Former KCOH radio host Michael Harris is suing station president, local minister Jesse Dunn, and the South Houston Community Development Corporation (doing business as KCOH 1230 AM), for fraud in a civil lawsuit filed October 7, 2013 in Harris County District Court.
Former KCOH radio host Michael Harris is suing station president, local minister Jesse Dunn, and the South Houston Community Development Corporation (doing business as KCOH 1230 AM), for fraud in a civil lawsuit filed October 7, 2013 in Harris County District Court.
Former KCOH radio host Michael Harris is suing station president, local minister Jesse Dunn, and the South Houston Community Development Corporation (doing business as KCOH 1230 AM), for fraud in a civil lawsuit filed October 7, 2013 in Harris County District Court.
JESSE DUNN; and SOUTH HOUSTON COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION.
Defendants.
IN THE DISTRICT COURT
_____JUDICIAL DISTRICT
HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS
PLAINTIFFS ORIGINAL PETITION
TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE OF SAID COURT: COMES NOW Plaintiff Michael Harris and would respectfully show the following: DISCOVERY LEVEL Plaintiff requests the Court enter a discovery control plan and recognize this case as proceeding under a Level II discovery control plan pursuant to TEX. R. CIV. P. 190. PARTIES Plaintiff Michael Harris is an individual residing in Harris County, Texas. Defendant Jesse R. Dunn is an individual residing Harris County and may be served at 301 York Street, South Houston Texas 77587, or wherever he may be found. Defendant The South Houston Community Development Corporation, Inc. is a Texas corporation d/b/a KCOH 1230 AM with its principal place of business at 301 York Street, South Houston Texas 77587. SHCDC may be served by serving its registered agent Jesse R. Dunn Jr. at 301 York Street, South Houston Texas 77587, or wherever he may be found. JURISDICTION AND VENUE This Court has jurisdiction because Plaintiff brings suit for an amount in excess of the Filed 13 October 7 P5:46 Chris Daniel - District Clerk Harris County ED101J017757078 By: Nelson Cuero 2013-60087 / Court: 080
- 2 - minimum jurisdictional requirements and the Defendants are domiciled in Harris, County, Texas. Further, venue is proper in Harris County, Texas because all or a substantial part of the events or omissions giving rise to this lawsuit occurred in Harris County. All conditions precedent to bringing the claims asserted herein have occurred and/or have been waived by the Defendants. NOTICE FACTS KCOH is known as the oldest black radio station in Texas, arguably in the southern United States. The station is located within the heart of Third Ward of Houston and has been a constant presence in the community since 1953 went it launched as KCOH 1430 AM. Plaintiff Michael Harris has been a radio personality with KCOH and a voice for the Houston African American community for over 38 years. KCOH, Inc. is the entity that owns and controls the assets of the KCOH radio station. In the beginning of 2013, KCOH, Inc. completed the sale of KCOH 1430 AM and the company leased the remaining assets including the legacy call letters KCOH to Defendants Jesse Dunn and SHCDC to re-launch the African American programming under KCOH 1230AM. At all material time, Dunn served and continues to serve as President of SHCDC. Plaintiff was employed by SHCDC d/b/a as KCOH 1230AM and was ecstatic about Dunns persistence in re-launching the station and wanted to help in any way he could to make sure the station would continue to be a voice for the black community. In or around May 2013, at Dunns request, the Plaintiff, the VP and Operations Manager, signed as guarantor for a Line of Credit (LOC) in amount of roughly $30,000.00. Dunn represented to Plaintiff that he was waiting on funds from the sale of real estate that he owned and the LOC would be used only for KCOH payroll in the event the real estate sale did not close in a timely fashion. Relying on Dunns representations, Plaintiff, over the next two months, signed an additional LOC for
- 3 - $100,000.00 and signed on as guarantor for approximately $38,000.00 in station equipment. Dunn represented to Plaintiff the additional LOC would only be used to pay for the signal lease of the 1230AM signal. Dunn also stated he would not take a salary. In total, Plaintiff entered into three agreements for roughly $170,000.00 based upon Defendant Dunns representations. On or about September 24, 2013, Plaintiff was contacted by a Frost bank representative due to outrageous and irregular account expenditures that were repeatedly made at casinos totaling approximately $30,000.00. In his discussions with the bank, Plaintiff discovered that Dunn used the funds for gambling in various casinos in Louisiana and Las Vegas, to pay his church band members, his mortuary business and other miscellaneous expenditures totaling approximately $100,000.00. In fact, based upon a recent televised news interviews with KHOU 11 news reporter Rucks Russell, Dunn admitted that he used the money to gamble at casinos and for his own personal gain, but wittingly claimed that the money belonged to him to do what he pleased because he owns the company. Indeed, in a three month period between June and August 2013, thousands of dollars in loans that Plaintiff secured for the operation of the station were stolen and misused by the Defendant for his personal benefit. More importantly, in a matter of three months Defendant Dunn has severely tainted the legacy of an institution that has been in the Houston black community for over 60 years and has ended the dignified career that Plaintiff has enjoyed with KCOH for over 38 years. CAUSES OF ACTION The foregoing allegations are incorporated herein by reference for all purposes as though set forth verbatim in support of the following causes of action: PIERCE THE CORPORATE VEIL, ALTER EGO, AND JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY
- 4 - Plaintiff asserts that actions of the Defendants are the proximate cause of Plaintiffs injuries and Plaintiff brings suit against them under alter ego and seeks to pierce the corporate veil. Based upon the facts set forth herein, Plaintiff asserts that at all material time Defendant Dunn used SHCDC as his personal corporation to perpetuate fraud upon the Plaintiff and possibly others. FRAUD AND FRAUDULENT INDUCEMENT Plaintiff brings this action asserting the claims of fraud and fraudulent inducement against the Defendants. The Defendants have defrauded the Plaintiff based upon representations that were false and were known to be false and/or made recklessly as a positive assertion and without knowledge of its truth by the Defendants at the time that the representations were made to the Plaintiff. The Defendants made the misrepsentations with the specific intent that Plaintiff would act upon it to Plaintiffs detriment. EXEMPLARY DAMAGES Further, the Defendants conduct was of such a wanton, willful and extreme nature and/or constitutes fraud to such a degree that Plaintiffs are entitled to exemplary damages in this cause.
REQUEST FOR DISCLOSURE Under Texas Rules of Civil Procedure 194, Plaintiff requests that Defendants disclose, within 50 days of the service of this Request, the information and/or material described in Rule 194.2. PRAYER WHEREFORE, Plaintiff requests the Defendants be cited to appear and upon a trial by a jury, and judgment is entered in Plaintiffs favor in at least the following particulars:
- 5 - 1) actual damages within the jurisdictional limits of this Court, and any and all pecuniary damages and losses suffered by Plaintiff;
2) all special or consequential damages as allowed by law; 3) damages to Plaintiffs credit; 4) any and all nominal damages; 5) exemplary damages as awarded by the jury or allowed by law; 6) pre and post-judgment interest at the highest rate allowed by law; 7) attorneys fees and all costs of court in any and all appeals of this action; and
8) such other relief, general and special, legal and equitable to which Plaintiffs complained of herein and that he may be justly entitled.
Respectfully submitted,
/s/ Darrell Jordan________ Darrell Jordan 1305 Prairie Street Suite 200 Houston, Texas 77002 SBN 24053880 713-296-9422 Direct 866-233-4036 Fax Darrell.Jordan@Texasjd.com
_________________________ Robert N. Collier 12 Greenway Plaza, Suite 1100 Houston, Texas 77046 SBN 24049406 713-446-2923 Direct 832-426-5798 Fax bob.n.collier@gmail.com
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