You may be seated. Hello, Your Honor. Hello.
This is the case of Casey v. Hatfill. Thank you, Jerome.
Good day, everyone. AUDIENCE: Good day. Mr.
Casey. . .
You've been married to the defendant for less than a year. Due to your husband's trust issues, you're worried you won't make it to your one-year anniversary if you don't prove he is the biological father of your son, Jacob Hatfill. Is that correct?
CASEY: Yes, Your Honor. JUDGE LAKE: Mr Hatfill. You say, sleeping with the babysitter landed you in a marriage with someone you don't trust.
Is that correct? Yes, Your Honor. Mr Hatfill, did you have a good relationship before the marriage?
HATFILL: Yeah. Did you have trust issues then? HATFILL: Right about the time that we were finding out that she was pregnant.
JUDGE LAKE: That's supposed to be a happy time. What happened? She hadn't told me she'd quit taking her birth control or anything yet.
We were talking about planning for the future. . .
JUDGE LAKE: Okay. And of possible children in the future, not immediately at that moment. So you have trust issues.
HATFILL: Yes. But at one time, this relationship was a happy one. CASEY: Yes.
Yes, Your Honor. Mr. Casey.
. . Take me back to that time.
I had started babysitting for his family. I saw him, you know, thinking he was a cute guy. And we started chit-chatting.
And he had said they had told me the rules. It was, you know, no running in and out of the house 'cause it was hot that day. The air conditioner was on.
Make sure the kids don't go in and out of the house, and no sleeping with the babysitter on duty. (AUDIENCE LAUGHS) Really? I thought it was love at first sight.
JUDGE LAKE: And so you instantly fell for him? Yes. I've been the side lady and now I'm the main one.
We're married. And I want this to be a happily-ever-after with my little family. And so, Mr Hatfill, you slept with the babysitter.
(AUDIENCE LAUGHS) Broke the rules. But it was after hours. It wasn't during the time she'd been babysitting or anything like that.
JUDGE LAKE: It wasn't? HATFILL: No. And me and Andrea proceeded to talk from that moment on.
So you started dating. Yes. How did you get to a place where you thought she actually had slept with someone and Jacob may not be your biological son?
By coming across text messages in her phone. JUDGE LAKE: Oh. .
. (AUDIENCE GROANS) I have. .
. JUDGE LAKE: You've brought some to court? Brought some to court.
Jerome, may I see that evidence, please? JUDGE LAKE: Thank you. JEROME: You're welcome.
They would be to Ms. Casey from somebody she was with prior to me. And so these text messages read.
. . (JUDGE LAKE READING) They're all questions, with no.
. . Responses.
At the time, she's your wife? Before. And right before she got pregnant.
This was right after she was pregnant. (AUDIENCE EXCLAIMS) JUDGE LAKE: Okay. What it signaled to you was, if this was going on right after she got pregnant, was it going on right before.
Exactly. Ms. Casey, you remember these text messages?
You recognize them? Sort of, kinda, yes. So, who could it be, sort of kind of?
This guy had messaged me, asked me to be his mistress whenever he got married. I had told him flat out, "No. " When did that start?
It had happened after we had gotten pregnant. He was messaging me asking me to hook up. I kept telling him, "No.
" I kept telling Mr Hatfill about these messages. Was she honest, Mr Hatfill, about the fact that this ex was reaching out, asking her to be his mistress? After it was brought up to me, yes, she was honest.
But I still felt like there was a missing side of the conversation. JUDGE LAKE: And this was a guy she was intimate with in the past. Am I correct?
HATFILL: Yes. When he sent these text messages, you did not respond. Correct.
And so, Mr Hatfill, do you believe she did not respond? HATFILL: No. I was currently staying at her parents' house and I was sitting in the garage with one of her family members when the guy in question had come in the back door and knocked on our bedroom door.
(AUDIENCE EXCLAIMS) He was looking for the family member. But I felt like he was looking for Ms. Casey because the supposed person he was looking for was sitting in the garage with me.
Oh. . .
HATFILL: When the door come open and he realized that I was sitting in the garage, is when he spun around and grabbed the supposed person he was looking for and his current girlfriend, and turned around and left. He also had made an appearance later on that evening when he had brought them back, knocking on the door while me and her were lying down on the bed at about 12:30, 1:00 in the morning. What?
So that tells me that there's something more than just these mysterious text messages. Ms. Casey.
. . Who in their right mind knocks on somebody's door at 12:30, 1:00 in the morning, period, much less, a woman they used to sleep with, unless they're interested in sleeping with her again, and looking for her?
He was looking to take my family member's girlfriend at the time home. HATFILL: Not at 12:30, 1:00 in the morning when he come by, it was your name he was saying. I didn't hear that.
JUDGE LAKE: Wait a minute. I was asleep. You said when he was knocking on the door he was saying Ms.
Casey's name? Yes. But you're not pulling the part to where you cheated, and you had other girls messaging you while I was still in bed with you.
We were sleeping. . .
Right. We were supposed to be sleeping and you were sending nude pictures to another girl. I haven't said any of that because all of this doubt that's here, that's causing the problem in our relationship.
. . There's a whole reason.
. . .
. . before we even conceived Jacob.
You were still sending naked pictures to other females. And females were sending the same pictures to you. Now we're getting to the meat of this.
Okay? Because I couldn't understand how a perfectly happy couple. .
. It was love at first sight. "Don't sleep with the babysitter, but I did.
"But it worked out. "And we're so happy. " And then all of a sudden, change the channel.
And we got trust issues out the wazoo. So let's be honest. And that's why we're here.
Mr. Casey, did you have revenge sex with this man to get back at him because you thought he was having sex with his ex? No.
I have never once cheated on him in the three years. So why is it when we saw those text messages we don't see a text that comes after that, that goes, "Stop texting me. I'm married"?
Because he had blocked me on Facebook. I had blocked him. He blocked me.
JUDGE LAKE: How are you gonna block somebody and you're waiting for them to respond to see if you can come over and have sex with them? That doesn't make good sense. Because his girlfriend had found the messages.
So she was looking at him and then at that point, he realized it and blocked it. Yes. This is so messy.
You're saying Jacob doesn't look like you. HATFILL: No, he don't. CASEY: He does.
I'm fair-skinned. It doesn't have to be the dad's. .
. He doesn't have to be. Like, if you want to.
. . JUDGE LAKE: What color of hair does this other guy have since you say it doesn't look like you?
CASEY: Brown hair. When he was younger, it was sandy strawberry blond. Now it's a little bit more brown during more time he spends in the sun.
Now, my father and me share dark hair, dark complexion all the way through. I've passed those genes down on into my oldest son and he looks exactly like me, exactly like my father. But it doesn't matter, because he could have both sides of the family.
He could be a strawberry blond and blue eyes. HATFILL: I want him to be my child. I signed the birth certificate, I was there when he was born, I'm not denying him one bit.
The reason why we're here today. . .
CASEY: Your family is bring this up. There's text messages from your family saying, "Oh, you might as well go find Jacob's dad because you're not him. " Was that a conversation between me and them?
No, it wasn't. It was, though. The conversation was between you and them.
But they're denying him that he's yours. You've denied him when he was two weeks old that he was not yours. Two weeks old!
JUDGE LAKE: So, Ms. Casey, after you had the baby, just two weeks later, he started to deny? CASEY: Yes.
Yes, because he came out with the blond hair and the blue eyes. And you're also receiving pressure in text from his family, indicating. .
. CASEY: Yes. .
. . that they don't believe.
. . Like, it makes me feel like I'm just a tramp or whatever, that I just open my legs for anybody.
I don't. I've been faithful to this man for three years. (TEARFULLY) I want my family to be whole.
I don't want it to be broken up. AUDIENCE: Oh. .
. I understand. I hope I'm wrong with all.
. . JUDGE LAKE: Well, you are doubting him.
I have doubts in everything to do with it. I need to be sure, so I know how to take care at this point. And these doubts started to occur during her pregnancy?
HATFILL: Yes. And so throughout the pregnancy, you had doubts? Once I started having doubts, it came to a point where a month or two later, I'd basically broken off with her.
I stepped away from the relationship, I sent her back to her mom and dad. But he never fully told me we were split up. HATFILL: Yes, I did.
He told me he loved me, and we were still together, he cannot wait to see me, and everything else. So we weren't fully. .
. He would come to see me. I would.
Because you were pregnant. But you told me you loved me. We still.
. . And I do love you.
. . We still had sexual contact when you were with another female, though.
Just 'cause I was staying there, don't mean I was sleeping with her at the time. That was a place to stay. But she said that you guys were.
And you were still sleeping in the same bed with her. HATFILL: And again. .
. JUDGE LAKE: This was during the marriage? CASEY: No, this was during whenever I was first pregnant.
So did the guy that these text messages and everything else were from. He said he was sleeping with you during the time. I told you a million times, I never once cheated.
I've been faithful to you for three years. Mr Hatfill, you said there's also medical reasons why you believe you're not Jacob's biological father. Jacob has one kidney.
He's had to have surgery, he has to see a urologist every six months to once a year now. I've been there every step of the way, from birth to now with the boy. .
. And I can see that makes you emotional, when you talk about him. I just want to be able to take care of him the best as possible and get everything between me and her better, because to take care of him and his brother the best that we can, we cannot have this back-and-forth.
It's bad for the kids, it teaches them bad habits. It gets them yelling and screaming at people and then they feel the tension, and they don't want to mind or listen. We got to get this under wraps now, before it gets any further out of control or we're gonna have to step back from each other.
I just wanna know what we need to know, for Jacob. And I know it hurts you, I can see that. You bring this baby.
. . You helped bring this child into the world.
You say you've been with them every step of the way. Every step of the way. I missed one sonogram.
During the time of all this, the doubt and everything taking place, I was getting up at 4:30, 5:00 in the morning. I'd be at work by 6:00 after an hour drive. I'd work 10 to 15 hours a day and then come back home and then this is what I get.
And you believe, Mr Hatfill, that this is further proof that you are not Jacob's biological father? Explain to the court why you believe that. I don't know anybody in my immediate family, let alone in my family tree that has any of the same issues.
But it doesn't matter if it's hereditary. The doctor said it can be hereditary. It could, but then it could not.
HATFILL: Doctor also said that it's more likely hereditary on one side or the other, if it doesn't fall with the Down syndrome gene, and Jacob clearly does not. JUDGE LAKE: We have an expert here because I am very interested in hearing more about birth defects on this particular issue of being born with one kidney and how that potentially relates to paternity. So the court would like to call Dr Tosha Rogers to the courtroom.
Jerome, will you please escort her in? Sure. JEROME: Go up to the witness stand next to the judge.
Okay. Watch your step, come on up. DR.
ROGERS: Okay. Hi, Doctor. How are you?
Thank you so much for joining us today. We are here discussing paternity of a beautiful little 12-month-old boy, Jacob. He was born with a medical issue, having one kidney.
DR. ROGERS: Okay. And our potential dad, Mr Hatfill, he's confused as to whether or not this is hereditary.
First thing I want to ask you is what's the difference between birth defects and genetic defects? A birth defect is a random error of a conception that has no genetic basis at all. A genetic defect is when the chromosomes of mom and dad come together and something happens.
JUDGE LAKE: Understood. And so, if a child is born with one kidney, could this defect be considered hereditary and if yes, what's the likelihood that it's inherited? Okay.
When we talk about having one kidney or renal agenesis, it is what we call "multi-factorial," meaning, it is multiple reasons. So we're not exactly sure why. It can be environmental.
Is mom on a medication, has she been exposed to some toxins? Lifestyle, obesity, drug use, alcohol use. Or very rarely, is it genetic?
And that's if there's a mutation. So even if it is genetic, dad could simply be, or mom, could simply be a carrier. Meaning, they could have both kidneys, but just carry the gene.
And here, I believe Mr Hatfill testified that Jacob does not have any such mutation. Is that correct? Correct.
And so given that fact, how does this relate to the possibility that this could affect his doubt concerning his paternity? The genetics of it is minimal. We give minimal weight to genetics in it.
So it's no way of saying that he's his or not based on that. JUDGE LAKE: So the fact that he really has had these sleepless nights thinking, "This child was born with one kidney, "I wasn't born with one kidney, "no one in my family. .
. " That really has no true basis. DR.
ROGERS: No. And yet if somehow they missed this mutation, then it could possibly be a genetic issue? It could be.
Yes. JUDGE LAKE: All right. So the question is will this marriage survive.
. . HATFILL: I hope.
. . .
if he is not your biological child? There is gonna be a serious step back in the marriage. 'Cause this foundation is feeling very faulty right now.
That's the way it's felt to me for a long time. JUDGE LAKE: I mean, even the energy between the two of you standing before me. .
. You would have to tell me you married. No, I would not know.
The stakes are very high today. Yes, they are. But I'm very thankful that we have answers for you.
Jerome, I'm ready for the results. There you go. These results were prepared by DNA Diagnostics and they read as follows.
In the case of Casey v. Hatfill, when it comes to one-year-old Jacob Hatfill, it has been determined by this court. .
. Mr Hatfill, you. .
. Are the father. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) I'm sorry.
Actually, I'm relieved, to tell you the truth. You know, you all know I don't know these results, okay? I was like, "Lord, come on.
" HATFILL: You? It's my birthday. JUDGE LAKE: It is?
Well, what a blessing. Really, truly. What a blessing.
And I can see it meant something to you. I could almost feel your breath stop as I was reading the results, and then when I read it, I could hear that sigh of relief. And it's a beautiful thing to get the truth.
And I'm happy for you both. Because at the end of the day, the genesis of this was something beautiful. And then we let trust issues affect the foundation of this family.
And ultimately, it affected the way in which we view this beautiful, innocent child. And I can see that affects you. Because you knew it was affecting.
Mmm-hmm. And just as you so eloquently stated, everything that goes on in that house, they understand, they can feel the intention behind the words. So I'm so happy we got this truth today, so you all know.
Thank you, Doctor, for giving us that insight. But more importantly, it's in time to focus on him. Because whatever that challenge may bring, he's gonna need his parents to help navigate if there should be issues that arise.
HATFILL: Yeah. So he's gonna need both of you. We have counseling and resources for you.
I want you to take advantage of it and figure out how to get this marriage and this family back on a healthy track. I wish you all the very best of luck. Court is adjourned.
