How Tisha Campbell And Her Ex Duane Martin Landed In Legal Trouble
It's no secret that "Martin" star Tisha Campbell and her former husband Duane Martin went through some tough times together, prior to their divorce — but just what did they do to get in trouble with the law?
When Campbell revealed via Twitter that she and Martin were divorcing back in February 2018, the former couple had been together for well over 20 years. At the time, a source close to the couple told People that their financial woes had likely played a role in their split — and, as the proceedings went on, that certainly seemed to be so. However, this wasn't merely a case of a couple falling on hard times. Far from it, early on in the divorce, the former lovebirds were forced to look back into an allegation leveled against them back in 2016. During their bankruptcy filing, they were accused of hiding assets from the authorities.
Per The Blast, in response, Martin acknowledged that much of the confusion came down to his own accounting mistakes and that things had only become harder to keep track of, post-split. Initially, Campbell backed that up. However, in June 2018, she switched gears. As TMZ revealed at the time, Campbell accused her ex of hiding the money not only from the authorities but her as well — and of doing so willingly.
Obviously, there's a ton to unpack — but what more do we know about the bankruptcy filing that started it all, and would continue to affect them for years?
It all started during the mortgage crisis
According to TMZ, sometime in the 2000s, Tisha Campbell and Duane Martin took out a home loan with Aurora Bank. Prior to paying off the more than $700,000 they owed on that loan, though, they took out another one with City National Bank in 2008. This time, the loan was for $625,000 ... and then the housing market crashed.
As noted by the outlet, the couple struggled to pay back either loan and ultimately, the home they'd purchased was auctioned off in 2012. That covered the Aurora Bank loan and part of City National Bank's portion, but there was still a shortfall — and the then-couple was sued for $400,000. Years later, Campbell and Martin were still having a hard time paying it all back. That led to them filing for bankruptcy in early 2016. At the time, the pair issued a statement explaining the situation. "We got involved with some loans before the crash [and] couldn't agree to a settlement with the banks, so we filed to reorganize," they said (via E! News).
They weren't out of the woods just yet, though. Enter, the aforementioned allegations of hiding assets. Soon after announcing their filing, Daily Mail reported that the appointed bankruptcy trustee believed Campbell and Martin had opened another company through which Campbell would be paid for "Dr. Ken," and that some of her payments were being mysteriously withheld by her agency. Enter, Part Two of the legal drama ...
...and Tisha would later accuse Duane of shady dealings
Despite the trustee's concerns, in November 2016, Bossip reported that the presiding judge had discharged the bulk of Duane Martin and Tisha Campbell's debts. However, at least for Martin, the excitement was short-lived.
Around 18 months after their clean slate ruling, and in the midst of their divorce, the bankruptcy trustee again accused the co-parents of hiding money — and soon after, Campbell suggested that there was truth in that. According to sources who spoke with TMZ, Campbell had become aware of the fact that Martin had multiple streams of income she knew nothing about, and initially attempted to get him to own up to it. However, she ultimately felt she had a duty to expose what she knew, in the hopes she might, "Avoid jail." According to the outlet, Campbell also requested spousal support, given her ex was significantly better off than he'd led on.
Luckily for Martin, after a fraud case that even saw him reimburse friend Will Smith the $1.5 million he'd used to buy a house (one of the aforementioned hidden assets) (via The Blast), jail wasn't an issue. And, after all was said and done, per Page Six, neither party was entitled to spousal support. Here's hoping from this point onward, these exes' drama is limited to the screen.