Please be seated. Good morning, Your Honor. Good morning. This is the case of<i>
Fernandez v. Butler.</i> Thank you, Jerome.
Good day, everyone. AUDIENCE: Good day. JUDGE LAKE: Mr. Fernandez,
you and your former fiance,
Ms. Butler, say everything rides on
today's DNA results. Now, you claim,
you found evidence
that she cheated and another man
may have fathered
your little girl, Devine. Now, you called off
the wedding, pawned the ring
and lost $300. Am I correct? Yes, Your Honor. Now, you're suing her
for that, and you've petitioned
the court
for a paternity test to prove you are not
her daughter's father. Yes. Ms. Butler, although you admit
to cheating during the window
of conception you say you have no doubt
Mr. Fernandez is Devine's
biological father. Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: All right, so... Mr. Fernandez, why did you
pawn the ring? Because I was frustrated,
I was angry, I took
the ring back and I left. The ring actually costs
about $700. I was only given
about 350 for it,
Your Honor. Do you have a receipt
for the ring? I actually don't have receipt
for the ring, but... Before all that,
when we first got together, he already had
a girlfriend. So, he already was a cheater
in the beginning. He cheated with... I cheated? Why we here? We not... I didn't cheat.
Why we here right now? You did cheat. And that's exactly
why I cheated. He... He already had
a girlfriend when
we first got together. You know the baby is yours. FERNANDEZ: How can I cheat... BUTLER: You did cheat. (SIGHS) Ms. Butler, why did you cheat? FERNANDEZ: Right,
why did you cheat? BUTLER: Because... FERNANDEZ: Ms. Butler? Uh, oh, I wanna tell you. Okay. One day, he came over
my house, and he had a pregnant...
The girl was supposed
to be pregnant. It was supposed to be
his "baby." But he comes over,
he says he was at the house seeing the "baby,"
he comes to my house... That's a lie. That's a lie, Your Honor. And he smells exactly
like sex, his whole body. He thinks... You know what
I'm saying? Like, I come in, I kiss him, I smell it.
So, I start kissing him
all over. Because I'm like, "Okay." But I really was smelling him,
that's what I was doing. So, I'm kissing him,
kissing him,
I smell sex everywhere. All over his body. JUDGE LAKE: Okay, I get it. BUTLER: Yeah, so, uh... (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) Your Honor, I came here
from work, came home... You're lying. Went to try and get
some sleep... I know what sex smells like. And she says,
"Oh, you smell like sex." I smell like sex?
I've been working all day. You know what sex smells like? BUTLER: There's a difference
between sweat and sex. Oh, okay. So, the bottom line is... That she cheated.
That's the bottom line. JUDGE LAKE: You felt like
he had been cheating? Yes. And then, what happened? We get into a big argument,
I put him out, because I know what I smell.
I don't care
what he's talking about. I know what I smell.
I believe my nose over
his lies any day. So, after he cheated on me, I called my friend,
so we can go out
and I can have some drinks, and I could try
and get over him. We were out partying, drinking
and everything... Um... Some guys were buying me
drinks, buy her drinks, so... Bought you drinks, huh? Yes. Hmm... So, eventually we end up going
to the room or whatever,
and, you know, my friends were off
doing their own thing,
you know, I was drunk and I kinda felt, you know,
pressure even more because they all doing
what they were doing. So, I went ahead
and did it, but I used
a condom for sure. I used a condom.
There's no, you know,
doubt in my mind. BUTLER: I know
I used a condom. So, you admit to cheating? I don't feel like
I was cheating because he cheated on me, so... FERNANDEZ: You had
sexual intercourse,
it's cheating. She cheated,
when we were together. Were you still
in the relationship
or you had broken up? I felt we were broken up,
he says we were
still together. Okay so, bottom line is,
you slept with somebody else? BUTLER: Yes, yes. And you say
you used a condom, though? I did use a condom. Yes. Now, how did you find out that
she slept with somebody else? I found out...
It took weeks of me
pressing it out of her. When I came home,
it was just me and her there
one day, I see her phone. I ain't gonna lie, Your Honor.
I'm big snooper. So, I grabbed her phone,
and I... Yes. I pay for the phone. But
look, I'm a big snooper. I grabbed her phone. That ought to make you
a stalker. I grabbed her phone,
I look through, I see her
hugged up with a guy. Some Gucci-man-looking guy.
I don't think he's black,
he's just... FERNANDEZ:
I confronted her about it. BUTLER: Oh, okay. "Who is this
Gucci-man-looking guy?
Who is this?" If you weren't going through
my phone, you wouldn't have
found the picture. See? That, right there.
You're sneaky. JUDGE LAKE: So, wait a minute.
You said you... You considered yourself to be
broken up at the time? BUTLER: Yes. But you said you guys
were at home? So, you still lived together? Yeah, we were still there. Yes, Your Honor.
Still lived together. We were separated.
He cheated on me so
I didn't wanna be bothered. FERNANDEZ: I never cheated.
You assumed I cheated. You did cheat. You cheated and got caught
red-handed. I never cheated. When did she come clean? She came clean...
It took weeks. It took weeks for her to actually
come clean. JUDGE LAKE: You just
kept asking her
over and over again? I kept asking her,
it was several arguments. BUTLER: I wore a condom. FERNANDEZ: You're allergic
to condoms, right? BUTLER: I wore a condom. But you're allergic to it! But I didn't know him! You're gonna eat some food
that you're allergic to? But I didn't know him. But you ain't know him? So, wait a minute.
Mr. Fernandez, you're saying
Ms. Butler is allergic to... She's allergic to condoms,
Your Honor. We never use 'em.
I wasn't even aware of this,
'cause we never used condoms. So, to the latex material? To the latex material. Okay. So now, Ms. Butler... BUTLER: Mmm-hmm. Are you or are you not
allergic to latex? Are you? (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) (CHUCKLES) No. JUDGE LAKE: So, you're not? No. FERNANDEZ: Now she's not.
She just said... Oh, so, that was a lie? That's why we're here,
Your Honor.
'Cause she's a liar. She's a liar. BUTLER: No, I'm not a liar. And I need to know
if that's my daughter. I used a condom. And... JUDGE LAKE: So, hold on.
First of all, you're not actually
allergic to latex? BUTLER: No, I'm not. That's just something
you told him? Yes. Wow. JUDGE LAKE: Because you wanted
to sleep with him without protection? Yes. FERNANDEZ: Well,
so you trapped me? So she was trying to
trap me? (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) Uh, I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
I'm sorry, Your Honor. Ms. Butler, you said
you did use a condom with this new guy. Yes. So, obviously, there was no
allergic reaction, because
you're not really allergic? BUTLER: Right. Your Honor, she's crazy. Your Honor, she's crazy.
Flat out, she's crazy. Well, you live with her,
and you were gonna marry her. BUTLER: So, he's crazy, too. FERNANDEZ: I do live
with her, but... So, you must like
a little crazy? A little. A little bit. (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) JUDGE LAKE: Listen, I want... Your Honor, I have the
calendar to prove when... With the days of conception
to prove my... This is my evidence... JUDGE LAKE: I'd like to see
that evidence, Ms. Butler. Jerome, will you hand that
to me, please? We had sex that whole week. So, this calendar represents
the dates you were intimate
with the plaintiff? Yes. JUDGE LAKE: All right. So, you were intimate
with Mr. Fernandez on the 1st? Yes. The 31st, the 1st.
Then we got into it,
he cheated on me on the 2nd, he came back
smelling like sex and then I went out
with my friend,
and did what I did. So, now, you submitted
this calendar to prove that you were intimate
with the plaintiff,
on the 1st... Pretty much that whole week. BUTLER: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: The 1st, the 6th,
the 7th and the 8th. Yes. Which is during the window
of conception? Yes, Your Honor. When were you intimate
with the other guy,
when you all fell out? BUTLER: Like, January 5th. JUDGE LAKE: Well,
that's the same week. FERNANDEZ: Same week. BUTLER: But he cheated on me
on January 2nd. That's easy to see
either man
could be the father. BUTLER: No, 'cause
I wore a condom. I wore a condom and I... And she's allergic to condoms,
Your Honor. (SIGHS) You keep saying that,
but I'm not. The baby looks just like him. Well, you do understand
in terms of his doubt... The baby looks exactly
like him. But, Ms. Fernandez, you do understand
you admitted in open court that you lied about being
allergic to condoms. So, if he came
here thinking
you were lying, you've now
pretty much proven that you were lying,
at least about that. So he, now, of course,
questions whether you
wore the condom at all. But, the baby
looks just like him. I also have evidence
I want to submit. Pictures, when I was a newborn
and her as a newborn. At the time that I felt
we looked alike. JUDGE LAKE: All right. Y'all look alike
right now. What do you mean? JUDGE LAKE: Do you have
those photos? FERNANDEZ: Yes, I do. JUDGE LAKE: Mr. Fernandez
as a child and Devine
as a baby. And you say
there's no resemblance? FERNANDEZ: But,
as she got older... Look at the eyes,
the nose, the lips. FERNANDEZ: As she gets older,
the baby doesn't look like me.
She looks like 'Gucci-man'. BUTLER: No she don't. FERNANDEZ: She looks like the guy
that was in that picture
that she was hugged up with. BUTLER: She still looks
like you. I don't see it. FERNANDEZ: Look at the
eyes, the nose, Your Honor.
She doesn't look like me. BUTLER: 'Cause she's smilin'
and you mean-muggin? What do you mean?
That's the only difference. I feel there's
no resemblance,
Your Honor. She resembles the guy
that was in the picture
she was hugged up with. That's who she
resembles to me. BUTLER: He blind. He nitpick with the baby. She told me the baby
wasn't mine. Because you
always say
it's not yours, so... JUDGE LAKE: Hold on, let me
get to that testimony. What did she say? FERNANDEZ: She say, uh... When the baby did get
conceived, we had an argument. BUTLER: 'Cause you always
throw it in my face. I went to take my daughter
and said, "I'm leaving." "That's not your baby."
I'm, "What do you mean?" Of course I'm gonna say,
"Yes, 'Gucci-man's baby'." 'Cause that's all you say.
Nobody wanna keep hearin that. I don't wanna keep hearing
this 'Gucci-man baby'. So, of course I'm gonna say,
"Yeah, it's not your baby." So, Ms. Butler, you do
understand now, once you say that to a man,
you can't un-ring that bell. (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) Especially, if it's already
ringing in his head. I understand, Your Honor,
but, you still can't... So, they can just say
whatever they wanna say to us and we're supposed
to let our feelings
keep getting hurt. Well, no, no, no. He keeps on
denying the baby. I'm not supposed to be able
to say anything? JUDGE LAKE: No, no, no.
No, no, no. No. I supposed to take it? Listen to me.
I can understand that, maybe,
your feelings were hurt. And in an argument,
he probably said things
to hurt you. And you were trying
to say things to hurt him. BUTLER: Exactly. However, you have
to understand that you tell
a man that a child that you believe
is his, is not his, you don't just
hurt his feelings,
you're hurting your child. And I need my $300 back. Oh, you're not... How you
gonna get $300 for a ring
that was mine? That's mine.
You gave it to me,
you put it on my finger. But, that was a part of us,
our bond, our relationship. Okay. But you cheated
and broke all that. So, how you gonna
take it back? You pawned it. That's your loss.
That's your fault. You should be paying me
for the ring
that you took from me. My ring. Period. It's my ring. Once you came back home,
did you two decide, "Okay, we're just
gonna be a family,
put the past behind us?" That's the way we were
supposed to do,
but everyday... Did you accept Devine, like,
"This is my baby," the baby
that was coming you said, "Okay, I'm in. "This is my child,
I believe you, it's over." BUTLER: He act like
he was going to. Yes. I did all that, Your Honor.
I cut the baby's cord. JUDGE LAKE: That's what I'm
getting to. So, you were
at doctor's appointments. All of that. And you showed up
to the hospital. All of that, Your Honor. You cut the cord. Yup. Yes, I did. Signed the birth certificate,
everything. Then waited
till she got a little bigger, and "Oh."
Or every time he get mad, "No, it's not my baby.
It's Gucci-man's baby." So, when this happened
and you're there
for the birth and you're participating, you don't have doubts, then? I still had doubts,
Your Honor. He still has doubts.
We argue every day. I still... I still had doubts,
Your Honor. Let me talk!
Can I talk? No. Can I talk? Let me talk. Can I talk?
You've been talking. Your Honor, I still had
doubts. But, she was just
beautiful to me. Still is, you know? And I love her.
I do love her. 'Cause, she's your baby. She looks just like you.
That's common sense. JUDGE LAKE: All right. That's common sense. She did when
she first came. When she first came out,
she did look like me. JUDGE LAKE: So, so... Your father was
running around. He wasn't in your life, so you're doing
the same thing. My dad did
the same thing to me. In and out. I'm not. Also, I had my other son. You know, I went through
that same thing. And I just can't
do it anymore. I'm not trying
to keep on going
through this, you know? I wanna nip it
in the bud. 'Cause, she's getting older
and she starting to hear the arguments with him. JUDGE LAKE: Oh, no. Every time we get into it. "That's not my baby,
that's 'Gucci-man's baby'." We would never gone through
this if you hadn't cheated. That's all I hear.
"Uh, it's 'Gucci-man's baby'." I don't know 'Gucci-man'. She looks like the guy
in the picture. So, the truth is,
Mr. Fernandez, you're back at home,
but you got one foot
in the door and one foot out. Yes, I was and... And he'd leave and go with
other little girls, that... You know, take his break. So, this is affecting
your relationship has torn apart
your engagement, BUTLER: Yes. and your whole family's
on the line. Your Honor, I still try
to be close and bond
with the baby. I got her name
tattooed on me,
you know? JUDGE LAKE: You tattooed... BUTLER: You act
stand-offish, though. Every time you get
an attitude or think
I'm doing stuff. FERNANDEZ: I get an attitude,
it's you. That's my baby. BUTLER: I know,
that's what I know. Oh, I know. You act like
you don't know. But, I know. FERNANDEZ: Why don't I know?
'Cause of what you did. So, Mr. Fernandez,
let me ask you this. If the DNA evidence proves
that Devine is not
your biological daughter, where will you go from here?
Can you stick this out? Can you still be a family? There's no sticking
this out, Your Honor. These results
are impacting everything. Her life, my life,
our relationship, everything. BUTLER: My other kid's
life, everything. So, so... Yeah, everything. So, I'm gone. If that's not
my baby, I'm gone. JUDGE LAKE: 'Cause Ms. Butler,
you look like you're
almost in tears. I can tell this hurts. Yes. Fake tears. Not fake tears! JUDGE LAKE: You talked
about the fact that it's happened to you
before and that your father
was not around, and you don't want this
for your little girl. No, I don't want that
for none of my kids.
That is his baby. And he gonna see
and that way we can
move forward and maybe even
still get married or anything,
'cause I want my family. (SCOFFS) That's why I've been
fighting so hard for. Married? So, your hope is that
this will help mend... BUTLER: Our relationship. Your relationship
and you want your family. Yes. I love my family,
I love him. Even through all the ups
and downs, he's always
been there for me. You know what I'm saying?
He is a good dad.
He's a great dad. That's why it would kill me
if she wasn't, but I know
for a fact that she is. I don't believe it. There's no
question in my mind how much you want this
to be Mr. Fernandez's child. And there's no question
in my mind how much you want
your family to stay together. But, I do have to ask.
You do understand how a man would live
and wrestle with... BUTLER: I understand,
Your Honor. ...this over and over again
in his mind. And then have
to just rely on you saying, "Well, we used a condom." Any person would be wondering,
"Well, did she really?" You know? Yes, Your Honor. And Mr. Fernandez,
I can see, as I look at you,
that this bothers you. Yes, it bothers me a lot,
Your Honor. Every day,
I think about it. From work, home,
to everywhere, I just think about it.
It's on my mind. 'Cause, I love her.
I do love that
little girl, you know? JUDGE LAKE: Good. I just need
to know, though. I just need to know. Well, that's why
we're here. And I have those results
for you. Jerome? These results were prepared
by DNA Diagnostics. And they read as follows. "In the case
of <i> Fernandez v. Butler.</i> "When it comes to two-year-old
Devine Butler, "it has been determined
by this court, "Mr. Fernandez..." "When it comes
to two-year-old
Devine Butler, "it has been determined
by this court, "Mr. Fernandez, "you are her father." Oh. Told you. (AUDIENCE APPLAUDING) BUTLER: I know
what I'm talking about. (SIGHING LOUDLY) BUTLER: What do
you mean? Look at her!
Do you see her? Do you see her? Do you see her?
Look at her. Wow. All this time.
All this time,
you've been doing that. FERNANDEZ: Wow. BUTLER: All this time. I told you,
that's your baby. Come here, babe.
I'm sorry. AUDIENCE: (APPLAUDING) Aw... FERNANDEZ:
(SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY) FERNANDEZ: I'm sorry. Is your lipstick on me? Yeah. FERNANDEZ:
(SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY) AUDIENCE: Oh! I love you baby,
you hear me? I just want
the whole world to see how much I love you. Will you marry me? (CRYING) Yes. (AUDIENCE APPLAUDING) I love you, baby. I love you, baby. That's wonderful. FERNANDEZ: Wow. BUTLER: (VOICE TREMBLING)
Thank you, Your Honor. Where my baby at? JUDGE LAKE: Oh... JUDGE LAKE: (LAUGHING)
"Where the baby at?" Aw... (CHUCKLING) So, Mr. Fernandez, I can see
in your eyes this has been
an emotional day. I do have to ask you
about your suit. You've now proposed
and given yet another ring. BUTLER: (CHUCKLES) JUDGE LAKE: And you came
in here asking for $300. BOTH: (CHUCKLING) Your Honor,
I still want my $300. JUDGE LAKE:
(LAUGHING)
Ooh! BOTH: (LAUGHING) I'm playing with you, babe.
She's good, Your Honor. Okay, so, is it safe to say,
you would like
to withdraw your suit? Yes, I do. I'm happy for you two. BOTH: Thank you. I really... I really am so happy.
It seems like you all
have been up, down and around and yet
you can't really let go
of one another. BOTH: Right, yeah. So, you know,
relationships are difficult. And marriages are even harder. BOTH: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: Right? When you have an issue,
work it out together. Go outside,
get some air. Come back in,
talk about it. I really am
so happy for you guys. Thank you so much. I wish you
the very best of luck.
Send me some wedding pictures. All right? All right. Okay, we will.
Yeah. Yeah. Good luck to you.
Court is adjourned. BUTLER: Thank you. Y'all see my ring? (LAUGHTER)
