HOUSTON — A businessman settled a deed forgery lawsuit last month, but now the plaintiffs are questioning if he ever plans to pay.
The case stems from control of the Acres Homes house where Vanessa Voldbakken grew up, in Houston.
“I learned to walk in that house,” Voldbakken said. “I got taken home from the hospital to that house.”
After turning down Jerry Gurley’s proposal to purchase the house in 2019, she and her siblings found out that the deed had been transferred to a third party without their consent.
“Gurley forged my name, and I want him to pay for that,” Audrey Brooks said.
The siblings sued Gurley, and in April, they say he agreed to settle. A judge approved the settlement in May.
Court documents indicate that Gurley was ordered to compensate the family with $200,000 plus over $87,000 in interest, but they claim they have yet to receive any payment.
“There was a 30-day window for them to pay. Thirty days passed, and nothing came through. I heard nothing. I continuously tried contacting the opposing attorney,” the family’s attorney, Jacob Scholl, stated.
Gurley’s attorney, Chris Di Ferrante, told our sister station, ABC13 Eyewitness News in Houston, he wouldn’t comment on the settlement or the alleged lack of payment. He did rebuke Scholl for violating what he says was a non-disparagement and confidentiality clause.
The siblings are now calling for Gurley to be prosecuted. Houston police confirm the family filed a report for the alleged deed fraud Thursday, but said they were in the early stages of investigating it.
“It’s time for him to pay for that,” Brooks said.
“If he doesn’t have the money and he’s judgment-proof, then there’s nothing that can be done. But what should be done is this guy needs to be in jail,” Scholl said.
According to court records, the judgment will accrue interest at a rate of 7.5% each year until it’s paid.
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