[dramatic music playing] Please be seated. -Hello, Your Honor.
-Hello. This is the case
of Sanchez/Garcia versus Bryant. Thank you, Jerome.
Good day, everyone. [all] Good day. Ms. Garcia, you are here
to finally get the answer to a question which has plagued
you for the past nine years... "Who is my real father?" [Judge Lake] You and mother hope
today's DNA results will prove your paternity and you will
finally be able to connect -with your dad, is that correct?
-Yes, Your Honor. Ms. Sanchez,
you say it's been 25 years since you last saw Mr. Bryant. And your daughter
has never had the opportunity to meet the man
you claim is her father, <i> -is that correct?</i>
-Yes, Your Honor. [Judge Lake] All right.
So, Ms. Garcia, why are today's results
so important to you? They're important for me
because since I was 16, I've just-- I felt lost. Like, a part of me just...
disappeared. I felt empty. Um. And... the man that is
supposed to be my father, I just--
I can't get close to him. I-- I don't wanna get close to him
because I just-- if I do, I feel like
he's just gonna leave again, <i> and I don't want that.</i> [Judge Lake]<i>
And that's Mr. Bryant?</i> [Monica]<i> Yes.</i> So you have never met him? -You've never met in person?
-No. This is a very tough situation. It's difficult for me. It really is.
I-- I don't know. And you honor that, right? You're strong
because you're standing here. But you can still
honor your pain and honor how you feel. And it's okay to say,
"This is hard." -Mom, I see you're in tears.
-[Frances] Yes. Feels like, um, a lot of bricks
on-- on my shoulder for the past 25 years. So... this is a chapter
for me that I can close, but open for her...
at the same time. And... to prove to her... that Timothy
is her biological father. [Judge Lake]<i>
Because the truth is</i> your daughter believed
for 16 years of her life that another man
was her biological father. -Yeah.
-Yes. Um... Timothy... and I dated
for a short period of time. And I got together with my ex. I didn't find out I was pregnant
till after I got with my ex. So there was... a possibility that, you know,
it could be his and-- and-- or it could be
Timothy's at the time. [Judge Lake] And so
you raised your daughter with the man you were
in the relationship with... as his daughter. But you now believe... that Mr. Bryant
is truly your daughter, -Monica's, biological father?
-[Frances]<i> Yes, Your Honor.</i> [Judge Lake]<i>
And he is here today.</i> [sighs] Ms. Garcia, Monica,
I don't wanna make you wait... a moment longer
to see the man you believe is truly your biological father,
or you've been told. Jerome, please escort Timothy Bryant
into the courtroom. -[Monica] Goodness.
-[Frances] Oh, my God. [Jerome] Hello, sir. -What's up?
-Hi. -Hello. Hello.
-[Monica sighs] [both chuckle] Hello. -How does it feel, Monica?
-[Monica crying] I'm just overwhelmed. So, Mr. Bryant,
when was the first time you heard about Ms. Garcia,
about Monica? Uh, it was about
four months ago. -Uh... Yeah.
-[Judge Lake] Four months ago? -[Judge Lake] Wow.
-About four months ago. So you didn't know
you had a daughter... -[Bryant] No, I didn't.
-...until four months ago? -[Bryant] Yes, ma'am.
-And she's 24? Yes. So, I missed
a lot of time, if I am her father, you know? [Judge Lake]
Take me to that day.
How did you find out? -What happened?
-[Bryant] Okay. Well, uh, basically, I was just-- I was
on Facebook one day, and, um, you know, just scrolling.
And then, you know, on the part where they say
"People you should know," I ran into, you know,
this face. And I'm like, "This girl looks familiar,"
you know? So, I decided to reach out to her,
to, you know, touch base. And, um, we started, you know,
we started, you know, started chatting back and forth.
We started communicating then. Um, entire-- the conversation... Ms. Sanchez, she comes out,
and she was like, "I have your daughter." -[Judge Lake] Wait. What? What?
-[both chuckle] Talk about people
you should know. -[all laughing]
-Ha! Yes. You should know them. [Judge Lake] Oh, my goodness.
Whoa. So, Ms. Sanchez, I want you to take me
to that moment. I was in shock actually.
I was about to start work. And when I saw he--
someone requested me. I look... and saw his name. My eyes grew
as big as this world... -[chuckles]
-...and my heart just sank, -and I said, "He found me."
-[audience] Aww. At that moment,
I messaged Monica... saying, "Timothy has found me.
Your father has found me." And at the same time,
I'm messaging her, I'm messaging him.
We're back and forth. He was supposed to know
years ago, you know? But this is something
that I carry for 25 years. And it needs... to come out. If you want more episodes
of Paternity Court Make sure to subscribe
and click on
the notification bell. Can you tell the court about your relationship
with Mr. Bryant? I met Timothy a block away
from my grandmother's house. And he started talking to me.
And that's how we-- we met. One day, he was talking
to me in the phone, and he heard my grandmother
in the background yelling in Spanish, you know, that she wanted me
out of the house. And he was very upset. And he said, "I'm picking you up
in five minutes." I said, "Okay." And I packed a couple clothes. And he came and picked me up,
and took me to his house. So we were together
for about two months... give or take. And... one day he left. And I just packed up -and-- and I--
-No. No. Wait. I didn't leave. -I left the house to go to work.
-Well, you went out. -[Bryant chuckles] Okay. Okay.
-You know, I don't know -where you went. [laughs]
-[audience laughs] -Did you go looking for her?
-[Bryant] Yeah. Actually, I did. I couldn't find her.
So I just went on with my life, you know? Just...
I was just like, "Okay." -Wow!
-[Bryant and Frances chuckling] -So she's just gone?
-Was gone. How long after that did you
find out you were pregnant? When I went to a gynecologist,
I was already... like two
or three months pregnant. And at that time
I was with my ex. Oh, you were
in a new relationship and you find out
you're pregnant? So... I had let my ex know, "There's a possibility
that the baby may not be yours." <i> But we both vow to each other
that we would bring--</i> <i> give Monica
a mother and a father,</i> and-- and bring her up
as good parents. And that's what we did. I see during
your mother's testimony, you are consistently
shaking your head, "No." Yeah, because it just-- what she's saying
doesn't make any sense. In order for her
to get on government assistance, we had to do a DNA test.
So, we did that DNA test. And... I'm thinking,
"Well, there's no point. It's gonna come back
that he's lyin'." But it came back that he wasn't. And that's when I found out,
and he found out. And just the whole can of worms
came out. So... yeah. And... And how did that change
your relationship with this man? It changed it dramatically. Like, he went
from bein' my best friend to him not even... giving me a phone call
or anything. Our whole family. And it was, like,
they all just dropped me. So I don't talk to none of them. [Judge Lake] I'm so sorry. How does a man
just disappear after 16 years? This doesn't make sense. My ex was hoping that
that one-percent chance... she would be his. The pregnancy is
where I was... calculating, maybe I was off, you know? So it was either between Timothy and... my ex at that time. When were you
and Mr. Bryant together? I wanna say it was around
February of '94. How long were you together? I left Timothy's house
around April of '94. [Judge Lake]
You left him in April? All right. So February to April. All right. March and April. When did you find out
you were pregnant? -June 9 of '94.
-[Judge Lake] On June 9th? So, on June 9th,
you found out you were pregnant? -How many months were you?
-Like two or three months. So if you count back
two to three months, <i> you think it's right
in the window of time,</i> <i>-when you were with Mr. Bryant?</i>
-[Frances]<i> Mm-hmm.</i> So when was Monica born? Monica's due date
was March 20th. -[Judge Lake] All right.
-She was born February 28th. Okay. Born-- <i> Well, hold on now.</i> <i> Say, you were two
to three months pregnant</i> in June... that don't add up. That's what the doctor told me.
I don't know. [Judge Lake]
Yeah, that's like a year. [chuckles] Your window of conception
would have been... around the... end of June, <i> early July.</i> [audience laughs] -I saw that, Monica.
-[Monica chuckling] I'm scared. [chuckles] [Judge Lake]
What'd you say, honey? I'm nervous. I'm scared. [exhales] Don't make no sense. It doesn't make
mathematical sense. -Ms. Sanchez...
-[Frances] Yes. [Judge Lake]
...I need to ask you, were there any other men
you were dating at that time besides the man
you were with and Mr. Bryant? Because...
we just added this up, -and it doesn't add up.
-I know. So, Mr. Bryant,
you've heard this testimony. You have looked at me,
tried to do this math that won't add up.
What are you feeling? I don't-- like I said,
it don't add up for one. Um... [chuckles] And that's sad
because now she's lost here not knowing
who her dad is, you know? And from the way
it looks like it, I'm not, you know,
from the way it looks. So, I mean, she's still lost. How have you tried
to grow a relationship with this beautiful young woman? Oh, I talk to her all the time. You know, she tells me
that she's a writer. You know, she writes books
and stuff like that. And she's done college,
you know? Stuff like that, we talk.
And it's good. And were you doing your best
to accept the fact that this is
your biological child, <i> and even though
you missed 24 years of her life,</i> <i> -you wanted to try to--</i>
-[Bryant]<i> Yeah.</i> <i> I was getting there. Yeah.</i> But, like, every--
stuff wasn't adding up. So, you know,
I have my doubts... 'cause, like, for one,
um, the timeline. For two, I don't really see
a resemblance because my other two--
I have two other children. And it looks like
I gave birth to them, you know... [chuckles]
...basically. So... I mean, <i> well, like, right there,
she kind of looks</i> <i> like my daughter,
like my other daughter,</i> <i> right there she does, but...</i> <i> I mean, as far as me and her,</i> I didn't really see
a resemblance. But I didn't-- I didn't take that
into consideration because, I mean, you know,
most people, sometimes, you know, your kids
don't look like the dad. So I admit there is still
a possibility and everything. [Judge Lake] Monica... I know this has been a difficult
day of testimony, hon. And after hearing everything
that's been set forth today, what are you thinking?
What are you feeling? Well, now I just have
a whole bunch of doubt. And I just-- now, like,
I had a little bit of hope coming in and now it's just
all out the window, honestly. -So...
-[Judge Lake] All right. I think it's time
we get the results. Jerome? -Thank you.
-You're welcome. [audience applauds] These results were prepared
by DNA Diagnostics, and they read... as follows. In the case of Sanchez/Garcia
versus Bryant... When it comes to... 24-year-old Monica Garcia... it has been determined
by this court... Mr. Bryant... you... are the father. -[Monica chuckles, sobs]
-[audience applauds] [indistinct] [sobs] [Monica chuckles] Wow. Come here. [chuckles] Mm. -Come here big head. [laughs]
-[Frances chuckles] [Judge Lake]
Oh, shoot. Oh, shoot! -[Frances] Sorry.
-[Bryant] It's okay. Okay, uh, don't make no more. We just got down
to the bottom of this. Get out the middle, Momma. [all laughing] Get on over there.
Get on that side! -Um...
-[all laughing] I'm happy for you. I'm really happy for you,
Monica. -Wow.
-[Judge Lake] Aw, look how you lookin' at your daddy. -Does it feel good?
-It does. Hi, Dad. [chuckles] [Judge Lake]
You said, "Hi, Dad."? -Yeah.
-I love that. [Judge Lake] This is a beautiful
moment. It feels so great. We know that you may still have
to work through certain things as a family to be able to get
to a place of real comfortability
and real resolution. That's why we want you
to talk to Dr. Jeff now, to start working
through these things. And, you know,
I want you all to make sure you do whatever it takes
to get off on the right start, on the right path,
so you can have the family that you've always deserved,
okay? -Thank you.
-[Judge Lake] Oh, -I'm so happy to see that smile.
-[both chuckle] I wish you the very best. -Court is adjourned.
-[Monica laughing] Wow.
