You may be seated. Hello, Your Honor. Hello. This is the case
of<i> Kidd v Rawlings.</i> Thank you, Jerome.
Good day, everyone. AUDIENCE: Good day. Mr. Kidd, you say Ms. Rawlings
is a manipulative user, who convinced you that
you were the father
of her son, Nathannel, then changed her mind when
someone better came along. You and your mother say Ms. Rawling's
mind games
have wreaked emotional havoc
on your family, and you are
100% positive you are her son's father. Ms. Rawlings, you say
Mr. Kidd is fully aware he is not Nathannel's father, as he himself told you
he could not have children. You say Mr. Rawlings
and his mother are
two desperate people who convinced themselves
Mr. Kidd is your son's father and you intend to
prove them wrong today. Is that correct? Yes, Your Honor. Mr. Kidd, why are you
so convinced you are
Nathannel's father? Well, Your Honor,
when this first
started out, she came to me
and told me
that he was mine. She was sending me
letters when I was gone. JUDGE LAKE: And so, you were away
when she found out
she was pregnant. I was away... About a month after. I went away a month
after she found out
she was pregnant. JUDGE LAKE: Okay. And did you tell him
it was his child,
Ms. Rawlings? No, Your Honor. When... Okay, how it happened was we
met through a mutual friend,
and... I didn't know
anything about
Mr. Kidd, starting off.
My mutual friend
ended up leaving and the situation
that I was in, I didn't have
anywhere to go. And that's how me
and Mr. Kidd ended up having relations because
I was staying with him. But as, you know,
everything progressed, and everything started off, somehow, another female
came into the picture, and I went off
and did my own thing
and was dealing with him and another
gentleman also around the time that
I conceived my child, so... What was your relationship
with this man like? We were in
a serious relationship, and I was actually,
at some point, once I left from
being around Mr. Kidd, that I was actually
staying with him. JUDGE LAKE: So how often
were you with Mr. Kidd
and how often were you with
the other guy? Pretty much going
back and forth,
because I was staying with him and I was leaving from
being with Mr. Kidd to going with him
and coming back
to Mr. Kidd. Did you tell him,
Ms. Rawlings, that he was Nathannel's
biological father? TANEVAH RAWLINGS:
No, Ma'am. JUDGE LAKE: You never
told him that? No, Ma'am. JUDGE LAKE: You just told him you were pregnant,
and then somehow
he assumed he was the father? When I found out
I was pregnant, Mr. Kidd told me
hisself that he has some type of rare
form of blood disease, and that me
and his child would die... If I was pregnant by him. Oh. He had a rare
blood disease. No. And if he got you pregnant, the baby would not
be able to be carried full-term? JENKINS: Your Honor. It's not a rare
blood disease. I am A Rh negative, and he is A Rh negative. If she's Rh positive, and doesn't get
the necessity shot during the pregnancy,
it could prevent her
from having future children or that child
could pass away. JUDGE LAKE: Okay. So, Mr. Kidd, did you
ever tell Ms. Rawlings you didn't believe
you could have children? KEVIN KIDD: Yes, Ma'am. I informed her
of the situation, because I'm typically in
a long-term relationship,
I've never had, any kind of hiccups
in the, uh... Thinking that they
might be pregnant, any slip-ups, no... You've never gotten
anyone pregnant. KIDD: No, Ma'am. JUDGE LAKE:
And Ms. Jenkins, when did you find out
about the baby? It was approximately
the mid of August
of 2016. And at that time,
were you aware
that your son was in a relationship
with Ms. Rawlings? No. Um... We've never been
in a relationship. So, it wasn't...
Just a sexual relationship. KIDD: No, Ma'am. We were just...
She just needed
somewhere to stay. So I was just
looking out for her and it just became
a sexual encounter. JENKINS: A hookup. It was an encounter? RAWLINGS: No. KIDD: More than one, but, you know... So that's what we call
a sexual relationship. KIDD: Yes, Ma'am. It's a form
of a relationship where you have sex
but you have no commitment. KIDD: Yes, Ma'am. JUDGE LAKE: Okay. So, Ms. Jenkins, how did you
find out about the baby? I got a phone call
from my daughter, and she said,
"Mom, you need to look
at this picture." Sent me a picture
of the baby,
I was like, "Uh..." "Who got my son's
baby pictures?" She said,
"That's not your son." I said, "Yes, that is.
I gave birth to him,
I know who he is." She said,
"That's his son." And I was like, "What?" (STAMMERING)
"Hold on, no, no. "Why am I just now
hearing about this?" So, I contacted
his friend, who gave me
Ms. Rawlings' number. I called her, and we talked for
a couple weeks, and I asked if I could
see the baby
and she said yes. We were at a park, he was in a car...
Uh, a stroller, and I said hey to her,
I said, "But you know "what I'm here for."
And I went straight
to the baby. Picked him up, had said,
"Hey, sugarfoot," and he smiled,
and we played, and... It was... Honestly, the best day
of my life. I'm holding my grandson. I know it's mine. And I have pictures. I'd like to see those. Of both my babies. And when you look
at these pictures,
what do you see? JENKINS:<i> My son.</i> JUDGE LAKE:<i>
Your son on the left.</i> <i> And that's Nathannel
on the right.</i> (JENKINS CHUCKLES) And you really believe as you look at those pictures,
that's your grandson? Yeah. JUDGE LAKE: And as we take a
look at the second picture... (JENKINS CHUCKLES) <i> ...it's Mr. Kidd as a teen.</i> JUDGE LAKE:<i> And Nathannel.</i> JENKINS:<i> Mmm-hmm.</i> JENKINS:<i> Oh, he has my lips.</i> And you think... (AUDIENCE LAUGHS) You think they look
exactly alike,
minus your lips. Those are your lips. Oh, he's got my lips. Okay. So, so you look
exactly alike. JENKINS: Mmm-hmm. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Rawlings, you began to let Ms. Jenkins
have visitation with the baby. Me being me,
as a mother, and I wasn't able
to grow up with my father. If Mr. Kidd can't see
the moments that he's missing, at least his mom will
be able to have 'em
and his family has some stories to tell... JENKINS: Yes. ...just in case... JUDGE LAKE: And I
completely understand that. And... And... It's truly
a beautiful sentiment. But as you stand here
at the defendant podium, you say you know Mr. Kidd
is not your child's
biological father. Yes, ma'am. KIDD: It's a
manipulation tactic. Yeah, it was... As long as you are
giving her what she wanted
and needed at the time, it was okay. I have never, one time,
been told I wasn't
the grandmother. She did not ever,
ever say that she doubted
full-heartedly that
Kevin was the father. She said it's a possibility
between this one guy
and my son. And as I sent her
pictures, she's like,
"Yes, I believe "it's Kevin's.
It's Kevin's.
It's gotta be." Ms. Rawlings,
did the other guy... The other potential father,
did he ever acknowledge that he could be the father
or express interest in being
in Nathannel's life? Yes, he did, because he was
the one that actually told me to get a test to see
if I was pregnant. And me and him, we're stick together
and he actually reached back out to me,
because he had some other
situations going on, looking at pictures,
and he questioned it again. He was like, "Are you sure
the other guy is
your child's father? "Because he looks like me." And going through
pictures that even
his brother said, "Yeah. "He has our nose,
he looks like us..." JUDGE LAKE:<i> So the other guy
thinks Nathannel...</i> <i> The other guy thinks
Nathannel looks like him, too?</i> Yeah, and he
favors his daughter. And where is
the other guy now? RAWLINGS: He's in
another state. But he still... JUDGE LAKE: So, he's
in another state? Yes, he still reaches out
and checks on him. Okay, does he have
a relationship with Nathannel,
does he see him ever? The other guy actually
came to the hospital after I gave birth
to Nathannel and... They instantly,
you seen it in his face, and in Nathannel's face,
his face lit up. And even his brother
was there, it was like... "Yeah, man,
that's your son." JUDGE LAKE: The other guy? Yes. 'Cause he... JUDGE LAKE: Did he sign
the birth certificate? No, because I didn't
have my ID with me
at the time. So there's no one listed
as father on Nathannel's
birth certificate? No, Your Honor. AUDIENCE MEMBER: Wow. I had him for
a period of time. You took him back. We went through that phase, and now we're back
at the point where
you're sending me pictures every day again,
video chats every day. We speak every day.
We text every day. Ms. Jenkins, you said you had
the baby for a while. What do you mean by that? She was going through
a situation and got kicked out of
where she lived, because her choice of men
are not just the greatest,
I guess, in the world. He wasn't safe,
she wasn't safe. She was trying to get
her life together.
She gave me the baby for a period of time,
with a... How long? I had him for a month
and a couple days. AUDIENCE: Wow. And I got a handwritten
letter, of custody, it's... Let me see that, Jerome. No, it wasn't... You said it was a handwritten letter
of custody. JENKINS: Temporary custody. RAWLINGS: Because
of the fact that I had got a job that was
paying $10 an hour and I didn't have
anybody to watch him. And at the same time,
trying to figure out
who's gonna watch my child, and me not
knowing how I'm gonna
be able to feed my child, how he's gonna
take his bath, I chose it to where... She was there... JENKINS:
At that specific time... No, no, at that specific time,
you did not have a job yet. You had already lost a job
the day before that. I know... (BOTH ARGUING INDISTINCTLY) Let me read
this letter. This... You wrote,
"I, Tanevah Rawlings, <i> "the parent
of Nathannel Rawlings,</i> <i> "I give Tammy Jenkins
temporary physical custody
of my son."</i> Because of the fact that once I told my stepmom,
I came to the decision where, when I lost the job
because I didn't have
a babysitter, and I wanted that job, so in order for me
to be able to
get on my feet, because I was also
planning to go back to school and get
everything situated,
so I couldn't set up somebody to watch my child. So I... I understand. Listen,
listen, Ms. Rawlings, I can see you're
a young woman. I can see you're a young girl. I understand that
you got yourself
in a situation, you were in a situation where you didn't know
who your child's father was,
and you were trying to do, I believe,
I sincerely believe,
what was best for your child. You basically, in that moment,
were trying to get your child to a safe place. Yes. JUDGE LAKE: All right. And so, Mr. Kidd,
you presented evidence
to the court in your paperwork that
suggested you had
another medical issue which would prevent you from impregnating Ms. Rawlings,
is that true? Yes, ma'am. JUDGE LAKE: All right. Well, the court wanted to
get down to the bottom
of this particular situation, because we were very,
concerned about
this information, and wanted to be accurate
in our assessment of it. So we've called upon
one of our experts, Dr. Jameelah Gater. Jerome, will you please
escort Dr. Gater into the courtroom? Yes, ma'am. I'd like to ask her
a couple questions. Hey, Doctor. Gonna have you go up
to the witness stand. Watch your step. Hi, Dr. Gater. Hi. Thank you so much
for joining us today. We are here
discussing the paternity
of baby Nathannel. And we have spoken
with Mr. Kidd about a medical issue. What is your assessment
of this particular
medical situation? So, I think there's two
separate issues here. There was an issue about
Rh blood incompatibility. Yes. And that has to do with a mother and a baby. And if there's
different blood types between the father
of the baby,
positive and negative. But that doesn't really have
anything to do with the
ability to father a child. Okay. He had a separate issue, which was
a childhood infection and so there are
various childhood infections, from mumps to repeated
urinary tract infections, to STIs like gonorrhea
and chlamydia. Those can cause
inflammation in
the testicles, which then causes scarring, and makes it difficult
for you to emit sperm. So if the infection
is appropriately treated, then the fertility rates
are normal. So you're saying that
this condition he basically dealt with
as a child, that does not necessarily
preclude him from being able
to father a child after this condition
is passed, or... Correct after the infection
has been treated. Correct. Only a small
percentage of males
will go on to have infertility from those
childhood infections. JUDGE LAKE:
A small percentage. JAMEELAH GATER: Correct. So, Ms. Rawlings,
after you've heard
the testimony of the doctor, does that change your mind
in terms of your belief? Because when you came in,
you don't really think
he's the biological father. No, Ma'am. JUDGE LAKE: And, Ms. Jenkins
and Mr. Kidd, if Nathannel is proven not to
be your biological child, grandchild, do you
still wanna maintain
a relationship with him? I mean, honestly, I'mma be...
I'mma be devastated, you know, 'cause that's supposed
to be my first child, and it's a boy, you know
what I'm saying?
I'll be around you know, I'll help out
as much as I can, but I can't take care of him
as if he was my child. (SIGHS) All right, I, um... I think I've heard enough.
I'm ready for the results.
Jerome. Thank you. These results were
prepared by DNA diagnostics
and they read as follows... In the case of<i>
Kidd v Rawlings,</i> when it comes to
10-month-old
Nathannel Rawlings. It has been determined
by this court, Mr. Kidd... You... Are the father. (AUDIENCE CHEERING) (JENKINS CRYING) You are the father. Thank you. JENKINS: (SOBBING)
Thank you. And at least, even
the fact that he said that he would have stood up, that was what I was
still going for, period. The fact that that is his son? I am happy because me
and him, we don't have
a hate-type relationship, and that I knew
he's a good man at heart, and he has
a good heart. And knowing that me and him
can be on some type of page, that my child will have
his biological mother
and father. Go hug her. And he has a family,
something that I really
didn't have. JENKINS: Hey! You do now! You got a big family now. Come here, my baby. I told you from the jump
I loved you. We got this. (SNIFFLES) This is really
one of the miracles
of motherhood. A family. And in this court,
when we celebrate fatherhood. That's what we're about. So, Mr. Kidd, it sounds like
you've been through a lot. I hope that this baby
is a seed for change
for you. For you to understand
now you are his example. Yes, ma'am. I wish you all
the very, very best of luck. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thanks, Doctor,
for your insight. Court is adjourned.
