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00:00This is not the first time that he's cheated on me.
00:02Did you sign this promissory note?
00:04She says, you're going to sign these or I'm going to make your life miserable.
00:07You say there are a few things that we need to agree on in exchange for your freedom.
00:13Quite frankly, I view your relationship with him to be abusive on your end.
00:17He's the cheater. He's the liar.
00:20Let it go. The best vengeance in the world is moving forward with your life.
00:26Now on Tribunal Justice.
00:50Today's case was filed in Redwood City, California.
00:54Now it's case number 3080 on the calendar in the matter of Macariola versus Chartrand.
01:02Thank you, Bird.
01:03Uh-huh. Parties have been sworn in. You may be seated. Ma'am, have a seat, please.
01:06Ms. Macariola, you and the defendant, Mr. Chartrand, were in a 16-year relationship.
01:12You maintain, ma'am, that when it ended, he agreed to pay certain of your living expenses,
01:17and you're now suing him because you say that he violated that agreement.
01:21You also claim that after he moved out, you lost your job because of him.
01:26You're asking for our court maximum of $10,000, which includes your claim for living expenses, rent, and also for
01:33punitive damages.
01:35Mr. Chartrand, you say that she's made demands of you, threatened you, made up her own rules, and forced you
01:41to live by them.
01:42You, in fact, have a countersuit against her for $9,018.
01:46You want her to pay her portion of the rent and utilities that you maintain she never paid.
01:52And you also want her to return certain of your belongings.
01:56You're also asking that we order her to apologize for insulting your new partner.
02:02Yes.
02:03Can we put up Exhibit 13?
02:05Because I think it's sometimes nice to start in the beginning before things got so volatile.
02:10So, ma'am, this is you and the defendant in happier times.
02:14Yes.
02:15Right there.
02:15You submitted this evidence.
02:17Why was it important for us to see that?
02:19Well, because we did have a relationship.
02:22Though we were not married, we were living as husband and wife.
02:26We had planned for our future.
02:28We had planned for our retirement until...
02:3116 years is a long time.
02:33It's a long time.
02:34You were both living in a rented home, correct?
02:36Yes.
02:36Who was on the lease?
02:38Both of us.
02:38You were both on the lease?
02:40Yes.
02:40So, fast forward 16 years.
02:43Can we put up Exhibit 14, please?
02:46Ms. Macariola, you said, I think you hate me.
02:49And you made a point, sir, of saying, I don't.
02:53I was hoping we could separate on a friendly basis.
02:56Do you remember around approximately when you sent that text message?
03:00Was it before or after you moved out on November 18th?
03:03I believe it was before.
03:04It was before.
03:05Because at this point, things seem to be fairly civil.
03:08Then we come to the time whereupon you move out.
03:12Can we please put up the promissory note?
03:14Well, actually, Your Honor, in June was when I discovered that his now fiancé was pursuing him because he is
03:24a karaoke DJ at the lounge where they have managed to get me 86 and lose my job.
03:31Right now, though, I want to sort of focus on the promissory note.
03:36So, November 18th, 2024, this is a note in which you detail what you maintain will be his obligations to
03:45you.
03:45When did you write it?
03:46I know that it's dated on the 18th.
03:47I wrote it on the morning of the 18th.
03:50You wrote it the morning he was moving out.
03:51So, November 16th, we went out as a couple.
03:55We went to a karaoke show.
03:56We even had a romantic evening.
03:58That was a Saturday night.
04:00And then Sunday, he claimed that he was going to go to his job.
04:04And when he came back, he was very quiet, very cold.
04:10And I asked him, what are our plans for Thanksgiving?
04:12I don't know.
04:13What are our plans for Christmas?
04:15I don't know.
04:16You knew something was going on.
04:17Something was wrong.
04:18You knew there was somebody else.
04:19You also knew that about him.
04:21I mean, I saw a text message where you said, when he met you, he was married to somebody else.
04:26And had a girlfriend on the side.
04:27Yes.
04:28And you.
04:28Yes.
04:29So, fast forward.
04:30Here we are.
04:31And I want to talk about the promissory note.
04:33Sir, did you sign this promissory note?
04:36Yes.
04:37Can you describe the circumstances under which you signed this?
04:40I was heading out the front door, and she's yelling at me.
04:43She says, you're going to sign these, or I'm going to make your life miserable.
04:47She threatened to turn me into the police department.
04:50And she mentioned SWAT about, I have a collection of rifles and guns.
04:55I'm a sport hunter.
04:57And none of them are registered in California.
05:00It's a voluntary act.
05:01So, she made threats.
05:03This is the duress that you refer to.
05:05Yes.
05:06Now, I want to talk about the content of the note, ma'am, because you give him a whole list
05:11of things he has to do.
05:12He has to pay the rent.
05:13He has to keep you as his insurance beneficiary.
05:16There's a myriad of items that you demand.
05:18Yes.
05:19And you say, there are a few things that we need to agree on in exchange for your freedom.
05:25Now, tell me what you mean by that.
05:27Well, because after, this is not the first time that he's cheated on me.
05:31This is actually the third and final time.
05:33And I was the one that asked him to leave.
05:36Let me explain to you what I see as the legal status of your note.
05:40Because in order for any contract to be enforceable, there has to be what's known as consideration, right?
05:47So, if you agree to do X for me, then you have to get something in exchange for that.
05:52That's the consideration.
05:53The consideration that you're purporting to offer in this note is his freedom.
05:58And that's not anything—you don't own that.
06:01Well, if you go to page two, Your Honor, it also states that in exchange for his freedom, in addition
06:05to that, it says that he can store his stuff there.
06:08That's the right answer.
06:10But in order for that to constitute legal consideration, it has to be something that was bargained for.
06:15Like, he has to say, you know what, I need to store my things here.
06:19And secondly, if you're on the lease and he's on the lease, then you don't have the right to withhold
06:25from him the opportunity to store his things.
06:28He's a legal resident and occupant of that home.
06:31Well, until February 18th.
06:33And what happens on February 18th?
06:37Coming up on Tribunal Justice.
06:39When you first met him, he was married, had a girlfriend, had this, and had you.
06:44You know, there's an expression we use in Brooklyn, which is, cheat with me, cheat on me.
06:48It's going to happen.
06:53Debbie Ann McCurriola says cheating ex-boyfriend Lionel Chartrand agreed to support her after they broke up.
07:00Now she wants $10,000 for living expenses and punitive damages after he quit paying.
07:05But Lionel claims he only agreed to support Debbie after she threatened to call the police.
07:10He's countersuing for belongings and expenses already paid.
07:13If you're on the lease and he's on the lease, then you don't have the right to withhold from him
07:19the opportunity to store his things.
07:22He's a legal resident and occupant of that home.
07:24Well, until February 18th.
07:26And what happens on February 18th?
07:28I signed a new lease.
07:29When do you come to pick up your things, sir?
07:31I think it was a week after.
07:32And then what happened when you got there?
07:35She wasn't there.
07:36I entered the home.
07:37I had my own keys.
07:38And I proceeded to the bedroom to remove my bedroom set.
07:41Started dismantling it.
07:42Our bedroom set.
07:43And then she shows up and starts reading me the riot act and yelling at me.
07:47And she says she's going to call the police.
07:49And you did call the police.
07:50Yes, I did, ma'am.
07:51Can I clarify that?
07:52Of course, sir.
07:53I asked her to call the police.
07:55Half an hour goes by, approximately.
07:57And no police show up.
07:58And I asked her, I said, did you call the police?
08:00She said, yes, I did.
08:01So I said, no, I will call the police.
08:03I called the police, and they were there in five minutes.
08:05Any reason why you couldn't come before?
08:07Okay, I work for a company.
08:08We do power for television, sports.
08:12Were you able to retrieve your items?
08:14I retrieved what I had to have out of the house.
08:18There's a lot of stuff missing.
08:19But you're now suing for the return of the remainder of those items.
08:23And then I note that a particular import to you is a tool set that you have in the basement.
08:29You still have his tool set?
08:30No.
08:31What happened to it?
08:32Sold it.
08:33You sold it.
08:34How much did you get for the tools?
08:36$2,000.
08:37And why did you think you had the right to sell his property?
08:39Because I gave him notice, Civil Code 1983, which says I can give him 15 days.
08:46And after 15 days...
08:47Let me interrupt you.
08:48The Civil Code section that you referred to, Section 1983 of the California Civil Code, applies to landlords.
08:55What that provision says is that if the tenant's items are still on the property after the conclusion of the
09:01lease, then the landlord has the right to dispose of those items.
09:05While you are responsible for that property, that doesn't necessarily give you the unilateral right to dispose of his property
09:13as you choose.
09:14I'm going to pass the case for the moment to Judge Domingo.
09:16You know, I'm listening to you and your tone and your demeanor and you, and I'm watching you, and this
09:24is a very messy, messy situation.
09:26But the truth is, it's your fault because of the way you have engaged in your personal life.
09:33I mean, she's angry.
09:34But your anger is really kind of misplaced because you're really angry at her, which is why you insulted her.
09:41And you two ladies, like it or not, are exactly the same.
09:45When you first met him, he was married, had a girlfriend, had this, and had you.
09:50Same for you.
09:51You know, there's an expression we use in Brooklyn, which is cheat with me, cheat on me.
09:55It's going to happen.
09:56That's who he is.
09:58Yeah, he's got guns.
09:59But he's absolutely right.
10:00In California, the law is that he does not have to register.
10:04They're long arms, most of them.
10:05They're locked up carefully.
10:07We have, can we have photos of the guns?
10:09They're in the home.
10:10They're locked up.
10:11They're safe.
10:12And the law is on his side with regard to this.
10:15You want him in jail?
10:16Is that going to make you feel better?
10:17No, ma'am.
10:17What I didn't appreciate was when he trespassed.
10:22Oh, come on.
10:23Stop.
10:23That's baloney.
10:24It's him, period.
10:25Yeah.
10:26I don't, what are you going to explain?
10:28I have not been happy for many years.
10:30That doesn't matter.
10:31You should have left.
10:32She's right about that.
10:33But you've got to follow the law.
10:35And the law here is whether or not that promissory note was voluntarily signed, whether or not your threats that
10:42you would withhold his property is sufficient consideration in here.
10:46Because to say, well, I was living with him and we were sleeping together, that's not legal consideration because that
10:52would make prostitution legal.
10:53So that's not really what this is about.
10:56It's about, could you say to him, you are not legally married?
11:00You know, that's a problem.
11:01There's no palimony here in California.
11:04There's no seven years living together rule.
11:07There's none of that.
11:07This is just a promissory note, you telling him, sign this because I want these things.
11:13And basically he's saying, you know, I don't really have to.
11:16Judge, the morning of the 18th, he was the one who told me, don't worry, I will take care of
11:24you.
11:24I will pay for the rent and I will help support you.
11:28Did you tell her?
11:29And I put it in writing.
11:31Hold on.
11:31Did you say to her that you were going to take care of the rent and things?
11:35Did you ever say you were going to help her in some way because of her illnesses and all?
11:39Did you ever say anything?
11:41Liar.
11:42Miss, don't miss.
11:43Miss, stop.
11:45Let me say this to you.
11:47You've got to get yourself in a place where you're not this angry because you're not going to be happy
11:52with who you are.
11:54Judge Levy?
11:54I agree with Judge Acker and, quite frankly, Judge DiMango on this point that there's no way that I see
11:59that agreement as being enforceable.
12:02Well, I just put in writing, sir, what he told me that morning.
12:05Okay, that's not true.
12:06Because I know that he's a pathological liar.
12:08He told you that morning.
12:09This is what he told you that morning.
12:10That he would maintain the joint checking account because that's where your Social Security is deposited automatically, and also that
12:17would make it easier to transfer money to you.
12:20These are all things that you claim he said in the morning?
12:22Yes, we agreed on that in the morning.
12:24No, of course not.
12:25He said to you that morning that the reason he's going to keep you on the joint account is because
12:30your settlement check will be deposited there.
12:32And he told you that it could no longer be changed.
12:36That is, you had a lawsuit pending, right?
12:38Yes, sir.
12:39Against Johnson & Johnson, right?
12:40Yes, sir.
12:41And you told him that he had to keep that checking account in joint names because your settlement check could
12:48only go to that joint account.
12:50He told you that or you told him that?
12:53No, we agreed on that.
12:54I don't buy that for a second.
12:55You're claiming also in that letter that he agreed to keep the AARP membership in your name?
13:01No.
13:02No, I asked him to.
13:04Did you agree to keep it in the name?
13:06No.
13:06No, of course not.
13:07Or that he would agree to maintain your Mercedes indefinitely?
13:12Did you tell that to him?
13:13No.
13:13Absolutely not.
13:13Of course not.
13:15These are a few things that we need to agree, quote, in exchange for your freedom.
13:20Can you imagine what would happen if a man said that to a woman?
13:23Because, quite frankly, I view your relationship with him to be abusive on your end.
13:30Coming up on Tribunal Justice.
13:32How long have you known and how long have you been in possession of those unregistered guns?
13:38How long have you been breaking the law along with him?
13:46Debbie M. Acariola claims ex-boyfriend Lionel Chartrand agreed to support her after they broke up, but he stopped.
13:53So she's suing for $10,000.
13:55But Lionel says he only agreed because Debbie threatened to call the police.
14:00Now he's countersuing for belongings and expenses already paid.
14:04These are a few things that we need to agree, quote, in exchange for your freedom.
14:10Can you imagine what would happen if a man said that to a woman?
14:14Because, quite frankly, I view your relationship with him to be abusive on your end.
14:18How did I victimize him when he's the cheater?
14:21He's the liar.
14:22This is what he said to you on August 13th in a text.
14:25So he says,
14:26I slowly lost my love for you.
14:28It will never come back.
14:29I'm not angry with you.
14:30All your threats drove me even further from you.
14:33You responded.
14:34You had not only a wife when we met, but a mistress too.
14:37You dropped the other two like hot potatoes with regard for their feelings.
14:41Only cared about chasing the love you needed to have, which is ruled by your penis.
14:46And here you go again.
14:48That's what you said.
14:49Yes.
14:49You go on.
14:50I also heard you sing your songs to me then and to her now.
14:54That's his new girlfriend, right?
14:56Yes, sir.
14:57You told him that I made you look good.
14:59I taught you how to dress.
15:00You were trailer trash when I met you.
15:02I taught you table manners.
15:04Yes, I did.
15:05I had to make you acceptable to my family and friends.
15:08And finally, this issue with the guns, because that's really important to me.
15:12You provided us with a photograph of the guns, right?
15:16You did.
15:16Yes, I did.
15:17You knew that these guns were not registered, correct?
15:21How long have you known and how long have you been in possession of those unregistered guns?
15:27You.
15:29They're his.
15:30They're not mine.
15:30It doesn't make a difference.
15:31You're both in possession of them.
15:33You both live in the house.
15:34You both have access to them.
15:36How long have you been breaking the law along with him?
15:38I'm done.
15:40Any further questions?
15:40Yes.
15:41Ma'am, what's her name, please?
15:43Wilhelmina Molino.
15:45If you could, please take the stand briefly.
15:46And this dovetails to some extent, sir, with your countersuit, because you are countersuing the plaintiff for rent, for utilities.
15:55And you want us to order her to apologize for calling your new partner a name that I don't think
16:02is worth repeating here.
16:04But why should I impose on her a rental obligation at that point?
16:09Because it seems like, listen, you were still on the lease.
16:12You felt badly that she felt badly.
16:15And this is separate from whether or not that agreement is enforceable.
16:18I'm just saying I don't see any basis for now saying she has to pay rent.
16:23Like you were paying for things.
16:24When she got a new lease, then she pays the rent.
16:26Okay, I understand what you're saying.
16:28I would have never taken it this far.
16:30But because she brought me here, this is why this all came about.
16:35All I want her to do was just walk away.
16:36So it was really just kind of, you're suing me, so I'm going to throw something back at you.
16:41That's candid.
16:42And then the final point with respect to your counterclaim, there is a Facebook post, ma'am,
16:49that the defendant submitted where you made reference to his girlfriend breaking up your family.
16:54Mm-hmm.
16:54And you don't deny making that post.
16:56No, I don't.
16:57She uses the term homewrecker.
16:59Yes.
17:00I don't know that we have jurisdiction to order her to apologize that that's necessarily actionable,
17:06but I'll discuss it with my colleagues.
17:08I don't have anything else.
17:09Do you really feel that that's important to you, or have you been able to put this in a perspective,
17:15ma'am?
17:16I would just like to stop her from going where we go,
17:22because for the past three years that they were together as a DJ, she never attended any of the shows.
17:29But when I came to his life, she started coming along.
17:33All right, so you're upset about that.
17:35I understand that.
17:36And she calls me names.
17:37You all have to stay out, yeah, you all have to stay out of each other's business.
17:40And ma'am, do you understand that she's not to blame any more than you were to blame in your
17:47situation?
17:48Do you understand that?
17:50It's nothing about you.
17:51Let it go.
17:52The best vengeance in the world is moving forward with your life.
17:57Okay.
17:58That being said, we're going to retire to deliberate.
18:00You can have a seat.
18:01Yes, ma'am.
18:02Court now stands in recess.
18:04This case will be recalled.
18:05Parties are excused.
18:15Let's start with the complaint.
18:16The promissory note is, to put it mildly, problematic.
18:20There's no consideration.
18:21Even if you were to suggest, as I think she tried to, that his storage of the property there was
18:29the thing he bargained for,
18:30he still had some right to have his property there.
18:32So the agreement, I think, is clearly unenforceable.
18:35I'm not prepared to impose any sort of punitive damage liability on the defendant.
18:40You know, I don't know that she really elaborated, but I guess what she's referring to when she says that
18:45she lost her job,
18:47it's because he DJs at a place.
18:50And I think she may have worked there as a bartender.
18:53She was tending bar there two days a week, and they took those days away.
18:56Yeah, because there was conflict.
18:57There was conflict.
18:58She was creating a scene.
18:59So I'm not going to blame him for that.
19:01I would dismiss the complaint in its entirety.
19:04Thoughts?
19:05I would absolutely dismiss it in its entirety.
19:06There's no legal basis for the document she had him signed.
19:10I mean, I look carefully at the California law.
19:12There is no palimony.
19:13There is no seven-year.
19:15If you live together, we can treat you like a husband and wife.
19:17She is not entitled to anything.
19:19There was no consideration in that.
19:21The storage situation, she's not his landlord.
19:23He did have a right to keep the property there.
19:25He was there for a while.
19:26And there was no agreement.
19:28Listen, he is what he is.
19:29He was a liar and a cheater from the beginning.
19:31She got involved with him.
19:32She knew he had cheated on a few.
19:34I don't know what she wants punitive damages for.
19:36I don't see any basis for recovery on that promissory note or by any other oral or written
19:41agreement that they have.
19:42I agree that there's no way to enforce that coercive letter.
19:47The only thing I would add is that I believe that he did make out his burden of duress and
19:52coercion.
19:53And she was vindictive and she was angry and hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.
19:58Which brings us to his countersuit.
20:00You know, he says in his countersuit, I'm not looking for money from her, but he actually
20:03is looking for money from her.
20:04He's looking for money that he paid pursuant to this clearly unenforceable agreement.
20:09Yeah, because he was afraid she was going to go to the police and have him arrested.
20:12And ruin his life.
20:12I mean, that's the whole duress.
20:13Yeah.
20:13Ruin his life and call the police about the guns.
20:16Yeah.
20:16I was originally inclined to dismiss the countersuit, order her to return whatever property she
20:21has.
20:22It's not clear that she has any of his property or what state his property would be in,
20:27given the tensions that exist between the two of them.
20:29I'm still inclined, I think, to dismiss the rent claim because at some point, even when
20:36he moved out, he was still on that lease for a number of months and he had some obligation
20:40to pay.
20:41And I'm troubled by the unenforceable agreement that she forced him to sign under threat.
20:47I'm leaning toward giving him at least $2,000 because she says that she made that on the
20:51transaction.
20:52I'm willing to give him all he's asking for.
20:54If you look at the list that he broke down, he moved out on the 18th and he's documented
20:58the bills that he paid from this time of move-out, November, December, January, February, March
21:03for the cable.
21:04He was paying the auto insurance from November through February.
21:08I mean, so he really did exceed the amount that he's asking for.
21:13So I'm willing to give him what he's asked for, $9,018.
21:16I agree.
21:17Um, let me give it a think.
21:19You think about that.
21:20All right.
21:20See maybe where you can sell your tools.
21:26Court is back in session.
21:27Parties are reminded you're still under oath.
21:29Thank you, Bird.
21:31We've deliberated and we've reached a verdict that is, in fact, unanimous.
21:36I'm going to start with the complaint, Ms. Macariola.
21:39You came to court suing on the basis of the promissory note that you drafted.
21:43But that agreement, such as it is, just doesn't comport with the legal requirements to be a valid
21:50contract.
21:50There was no consideration.
21:52He did have some right to continue to store his belongings there for some period of time.
21:57You did not have the right to sell them.
21:59So even if that were the consideration for which he was bargaining, that wouldn't be sufficient
22:05because he did have a right to still keep his property there.
22:07And you did not have the right to withhold from him his freedom.
22:11You just didn't have that right.
22:12I know that.
22:13You're certainly angry.
22:14And I'm not saying you don't have a right to be.
22:16But those things just can't support a lawsuit.
22:20So, ma'am, we are unanimous in dismissing it.
22:24Mr. Chartrand, I was actually conflicted about your countersuit because you were suing her
22:29for rent and some other obligations that, on the one hand, I'm like, well, maybe these are just
22:34things that he agreed to do as he'd been doing them when they were together.
22:38But upon hearing further testimony and consulting with my colleagues, I do believe, as both
22:44judges Levy and Domingo do, that you made those later rent payments and the other payments
22:50that you made to her because you were under the impression that you had to comply with
22:55an agreement that, one, was not only legally unenforceable, but that we do believe that
23:00you signed it because she was threatening to go to the police and to report you to authorities
23:04for things that could have really been compromising, even if there was no basis for them.
23:09Yes, ma'am.
23:09So, we are unanimous in sustaining the terms of your countersuit, ma'am.
23:14It's horrible that you have to be caught up as a player in this, but you also knew what
23:17you were getting into.
23:18Yes, ma'am.
23:19So, it cannot feel good, but everybody has to move on.
23:23Sir, we are unanimous in sustaining your countersuit for the entire amount that you've requested,
23:27the $9,018.
23:28And, frankly, I think that we're beyond the point of apologies.
23:32Everybody just needs to cut ties, move on, and have the best lives that they can.
23:37A judgment and favor of the defendant on his countersuit for $9,018.
23:41Good luck, everyone.
23:43This case is now concluded.
23:44Parties are excused.
23:45You may step out.
23:50No contract holds in court, apparently, even though it is agreed on and signed.
23:56That's what I would have decided on.
23:57Well, this all stems from his now fiancée, because she doesn't like me around him.
24:03She talks individually to every member of the church, and God mounts me.
24:08I called her a homewrecker.
24:10And then she calls me, like, um, transvestite.
24:15Because I loved him, and I had compassion for him, because when I met him, he had nothing.
24:20Yeah, I just want her to stay out of our lives, and for us, I want us to move on.
24:25Did someone break an agreement?
24:28Let Tribunal Justice decide your case.
24:31Find us on social media.
24:35Let alone.
25:03Let's do it.
25:03Let's do it.
25:03Let's do it.
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