"TIKTOK HOMEWRECKER ORDERED TO PAY $1.75M, MELODEE'S MOM FREED & MEGAN THEE STALLION SHOOTER STAYS LOCKED UP"

0:03 Callaroga Shark Media, good morning, I'm reed Carter Friday, November fourteenth, twenty twenty five. Three legal updates today that show the range of American justice, from social media drama to missing children to celebrity shootings. North Carolina jury just awarded Akira Montague one point seventy five million dollars after TikTok influencer Brene Kennard three million followers had an affair with Akira's husband. North Carolina is one of only six states that still allows alienation of affection lawsuits. Basically, you can sue the person who stole your spouse. The trial was wild. Kennard represented herself, cross examined, Akira on the stand, asked about her miscarriage, gallery gasped husband Tim showed up to court with a gun. On November fifth, got a jury deliberated two hours, one point seventy five million dollars pay up.

1:06 Missouri judge ordered Brandy Harmon released from jail yesterday. She'd been held in contempt for refusing to answer questions about her missing four year old daughter, Melody. Buzzard. Judge found she finally purged her contempt by answering questions at a November seventh hearing released on ten thousand dollars bond, but she still faces criminal charges for child neglect and obstruction, and Melody is still missing. No body, just blood on mom's shoes. And California and Appeals Court denied Tory lane As his petition challenging his conviction for shooting Megan d Stallion. He's serving ten years. He shot her in both feet after an argument leaving Kylie Jenner's party in July twenty twenty.

1:50 The defense argued judicial errors. The court said, no conviction stands, sentence stands. Lanez stays locked up. Today, when social media influencers destroy families, when mothers finally talk, and when celebrity shooters stay where they belong, this is celebrity trials. Let's start in North Carolina, Greensboro, Guilford County Superior Court, Civil trial Akira Montague versus Brene Kennard. This is a lawsuit most Americans didn't know you could file alienation of affection and criminal conversation. Sounds like something from the eighteen hundreds because it basically is. North Carolina is one of only six states, along with Hawaii, Mississippi, New Mexico, South Dakota and Utah that still allows these lawsuits. The concept if someone has an affair with your spouse and ruins your marriage, you can sue them for damages. Alienation of affection means the third party destroyed a previously happy marriage. Criminal conversation is the legal term for having sex with someone else's spouse. Yes, criminal conversation means adultery. Welcome to archaic legal terminology. Most states abolished these laws decades ago, called them antiquated, unenforceable, bad policy, but six states kept them and North Carolina

3:21 juries have awarded millions in these cases. Enter Brenee Kennard twenty nine years old, TikTok influencer three million followers, about two hundred and seventy five thousand on Instagram. Lifestyle content creator posts about fashion relationships. Daily Life makes money from social media lives. The influencer dream and Akira Montague married Tim Montague in twenty eighteen. Two Children Together. Lawsuit described their marriage as happy and loving with genuine love and affection. Your standard American family, working, raising kids, build holding a life.

4:01 Tim Montague worked as a sales manager for Brene Kennard, so Kennard was his boss and she was close friends with Akira. The two women confided in each other about their respective marriages, talked about relationship problems, shared personal details best friends. Here's where it gets messy. Kennard's husband and Tim Montague were cousins, so this wasn't just friends and co workers. This was extended family. Kennard would stay at the Montague home when visiting sleepovers, family dinners integrated into their lives. According to Akira's lawsuit, that's when Kennard began to seduce Tim. The complaint describes Kennard wearing very short skirts while bending over in front of him intentional calculated testing boundaries. December twenty twenty three. The lawsuit claims Kennard and Tim first had sex in the Montague's home while Akira was there. Let me read you the exact language from the complaint. Was seen twerking and shaking her bottom on plaintiff's husband and bathroom located in the marital home.

5:06 Twerking in the bathroom in Akira's house make it make sense. The affair escalated. Kennard and Tim developed a flirtatious relationship that they flaunted on social media. Because nothing says I respect your marriage. Quite like publicly flirting with your employee, your friend's husband on TikTok where three million people can watch. According to the lawsuit, Kennard and Tim would talk openly about how much they enjoyed having sex with each other, had intercourse when Akira was home sleeping. This is your best friend's husband, your employee, in her house while she's asleep down the hall with their children. Some people just can't be rehabilitated. Some people are just evil. Eventually, Tim Montague abandoned Akira and their two children, moved out, went to live with Brene. Kennard left his wife and kids for his boss, for his wife's best friend, for his cousin's wife. July twenty twenty four, Akira filed the lawsuit alienation of affection, criminal conversation, seeking damages for the destruction of her marriage, the emotional harm, the impact on her children, the betrayal. The trial was scheduled for early November twenty twenty five, and it became a circus. Brenee Kennard decided to represent herself, no attorney, just her cross examining witnesses, making legal arguments, presenting her own defense. Because when you have three million TikTok followers. You think you can do anything,

6:37 smart enough to build a social media empire, too stupid to hire a lawyer for a multimillion dollar lawsuit. The trial featured Cannard directly confronting Akira on the witness stand. Akira testified about the affair, about the betrayal, about finding out her best friend was sleeping with her husband, about her children, asking where Daddy went. Then Kennard cross examined her and went for the jugular. According to the Rally News and Observer's courtroom reporting, Kennard asked Akira about a miscarriage she'd suffered. That must have been painful for you, right. The gallery gasped audibly. Social media influencers who'd shown up to document the case couldn't believe what they were hearing Akira's response, Well, I wouldn't expect you to know since you don't have children. The judge had to remove the jury at one point scolded both women for editorializing, told them to stick to facts. Stop the commentary. This is a courtroom, not a TikTok video. Akira testified that having Kennard stay at her house made her so uncomfortable she quit school, that the situation destroyed her mental health, that she couldn't function knowing what had happened in her own home.

7:51 Kennard suggested Akira was wrongly blaming her for all her problems, that the marriage was already falling apart, that Akira was using the lawsuit as escape goat. Akira's response, I take accountability for allowing an intruder into my home. She described the impact on her family started crying on the stand. My children aren't the same. But in closing arguments, Kennard dismissed the entire case as a money grab. This was a marriage that had been falling apart for years. Classic defense in alienation of affection cases argue the marriage was already dead, that you didn't destroy anything, it was already destroyed.

8:33 That the plaintiff is just looking for someone to blame and someone to pay. Here's the problem with that argument. Even if the marriage had problems, you don't sleep with your friend's husband. You don't flaunt the affair on social media, you don't twerk on him in their bathroom, you don't have sex in their house while she's sleeping, and you definitely don't cross examine her about her miscarriage. During trial, the jury deliberated for nearly two hours, returned with a verdict guilty on both counts, alienation of affection, criminal conversation damages one point seventy five million dollars. Akira's supporters in the gallery erupted, chanting team Akira celebration. Justice served. Brenee Kennard now owes her former best friend one point seventy five million dollars for destroying her marriage. But wait, there's more.

9:26 November fifth, during the trial, Tim Montague, the husband at the center of all this, was arrested. Why he brought a gun to the courthouse? Your tax dollars at work? Man whose affair is being litigated decides to show up armed. Security found the weapon, arrested him, charged him with bringing a firearm into a government building. What was he planning to do? Shoot his wife, shoot his girlfriend, shoot the jury if they ruled against Kennard. We don't know, but bringing a gun to your wife's civil trial against your mistress is not the move. And and it gets better. This was technically a civil case, but everyone involved has criminal charges now. Tim Montague arrested for the gun Akira Montague found guilty of criminal contempt for violating a prior custody order. Unclear what that means, but she was held in contempt. At some point during the proceedings, Brene Kennard charged with cyber stalking, presumably against Akira using social media to harass her former friend. So the affair led to a one point seventy five million dollar verdict, a gun arrest, contempt charges, and cyber stalking charges, all because an influencer couldn't keep her hands off her employee. Now Kennard has to pay one point seventy five million dollars. Good luck earning that back through TikTok sponsorships. Maybe she can post a video Day in the life of someone who owes one point seventy five million dollars for sleeping with her best friend's husband. Get those engagement numbers up. Here's the

10:59 question should alienation of affection lawsuits exist? Arguments for marriage is a legal contract. If someone intentionally destroys that contract, they should face consequences. Affairs have real harm emotional, financial, familial victims deserve recourse arguments against. You can't legislate love. People fall for the wrong person, Marriages fail for complex reasons, not just because of affairs. Allowing these lawsuits turns divorce into a money making opportunity, opens the door for vindictive litigation. I'll tell you this, most states got rid of these laws because they're messy, hard to prove, turn courtrooms into he said, she said, drama about whose marriage was happy and whose wasn't. But in this case, Kennard admitted the affair, admitted having sex with Tim Montague. The only question was whether she alienated his affections from Akira, and the jury said yes, one point seventy five million dollars. Yes. Was the marriage perfect before the affair? Probably not, Most marriages aren't.

12:06 But Kennard didn't just sleep with Tim. She was Akira's best friend, stayed in their home, knew their children, had access to their lives, then betrayed all of it. That's not just an affair, that's calculated destruction of a family. Akira Montague will probably never collect the full one point seventy five million dollars. Kennard will appeal, will drag this out, We'll claim she doesn't have the money, will file bankruptcy, will do whatever influencers do when they can't pay their debts. But the verdict sends a message. Actions have consequences. You can't destroy families and walk away, even if you have three million followers. The real victims here are the two children who watch their father leave, who don't understand why daddy lives with mommy's friend now, who are growing up with parents at war and civil court, criminal court, and probably family court too. Those kids didn't ask for any of this. They just wanted a family. Instead, they got a TikTok drama that became a national news story. Make it make sense. We'll be right back with updates on Melody Buzzard's mother finally being released from jail after answering questions about her missing daughter, and Tory Lane is losing his appeal for shooting Megan they Stallion. Welcome back to celebrity trials. I'm reed Carter. Update from Missouri in the Melody Buzzard case. We've been covering this for months. Four

13:40 year old girl missing since July twenty twenty four. Mom Brandy Harmon, refusing to tell anyone where her daughter is held in contempt of court. Jailed still wouldn't talk. Yesterday, November thirteenth, Judge Joshua Dear ordered Harmon released from custody. Why Because on November seventh, she finally started answering questions. Judge found she had purged her contempt by providing information during a closed door hearing last week. Released on ten thousand dollars bond back out. No longer in jail for contempt, but she still faces criminal charges child neglect obstruction. Those charges move forward separately. The contempt release doesn't mean she's free, it means she's no longer being held for refusing to cooperate.

14:26 What did Harmon say in that November seventh hearing. We don't know. It was sealed family Court closed proceedings, but whatever she said was enough to convince Judge Dear she was finally cooperating. Here's what we know about the case. July twenty twenty four, Melody Buzzard disappeared four years old. Brandy Harmon is her mother. Melody also has a father, Tyler Buzzard, who's been fighting for custody and demanding answers. Harmon initially claimed Melody was with fans Emily, then changed her story, then refuse to answer questions, invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination, which tells you everything you need to know about what happened to Melody. If your daughter was alive and safe, you'd say where she is, you'd cooperate, you'd bring her home. You only invoke the fifth when answering would incriminate you in a crime. Investigators found blood evidence on Harmon's shoes. Testing confirmed it was consistent with being Melody's blood. No body found, but blood evidence suggests the worst. Tyler Buzzard, Melody's father, has been begging for answers, filed for custody, demanded Harmon beheld accountable.

15:43 The court agreed, held her in contempt when she refused to talk, jailed her until she cooperated. That was the legal pressure point. You can't just refuse to answer questions about a missing child. Courts have the power to hold you in contempt, jail you indefinitely until till you comply. Harmon stayed silent for months. Finally last week she answered something enough to purge the contempt, enough to get released. But Melody is still missing. No body recovered, no confirmation she's alive, no answers for her father or the public. This case has gone national. Social media obsessed with it, True crime communities demanding justice everyone asking the same question, where is Melody Buzzard and the only person who knows won't say. Harmon's release doesn't mean this is over. The criminal charges child neglect and obstruction are still pending. Prosecutors can still charge her with more serious crimes if evidence supports it, and if Melody's body is found, murder charges are on the table. But for now, Harmon is out on bond, awaiting trial on the existing charges, and Melody is still missing. Four years old should be starting kindergarten, learning to read, playing with friends. Instead, She's been missing for four months. Blood evidence suggests she's dead, and her mother won't say where she is. Some people just can't be rehabilitated. Some people are just evil. Melody Buzzard, four years old, deserves to be found, deserves a proper burial,

17:16 deserves justice, and her father deserves answers. Rest in peace, Melody, someone has to say your name. Quick update from California Court of Appeal just denied Tory Lane's his petition challenging his conviction for shooting Megan V. Stallion. Tory Lane's real name, Daystar Peterson is serving ten years in state prison. Convicted December twenty twenty two of three felonies, assault with a semi automatic firearm, possession of a concealed and unregistered firearm, and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. July twenty twenty, Lane's and Meghan were leaving a party at Kylie Jenner's house in the Hollywood Hills. Got into an argument in the car. Meghan got out started walking away. Lane shot her multiple times, hit her in both feet. She collapsed, bleeding, begging him to stop. Police arrived, found Meghan injured, found lane Is with a gun, arrested him. Megan initially didn't tell police what happened, Afraid, traumatized, eventually came forward, said Lane as shot her. Testified at trial about the shooting, about the pain, about the betrayal they'd been friends. Jury convicted Lane's on all counts August twenty twenty three. Sentenced to ten years, could have gotten up to twenty two years.

18:45 Judge gave him ten. Lane's attorneys immediately filed appeals. The main arguments judicial errors during trial, evidentiary issues, claimed the judge improperly admitted certain evidence, claimed the jury instruction were flawed, claimed Lane's didn't get a fair trial standard appeal arguments. Every convicted defendant claims judicial error. Sometimes they're right. Most of the time they're not. California Court of Appeal reviewed the case, examined the trial record, reviewed the evidence, checked the jury instructions. Looked for errors, found none significant enough to overturn the conviction. Yesterday denied Lana's petition. Conviction stands, sentence stands, he serves the full ten years. Lanez can still appeal to the California Supreme Court. Probably will, but the odds of them taking the case are slim. Appellate courts affirmed the conviction. No glaring errors, no miscarriage of justice, Just a man who shot a woman and got convicted.

19:49 Megan the Stallion testified about the shooting, about Lanez yelling dance bitch while firing at her feet, about the physical pain and emotional trauma, about people not believe leaving her, about the public ridicule she was telling the truth. The jury believed her. The judge sentenced him. The appellate court affirmed it, and Tory Lanez stays in prison good. He shot an unarmed woman in the feet, could have killed her, left her bleeding on the street, showed no remorse, denied it happened, tried to destroy her credibility. Ten years isn't enough, but it's something. Megan thy Stallion, thirty years old Grammy winning rapper, survived being shot by someone she considered a friend.

20:34 Spoke out despite public backlash, testified despite knowing she'd be attacked, got justice, and Tory Lanez learned that shooting people has consequences, even in America, even for celebrities, even when the victim is a successful black woman. The Internet loves to doubt. Justice isn't always fast, but it's always riveting. That's celebrity trials for Friday, November fourteenth, twenty twenty five, TikTok influencer Brenee Kennard ordered to pay one point seventy five million dollars for having an affair with her best friend's husband. North Carolina still allows alienation of affection lawsuits. Kennard represented herself, asked about the victim's miscarriage during cross examination, jury said pay up. Brandy Harmon released from jail after finally answering questions about missing four year old Melody Buzzard still faces criminal charges, Melodies still missing, and Tory Lane's appeal denied stays in prison for shooting Megan. They Stallion ten years justice served. I'm reed, Carter. Have a great weekend. This is celebrity trials.