From the Detroit Free Press:
A bench warrant has been issued for the arrest of singer-songwriter Anita Baker in a lawsuit that alleges she failed to pay more than $15,000 for work done on her Grosse Pointe home, according to an attorney involved in the civil case.
The bench warrant stems from the Grammy Award-winning singer’s failure to appear at a creditor’s examination in Wayne County Circuit Court last September after she was subpoenaed, said attorney Dan Gerow, who is representing Ray A. Smith Painting & Decorating.
Gerow’s client alleges Baker did not pay for carpentry, plastering and painting work done at her home in 2009.
According to Wayne County Circuit Court records online, a bench warrant was signed and filed Wednesday.
Baker could not be reached for comment. Online court documents don’t give the name of her attorney in the case.
Gerow said a default judgment for $15,351.41 was entered against Baker in April 2011.
“I just want to collect the money,” Gerow said.
Baker, who grew up in Detroit, is best known for a series of hit songs in the mid-1980s and early ’90s, including “Sweet Love” and “Giving You the Best That I Got.”
