GRAND HAVEN (WWJ) -- In late 2020, Federal Judge Paul Maloney ruled that a Michigan man would be able to receive compensation after suing his parents for destroying his extensive pornography collection.
Now, the fight continues over exactly how much that collection was worth.
According to The Detroit News, David Werking moved in with his parents Paul and Beth Werking in 2016 after splitting from his wife…and brought with him around 2,000 adult entertainment DVDs and VHS tapes, as well as dozens of sex toys and paraphernalia.
The Grand Haven parents had struggled over their son’s history with pornography in the past, and stipulated that it wouldn’t be allowed in their household if he were to live with them.
After staying with his parents for 10 months, an argument broke out between the family and David was asked to leave at the “request of local law enforcement,” according to the Holland Sentinel.
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When Paul and Beth Werking dropped off David’s possessions several months later, he noticed his porn collection was missing, and questioned his parents about its whereabouts.
It was at that point that Paul Werking told his son in an email exchange that they’d discovered the collection and disposed of it.
"Frankly, David, I did you a big favor by getting rid of all this stuff for you," Paul wrote in one email.
In 2019, Werking sued his parents in U.S. District Court in Kalamazoo for destruction of property. He estimated that his collection worth nearly $29,000, stating many items were irreplaceable.
Back in December, Judge Maloney ruled in favor of David Werking (now 42), after investigations showed that none of his material was illegal in nature.
As the two parties continue to battle it out over compensation, Beth Werking expressed to The Detroit News that she feels she’s lost a lot more than a lawsuit.
“We love our son,” she said. “As you can imagine, it was extremely difficult. We’re still struggling with the grief over that.”