You may be seated. Hello, Your Honor. Hello. This is the case
of <i> Miller v. Rasmussen.</i> Thank you, Jerome.
Good day, everyone. AUDIENCE: Good day. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Miller,
you are here to prove
to your ex-boyfriend, Scotty Rasmussen,
that he is not the father of your three-year-old
daughter Zaylie Rasmussen. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: You claim,
you have been in an ongoing
court battle over custody and have petitioned
the court several times
for a DNA test, all of which have been denied. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: Mr. Rasmussen,
you claim the real reason Ms. Miller is denying
you're Zaylie's father is because she hates you. Yes, Your Honor. You say, you've been there
for your daughter
her entire life and you are
here today to prove you are Zaylie's father. RASMUSSEN: Yes, Your Honor. All right, Mr. Rasmussen,
why is Ms. Miller saying you are not Zaylie's father? Your Honor, I believe
it's out of pure hatred. RASMUSSEN: She doesn't want
me to have visitation. I drive 160 miles,
every other weekend just to pick up my daughter
and drop her off. Over... That's
about 10,000 miles. RASMUSSEN: That's wear
and tear on my car. She doesn't have
a driver's license, she doesn't have
any way to bring her to me. She doesn't have
any way to meet me halfway. JUDGE LAKE: You say
she hates you? RASMUSSEN: Yeah, she hates me. Why would... Why does
she hate you? She hates me
because at the end
of the relationship when things got rocky,
I'll admit it, I did
go to another woman. I will be the first
to admit that. You know,
it was my mistake. JUDGE LAKE:
Is that true, Ms. Miller? No. It's not? MILLER: No. It's not at all. Tell me, what you believe
to be true in this situation? Yes, I was very mad at him
for being a cheater. He cheated on me
through pretty much
our whole relationship. No, I do not hate him
because of that. I lost my
respect for him, yes. JUDGE LAKE: He says,
this is about visitation too. He loves his daughter
but you don't want him to have
the visitation, is that true? Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: Why is that? Because I believe that the only reason
why he wants the visitation, is to claim her
on his taxes. (STAMMERING) That is
the furthest thing
from the truth. I... I want my visitation because my daughter
means the world to me. I want to be in her life
as much as I possibly can. I mean if he is driving
160 miles each way
every other weekend, the money he gets in
his taxes, he is
spending in gas. RASMUSSEN: I am paying
my child support. I have my child support
payments right here. RASMUSSEN:
Plus an additional $3 fee, plus an additional $60
annual fee. Just to
pay my child support. JUDGE LAKE:<i>
You pay $50 a week.</i> RASMUSSEN: <i> Just under
$50 a week.</i> <i> Plus that $3
with every check.</i> Plus another $60 every year
to the State. And that's not very much
to get what she needs. Is it... I mean at the end
of the month... Is it enough to buy her
clothes so she
doesn't have to wear cut-off sweat pants and
the same T-shirt every
time I pick her up? I do that. Because... I don't want... It's just what it is. Is it enough money
to buy her underwear so you don't gotta keep
putting her in diapers
at four years old? MILLER: I have
underwear for her. And she is not in diapers,
she is in pull-ups.
She is in training right now. She is having problems. RASMUSSEN: She is not... But what he's saying,
Ms. Miller, is... It's clearly not about
money, if he's paying
his child support. <i> And he also spends money,
coming to see her.</i> <i> What is this really
about for you?</i> Why is it you don't
want him involved
in this child's life? Because I still believe
that he is not hers. Okay, and listen,
that's what we're here for. I want to get down
to the bottom of the truth. Yeah. You don't believe
he is her biological father. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE:
So explain to me why? MILLER: When she was
conceived, she was
conceived in March of 2011, he wasn't even
in the same state. He was in Vegas. And at that time in March, I wasn't even with him. I was with somebody else. Because he broke up with me,
because he cheated on me. I'll be the first to admit it,
it was a mistake. Okay, we've gotten the fact
that you two have an on-and-off relationship
that has infidelity
woven through. I understand that. Ms. Miller,
you were stating to the court that you were intimate
with someone else and you believe that
you were intimate
with that other person during the time
Zaylie was conceived, and Mr. Rasmussen was
all the way in Las Vegas. Yes, Your Honor. But, clearly at some point
Mr. Rasmussen
either thought or was informed that he was
her biological father, because he is
paying child support, he's still driving
160 miles each way, and she has his last name. Yes. JUDGE LAKE: Mr. Rasmussen, fill me in, at what point
were you ever told that you were not
her biological father. I believed, I was...
And still believe, I was
the only biological father until about five or six months
or so, give or take
after she was born. We were at family court, talking to the family court
commissioner, about custody and the things that
go along with that. Like where she would
be going to school,
her doctor and all that. And Ms. Miller
brings it up that, I could possibly not be
the father because of
another man that was involved and she gave
some date, I can't
remember the specifics. But one of the, uh, people
we were talking to with
the family court commissioner, did the math and
it turns out that it would
be a 10-month pregnancy and that don't make
sense to me. Because it was so far,
it was so long ago, I was
confused about the dates. But now that I went through
both of our Facebooks, I went through
all of my notes, all of anything I wrote down,
and I figured out that she was
conceived in March and it was
a nine-month pregnancy. JUDGE LAKE: So, Mr. Rasmussen,
up until Zaylie was five
or six months old, you believed
you were the only
possible biological father. That is correct,
we never broke up, there was never any,
that I could recall, there was never
any split there. There was, the relationship
was on and off
in a sense but we never... But by that time she was born,
so, she already had your name. She already had my name. Did you sign
the birth certificate? That is correct. Your name is on
the birth certificate. I have that right... Jerome, hand me that, please. I have that right here,
my name is on
that birth certificate. So, you're on
the birth certificate. RASMUSSEN: Yeah, I was at... You were at the birth? I was at the birth. I was at every single
doctor's appointment. <i> When Zaylie was born,
you were at
the doctor's appointment.</i> <i> I was at home
because I had
to work that day.</i> I was at my job as a cashier. I got a phone call
and I answered it. They said she was going
into labor. I said, "Okay,"
I hung up the phone. I quickly finished up
as fast as I could with
that particular customer. I turned off
my checkout light, told the next customer in line
that something came up and they'd have to
go in another line. I went up to my manager, my immediate supervisor, said,
"Hey, I gotta go,
my girlfriend's in labor." I went home,
quickly changed my clothes
and I drove about 45 miles through a windy, wooded road. In Wisconsin, in December,
mind you, so it's about a foot
of snow on the ground. I made it to that hospital
in less than 35 minutes. I beat her to the hospital. And I was there
from the moment she got there, to the moment
she was discharged. I called my boss at work and
said, "Hey, I gotta take
some days off, "I don't care if you
fire me or whatever
but I got to stay here. "My daughter's being born." MILLER:<i>
That's... That's a lie.</i> After she was born... That was an amazing story. You say that was a lie? Yes, it is. (LAUGHS) How do you remember it? After she was born,
he was gone. He ran out of the room,
I didn't see him for 20 minutes after that.
While I was in labor, he was sitting on
one of those hospital cot beds on his computer, in the corner
not paying attention to me,
in his own little bubble. RASMUSSEN: I admit I was
on my computer
but that was far from it. I had to find a way to
calm myself because I was
so excited to be a father. How often does a man
beat the woman
to the hospital. Do you dispute, Ms. Miller,
that he was excited about this beautiful
little girl being born? MILLER: I really didn't see
much excitement. JUDGE LAKE: You didn't? MILLER: No. Did he beat you
to the hospital? Yes, because I had
to wait for my aunt
to come and get me. What was
the problem exactly? You let him sign
the birth certificate. I gave that baby...
I gave my daughter
my last name. Because we were engaged. And I thought we were
going to get married. I thought we were going to
have a happy life, and raise
our daughter together. Until about three months
after she was born, one of his friends
told me everything
that he was doing throughout our
entire relationship,
cheating on me. Going to multiple places
to meet multiple girls. And after that
I was just... Done. Where is this
other possible father? I'm not even quite sure.
After we broke up,
he changed his number, he moved,
he pretty much disappeared. MILLER: I have tried to
find him, I have tried to
get ahold of him and I can't find him. JUDGE LAKE: But you keep
saying, Mr. Rasmussen cheated. He did this, he did that,
and as wrong as that may be, you also slept with
somebody else. We weren't even dating then.
I was single at that time. Because he was with
this other lady and I was the side chick. Which I didn't even
really know about. All of this is happening
and this man is continuing to step up to the plate
like he has
a daughter on the way. Like he has
a newborn baby girl. Even through the breakup, you all are making custody
and visitation arrangements. But you know
deep down there is
another possible father. MILLER: Yes, Your Honor. Why wait so long to tell him? I told him the first time
that we had our court dates. But the courts threw it out. Even before you tell
anybody in court. What about just telling him? JUDGE LAKE:
I wanna understand that. Why was it that you were
keeping this information
so close to your hip, until five, six months
after Zaylie was born? The more she grew up, the more I started noticing
more of her features, the more she started
looking like the other guy. She looks exactly
like I did when
I was three years old. I have a picture of me
when I was three and a picture of her
from just the other day. JUDGE LAKE: Let me see that.
Will you hand that
to me, Jerome? Believe it or not,
when I was three years old, I had blonde hair. JUDGE LAKE: <i> So this is
a picture of Zaylie
on the left,</i> <i> and you, as a child,
Mr. Rasmussen, on the right.</i> That is correct, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: And you say
you see a distinct similarity. Yes, I do. <i> Do you see it, Ms. Miller?</i> MILLER: Mmm-mmm. I don't JUDGE LAKE: You don't? You feel like Zaylie looks
like the other gentleman you were intimate with. Yes. Look our... We even have
the same chin.
I am just noticing that now. Our chin looks
exactly the same.
We have the same dimples. JUDGE LAKE: You are insisting
that Mr. Rasmussen is
not the child's father. And yet, you're receiving
child support from
Mr. Rasmussen. Have you petitioned the court
to have Mr. Rasmussen taken off of child support? MILLER: I have told him
a couple of times that if he would just
sign her over to me then he wouldn't have to pay
child support anymore. I'm not going to do that. If he would just... I'm not going to
give up that easy. I'm fighting for
what I know is mine. I know she is mine. (AUDIENCE APPLAUDING) JUDGE LAKE: <i> So, Mr. Rasmussen,
what type of visitation
do you have right now?</i> RASMUSSEN: Right now it's, um,
every other weekend. But I've had to
jump through so many hoops
to get to this point. At first it was
that fly by night, just make a date
whenever you want to and, you know,
go from there. But obviously,
that didn't work. And then, sometime after that, we started out where I had to
sit with Ms. Miller and my daughter at
a park for four hours,
once a week, for four weeks. And then after that,
I got her for four hours, once a week, for four weeks
by myself without
her involvement. And then after that, I got her for
one overnight a week, for four weeks and then
after those four weeks, then I got what I have now. How is your relationship
with Zaylie? Oh, it's phenomenal.
Um, every time I get her,
we try to make the best I can out of it
even if I don't have
any money from having to put
gas in the car and pay the child support
and everything. I try to do as much
as I can with her, whether
it be something as little as going to the park or
going fishing, or going to, you know,
an amusement attraction. Every little memory
at that age means more than anybody
can possibly fathom. And I just try to make
the absolute best out of what I can with
what I have. So, Mr. Rasmussen,
let me ask you,
are you prepared, have you prepared
yourself either way, if this child is
my biological child
or if she isn't? Have you thought
about both alternatives? In a sense, yes,
if it goes the way I am hoping and I know in my heart that it will, that she is
mine, I'm just going to
be overjoyed, that all the drama
and fighting and all that kind of stuff
is behind me. If it goes the other way,
I don't think if I had all the time
in the world, I could, you know, prepare
myself for such a bombshell. I don't think
I'd be able to prepare myself for just
how devastating that would be. Not only me but
my entire family. Jerome, I think it's
time for the results. JEROME: Okay. Thank you. These results were prepared
by DNA Diagnostics
and they read as follows. I am fighting for
what I know is mine. JUDGE LAKE: In the case of<i>
Miller v. Rasmussen,</i> when it comes to
three-year-old
Zaylie Rasmussen, it has been determined
by this court, Mr. Rasmussen, you... Are not the father. (MILLER EXCLAIMING) Ms. Miller. Be respectful. I'm sorry. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Miller. I'm sorry. That's a lot of nerve, considering the alternative
is somebody that don't want
nothing to do with you or your child. MILLER: I'm sorry. That's a lot of nerve! You just showed me
where your priorities
were, right there. I'm sorry. Because I held out hope. That you weren't
just acting a fool, because you so mad at him,
'cause he cheated on you, that you would cheat
your child out of a father. But that cheering you did...
What you cheering? I'm a single mother
with nobody that
loves me or my child! What are you cheering for? MILLER: I'm not. No, you were! He is over here
breaking down because
he loves this child so much. I sit here day
after day after day with women hoping
a man would drive
16 miles to see their baby, much less
160 miles each way. And abide by a court order
and signed a birth certificate and come day after day
and week after week
so they can grow visitation to have a relationship
with the child. And you have
no compassion? For not just him
but for Zaylie.
She is three years old. JUDGE LAKE: <i> Now,
he is not just gonna
be heartbroken,</i> <i> we gotta break
this news to her!</i> And you are all over here
cheering like it's a sport. JUDGE LAKE:
This is this baby's life. And I asked you,
"Where is this other man?" "I don't know." And you know he don't want
nothing to do with you. Sitting up there cheering! Mr. Rasmussen, I am so sorry. I know this hurt you. Thank you, Your Honor. RASMUSSEN: I don't know what
I'm going to do. She's my whole world.
Everything I do is for her. I... She was the reason
I went to work every day. I know you have
a bond with her. I feel like my whole world
is in ruins now. Ms. Miller, I'm gonna
say this to you before
I adjourn court. JUDGE LAKE: Your child
deserves to know
who her father is. Whether or not that man
wants to be in her life, physically present,
and participate, he does have
a legal obligation to help
support her financially. It's important that
you make this right. She'll one day ask,
"Where is my father?" Every action you take
from this point, will write the story
that you will later
have to tell her. I wish you the best of luck.
We have counseling for you. Court is adjourned.
