Please be seated. Hello, Your Honor. Hello. This is the case
of <i> Sutton v Smith.</i> Thank you, Ron.
Good day, everyone. AUDIENCE: Good day. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Sutton,
you say you believed you were in an exclusive relationship
with Mr. Smith until you got pregnant and discovered he was
living a double life. You say the defendant
has denied your daughter,
Cayleigh, and you are in court to prove he is your child's father. Yes, Your Honor. Mr. Smith,
you and your mother say Ms. Sutton is
a pathological liar whose list of sexual partners
extends well beyond just you. You admit to having
two sexual encounters
with the plaintiff but say your relationship
was anything but exclusive. What do you mean,
"He had a double life"? Him and his other
baby mama were together when he was supposed to
be with me. Like, he was staying with me, living with me,
I used to see him every day. He used to come home
every night. And then all of a sudden when
I get pregnant, it's an issue. When I post my picture
of my ultrasound, when I got pregnant
with my daughter, on Facebook, I tagged him in it and that's
when she messaged me, <i> and she told me
who she was.</i> By my understanding, when she was pregnant
with their daughter, he said he wasn't with her. He said he would
just want to be there
for the baby, and that was it. Then all of sudden
when I get pregnant
he's with her. So, is that true, Mr. Smith? No, ma'am.
That is not true. What is your side
of the story? Well, I first met Laquay,
I mean Ms. Sutton, first I met her
through my cousin. You know, we chilled.
We kicked it off. First time we had
a sexual encounter, you know, we made it
at my auntie house. We stayed, you know,
spent the night
with each other, had our first
sexual encounter. So, after we had sex, I went out of town
to Cleveland, Ohio on a vacation. It was on the Fourth of July,
and she called my cousin's phone,
and something like, "Um, is Deza around you?" And she gave me the phone
and she like, "Oh, I'm pregnant by you." I'm like,
"You pregnant by who?" She's like, "By you."
I go, "Like hell. "You lying.
You got to be lying." I'm like, "What about
Jimmy, Joe and John?" You see? So, you knew for a fact
she was sleeping with
other people? Yes. Yes. JUDGE LAKE:
Were you Ms. Sutton? No. You've been denying my baby
from day one. From day one. When she look just like you. Ain't nobody in my family
got no big forehead like that. (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) That baby looks just like you. Even your partners
on the street say that she look
just like you. Yeah, I know they will 'cause
every time they look around,
you posting a picture. Every time they look around,
you posting a picture. "Look at him. Look at him." Wait a minute, Mr. Smith.
I wanna understand this. She's posting pictures
of what now? Me and the baby.
You know, telling about, "Oh, look. This is his baby.
He denying my baby." And all this.
Then next thing I know, "Look girl, you got
a picture with "your baby and another dude
beside each other." That is my husband.
It's a family picture. MR. SMITH: A family picture? If she really wanted me to
bring that girl like that, that day that
I called her and said, "I offering to come out there.
You want me to come over there "and pull up on ya
and see the baby?" "No, no, uh-uh.
My mom said
if you come up here, "she don't want to have
nothing to do with
me and my baby "So you might as well
stay there." Then she gonna say that she tried to give me
a free DNA test. (STAMMERING) Child support.
Child support. He did not show up twice
for a DNA test. So, what that saying
about you? All right. All right. 'Cause if I was a man
and if I know a baby
wasn't mine, I'd the first one up there
to take a DNA test. Point blank, period. You're so ghetto, so nasty. Etonia, this ain't got nothing
to do with you. I didn't sleep with you! Hold on.
Let's get some order. Let's get some order. Oh! Lying! See, she messy
like that. She messy like that,
Your Honor. No, because
this is between me and you. I don't have
my mother standing here, 'cause my mama ain't got
nothing to do with it. Ms. Sutton, after you told him
you were pregnant, what did he say to you? He said, "All right." And then from that moment on, did he participate in
the whole pregnancy at all? Come to any doctors'
appointments with you? No, my mother
was my baby's father,
my whole pregnancy. And then, when you went
to the hospital,
he didn't come? MS. SUTTON:<i>
No, I invited him twice.
Then he just...</i> MR. SMITH: <i> So why didn't I
didn't come though?</i> What you told me?
Not to come up there. Okay, at the hospital,
you had to have ID. You just got a ID, Deza. It doesn't matter.
I mean, my mom could have... MS. SUTTON: I don't have time
to deal with you. If you don't want
to do for Cayleigh,
then don't do for Cayleigh. 'Cause my daughter is
well taken care of. Been in school since
she was six weeks old. She is well taken care of.
Look at her. She is well taken care of.
Ain't missed a meal. What do got to do
with anything about
missing a meal, bro? We're talking about DNA. All right! Then how come you didn't
take it when it was free? Come on, man. And I'm sure gonna take
the picture of the DNA. ♪99.999999! Your Honor, Ms. Sutton
is not telling you that she done slept with
my family members' husbands and baby daddy. And I caught her
with one of 'em. AUDIENCE: Oh! We have tried hard, very hard,
to get along with this girl. She has slept with
one of my family members, both of her baby daddies, and when I was staying with
Ms. Sutton, I came home and caught her
in bed with one of 'em. At the same house she say that supposed
to be my house. JUDGE LAKE: Hold on. Hold on. Just to be clear... Just recently... Hold on, hold on. Just recently,
she just stopped fooling with one of my
family members' husband. Okay, but the lease
is in my name, isn't it? The lease was in my name
but you were staying... Okay, Ms. Collie... I can have somebody there
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday, Friday. I pay that rent. I pay the rent.
I pay the bills. You got me for $500! She ran off with
my mom's $500. Her school check. Hold on.
Let's get some order. Ms. Sutton, I wanna give
you a chance to respond. She's making some
serious accusations. Are you sleeping with multiple
people in her family? No. Me and the person
that she say
I was sleeping with, I did not start
sleeping with him till after that my daughter
was born. He was my boyfriend
at the time. So, anybody I'm dealing with
is going to make sure me and my kids are straight. I don't deal with nobody
that upset my children. Point blank, period. MS. COLLIE: He's been
everybody's boyfriend. All right, well,
he was mine then. You bought him.
You bought him, just like you
trying to buy my son
and everybody else. Exactly. What do you mean
she's trying to buy them? All you got to do is buy him
some cigarettes and some beer. Ladies! One at a time. Your Honor, let me tell you
what my mama mean when she say
she bought him. Okay, every time I got
incarcerated, me and Laquay, we was never in no boyfriend
and girlfriend relationship. Yes, we did have
sexual intercourse
with each other. So every time
I done went to jail, yes,
I'd done call Laquay. She'd think that just 'cause
she put money on my books
and phone, I'd get out and
she would feel like I'm obligated to stay
with her 'cause of what she done done for me
behind the wall. Come on.
Just 'cause you done spent
that money, that's on you. JUDGE LAKE:
I just don't want you
to start a sentence with, "Every time I go to jail." (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) (AUDIENCE APPLAUDING) 'Cause he done went,
Your Honor. He has went and then every time he come home,
he comes to my house. If he's not with me,
why you coming to my house? She's buying me, Your Honor. I get outta jail, "Come get
this hundred dollar
new phone." "Baby, I'm on the way." MS. COLLIE: Yes, she does. I'm on the way. Yes, she does. Because my family member, the husband and baby daddy
she was dealing with, she did the same thing. Listen. Listen. I'm getting it now. Ooh! Even though y'all are
giving me a headache. But I'm getting it. I wanna understand from you. It's your position that Mr. Smith is not doing enough
for Cayleigh,
and is denying her... He has never done
nothing for her. The whole three years
of her life has been me. A child looks for their dad.
They know their dad. They talk... She knows him. Does she call him "Daddy"? Yes. Every time I show him
a picture of her, like, you know, I hate him. Like, just get that clear.
I hate him. But if he would want
to be in her life, I wouldn't stop him. Because my daddy has been
in my life since day one. My mother and father
are still married. I've had a two-parent
household all my life. So I know how influential having a father
in a girl's life is. So I would never take that
away from him. If he'll call me and be like,
"Let me get Cayleigh." "Where you at?
I'll bring her to you." I don't like him. I don't like him.
I want nothing to do with him. And, so, look, the worst... Hold on, hold on, hold on. He saw my daughter
for the first time
when she was four weeks old. You didn't see her
until she was a month old. MS. SUTTON: Four weeks old,
he came over to my house... JUDGE LAKE:
But now she's three years old.
That's a lot of time. Have you tried to reach out
to Ms. Sutton and see... Yes. Yes, Your Honor. Just now. As a matter of fact... Just now for this. Just a minute, just a minute. MS. COLLIE: No. No.
Not just now. Just now, Etonia. Etonia, you lying. Etonia, you lying. I love Cayleigh. No, you don't. I wanna know if she's
my granddaughter. No, you don't. Because if she's
my granddaughter, I wanna treat her as is. I'm not gonna
deal with her. That's what I'm not
gonna deal with. Her deceitfulness, her lies,
her manipulation. She's horrible. She sceenshots. She puts it all on Facebook when they're not looking. She's done it to
my family members' husband or boyfriend, or their baby daddy. And when they are over there, she secret screenshots,
put it all over... Well, don't talk to me and
don't come around me then. But you know what... How about that? Why you acting so nasty? How about that? I'm being nasty... You're nasty. ...because I've been doing
this for three years, Etonia. You raised two boys
by yourself! So what? So you know how this...is! So, don't come to me
with that! You all up in his business! You are acting like you went
under him. (SCOFFS) Why?
'Cause you want to? Yeah, that's what it is. No, I don't want that nasty
thing on me. (GAVEL BANGING) Let's get some order. MR. SMITH: That's what it is. Ms. Sutton, um, I... (INDISTINCT) Ms... Ms. Sutton, Ms. Sutton. Like, she wasn't
in there with us. Ms. Sutton! Ms. Sutton. I'm trying to understand
this frustration
with this family. I know it's been three years
you say you've been doing
this all by yourself. No help. I can see that they don't
believe that Cayleigh is Mr. Smith's. What's really going on though? She just so... No, let her talk.
Just let her talk. 'Cause she's screaming
at top of her lungs,
trying to be heard. And I want her to know
I'm listening. He does for all his other kids
but don't do for mine. That's what I wanna know. He does for all his
other children, don't do for mine. You know how hurtful
that...is? (SNIFFLES)
That you see that on
social media and Facebook. His other baby mama's tagging
me in pictures of him
holding his daughter. And he don't even wanna
take a picture with mine! As a mother, that hurts. I'm doing the best I can... And stop being so, so...
No! Because you're acting.
You're full of it. She acting! My child, Etonia. Look at that little girl! You are full of it. She didn't do nothing to you. Don't say nothing, Mama. I'm not. She didn't do
nothing to you. MS. COLLIE:
I talked to her last night. Ms. Sutton. Ms. Sutton. All right? And don't try to
act like you already
had phoned me when you been
hitting my phone all week
trying to be nice! You've been calling me! You been calling her! Enough. Ma'am. You been trying to be cool. Lying. Speak with the judge. I'm just so tired of them. Not to each other. That's enough. Talk to the judge. When the DNA test results, we need to get joint custody. He had his time.
I had my time. That's it. I don't want
nothing to do with him, his family,
all that messy stuff. I have moved on. JUDGE LAKE: But, listen.
And this is the part that is troubling me in this moment. It's because I can tell
you have a lot on your chest. And whether they're saying
you're acting or what,
I'm listening. Because I wanna understand
how a young girl, at 26 years old,
gets this angry. You're too young for that. You'll make yourself sick. Because he's deceitful. The way you screaming. How they saying
that I'm deceitful? He deceitful to me! That whole time... I wish I could
bring you them letters when he was incarcerated. Telling me he loved me. Stop talking! And how he wanna be with me
and my baby. I brought my baby
down to the jail to see him.
All this stuff. Who wants to bring their baby
to a nasty stinking jail? I don't.
I loved him. I loved him with all my heart. And for him to deny me
and my child, like, that's something serious. 'Cause he's lying
to his family, lying to the other baby mama,
lying to his mama. JUDGE LAKE: Now,
I just wanted to understand where this was coming from. And now I do. Mr. Smith, I wanna give you
a chance to respond, but I just ask you
to do so respectfully. Yes, ma'am. Did you realize
she loved you? Yes, I did.
I realized that. Yeah, I played a part in
it too, 'cause I was lying. You know what I'm saying?
I did all that. She knew that I was
dating somebody else. And I was staying
with somebody else.
You know what I'm saying? And yes, we had
sexual intercourse. (STUTTERING) All I know is,
she done call, feeling really deep for me, and she really want me
to be with her. But, like, my heart was always
somewhere else, and I ain't tried to have
my cake and ice cream
and eat it too. JUDGE LAKE: Okay. When you up there in jail,
and you ain't got
nobody to talk to. You talking about she putting
money on your books. I practiced criminal
defense law for a long time. I know what it means.
I know you need...
Hold on. And I'm also no fool, 'cause I've represented enough
young men and young women, where I know the manipulation
that comes behind it. 'Cause you ain't got
nothing to do, but sit up there and wait for the time you get to
talk to somebody. And then when you do,
you probably telling her everything she wanna hear, and that money
is coming on them books. See, mama ain't no fool. I know what you did. But while you were
entertaining her, somewhere, as hard as she is,
and as messy as she is, and as petty as you all say
she is, and everything you all say
she is, she still fell in love. She's just a girl. So I get this. Both of you all
have a part to play in it. 'Cause Ms. Sutton, I'm gonna tell you,
that level of crazy
you get to, everybody gonna be backing up. 'Cause you go,
you take it there. You know, but if somebody
push you... But that's because
you're hurt. And that why I asked you
what's really going on. What about how I feel, too? After today, I'm losing
a seven-year relationship
with my family. This girl done harass
my baby mama and my family so bad,
to the point where like... So, your girlfriend says
she's gonna leave you if this child is yours? All that, down the drain. Well, it looks like
you gonna be single. If them results come in
saying it is my baby, everything that
I just built with this girl
is going down the drain. Okay. Well, all I have to say, and I'm not saying this
to be mean,
but it's the truth. Cayleigh's three years old. If she's yours and you were
in a seven-year relationship, why in world were you
messing with Ms. Sutton? These are consequences.
It's hard, Mr. Smith. No one asked you to sleep
with her unprotected. Yeah, you right. (MS. SUTTON SIGHS) So now, all we can do
is get the result. MR. SMITH: Yeah, that's all. Ron, the envelope please. (AUDIENCE APPLAUDS) Yes, ma'am. I loved him with all my heart. These results were prepared
by DNA Diagnostics and
they read as follows. In the case of<i>
Sutton v. Smith,</i> when it comes to
three-year-old Cayleigh Amour Sutton, it has been determined
by this court, Mr. Smith, you are the father. (AUDIENCE APPLAUDS) Can I see my baby? Oh, thank you.
After three years. Three years. MS. COLLIE: It's okay.
It's okay, son. Three years. JUDGE LAKE:
All right, Ms. Sutton. (SOBBING)
I wanna see my baby. Three years! MS. COLLIE: Okay, it's okay. (SNIFFLES)
I'm wanna see my baby. Okay. I'm sure she wants to
see you too. MS. COLLIE:
That's my granddaughter. Would it be okay if Mr. Smith
saw his beautiful little girl? Because when he found out
he was the father, all the worry he expressed about what he thought
he was gonna lose, his first reaction is that he was emotional
over his child, and just said,
"Can I see my child?" So, can he see her? Yeah, I wouldn't take her
away from him. All right,
we have counseling. We have resources
for all of you, and we want you
to take advantage of it. And most importantly,
be good to that baby. Court is adjourned. Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith. RON: Mr. Smith. Let me talk to you
for a minute. RON: Come on up here
and talk to the judge.
