ORLANDO — A legal fight has reached the end of the line between a Florida dominatrix and a former client who claimed she drained his bank account and credit cards of more than $500,000 and took over ownership of his townhouse.
Orange County, Fla., Judge Keith White recently ruled in favor of Goddess Jude, who was sued by client Alex Abrams, granting her motion to dismiss and paving the way for her to recoup legal costs of defending herself.
Abrams, in his suit, alleged that Goddess Jude should have been found liable for civil theft, unjust enrichment and conversion, as well of abuse, neglect and exploitation of elderly persons because he was above 60 years old when he first called on for her services.
Goddess Jude, however, maintained all along that the parties voluntarily exchanged gifts in their four-year relationship and that Abrams later wanted to use the court system to assist him in second guessing his financial decisions.
Goddess Jude describes herself on her website as a happy, playful, sadistic, kinky professional dominatrix based in Orlando. She enjoys spanking, flogging, whipping, bondage, shackles, nipple torture, cock-and-ball torture and use of electrical stimulation, among numerous other fetishes.
Abrams, now 70, met Goddess Jude about four years ago after divorcing his wife of 32 years. Upon meeting, she advised Abrams that it was of the highest honor to be her "financial slave," according to his lawsuit.
Abrams opened new joint financial accounts with Goddess Jude and made her an authorized user on his credit card accounts, the suit said. Later, Abrams transferred a Casselberry, Fla., townhouse worth $100,000 to her.
After an apparent change of heart and claims of dementia, Abrams sought to recoup all the material assets he had given her. He claimed in his suit that he was exploited.
In November, a judge made a ruling in the case — dismissing Abrams claims against Goddess Jude entirely — after Abrams and his attorney, who later withdrew from the case, failed to attend several depositions.
For Goddess Jude, the nightmare of facing repercussions — both legally and financially — due to her BDSM profession is over. (A court hearing has been scheduled over recovery of attorney’s fees and court-imposed sanctions has been set for March.)
The lawsuit filed, first filed in Seminole County and later moved to Orange County, for several years put a dark cloud over her life, where “all hell broke loose.”
She became the subject of a local TV news investigation after her neighbors claimed she was improperly running her dominatrix business out of a home in a residential area without a permit.
As a result of the news piece, Orlando's code enforcement division and Central Florida's vice squad launched their own investigations into Goddess Jude’s BDSM business.
“I saw the news on Channel 6, and so did my friends, coworkers and family who had no idea I was a dominatrix. I was mortified,” Goddess Jude told XBIZ. “After I lost my job, I was devastated. After I lost my house, I went numb.
“I’ve had over 100 articles written worldwide, radio interview requests and even Nancy Grace's show on CNN. I declined, as they would have eaten me alive.”
In an interview this week, Goddess Jude said that she was a “perfect scapegoat, as he used the BDSM lifestyle as a weapon.”
Goddess Jude said that all the time while together with Abrams, she took care of his bills and had access to his bank account. But things started to go south after she became involved in a romantic relationship with another man.
“Alex had a lot of resentment, anger and anxiety over this,” she said. “We ended the relationship, and I gave him all of his accounting and was removing myself from the bank account. Shortly thereafter Alex apologized and wanted back into the relationship.
Later, Abrams offered her one of his properties for the third time “and I finally said yes,” Goddess Jude said.
“We got back together but it was never the same. I was disappointed over many broken promises, and he was sexually frustrated.”
Several weeks later, Goddess Jude received a demand letter asking for $500,000 and the property he gave her.
“Alex knew perfectly well what he was doing, and I never stole a dime from him. I said that if he wants to take legal action and expose himself to his family and friends so be it. I guess that’s where my words were twisted by his counsel into, ‘I threated to tell his family and friends.’”
Now, with the case against Goddess Jude dismissed, and Abrams likely to face expenses for attorneys’ fees and sanctions for not showing up at scheduled hearings, the dominatrix has decided to offer some advice for those entering the findom space. Abrams could not be reached for comment on the case.
“First, I would say that I’ll never do it again,” Goddess Jude said. “After the news I had a lot of guys wanting to give me their money and property. No thank you.
“But for those who are not experienced as I was in the beginning at being a professional dominatrix, including a financial domme, I would suggest learning to qualify your submissive, spend plenty of time with an established mentor, get to know your local community, and have a safety course and a good lawyer.”
