03x87 - Yorkie Attack Caught on Video

[bunniefuu]

Your dog was the aggressor?

No. He was just holding the dog down
as if to, like, say, "Calm down."

-No! Diego!
-[Yorkie screeches]

-Nah.
-No, but you can't really see.

Yeah, I can see everything.
Let's play it again.

-Okay.
-Maybe she needs glasses.

-[Jermiah laughs]
-[announcer] This is Judy Justice.

[dramatic music]

[announcer]
Jermiah Mendoza and Delia Ramos

are suing their neighbor, Nicole
Cervantes, for damages from a dog attack.

[Kevin]
Court come to order. All rise.

Have a seat, please.

Case 3146, Mendoza-Ramos versus Cervantes.

-Thank you.
-[Kevin] You're welcome.

-[Judy] You live together?
-Yes, ma'am.

-And you are neighbors?
-Yes.

-[Judy] You have a home?
-Yes.

-Yours is the lime green home?
-[Delia] Yes.

-[Judy] How long have you lived there?
-[Delia] About a year.

-[Judy] Do you rent or own?
-[Delia] We own.

How long have you lived in your house?

-My entire life, on and off.
-[Judy] The house belongs to whom?

[Nicole] It was my dad's.
Now, it's my brother's.

[Judy] When you say on and off,
have you been married?

-No.
-[Judy] You were living out on your own?

-Yeah.
-[Judy] And then you came back?

-Yes.
-[Judy] When you came back to the house,

-was your dad home?
-[Nicole] No.

-He had passed?
-Mhm.

[Judy] Okay. And he left
the house to your brother?

Yes.

[Judy] Okay. Your brother
allows you to stay with him?

-Mhm.
-[Judy] Do you live there full time?

-[Nicole] Yes.
-[Judy] What kind of a dog do you have?

A German Shepherd.

-[Judy] And you have a Yorkie?
-Yorkie, yes.

[Judy]
This is what your case is about,

that you had taken the Yorkie
out grocery shopping?

No. I had taken my partner to work.

[Judy]
Okay. And you took the dog with you?

-Yes.
-What date and what time?

On July 31st, 2023,
and it was about 7:30 AM.

-[Judy] And you drove him to work?
-Yes.

[Judy]
About how far is that from the house?

-About 15 minutes.
-Tell me what happened when you came home.

When I came home, I had Teddy in my arms.

-[Judy] Teddy is the dog?
-Teddy is the dog.

Teddy is... at that time,
he was nine months old, a Yorkie.

I had him in my arms.
Before reaching my doorway,

-he was actually taken...
-[Judy] Walk over... Could you walk over?

-[Delia] Yes.
-Yeah. That would be helpful to me.

So I parked right here.

-[Judy] In the front of the house?
-In the front of my house.

I walked through my doorway... my walkway.

-You can go closer to there.
-[Delia] Okay.

Show me exactly.
You parked in front of your house,

and walked towards
the front door in the walkway?

Yes. About right here, I felt a very
strong presence to the side of me.

It was Nicole's German Shepherd.
He actually took Teddy from my arms.

Teddy was dragged.
He was thrown all throughout right here.

He was actually dragged all...
right here as well, in front of my lawn.

Teddy was yapping.
He was, you know, crying for help.

At that time, my first instinct reaction
was to, you know, try to help my puppy.

You know, try to save him.

But I could not do that because
I was nine months pregnant at that time.

You know, I'm calling for help.
You know, I'm asking, like...

-You know, someone please help my dog.
-[Judy] Well, I wanna ask you a question.

-German Shepherd is a very big dog.
-Yes.

[Judy]
And so I want you to try to explain to me,

you say you were holding Teddy, and the
German Shepherd came and grabbed the dog.

Yes. So I was holding Teddy like this.
He is a puppy. You know, he's very tiny.

The German Shepherd actually grabbed
him from my arms, pulled him.

You know, he was bitten.

-He was shaken up all on the lawn.
-[Judy] And were you...

-But you were standing?
-Yes. I was standing.

-Okay. Now, you can go back.
-[Delia] Okay.

[Judy] Go ahead.
So you were trying to rescue your dog?

Yes. You know, my first instinct
reaction was to try to hit the dog

or try to move him away,
but I was nine months pregnant.

I could not, you know, put myself
in that danger, or my baby in that danger.

I called out for help.

You know, what was probably
seconds felt like minutes.

Nicole came over and grabbed her dog.

Now, go back over there and show me where,

when Nicole came out,
where she grabbed the dog.

So Nicole was standing right here.

I was right.. you can't really see
the picture but I was over here with...

the German Shepherd was,
you know, biting my dog.

Nicole came from this way
and grabbed him,

called out for him, "Diego,"
and pulled him out.

By that time,
Teddy was already under my car.

Okay. That's what I...

And what your lawsuit seeks
are the actual punitive damages

that you alleged you sustained
as a result of the dog attack.

-You do have all of the vet bills?
-I do.

[Judy] Okay. Now, Ms. Cervantes,
go over to your house

and show me your version
of what happened that day.

-[Nicole] Okay. Well, first off...
-[Judy] Not first off.

-Okay.
-[Judy] Start out with...

-We know that your dog's outside.
-Okay.

And we know that your dog
did not have a leash...

-Mhm.
-[Judy] ...when the dog was outside.

So, I want you to start
at your front door.

-Okay. So, I was leaving for work.
-You were at the front... go. Alright.

-We were both inside at the time.
-[Judy] You were both inside?

-We were both inside at the time.
-[Judy] Okay.

-So point to the front door.
-Right here.

-[Judy] You were both inside.
-Mhm.

[Judy]
And you opened the door?

Yeah. I was getting ready
to leave for work.

Okay. And you opened the door.
You weren't taking the dog to work?

-No. No.
-And?

-[Nicole] And I was leaving... Okay.
-[Judy] Now, careful.

You opened the door to go to work
and the dog ran out of the door.

-Yes.
-[Judy] Okay.

[dramatic music]

-[Nicole] No! Diego!
-[Yorkie screeches]

[Nicole]
Diego, stop!

Diego, stop!

-That's from your Ring camera?
-Yes, Your Honor.

Did you know this
Ring camera video existed?

Mhm.

Well, then why would you
stand there and lie and be stupid?

[tense music]

[tense music]

[announcer]
Jermiah Mendoza and Delia Ramos

claimed their neighbor, Nicole Cervantes,
is responsible for damages

after her German Shepherd
attacks their Yorkie puppy.

[Judy] Okay. Let's make it simple
so that I understand it.

You opened the door to get out to work
and your dog was now on the front porch,

-at least for a moment.
-Mhm.

And then what happened?

Well, their dog was being
aggressively barking.

-[Judy] Shh. Just a second.
-Okay.

When you came out... so I assume
you came out to get your dog.

Yeah. I was leaving for work...

[Judy] Well, if you were leaving for work,
you weren't taking the dog with you.

-No.
-[Judy] Okay. So you can...

-So when I opened the door...
-[Judy] If the dog is now outside,

-you have to get the dog back inside.
-Mhm. Yes.

-[Judy] Okay. And her dog was barking?
-[Nicole] Mhm.

[Judy] Show me where her dog
was when it was barking. Careful.

Be very, very careful.

Show me on the diagram where
the dog was when the dog was barking.

-So the dog was...
-If you didn't... and...

[chuckles]

See, if you tell the truth,
you don't have to have a good memory

-and then you're not made to look foolish.
-Yeah.

[Judy] You did not see
what caused the dog to bark initially.

Did you see the Yorkie puppy
in your neighbor's hands?

-No. He...
-[Judy] Okay.

-The dog was... okay. [chuckles]
-So, you show me where the dog was.

-You opened the door. Your dog got out.
-So their dog comes into our yard often.

Tell me... not...
I'm not interested in yesterday...

-Okay. Mhm.
-...the day before yesterday.

That day, your dog
got out without a leash.

-Mhm. Mhm.
-You said her dog was barking.

I want you to be very careful
and point on that where the dog was

when you heard it barking.

-They were over here.
-[Judy] Point it. No. No. That's a...

-In this area over here.
-[Judy] Keep going. Keep moving over.

-Over, over, over.
-Okay.

-So they were in front of their house?
-[Nicole] Mhm.

Okay. And what did your dog do?

So, my dog went over. He wasn't...
he did not grab the dog out of...

[Judy] No, no, no.
Don't tell me what he didn't do.

-[Nicole] Okay.
-[Judy] Don't tell me what he didn't do.

-Your dog ran over...
-[Nicole] Uh-huh.

-...to the front of the house...
-Okay.

[Judy] ... where her dog was.
-[Nicole] Mhm. Okay.

-And, now, you can go back.
-[Nicole] Okay.

-Your Honor?
-[Judy] I don't wanna hear from you.

-Okay.
-Yet.

[chuckles]

Go. So now, your dog,
which weighs 80 pounds?

Mhm.

[Judy] ...has run over to the
nine-month-old Yorkie puppy

-that maybe weighs three pounds.
-[Nicole] Mhm.

And what happened?

Well, the dog was barking
and being aggressive.

My dog... when I got there,
my dog had his paws crossed

and he was just holding the dog down
as if to like say, "Calm down."

I grabbed him and I brought him back
and put him in the house.

-Okay. Now, I'll see the vet report.
-[Delia] Okay.

So, I actually have video evidence,
if it's possible to show you the incident.

[Judy]
Absolutely. Absolutely.

[Jermiah] Your Honor,
you asked for the vet bills as well?

[Judy]
Yes. Can you put it on the monitor?

-[Delia] No!
-[Nicole] No, Diego! Diego, stop!

-[Yorkie screeches]
-[Nicole] Diego, stop!

-[Judy] Oh, that's from your Ring camera?
-[Jermiah] Yes, Your Honor.

-[Nicole] No! Diego, get over here!
-[Yorkie barks]

[Judy] Play it again. Did you know
this Ring camera video existed?

-[Nicole] Mhm.
-Well, then why would you stand there

-and lie and be stupid?
-[audio from video continues]

-I wasn't lying.
-[Judy] Yeah, of course, you are.

-[Nicole] He's...
-[Judy] Of course, you are.

-[Yorkie screeches]
-[Nicole] Diego, stop!

[Judy]
I don't see you running over there

and your dog was sitting there with its
paws over to protect the little dog.

What kind of stupidity is that
if you saw this video?

I was right there.
I seen it when I grabbed it.

[Judy] Well, are you telling me
that this video has been doctored?

-Is that what you're telling me?
-[Nicole] No, but you can't really see...

-[Judy] Yeah, I can see everything.
-[Nicole] Okay.

-Let's play it again.
-[Nicole] Okay.

-Maybe she needs glasses.
-[room chuckles]

-[Nicole] Diego! No! Diego!
-[Delia] No!

-[Nicole] Diego, stop! Diego, stop!
-[Yorkie screeches]

-Stop! Stop!
-[Yorkie screeches]

No. Diego, go! [indistinct]

-Did you report this incident?
-I did.

-[Judy] To whom? Animal control?
-To... animal control, yes.

-Did you get a report?
-[Delia] I did.

-May I see it if you have it?
-I don't have that, I apologize.

[Judy]
Okay. Were you seen by animal control?

-Mhm.
-Did they cite your dog?

-[Nicole] Um, they...
-[Judy] Did you get a letter from them?

No. They basically told me
I needed to get my dog license,

so I went the next week
to get my dog license.

-How's Teddy today?
-He's doing good... better.

I'm not seeing a bill. I'm seeing reports.

-Sorry, Your Honor.
-Give it to him.

[Judy]
Did you give me duplicates?

No. If there's multiple, Your Honor,
of $101 and some change,

-then that's just... it's the same thing.
-[Judy] The same...?

-Same checkup as when he goes in.
-Okay.

-It should be different dates though.
-[Judy] No.

-Same one?
-[Judy] The invoice date...

Alright. I have to start
all over again, sir.

The invoice dates on these, for 50885,
are both August 28th for the same amount.

So, now let's start again. That's...

And we have bank statements
as well, Your Honor,

-of every bill that was paid as well.
-Just a second, sir.

I'm just reading the bills you gave me
but I'm gonna separate the duplicates.

Do you understand?

-Yes.
-Yes, Your Honor.

This is a duplicate, Kevin.
Return this to him.

-[Jermiah] Thank you.
-So your vet bills total $3,149?

-[Jermiah] Not correct, Your Honor.
-Well, then you add them up, sir.

Yeah, we have...
our total amount is $3,252.72.

[Judy] Because there was one that was
a duplicate bill that I returned to you.

So what the vet did, I paid a $1,000...

a certain amount at first,
and then when I came back I paid the rest.

-[Judy] Okay.
-And that was the remainder.

Now, after this incident occurred,
did you reach out to Ms. Cervantes

-about paying this vet bill?
-Yes, we did.

[Judy] How far after the incident?
-So after the incident, we did wait a week

until my partner came home from work.
He was out traveling.

So we went with the first bills. The one
that you see, the $1,000 plus the $500.

Um, we did ask for...
you know, this was the first bill,

and there's gonna be several bills
after that. She did, um...

-[Judy] Just a second.
-[Delia] Okay.

And since it's clear that your dog was
the aggressor based on that film,

you understand that, despite what you
tried to tell me, which was inaccurate.

-Okay.
-[Judy] Totally inaccurate,

and totally dissimilar from what
you wrote in your answer to this.

So, one of them was a lie.

[tense music]

-How long did you have your dog?
-I've had him for four years.

He's actually registered
as my emotional support animal.

-Oh, that's ridiculous.
-[court laughs]

Emotional support animals
don't attack other dogs.

-So that's baloney.
-[laughter]

[tense music]

[announcer]
Jermiah Mendoza and Delia Ramos

have accused their neighbor,
Nicole Cervantes,

of owing for damages after her German
Shepherd attacks their Yorkie puppy.

Okay. I was happy to have
video proof of what the reality was.

That will eventually cost you,
but you know what happened.

-Mhm.
-[Judy] So why didn't you pay this bill?

At the time, I couldn't afford to.
I didn't have the money to do so.

Well, did you say,
"I'll take care of the bill

and I'll pay the vet $50 a month
or a $100 a month until the bill is paid?"

I offered to say maybe
we could split it and I could try...

Why would you wanna split it? It's not
her fault. She was carrying her dog.

[Nicole] Well, like I said, I didn't have
the money to pay it right then and there.

[Judy] Oh, well. Hmm.
How long was the dog in the hospital?

He was there for that day,

but he had to go every two
to three days to get his bandage.

-[Judy] What kind of work do you do?
-Property management.

How much do you get paid a week?

[chuckles] Well, with taxes
and everything, about $1,700.

-[Judy] $1,700 a what? A week?
-Every two weeks.

And your brother allows you to live
in the house. Do you pay him rent?

Well, I moved back
after my father had passed away.

He was taking care of my mom.
I moved back to be there with her.

So that's where I use my money
to support... help take care of my mom

since my dad passed away
and he was the only one working.

-How long did you have your dog?
-[Nicole] I've had him for four years.

He's actually registered
as my emotional support animal.

Oh, that's ridiculous. Emotional support
animals don't attack other dogs.

Emotional support animals don't attack
people and other dogs. [chuckles]

So, that's baloney.
He became an emotional support animal

because you applied over the internet
for an emotional support dog?

Let me understand this. I've been
through this drill a dozen times.

You applied through the internet
for an emotional dog certificate.

-Is that correct?
-Yes.

And you were given
a psychiatrist, allegedly...

so that you could tell the psychiatrist
why you needed an emotional support dog.

-[Nicole] Mhm.
-Correct? That's not a "uh-huh."

That's a "correct." And the psychiatrist,
or allegedly, you pay, correct?

-No. I didn't pay.
-Well, you pay for that service.

-Who paid for the service?
-I didn't... it didn't charge me.

Nah.

-Okay.
-[court laughs]

[Judy]
Now, in what state do you live?

-[Nicole] California.
-Does... you have homeowners insurance?

[Nicole] I have renters insurance.
I don't own the home so I don't...

we have homeowners insurance,
but it's not in my name.

[Judy] That's alright. But you have
homeowners and you have renters insurance.

Mhm. Yes.

And you are aware that there
are certain breeds of dogs

that increase your premiums
on your homeowners insurance?

No, I didn't know that.

They didn't mention anything
about that when we bought it.

Oh, really interesting. Because usually
when you have an emotional support dog...

Who is the dog emotionally
supporting, you or your mother?

Me.

[Judy] Well, you were going
to work without the dog.

You mean it only supports you after work?

Well, I don't...
No, I don't take him to work, no.

So he only supports you
when you come home from work?

-Yeah. I guess so. [chuckles]
-[Judy] Ah. Bunch of scams.

You know, I have to tell you,
there's a restaurant here,

that will remain nameless, in Los Angeles,
that finally had the guts to put up a sign

that said if you require a service dog,

it has to be a service dog in the...
this restaurant, for a reason.

[court laughs]

Bette Midler used to tell
an absolutely hysterical story

-about a service dog that was a Chihuahua.
-[court laughs]

[Judy laughs] And the punch line was...
I'll never forget the punch line.

She says, "They gave me a Chihuahua?"
As a service dog.

That's ridiculous and...
actually, you know that.

Okay. Judgment for the plaintiff
in the amount of $4,000.

-We're finished. Thank you very much.
-Thank you.

[Kevin]
This court is adjourned.

[tense music]

It is what is. It's... you know,
I guess we'll just have to go with it.

I'm actually really happy.
I think, you know, we got what we deserve.

Yeah, I think it looked worse
than it actually was.

Oh, he had a punctured lung.
He had actually a wound on his stomach.

Their dog tends to be
a little bit more aggressive.

And he actually had
a fractured rib as well.

He's super sweet and...
he's never hurt anybody.

Not at all. There's video proof of it.

You could clearly see her German Shepherd
grab my tiny Yorkie out of my hands.

We'll just get along
and live peacefully. [laughs]

You know, hopefully,
we could go back to normal.

You know, before the incident
happened, we were actually...

her mom would bring us cookies.
So we hope to be back to the same.

The fact that a person says that they need
something to emotionally support them,

-other than pills...
-Mhm. [chuckles]

[Judy] ...doesn't suggest
that the animal has been trained...

-Sure. Sure.
-[Judy] ...as an emotional support animal.

Not the same as a service dog,
which has very rigid...

-[Judy] Right, which is bred,
-Mhm.

-For that purpose.
-For that purpose.

-Sometimes three years goes into training.
-[Judy] Trained for that purpose.

And so, you know, if a service dog,
because you are unsighted,

or for any other reason,
is with you in a restaurant,

that that dog is gonna be a safe dog,

-around your children...
-And you know it is safe, mhm.

...or around the elderly,
who may be unsteady.

But somehow these
emotional support animals

have followed in the line
of the service dog

but without all the same requirements.

So as we've seen, you know,
you don't know what you're getting.

My problem is really a bigger one,
because service dogs, you know,

are a wonderful asset for people
who have legitimate deficiencies,

-and have to rely on an animal every day.
-Sure.

And when people started
to abuse those privileges,

"Well, I like to take
my dog on the plane.

Can't take my dog on the plane
unless it's a service dog."

Well, then a whole business
crops up on the internet.

She's full of baloney when she said
she didn't pay any money.

Nobody ever sees the dog.

Nobody ever sees you except
maybe on a Zoom for two minutes.

-Sure.
-[Judy] And then writes a letter to those...

Whatever governmental
agency where you live

gives you a license as an
emotional support animal,

and ergo, you can take your dog, this
German Shepherd who almost ate a Yorkie,

-on a plane and sit next to you.
-Yeah.

I wouldn't sit next to it, but it could
sit next to some unsuspecting person.

Sure.

And the dog has
a propensity to be vicious.

And that's because people
do the wrong thing.

A law that was enacted
and on the books to help people,

there are always bad people who will
twist and turn a well-intentioned law

-to suit their own selfish purposes.
-And they don't care about the rest of us.

They don't care about the rest of us,
so you gotta build more jails.

-[hums]
-[Judy] That's the answer.

[announcer] Are you a victim of a scam?


[theme music]