at me. I'm listening. Don't look at nothing else.
None of that stuff matters. I'm listening.
I'm listening. So, where do you live?
Let's go back to that question. I'm gonna be living
all over this country. I might as well be
speaking French. So what are you gonna
be living in? Uh, an Air--
an Airstream... Look at me.
Look at me. Everything I say to Sandra
just goes in one ear and goes out the other. That's metal,
and that can be kept. If you're gonna live
in an Airstream, you can keep about --
I don't know. I'm not putting -- Listen.
My Airstream is full. Not a thing from this house is
going in the Airstream. Okay. I just don't know
where to go with her. We pretty much keep dancing
around each other. We're saying the same thing. I've had the same conversation
for the third time now. So why are we keeping
that huge chair? I do houses
all over the country, all over the world.
-But where is that gonna go? Sandra's defense to holding on
to all of her stuff is that she has her own dreams, but she has nowhere to take it. I'm talking about what is --
You wanted to keep that. Where is it gonna go?
-It's gonna go in a room
in a corner... -What room?
-...with plants on it. What room? Where is
that gonna be stored? In a warehouse.
In a warehouse. Sandra's still not really
living in the real world. Have you secured
the warehouse? Already, yes. She's got all these dreams. She's saving
all this furniture for her yard. How are you gonna pay for it?
-It's done. And the reality --
She lives in a van. If I had to justify
every breath of my life before I could do
anything, there would be no space
for creativity, no space
for magic to happen, for the wonders
of the world to happen. You know what?
Exactly. There is no space anymore
in your life for that. The biggest damn house
in the city is full. Sandra feels
that Bank of America never had a clear lien
against the home. Michael: In a conversation
with one of Sandra's brothers, it was brought to my attention
that she was considering continuing her legal battle to regain possession
of the house. She's still hoping that
that court ruling would be reversed.
-No, so... We purchased the house legally,
and we're doing all of this to benefit her. We do not want to drag
our family through this. We do not want to incur
additional legal expenses. -We want to keep these crates.
-Okay. I'm gonna pull the plug
on this entire process
if she's gonna go ahead with the lawsuit.
-Give me that cushion. Dr. Zasio: Sandra,
you don't want that cushion. I'm asking
the bank to admit they had no right
to foreclose or sell the property. That's what
I'm asking for. But if you win that,
you've essentially undone everything
that's been done. We have a trial
in February 27th. And I go
to court Wednesday. You've just cost me
$200,000 in legal fees. For what? To hire an attorney
to now go to the bank... To defend myself. ...and defend themselves.
-Only if you want to do that. So I would have bought a house
that I no longer own, that you've
just potentially taken back. We've brought all of this
in here to help you... Wait, wait, wait. ...sold it for you
so you have money. He's trying to maneuver me
into positions that will keep him
where he is right now -- that the house is his and me out of here
in two more days. I guess we're not saying
it clear enough. Like, maybe it needs
to come out of your mouth. This has to end. We feel we need to talk
with our attorney first before we go
any further with this. Just a few minutes ago,
I received a phone call from my clients actually
that there was a problem here at the property. Doesn't that open up
Pandora's box? Sandra asserts
and perhaps even believes that she, at some point,
may receive the property back. That can't be done. We are still owners
of this home no matter what. Eric and Michael are
what are now called bona fide purchasers
for value, which means, in North Carolina,
that they've taken the property, they've recorded their deed, and once they did that,
that cannot be reversed. -The property is yours.
-Okay. Y'all pan all those bags
over there and see what went
to the Dumpsters, and I guarantee you
two-thirds of what were
in those Dumpsters are what I wanted to keep. Paxton: Time-out. I listened to you.
Now you're gonna listen to me. You lose everything
in two days. I'm trying to maximize
the value of what's left
in that house. You keep saying
I'm trying to skip around. That is the fact
of your life. You no longer own
any of this. You're not a lawyer.
You can't make that judgment. The biggest problem
with Sandra's plan is that she owns this stuff and she's still gonna
live in the house. Neither are true. Paxton: I've brought in
the top experts in the country to handpick,
as quickly as they can, the stuff that will sell. -Nick.
-Yeah? -Look.
-Very unique. I'm doing it
to maximize your value -- you, your cash --
to help you live beyond this. Nick: Considering everything
that was going on in the house, a lot of stuff
in good shape. Paxton: We fought for hoarders
for years to give them a choice. This hoarder doesn't
have a choice. She lost it. You've had five years
to deal with this problem, and you haven't taken it.
-Because I never expected to lose the house.
-That's the problem. -It was done illegally.
-[ Scoffs ] Paxton: She doesn't respect
the judge's decision. She doesn't respect my decision.
She doesn't respect anybody's. Do you know
what Dr. Zasio wants to do? Dr. Zasio:
At this point, I called Michael
into the situation. If he doesn't start
to take an active stance in making some decisions
about this process, then we're dead in the water, because Sandra is
not listening to me, and she's not listening
to Matt. Michael,
the bottom line is she doesn't understand
that this has been your gift to her
to bring her here. Mm-hmm. And now what's happening is
we've gotten through a lot of the outside,
and now she's wanted to look
at every single item. And that is how we do it
in the real world. [ Bag rattles ] Careful -- breakables. Dr. Zasio: But this is
not the real world. She is a guest
on your property, and her stuff
now belongs to you. So, if she keeps
holding up this process, we are not gonna get
this job done. Wonder where they got this.
This is fascinating -- where they got
the Christmas from. So you've got to go in
and tell Matt, "I want her to touch
and feel every item, and let's just get
as far as we can," or, "Sandra, you are
a guest on this property. Whatever Matt says goes." Dr. Zasio wants me
to put my foot down with Sandra. If you can't do it, then this is going
to slow us up... Yeah, I understand. and we will hopefully get
to the second floor. Michael: It's difficult for me
because I've never been put into this situation
where I have to choose someone's emotions --
the hoarder -- versus my own personal,
family's interest -- the house and everything
that we have invested in this. See?
Watch this. This is
what I'm talking about. This is exactly
what I'm talking about. Look at the number of bags.
-Yeah. Dr. Zasio: And that bag will
take her at least a half-hour. And look -- Now she's got Eric
sucked in to looking at them, holding them,
talking to her about them. With the sale of your items,
you could get new ones. I need to keep
what has value. Paxton:
Does that have value? Yes. There's, what,
100 bags there? She can't even go
through those bags in the next two days. Sandra hasn't been able
to go through this house in the last 10 years
and sort through it. I don't think she can do it
in the next three days. It's up to you. She's not listening to us. So all the arguing
that's going on is a huge setback. I'm just trying
to get to the bottom. I'm saying this to you,
and you're not the hoarder. Do you want your house?
-Yes. Or do you want the stuff? She needs to understand
that you're in charge. Right now,
she's in charge. -Yeah.
-Here, more CDs. And if you need
to change the rules of the game,
change them. Sandra: Slide that
over here a little. It's tough-love time. It's not easy. Listen -- And she's not
even related to me. -No, but this is your house.
-I know. Mike has to decide
does he want to placate Sandra or does he want
to get his home back? He can't have both. If you don't set
the precedence now before
we get back tomorrow... -Mm-hmm.
-...we are toast. Sandra: Oh, yes.
That's keep. [ Sighs ]
Okay. So, we're all here
to support you. -Mm-hmm.
-Dr. Zasio's here. Let Matt run his crew.
Your brothers are here. It's for you,
all of this. -So, is --
-Let us empty the house. I need the house empty
so that we can move on. You need the house empty
so that you can have your money from the auctions
to get this done. The only way to do it is
to follow Matt's lead. So, is --
Number one, in a -- There's two options. You either have
to let us do this our way, or you can't be here. Paxton:
I have a solution. Before I do each room,
she gets five minutes legit. Five minutes, you point,
"keep, keep, keep, keep." And my guys tag it,
and we pull it out. You're not getting
more than five minutes. It means you're gonna get
a few things that are important to you, and when that five-minute
stopwatch goes off, we walk out, and then
my team does what they do. The only answer is "Yes,"
or this is gonna go not well. Walter: I hope Sandra can stay
with us and that she accepts
the role in this of taking a few -- just a few choice mementos
out of the house. So -- So, uh,
what I'm asking is, if you get the first out, then could I come back
in two minutes and say, "Okay, now
that we can see that" No. Five and out, each room. You need
to take it, Sandra. Eric:
It's gonna be good. The end result
of all of this is going to benefit you. Okay, let's try that. Dr. Zasio: Our initial plan was
for her to go through the room and stay one room
behind the rest of the crew, and as they moved,
she would move. That's not what's happening. Oh, my God.
Oh, my God. That wicker basket,
this wicker basket. [ Sighs ]
-What's happening is Matt found her in the Dumpster that had completely been filled. Sandra:
This is my favorite bag. Paxton: Sandra is hunched over,
picking things up off the floor of the Dumpster. My guys don't
even see her in there. Sandra, you got
to get out of the Dumpster. This is
very, very unsafe. Get out. Get out.
Get out. Well, now, hang on.
Hang on. Paxton: There's no niceness.
There's no talking. This is a safety concern. She could get hit
in the head with a bag. I have to get
her out immediately. This stuff is not more
important than your life. Get out
of the Dumpster now! Listen -- I'm
just taking it with me. I have 35 guys throwing
stuff in here. This is not safe. You are not allowed
in this area at all. You told me I could go
through this area. No, I didn't say
that at all. You made
that up completely. Paxton: When I have to stop
the guys from cleaning because she's in a Dumpster,
I lose 10 minutes of work, but I lose 10 minutes
of work times 40 guys. That's 400 minutes. [Sighs] You're not willing
to even try to see it -- No! I hear you. I'm trying to make this work.
You've got to behave. Okay.
Okay. I need you guys
to be bouncers. Keep -- Stand in front
of those two doors, put your hands up,
don't let her through. That sounds so silly,
but that's what I need. I put two of her brothers
right in front of her. I said, "Your job is
to stand in this doorway. Do not pass this doorway.
Do not let her go." They said, "Absolutely."
Five minutes later... Here, put this
over there, too. Paxton: ...she's got them
picking through boxes, putting stuff away. She can manipulate anyone
to do what she wants. -So this is all trash?
-No. Wayne, can you set this
in the wagon? It's just heavy.
I'm afraid I'll... -[Grunts] It's a rock.
-...trip. -Yeah. I know.
-You want to save a rock. Sandra: Ooh-ooh!
That needs to go with me to the car
to wash and use to clean up with. All right. There's no way to save
everything in this house, and she's bound
and determined to try to save a piece of it
down to the last scrap of paper. Oh, oh, oh.
Put this with the towel. Ooh. Things are going
from bad to worse. We started with getting her
to pull out things that were of value to her that could contribute to a new housing arrangement -- that sort of thing. We are now at the extreme end where she is just scooping up
everything on the floor, including visible trash. Go ahead and throw
that in there. I mean, we'll use it
for who knows what. Sandra, I'm concerned
that you're going backwards and not forwards. You went from being
very selective in the items, and it now seems like
everything he's handing you, you're just putting in the box
and not even looking at. I have
however long I live to deal with this. I'm trying to appeal to her. I'm trying to give her
some support. But we're trying to help you
to start retraining your brain to think differently now rather than do it
in the future. You're not gonna have somebody
to help you in the future. Uh, there is
a bag, Walter, of remotes out there
on that credenza. She's stuck on all this minutia
in the first room, and not even moving on
to the next. Yeah, yeah.
That's -- just throw that... Dr. Zasio:
Guys, I'm really worried
about what's going on here. -I am, too.
-We're heading in the -- -Opposite direction.
-...opposite direction. -Right.
-And she's not even listening. You're putting in bent --
bent cards and -- Don't, don't,
don't, don't. That's fine.
A bent card is fine. Is it empty?
Okay. Give me
this stuff on top. This woman is headed
for a catastrophe, and she doesn't see it. What is that,
that piece of paper you just put in there?
-Ah, here's my -- my... Here is my mascara.
Do what now? That piece of paper
that you put in there -- What was that? -It...
-Explain to me what it was. We burn cow poop to keep the bugs
and the mosquitos away. You think that's healthy? Yeah, it's healthy. Our hopes was
that she'd move forward with her hoarding problem, and it seems to be
only getting worse. What was the piece of paper...
-Who knows what? Wayne: ...that you're
telling me about? Well, it doesn't matter.
Trash is trash. -Amen.
-And it burns. The mascara
that you picked up -- How old is that?
-It fell out of my pocket. I had it
in my pocket today! Okay? Dr. Zasio: We've got
her brother Walter, her brother Earl,
her brother Wayne. We've got Michael.
We've got Eric. We've got myself. We've got Matt,
and 35 people who are all trying to help her, and she's rejecting
every piece of it. Stop attacking me.
Everybody's attacking me. Don't make me wrong. There are 10 Dumpsters
out there with at least $10,000
in each one, and I have been forced
to let it go. You
they're worth $10,000. <i> think</i> The majority
of it is trash. [ Scoffs ] Wayne: She's controlling
the situation. -Still? Okay.
-Still. So maybe -- -She's back in control.
-She's back in control, exactly,
but with free reign. Earl, I get that, but let me
just tell you something really quick. It is clear
that I am not gonna have any impact with her. She's saying,
"I'm perfectly happy the way things are. I've made a choice
to live like this, and I have no desire to change." I am
now officially here for all of you.
-Right. And so I'm not
giving up on her, but I think, at this point,
when I try to help her, it's agitating her, and I don't want her
more agitated. And if she's
scooping up garbage and putting it in a box,
then so be it. It's keeping her
off Matt's back right now to try to do the job
that we were hired for. But are we not creating a worse issue with her? A little bit,
but here's the problem -- The alternative is she gets
removed by the sheriff, and then y'all got to --
-She has nothing. She has nothing. Paxton: The brothers are
in a bad situation, too. They love their sister, but they've done everything
they can to help her. For me, I need her isolated
in one corner. If that happens, then I get to clear
the rest of the house. ♪♪ The good news is the auctioneers
are finding good stuff. They are here to sell
the good things in the house that will make Sandra money. It'll be cool to see
what we can see with this table once we get it out. Paxton:
They're going ahead of us. They're picking
everything that has value, and then they're gonna let
my guys come in and throw everything away
when they get out. Eric: You're pulling away
her life, her belongings, and her memories,
and that's what hurts is that it's not -- When she leaves from this,
it's all gone. Paxton: Michael and Eric are
having a hard time with this. They are still very
emotionally attached to Sandra. She's an adult, and we're treating her
like a child, and that's
very hard to face. I mean,
nobody deserves that. I told Dr. Zasio it's like
throwing your grandmother
out of her house. This was only gonna
go two ways -- You guys either clean it out
without her here or you clean it out
with her here. -I agree with that.
-So at least she's able to make<i> some</i> decisions.
-Yeah, I mean, again, Paxton:
...just let me say this
for the fifth time. You guys are saints
for allowing her to do this. By you allowing us
to do this with her, you are giving her
more chance at money and any type
of visual assurance than any other option. So it's probably better
that she has people that care. Dr. Zasio: Exactly. Sandra: [ Sighs ] Eric: Here.
I'll let you go first. We don't know if there's snakes
in here, do we? Dr. Zasio:
Watch your step. We don't know
if there's snakes, no. We don't know what's in here.
-There could be people in here. This is a maiden voyage
for all of us. All right, guys. So, this is
an underground tunnel that you just got
cleared away. -Yeah.
-You've never been in here? -Nope.
-What is this tunnel? Michael: It's legend that it was
either for prohibition, for liquor to be coming
up to the house. Supposedly, it was connected
from the park into the basement. All right,
who's going first? I think, Michael, you're
the brave one, right? -You should go first.
-He's braver than I am. Eric: [ Laughing ]
I think you should go first. Ah. [ Gate creaks ] Dr. Zasio: Quite frankly,
we're all scared bleepless. -Oh, my gosh, look at the mold.
-Dripping. Dr. Zasio: [ Gasps ]
What is that? -It's growing.
-It's dark. It's wet. Don't touch that.
Oh, that's all moisture. -Yeah.
-And it has mold that I have never seen
in all the homes I've
ever been with. Dr. Zasio: [ Gasps ] Wow. It looked like someone had taken
a stuffed animal and ripped out the insides and thrown it
all over the walls. Dr. Zasio: Do you guys know
how long this tunnel is? Michael: I heard it's
the length of the house, so this is
a couple hundred feet. And there's a corner that --
Who's gonna go first around? I don't know. Well, I can tell that
Sandra's been down here because I don't think,
50 years ago, they had
these plastic tubs. Dr. Zasio: Everything
you could possibly think of was down
in this underground pathway. Michael:
Yeah, this is baby pools, more baby pools.
-Tires, hoses. Dr. Zasio: Look
at these shudders, you guys. Unbelievable. But it's incredibly,
incredibly dangerous. Dr. Zasio:
I think we need to get out
of here as soon as possible. I don't think
it's safe down here, and we'll have to talk to Matt
about our findings. Fortunately
there's no people here. There's no animals. Although,
they'd probably be dead if they did
because breathing in all of this is
incredibly dangerous, so I think
we should move out. -Okay.
-Right. Michael:
[ Coughs, clears throat ] -That yard is full.
-I need -- She's stopping
every one of my guys. Listen,
I need the court case -- Michael and Eric,
get in here. Paxton: 15 of my guys walk up,
and they said, "She won't let us work. She parked her chair right
in the middle of our pathway of two different rooms
coming out." I don't want
to hear it anymore! -I don't care!
-I'm done! -Stop talking!
-I am not!! Paxton: I'm really struggling
with Sandra. It's one thing
to help this woman. It's another to completely
slow down a third of my crew and not allow them
to do anything. She's slowing us down
from helping her. It makes no sense. It takes them less time
to put it right here and go bring the rest than it is for you to --
-I have a legal obligation to clean this house.
-You're manufacturing. -You've stopped --
-Listen -- I have got to have
that croquet set. It's frustrating for me
to see her continuing to manipulate everyone
in the situation. I'm done! I'm [bleep] pissed.
I'm out of here! -That's your choice.
-If you guys want me to empty the house,
I'll do it. If not, I won't.
-What is she stopping? She's stopping
every one of my guys. 15 guys just came to me
and said they can't work. -I chose pieces that I have --
-Stop! Y'all figure this out.
-I'm not talking to you! I'm done! I have got to have
that croquet set. Excuse me. Michael, Dr. Zasio,
y'all figure this out. -Us -- Listen to me.
-Stop! -Y'all figure this out.
-I'm not talking to you! Paxton: I'm done! Matt's walking away.
He says he's gonna quit. And so I feel like
it's important to intervene because we can't quit. Look, these are
brand-new -- brand-new,
never been used. Michael: But I think
it goes back to the -- So, what do you want
with them? That's not his business. That's nobody's business
but mine. No, no, no,
I'm asking you -- No, I'm asking you.
Where do you want them? What do you want?
-I want them back there to go to my warehouse.
-Here's the problem. I will speak for 30 seconds,
and I'll leave again. Here's the issue --
We are at a volume in the 3:00 pile that now,
if she doesn't manage to have it taken away,
I don't have enough time by dark
to throw it all away. Okay. So, then we need
to come to her and -- The pile's getting
too big. Then, we just have
to revise the plan so that she knows
the rules. This is brand-new --
brand-spanking-new. This is ridiculous! Every item
she says is brand-new -- Every item is important. You go over there
and look at it. -I don't care!
-See if it's been opened. -Matt, please stop yelling.
-I'm sure it's new. Dr. Zasio: It's so important
that we remember that Sandra is mentally ill. We have to stay calm,
we have to stay patient, and continue
to treat her with respect. I am at my limit.
I cannot work. I have seven Dumpsters
ready to fill. They're
in the front yard. If she doesn't let me fill them,
I don't get the house done. So I tried to talk
to Sandra about what exactly she was trying to achieve. Are you getting a U-Haul?
Do you have a trailer coming in? How is it gonna get
out of here? Uh, we have a crew
that's coming tomorrow, and we're planning
tonight the program. And that's how we'll do it
and how it'll get done. Everything in this house is
not going to the pile, Sandra. I know you know that.
-Oh, I know. I know that. Michael: But --
Look at me, though, please? Will you look at me, Sandra?
-Uh-huh. When we start this
tomorrow morning, someone has to --
Look at me, please. -Uh-huh.
-Someone has to be here... -Right.
-...operational for you. -Okay.
-I want the sofa to go with my two chairs. I would not put money
on these people are showing up, but Sandra's one of the most
persuasive people I've ever met. The problem is she's had
40 years to produce that, and she's never gonna do it. Why are we to believe
that she'll do it by
9:00 a.m. tomorrow? If you can go get
those glass things there... -Okay.
-...and, uh... whatever's heavier
for the guys. We're gonna empty everything
that's ours from here down. -Empty it?
-Take it to the street. We're getting the stuff
off the property. Woman: We're gonna do it
with the truck. Paxton: Got here this morning,
and Miss Sandra had technically achieved
what we challenged her to do. Sandra: Bring it on out
to the street if you will. She did remove
a lot of stuff from the yard, and she put it
right on the property line. Sandra: And don't let
anybody take it from you. Call me
if you have a problem. Paxton: The problem is
there are a lot of items in this pile on the street
that I know I saw on the Dumpster when I left. Stick that right in that
sort of hole right there -- those chairs. She looks pretty tired. I think she stayed up
all night pulling what she could
out of the yard into the street. Hey, guys. How are you? Hi, ma'am. Are you the owner
of all this stuff? -This stuff.
-This is all your belongings? -Uh-huh, yeah. Yeah.
-Okay. The reason is
you're not allowed to have stuff
out on the street, impeding
and blocking traffic. Right. Sandra: They have taken
20-some Dumpsters of my good stuff
to the dump, and what I'm doing is
getting what I can out here...
-Uh-huh. Sandra: ...and as soon
as we get my stuff out here, then we're gonna load it
and take it to my warehouse. Uh, our thing is,
you know, there's a time limit for you
to get this -- It's
got to be off the street by the time the permit --
by 5:00. Paxton: So 5:01,
it's got to be gone. It's gone. The local police came and said, "5:01, boom --
That's the deadline. If this stuff isn't
off the street, it's gone." It just can't be
blocking the street. It
doesn't matter what it is. Man #2: You can't
just abandon your trash on the street like this. Sandra: Honey,
we haven't abandoned it. We're bringing it
out here fit to kill -- fit to kill.
-I'm just saying, past 5:00, it's gonna be considered
abandoned. I hear you.
I hear you. And we're gonna call
Code Enforcement. Paxton: The city is sending
a picker truck here to remove this stuff
off the property. That's not an opinion,
that's not negotiable. The truck is coming
from the city to remove it. This is now a trash complaint
from a neighbor. Sandra: He will call you
because he is out... Well, hopefully,
I won't have to. ...for sabotaging me any and every way that he can.
-You know what? Sandra, look at me.
-All right, Betty, come on. Do the job,
and we'll get out of here. Well, let me!
Give me the time to do it. He just did.
He just gave you the law. -Thank you, guys.
-All right. [ Voice breaking ]
I help people. And I'm not helping her,
and it's hard. And I know you want to. That's why
we're both being pushed past our breaking point.
[ Sniffles ] And it's so painful
to watch. [ Sniffles ] Paxton: This is a hard one
for all of us, and let me assure you --
Dr. Zasio's a tough chick. Nothing breaks her. And for the first time
in seven years, I saw her broken. She's made a decision
to live on the street. She made a decision
to spend the night digging in the Dumpster...
[ sniffles ] which you told her was
off-limits. She made a decision
to pull stuff out on the sidewalk. She's losing sight
of what even brought us here. [ Sniffles ] And it's painful
because she's a human being, and her brain is
not allowing her to make any kind of reasonable,
decent decision now. I am a human being,
and I would never want this to happen to my grandmother.
-No. God, no. She's ill. She's doing exactly what her illness is
telling her to do, and we have to keep cool. We have to keep calm
and work as a team to keep our cool so that we can walk away knowing
we did everything we could to help somebody
who is pretty much helpless. [ Sniffles ]
-How do you help a person that won't accept
any help? I mean, I wouldn't act
the way I acted yesterday. Paxton: Dr. Zasio's brought up
a really good point. I was very immature
with Sandra yesterday, and she wanted to really,
strongly empower me to be more mature today. I'm glad you're here. Nobody could have done
this job other than you. [ Sniffles ]
Nobody could have. There's no question
about it. I don't know --
Maybe I was just trying to isolate myself from her
so I wouldn't feel bad when I go home
to my perfect life. Well, I think
the defensiveness of... that anger is really
a lot of hurt of not being able to help her
and wanting her... Some. ...and then just
that frustration of wanting
to do something positive. I mean, some was -- Yeah. Some was frustration.
some was immaturity. And some was
just breaking point. But, yeah,
I mean, I can't -- I've never had someone
I can't help. So, I do apologize
to you. I will go apologize
to her. Paxton: So we've made the
decision I'm not gonna interact with Sandra today. Dr. Zasio's gonna be
my voice for me, and I'm just gonna focus
on the cleaning. What we know is
that there's a very large pile of stuff on the street
that wasn't there last night when we left,
and there's a huge pile over there, too. It's about double the stuff
that we saw when we left yesterday. -No, it is not.
-That stuff is from -- I watched that stuff go
into Dumpsters. I recognize one of those boxes
from the Dumpster, as well. It was not.
It was not. I took<i> nothing</i>
out of a Dumpster -- nothing. You told me I could
take out of the house... Yeah. ...what I wanted to keep.
-Yes. We all agreed up front
that you could take the things out
that would make you happy. How is it leaving today?
We're on a clock. Yes, and the more I sit here,
the less I can get done, and this has happened
over and over and over. But you know that the city's
gonna come pick this up off the street
if it's here? You realize
they're literally gonna come and take it
as curbside trash if it's -- -Tonight.
-That's what's gonna happen. We're taking it
as fast as we can. Okay. Leave us alone
so we can get it done. Dr. Zasio: This is
so overwhelming for her, and the pressure
she's under is far too much for her to take. And she is resisting all help. -Okay, so, may we go to work?
-Yep. Because you're
not gonna do a thing but rake on us
all you can, and so there's no sense
in continuing that kind of crap. [ Clears throat ] Go for it, my man.
Ooh, yes. ♪♪ At 3:00, I can't get
back in the house. And I've only gone through
the living room. I haven't gone through
the dining room, the kitchen -- nothing. So I'm still getting
the first opportunity that I was promised
to go through and take special things
that I wanted to keep. Whoa.
We need that. That goes to that gazebo. Dr. Zasio:
At this point, I can't help her
psychologically. Right. She wants no help at all.
-Listen to me -- No more talking to that staff.
Do you understand? Or the psychiatrist. But what I don't want
to continue to do is to perpetuate
the problem. We don't have time
to play their game. So I just need
the guidelines from you. Number one, are you comfortable
with her putting on the street whatever she wants
and continuing to pile that up knowing that it's possible
she may not get that off the street
by the end of the day? Here's the deal --
If we don't get these desks out, they're going
in the Dumpster. Okay. All along I did tell Sandra
that, as part of this process, she could keep the things
that she wanted. And listen to me --
It's a $6,000 desk, a $10,000 desk, and it is insane
to let those get away. I totally understand
and agree that it's getting
out of control. The pile's too big. We all believe
that it's not gonna be removed by the time limit
that the city's given us. But we need to just deal
with that situation when it happens. Just wherever
you can put it there. Woman: Does anyone know
what that means? Nobody needs to know! You're here -- But they're saying
it needs to happen. You're here -- Sandra knows this is it. Well, get that out
so we can load them in here, and we will. I told y'all I needed you
to get the stuff that we're trying to hold
down there. Paxton:
She is in pure panic mode. I want you to show me
the desk you want. So you're gonna
pass judgment on what I'm saying
has to be done... I'm not -- No. ...and what doesn't
have to be done. No, ma'am. Yes, you are. Right now, Sandra is acting
like a caged, wild tiger. You will understand
when we get there, okay? She knows
that it's all over at 5:01. -We're losing time.
-You called me back. No! We have to put
the desk in the truck. Okay. Her window is getting
more and more narrow. Somebody came
and asked me. I said, "Absolutely,
do not load the truck," and they did it anyway. And that doesn't work,
'cause now we're gonna lose an hour piddling
through this stuff that shouldn't have been
touched to start with. It's hard to believe
that she has not, even at this point, grasped
the gravity of the situation. Where are
all our helpers? Why is it that it's just...
-I'm right here. ...the three of us
doing this? -This is your sister, right?
-Right. Why don't you tell
her that most of this
stuff is unnecessary? We have. She has no place to store
all of this stuff -- no place at all. And to rent a warehouse for the amount of stuff
that she has, it might take
two warehouses per month, and she's barely living
day to day. Honey, we want
to keep those. Oh, J----
-She fights with me. If we all would
come together -- 'Cause it's already
three of us in the back who already decided that this
is pointless to enable her, and to carry her things
with her everywhere when she has nowhere
to put it or go with it. -We're keeping those.
-Mm-hmm. Thank you. If six people came to her
and said, "Sis, we love you. We're all here for you."
-And she's not listening. -We got to do it today.
-We'll do it again. Sandra: You know
this is our stack here. Walter: I'll do it
as many times as we need to. That's what I need. I hope it works,
but I'm not optimistic. We have the piece
that goes to it. Betty! Michael! Luther! Thank you, darling.
[ Chuckles ] Listen -- Listen -- No, no,
no, no, no, no, no. It's time
for you to listen, okay? I'm gonna get down on
my knees 'cause I'm trying
to relate to you here. Sandra: Okay. Good.
What do you need? We've been moving stuff
for three hours without any definition
of what the value is or what you're going
to do with it. I'm not asking you
to tell me any of that. I can handle that. You got
to let it go, girl. We're here for you now.
Listen to me. Your brother is here.
Your other brother is here. Me and Kira is here.
Mike is here. This is not you. This stuff is
material stuff. This stuff is my future,
my lifetime, my money to live on. No, it's not. It's your past.
It's not your money. -Okay, stop.
Everything that you're gonna make money off is
in the pods already. Nothing else. The rest of this stuff
is not worth any money, Miss Sandra.
-Luther. Luther, I don't want
to hear it again -- not another word.
-I know you don't. Sandra: We're done. But these items are not
your life. That's it. If you hold on
to this stuff... That's it.
That' sit. ...when it's -- Sandra, could I have just
a moment of your time, please? -Sure.
-Okay. Michael called me
this morning and let me know about the pile of stuff
that you've got out here in the street. What do you intend
to do with that pile? We're taking
that pile to my warehouse. Thank you very much.
-Okay. All right. When is it going
to be going? -This afternoon.
-Okay. I need to let you know
that Michael's permit for the street closing expires
today at 5:00. I have been informed
of that. Thank you. Okay.
All right. If it's not removed
by 5:00 -- Honey, you don't have
to tell me but one time. -I haven't told you once.
-I hear it. -Okay. All right.
-I hear it. No, but, Sandra,
if it's not gone by 5:00 -- I know that, Michael! I've been told that
over and over and over! No, no, no. The city -- Listen --
-I know that! But they're gonna
come take it. I know that! -Okay.
-Okay, as long as you're aware. I've been told that
four times! I know that. I know that.
-Okay. Y'all just -- I can't get
a damn thing done... Okay. ...because everybody's
telling me what to do. Walter: A lot of what
you're collecting here, again, is --
-[ Groans ] ...is not worth
collecting. I'd rather
you spend your time getting situated with -- I am situated. -Okay.
-Period. Where can we take
this stuff? It's gonna be
a safety issue because it's
in the middle of the street. So we're gonna have
to get that out. So, I don't know
if she has a plan to get rid
of that or not, but it has to be gone
by 5:00 today. So, what I'm prepared
to do is have Street Ops come over
and actually clean it up if it's not gone by 4:00. -Okay.
-That way, at 5:00, it ensures
that it's all clean. This aggravation,
I don't need, okay? You don't need
any of this stuff. This is a chain dragging
you down, not lifting you up.
-In your opinion. In your opinion. So everybody here is wrong,
and you're right? [ Sighs ] We feel like
that this is doing nothing but condoning her problem. It's allowing her
to continue hoarding like she's done
for so many years. So we can throw
that container away with the sand in it?
-No. -Why not?
-Can we throw the sand away? Sandra: No. Earl: You don't want to throw
any of this away. Why are you wasting
your effort when you could let
these folks that are here
to help you carry this stuff
out of your past? If they want to help me, they can help me get
all of this out into the street
and loaded and delivered. I won't let the crew
continue to work if you can't explain to us
what we're doing it for and why is it necessary. You can't tell us
why you need this here. Leave now. Leave now. Please, explain to me
why you need this sand. Leave now! The angrier Sandra gets --
If you notice, throughout the process,
she was a sweet, innocent, little Southern Belle
on the first day, and now she's just
a mean, old bulldog. And she's going
right at everybody. She's screaming at anyone
because she's feeling more backed into a corner. -Do you understand?
-Sandra, these people have Walter: ...your best interest
at heart, hon. Woman: How are you gonna
move it all? Why are you being
so rude to them? You want me to leave,
Miss Sandra? Yeah. If you're gonna preach
all day, I-I don't want
to hear it. Okay, Miss Sandra.
I'll do just that. Luther, I want
to thank you for -- Earl: Thank you... No problem.
-...for trying. ...what you've done today.
-Thank you for coming. She flat up fired her crew
that's volunteering to help her. Come on, Luther.
Come on. We have to remember
she's very ill. She's not accepting our help. She has no concept of what
we're trying to do to help her, and all she does is see us
as the enemy. Call me when you're
all right, okay? -I'm all right already.
-I'll be checking on you. Okay. Luther: When things don't go
Sandra's way, Sandra tends to push people away that are
actually there for her, so I'm kind of used to it. It's about the third time
she's told me to leave before. Yo, yo, yo!
I want those chairs. -Listen to me --
-Help us get loaded in here what we can load, okay?
-Okay. Let's see
a little teamwork. Dr. Zasio: We have to continue
to try to support her because, at the end of the day, 50 years of stuff is being taken
away from her. We need to get her focused
on getting stuff out of the street
that she thinks is of most value to her. Otherwise, the city's gonna
come through and take it out. Understanding
that you're enabling her by continuing to work for her
in putting her stuff up there -- Who's gonna continue
to enable her right now? I'm gonna go ask her if
I can start loading this truck. No more stuff needs
to be -- Thank you. We need to get the stuff
off the street. [ Engine sputtering ] Sandra:
Now, Janine can come with us if you want her to. Uh-oh. [Bleep]
Oh, J---- [ Sputtering continues ] God. Come on. [ Sighs ] Sandra: Where do you pop
the hood? -Right here. Mm-hmm.
-Right there? Sandra:
I have to jump the truck because I drained
the battery last night. I couldn't figure out
how to cut the lights off. Paxton: She stayed up all night
because she still believed she could get it out of here,
but now the truck broke down. Now her crew's not as strong as maybe she thought
it would be. Things are starting to really,
really mount up on her, and she's just now realizing this ain't gonna
turn in her favor. Sandra: Damn it.
Damn it. Damn it. Oh, me. [ Back-up alarm beeps ] [ Back-up alarm beeping ] They just said if we want
to get that stuff on that truck, we have, like,
20 minutes. We got 20 minutes to get
that stuff off the curb. What we need is help getting
more stuff out there. We have till 5:00. I will throw
some of my guys at this. If she actually
will load the truck, I'll give you some of my guys.
-If she'll load the truck. -That's not a big deal.
-Sandra? -Yes?
-Right, right. Plan Department is out there --
you know, Code Enforcement? -Uh-huh.
-There's a misunderstanding to the timeline, okay?
-Sandra? Man: Sandra. The street has
to be clean at 5:00. So they're gonna bring
the grabber truck at 3:30. They said 5:00. No, the street has
to be clear by 5:00. So the city -- We didn't have
no control over the city. -The city is --
-[ Sighs ] The supervisor's
out there now. All right,
let me go talk to him. Okay, now, can I talk just a second?
-Come with me as I go. -Sandra.
-Earl. Earl: The street has
to be cleared. They told me 5:00. Okay, I'm telling you
what's gonna happen. [Bleep] old [bleep] -Sandra, you do realize...
-Yeah, Earl, what? ...they're coming
in an hour. Damn it! [ Bangs Dumpster ] Okay. Paxton: It's just incredibly sad
that everything this woman has worked for is
going to be thrown away. -So you understand --
-Earl, stop it! -Okay.
-Now! I am not
a frigging idiot, and I understand
every bit of it! Leave me alone! ♪♪ I was told
by their contract I have till 3:00 to get the stuff
out of the house and that I have
from 3:00 to 5:00 to get it
off the street. What time is it now? I have 25 minutes
to get the rest of the stuff out of the house,
and that's all I can get. The best thing to do is
to let her stay in her own little world. What happens, it'll happen. That's it. Sandra:
All right, come on, guys. Okay, come on. Dr. Zasio: She had a crew
of six people who were, one by one, taking
the stuff out of the house, off of the yard,
into the street. We've got 30 minutes
to get all of this to the street and what's
back here at this back door. But as the time ticked away,
you could tell she was getting more and more frazzled. Man: We got 30 minutes to get
all this in the street and all this stuff
on the truck. Sandra: Stop it.
No! No! No! Listen to me!
-No, I won't. -Whoa.
-I'm done trying. -Good. Bye.
I'm done! Okay. It got to the point where,
if they even said anything, she would blow up
and fire them. No, I'm done. You're right -- We out here
trying to help her. I understand
that we're pressed for time. If she wants
to kiss her ass, go ahead. I'm through.
-Come on, Mike. But the way she came off at me,
I just did not appreciate it. No offense.
I don't mean to be rude, but... -So, sit down.
-Yeah. Michael: That all doesn't fit
in Kirby's truck. Sandra: We were just
gonna make several trips. Okay.
To where? Michael:
We had all tried all day long. Everyone asked,
"Where is this location?" My buddy's place
that he's allowed me to put the stuff there. Dr. Zasio: Once again,
she will not tell us where that location is. I don't think there is one. I think she is just in
fight-or-flight mode right now. All the stuff that you had,
there's no way you're gonna have enough time
to get it off the property by 5:00 p.m. We were warning Sandra all day,
"Hey, it's getting close," and she was not focusing
on the reality of, "Hey, the stuff on the street
has to get somewhere." Paxton:
I will offer to load the truck
that she has there that is inoperable.
-And whatever is left over is gonna have to go.
-And I can't guarantee that the truck will hold
everything that she's pulled. -Oh, it won't.
-And it's not anything in the yard
or anything back there, it would just be
what's on the street. Right. If she wants anything,
we better load it on that truck
and on that trailer. -What time is it?
-It's 3:30. We got 30 minutes
before the city gets here. [ Sighs ] You're a half an hour
from losing everything. So, where is it going? Oh, in my space. What is the space? -[ Sighs ]
-How do I know that we have the right to put it there? Please, give me a phone number
of someone at that location so I can verify
that it's there. My phone is dead, and I don't know
his number by heart. Here's what I think --
I don't think she has permission of the warehouse to take it to.
-That's why I asked. Why do you think I asked?
Yeah, I don't think she does. Oh, this is so sad. Michael: I think, around 4:00
or 5:00 p.m., we're gonna see a garbage truck here
and a nuclear meltdown. [ Engine idling ] We've been jumping it
for 10 minutes trying to charge it up
off my truck. The starter will not
even engage yet, so I think the battery's
just not got enough amps in it to pull it. Paxton:
The city is here. We can't remove that truck.
It's slowly charging. So the city can't get
into this space to take it. The brother's gonna offer
to take a load, then, when she leaves,
my guys will throw everything in the Dumpster
to get it off the street. So, do we literally need
to tell her, "You got to go?" You need
to load the truck and go. It's time to go. -Okay.
-Okay. Michael:
We always understood that this
was her home for 41 years. She always knew that
we wanted it to be our home, but having to actually
come to that moment -- it was sad to tell her
that she had to leave. Michael: We have no more time
with the city, Sandra. It's all done,
so whatever we can get on that truck,
it's time to go. Yeah. Sandra,
are you listening? I hear
every word you say. Okay. All right, Betty. So that means we got
about 10 minutes. What do you want
to put on it? Go ahead.
See what you can get in there. Put them in. Come on. Come on.
Y'all, come on. [ Grunts ] [ Engine starts ] Oh, man. All right, Sandra?
-Yeah? Why don't you drive
this out, and we'll
load up the pink chairs. What else? Can we lay them
on top? Is that
the last piece? No, no, no,
we got two more, guys. We're done. That's it.
We got to go. That's it.
It's time to go. Thanks, guys. Eric: We emptied
a 10,000-square-foot home, and she's got, like,
this much stuff, and it's just --
it's heartbreaking. It's really sad to watch. Come on. Help hold me up.
[ Chuckles ] -I wish I could have done more.
-Oh, yeah, this is it. This is it. She just was never well enough
to make the decision. She could have been
doing this for five years. Lordy, Lordy.
Miss 40. [ Sighs ] I have worked with hundreds
and hundreds of people struggling
with hoarding disorder, and this was, by far,
one of the most painful cases. [ Sighs ] [ Sniffles ] [ Voice breaking ]
I'm too sad... about the things we lost. [ Sniffles ] And I think
that's just the beginning because I hadn't really felt
that way, per se. [ Crying ]
She literally has nothing. Michael: We tried. To watch her drive off was... [ Sniffles ] really hard because
it was like that was it. That was the final chapter. [ Glass shatters ] Paxton: Hey, I'll put it
near the claw for you. It was an awful thing
to watch... couches, pictures, vases -- picking them up
and dropping them into trucks and smashing them. [ Sobs, sniffles ] I didn't want it
to go this way. Paxton:
This woman had everything. I mean, she lost it all... today. This was really, really bad because her disorder
ultimately brought this incredibly tragic situation to an even more
catastrophic end. Seeing the house cleared out is
a bit scary. There is a vibe in here still
because I think everything
that just went down -- It's uncomfortable
at this point. But we're hoping,
as we just continue with the renovations,
it will start to feel like home. I do believe
the real Sandra will find joy in Michael and Eric raising
their daughters in this house. Sandra: My life has been
such an adventure so far, and I'll be all right. Dr. Zasio: It's so surprising
that she was smiling saying, "I'll be just fine.
Don't you worry about me." And I hope that she will.
