TV's 'Judge Joe Brown' settles family dispute for Lodi woman

Margie Trevino took a whirlwind trip to Los Angeles last week to appear on the syndicated court show "Judge Joe Brown" in the hopes of settling a family dispute.

Trevino, a Lodi resident and owner of All American Barber Shop on Lodi Avenue, had filed a small claims lawsuit against her niece. The dispute arose after Trevino co-signed for a car loan for her niece, Somber Melendez.

Payments on the vehicle eventually stopped.

"I don't think she took me seriously," said Trevino. "She said, 'Oh, Auntie. I'd never do that.' But of course, she did."

Melendez also owns a barber shop in Lodi that was closed Monday. Repeated phone calls to Melendez's shop went unanswered.

It was one of Trevino's clients, who had appeared on "Judge Joe Brown," that suggested she contact the show.

Almost immediately, Trevino was faxing papers, filling out reports and preparing to travel to Hollywood.

Just days after being selected for the show, Trevino and Melendez were flown to Los Angeles on Jan. 23. They appeared in front of the judge the next day and were flown home, all within 24 hours. Trevino said the whole thing was almost a blur.

"The whole thing happened so fast," Trevino said. "We were in front of the judge for 20 minutes tops."

The usually bubbly and talkative Trevino said she was a "nervous wreck" while standing in front of the judge.

"It's all fine and easy when I'm here behind my chair cutting hair; that's my stage," she said. "But when I'm on someone else's stage, that's different. There are all these eyes peering and cameras everywhere, expecting you to be interesting."

The show provided both litigants with hotel rooms and meals, and each was given a $100 stipend for appearing on the show.

In the end, Trevino was awarded a $3,200 settlement, which the show also paid.

"I think that's the only reason why I could get (Melendez) to go on the show," Trevino said. "They paid for it."

The episode of "Judge Joe Brown" featuring Trevino and Melendez is scheduled to air in May, but the exact date is not yet determined.

Contact reporter Scott Kaul at scottk@lodinews.com.

Judge Joe Brown at a glance

• Born July 5, 1947, in Washington, D.C. and raised in Los Angeles.
• Earned law degree from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1973.
• Became first African-American prosecutor for the city of Memphis in 1978.
• Presided over the final appeal of James Earl Ray, convicted assassin of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1997.
• "Judge Joe Brown" syndicated show premiered by Paramount in 1998.
Source: judgejoebrown.com.

First published: Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Reader Feedback

Lodi girl wrote on Jan 31, 2007 10:22 PM:

" Margie Trevino is a very sweetheart person. She always likes to help others. I'm her friend and I know the case. Although Somber, that niece isn't a real niece, it's bad to act like that to a person who helped you! "

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nylodian wrote on Jan 31, 2007 7:27 AM:

" So the niece learned what lesson from this? Skip car payments and you get a trip to Hollywood? "

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stkngirl19 wrote on Jan 31, 2007 2:09 AM:

" How embarrassing. "

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caligirl wrote on Jan 30, 2007 10:29 PM:

" Did I read this right? The show paid the settlement, so that the niece doesn't have to pay? Most of the time you don't get paid if you win. No wonder Trevino wanted to go see Judge Joe Brown. "

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David D wrote on Jan 30, 2007 8:20 PM:

" Usually if you take your case to a TV show, you don't have to pay the fine that the judge decides. The TV studio covers it for you. Though, if the judge says to hand over property (ie car) or do community service or something, then you still gotta do it. "

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From the High Desert wrote on Jan 30, 2007 2:43 PM:

" Why couldn't you have settled it here? Why in Southern Cal? "

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Trevino should have... wrote on Jan 30, 2007 11:58 AM:

" also gotten custody of the car. "

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well duh wrote on Jan 30, 2007 9:50 AM:

" Hard leson to learn...NEVER co-sign a loan for anybody,including relatives. unless you don't mind paying for two cars. "

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