East Ridge Municipal Court Judge J. Cris Helton has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy relief.
According to a 46-page petition filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee on April 27, Helton claims assets of $480, 648 with liabilities of $724, 540.
The petition shows that his monthly income of $11,800 is surpassed by his monthly expenses of $12, 800. The petition, filed on behalf of Helton by attorney Thomas Bible, claims that Helton owns property at 801 Harris Lane, valued at $467,100 and a 2014 Nissan Pathfinder valued at $16,287. Per the petition, his checking account balance as of the date of filing with the court was less than $2,000 and he had on hand $223 cash.
The petition shows that Helton’s year-to-date income was $47,474. Last year he claimed an income of $110,000 and in 2015 his income was $75,400.
Among his creditors listed for secured claims are First Tennessee Bank, $43,175, for a mortgage on his Harris Lane house; Centralized Insolvency Operation for a judgement lien of $400,000 on an IRS lawsuit; Nationstar Mortgage of $162,243 on another mortgage on the Harris Lane property and Wells Fargo Dealer Services for $22,200 for his vehicle.
Unsecured creditors include his ex-wife, City Councilwoman Esther Helton, for an unknown amount for “spousal support obligations.” The document states that Cris Helton is paying his ex-wife $4,000 a month in alimony. Other unsecured debts are more than $4,000 to Capital One for credit card debt and more than $94,000 for a student loan.
Helton was elected Municipal Judge in 2014, defeating long-time incumbent Arvin Reingold. Helton and his wife divorced in July 2016. Both Mr. and Mrs. Helton were named in a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Attorney on behalf of the Internal Revenue Service in February, claiming that Mr. Helton owed more than $400,000 in back taxes associated with his law firm. Mrs. Helton was dismissed from this lawsuit last month.
Judge Helton declined to comment for this story.
Read the entire petition for bankruptcy
