Double Episode: I Cheated on My Ex, But I Know He Fathered My Daughter | Paternity Court

Olivia Jenkins... Mr. Jenkins... You... Are. her father. (AUDIENCE CHEERING) (ELLISON WELDING) (GENTLY) Okay. JUDGE LAKE: So, Mr. Jenkins... You said you wanted to

know

and now you

know

. (AUDIENCE APPLAUSES) Miss Ellison, are your tears of relief because you finally know, or are you crying because Mr. Jenkins is the father of your child? (AUDIENCE LAUGHING) I'm simply hurt, your honor. I'm just hurt, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: You feel hurt. And you're hurt by... Because he missed a lot and she's only seven months old. AUDIENCE: Oh! He missed a lot. JUDGE LAKE: And now it's time for you to step forward, Mr.

Jenkins. Are we clear? Yes, your honor. Ms. Herrod, today you have summoned the defendants to

court

to prove that her deceased son, Justin,

fathered

her three-year-old

daughter

, Star, during a torrid love affair. He hopes today's results will resolve her case. Is that correct? Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Walther, you say it's been a year since your son died, but just three months ago, the plaintiff came forward and claimed that Justin was the father of your

daughter

, Star. As you appear in

court

denying that your son could be her father, he admits that he hopes she is his daughter, since she would be his only biological granddaughter.

JUDGE LAKE: Is that correct? Yes, your honor. So, Mrs. Herrod, you are here today to prove

paternity

. Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: And you truly believe that your son is the biological father of your daughter, Star. Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: How do you feel about this? It has been very stressful for me, because I know who the parents of my other daughters are. And I... It just hits me every day. JUDGE LAKE: Yes. And I see how excited you are right now. So, you opened today's case for Star. Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: And you want answers and resolution for her.

Alright. Mrs. Walther... WALTHER: Yes, your honor. Please tell me about the first time you met Ms. Herrod. Well, my son had mentioned that he might have a child and that they were going to do a DNA test, but then he said that she moved away and he went his own way, and they never heard anything more about it. But I met Star and Jessica about three months ago, I guess. And Star is three years old? WALTHER: Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: Can you tell me about the nature of your relationship with the deceased, Mrs. Herrod? She lived with a couple of her family members.

And I'm very good friends with them. They introduced it to me. And we just connected as friends. And I was in a very bad relationship at the time. And he was there as a support group. And from there he went further. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) So you were still dating the other man when you began the sexual relationship with Justin. Yes, your honor. (AUDIENCE GROANS) And then how often would you see Justin? We would go out every day. For how long? How many months? Uh, it was about... I... Before I moved we were there for about three months.

JUDGE LAKE: About three months? And then you would go out every day? Yes. When you say hanging out, does that mean you were also having sex with Justin? How often too? Uh, mainly during the weekdays were sexual encounters. On the weekends, when my boyfriend wasn't at work, we would just play basketball, go swimming, and hang out outdoors. JUDGE LAKE: So, Ms. Walther, did your son tell you anything about this relationship? WALTHER: He had mentioned his name a couple of times. JUDGE LAKE: And when he mentioned his name, he said, "Mom, I'm seeing someone new"? Or, "I have a girlfriend..." she said that he was dating a girl, but it was complicated now, so she would leave it at that.

JUDGE LAKE: So he said, "I'm dating her, but it's complicated." WALTER: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: So, Mrs. Herrod, when did she find out that she was pregnant? I felt bad, there was a bad flu at that time, so I thought she just had the flu. I went to the hospital, they did a test, the test turned out to be perfectly fine, then they did a blood sample and it turned out that she was pregnant. (PUBLIC EXCLAIMING) JUDGE LAKE: So you thought she had the flu? Yes. But were you really pregnant? HERROD: Yes, your honor. And once you found out you were pregnant, what did you do?

Who did you tell? Uh, at that time, I told the guy she had just broken up with. So did you ever tell Justin? HERROD: At first no, I didn't... he was about halfway through the pregnancy when I mentioned it to him because he was in a relationship. I didn't want to get in the middle of this. So I kept it a secret. And one time, one day he texted me, and we started talking, and I said, "Hey, I have this daughter, there's a chance she's yours." And he accepted it. Did you accept that? HERROD: Yes. So at six months, when you were six months pregnant, you said, "I'm going to have a girl, and possibly it will be yours." HERROD: Yes, Your Honor.

JUDGE LAKE: Ms. Walther, did your son ever say that? Do you have anything about pregnancy? What did he tell you? He just mentioned that he might have a child, but he didn't say for sure, you know, who or when, he just said, "Mom, I can." It could be dad." And what did you answer? How... How did you answer? WALTHER: And I asked him, I said, "Oh, really?" I said, "When and how?" I mean, 'because I was so excited that this was my only chance to be a biological grandmother and then he passed away, and I never made it, I never made it... (AUDIENCE COLLECTIVELY SIGHS) JUDGE LAKE: I'm so sorry for your loss.

And I really am. see how much this hurts you. WALTHER: Because at first he never said for sure who he was. I mean, he had mentioned to me a couple of times about their relationship, but he said it was a little complicated. And then he mentioned that he might have. a baby, I was pretty sure he was going to be a dad. But then, like I said, he passed away and we never got to know. So, Mrs. Herrod, did Justin ever get a chance to meet Star before she passed away? Yes, he met her when she died.

She was between one and two years old. It was about two years ago. JUDGE LAKE: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: And what happened at that meeting? Can you tell the court? He told me that he felt in his heart that she was his daughter. JUDGE LAKE: And at that moment when she said that, did that increase your doubts, your confusion, or did you feel at that moment that "Star is Justin's daughter"? At that moment I felt like she was her father, that opened some doors for me and told me that maybe I should go ahead and find out if he is the father or not.

For Star, for him, for the family. And get that closure. That made you feel even more convinced that "I have to get some answers." Yes, your honor. Mrs. Walther, can you tell me what it was like the first time he met Star? The first time I met Star, we went to a cookout and, uh... I sat next to her and she let me hug her and everything, and it was like I could feel... (CRYING) I could feel to my son. But I didn't know if it was just me who wanted to be a grandmother. But she is so adorable and she won my heart that night.

We had a cookout and played and talked about her and I gave her some candy and different things. And she is a doll, she is a little doll. JUDGE LAKE: And we have seen many times in this courtroom, and Jerome can attest to this, that grandmothers often have the instinct, they know it. WALTHER: Mmm-hmm. JUDGE LAKE: When you held Star, did you feel at that moment, "I know"? Yes, I felt something in my heart and then in certain ways and actions that she did, she looked like Justin. I mean, it was like she was seeing my little Justin again.

JUDGE LAKE: Could you think of him as a child? WALTER: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: And did you feel that her, her mannerisms or her appearance... Yes. Yes, she has her actions and everything, and something deep down tells me that she will be my granddaughter. You sent photographs to the court. WALTHER: Mmm-hmm. JUDGE LAKE: Photos of Star when he was a baby and Justin. WALTHER: Mmm-hmm JUDGE LAKE: When he was a baby. And when you look at those photos, do you see a resemblance? Yes, I do. (WALTHER LAUGHS) JUDGE LAKE: There... WALTHER: You can see it. ...there is a strikingly similar appearance between Star and Justin.

Wow! (LAUGHTER) JUDGE LAKE: I see a lot of sides in this courtroom. Yes. When you tell me how you felt, when you hugged her, I imagine looking at a photo like that, I only imagine as a mother what was going through your heart. There were so many things that went through my heart. I mean, it was like she could feel Justin's warmth inside her, like he was holding her. As if he was hugging her too. And it was really emotional. And she does so many things that are like, I mean, a spitting image of Justin. And I can't help but think that she looks like Justin.

And that she is my granddaughter. I mean, I just have that feeling. JUDGE LAKE: Who do you think you are? What does she call you? Do you say, "I'm your grandmother?" Or...She thinks I'm her grandmother. JUDGE LAKE: Does she do it? Yes. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) And then, Mrs. Herrod, seeing Mrs. Walther, testify so beautifully about her beautiful little girl, she can see the photographs of her. HEROD: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: You see the relationship they are starting to build. HERROD: Yes, your honor. How does it make you feel to know in your heart that there are still doubts?

It bothers me daily. I'm afraid she's not his... And that's why you presented a calendar to the court. And I would like to see the dates. Star's date of birth is April 27. Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: So she was born, and the green describes the months and days when you say you were intimate with Justin fairly regularly while your boyfriend was at work. Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: And if you count backwards, the months of July, August and June are within the time frame... Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: ...where Star was conceived, if her date of birth is April 27th.

Yes, your honor. JUDGE LAKE: Now I need to ask you a tough question, but I need to know this. Yes. Were you also intimate with your boyfriend at that time? It was very rare, but yes, we were. (PUBLIC EXCLAIMING) JUDGE LAKE: Okay. And I need to know, didn't she go with protection, I guess? No, he was not. (PUBLIC EXCLAIMING) JUDGE LAKE: Okay. What are your hopes today? My hopes are that Justin is the father. He could build a relationship with his family. We can all get along. Build a relationship together and move on with the rest of our lives.

JUDGE LAKE: And Mrs. Walther, what is your hope today? My hope is to discover that she is my granddaughter. And I can build a life with her and talk to her. AUDIENCE: Wow. JUDGE LAKE: What's that you're holding, ma'am? It's "The Little Book of Granddaughter's Love." (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING) And she asked me if she could just... (STRANGLED SOON) JUDGE LAKE: Oh, you filled it with pictures of Justin? Yes. (PUBLIC EXCLAIMING) So that she can have photos of her father? WALTER: Yes. Yes in fact, he is determined to be her biological father. Good. And in her time, when she's old enough to understand, my husband, Jessica and I will sit down with her and explain it to her.

But she now she's too young to understand it. Absolutely. Absolutely. You've been through a lot. You two. And I truly believe that no matter what the outcome is, you all will do right by this little girl. WALTER: Yes. JUDGE LAKE: I won't keep you waiting any longer. Jerome, let's get the results. (ALL APPLAUDING) These results were prepared by DNA Diagnostics and read as follows... Because there was no blood card available to test the DNA of the deceased, Justin Walther, we performed a DNA test on his surviving parents, Mr. .and Mrs. Walther. That being said, the results determine whether there is a viable relationship between the girl, Star McKinney, and Mr. and Mrs.

Walther. Here are the results. In the case of Herrod v. Walther...when it comes to three-year-old Star McKinney, this Court has determined that the percentage of relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Walther and Star McKinney is 0.05%. not related. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMING DISAPPOINTED) I'm so sorry. (SOOPING) JUDGE LAKE: I know, Ms. Walther, this was a time when she hoped there would be a surviving part of her son. WALTER: Yes. I feel sorry for you. Thank you. I think you have done nothing more than show Star the love you have had for your son. And that is a beautiful thing.