The commercial for Wednesday’s episode of Judge Judy was enough to make curious onlookers tune in. But more than the man portraying his plaintiff’s behaviour on set, is the man himself. That’s right, in a classic case of he said/she said, Antigua’s own Dr. Noel Howell appeared on TV in the court of Judge Judy.

Defending himself against his contracted make-up artist Melissa Poncelet-Del-Sole, a member of the crew he flew in for the filming of his movie Redemption of Paradise, Dr. Howell explained that he fired her on the grounds of her “bizarre” behaviour obstructing filming and preventing her from fulfilling the terms of her contract.

Weaving quite the lovers’ tale, it is alleged that the plaintiff (Poncelet-Del-Sole) made allegations of sexual harassment against a crew member who was only on set for a few days. Leaving the island just after Dr. Howell was made aware of these claims, he states, “The guy was on a plane the next day...so we couldn’t get his side of the story.”

Not convinced that the allegations are true, as he had not seen any behaviour between the two that would have suggested something inappropriate, Dr. Howell and his female assistant addressed the matter by ensuring all male members of the crew keep contact with Poncelet-Del-Sole to an absolute minimum. She was also removed from the accommodation she shared with three male members of the crew and transferred to another hotel.

Dr. Howell was also made aware that the young woman suffered from a medical condition, and saw to it that she received medical attention when she suffered an anxiety attack on set, due to the nature of the scene being filmed, which triggered post-traumatic stress. The director was later made aware of an ongoing romance between Poncelet-Del-Sole and an Antiguan man she met while on the island, who apparently was supplying her with marijuana. Implementing a no-smoking (marijuana) policy, which she violated, Dr. Howell grew impatient and fired the woman the day she walked off a set in the Cooks Hill area. Apparently, she’d gotten into an argument with a few men, and walked off to meet the Antiguan man.

Later hearing that she’d barricaded herself in her hotel room, refusing to leave unless certain demands were met, Dr. Howell went to notify her of her immediate return to the US. Pulling him into her room to dress a cut he’d received, Poncelet-Del-Sole later accused the director of pushing her and forcing his way into her room. “I’m not going to lie,” he began, “she never accused me of sexual assault ... but when I heard what she’d told the manager.. and he believe that...I just wash my hands of that...and walked away.”

The director was later told the plaintiff had left the hotel room, and spent six to seven days in Bendals with the Antiguan man. He added that her husband soon called to inquire of her whereabouts. Dr. Howell was told that Melissa Poncelet-Del-Sole, once found, was taken to the airport to board a flight, but was refused admittance for not wearing shoes. An executive producer had to then find footwear for the woman in order to board the plane.

Upon return to his home in the US, Dr. Howell was called and US$2,000 demanded of him by Poncelet-Del-Sole as a settlement for her “ordeal”. Refusing to acknowledge her demand, Dr. Howell later received notification that he was being sued by the woman on Judge Judy. The case has been tried before the celebrity judge was aired Wednesday September 16th, 2009.

editor: we have located the youtube files of this 'court case' and embedded both parts onto this page, on the right-hand column. Watch and enjoy.