Manuel Hernandez' Bank of America joint-checking account is at zero.

What little money his family gathered in that account was taken out by the national collection agency Asset Acceptance LLC.

The company filed suit against Hernandez in 2008 because it said he defaulted on a credit card bill for a little more than $2,000 in 2000 from the now-defunct Washington Mutual.

According to court records, Hernandez has received numerous orders and motions from 2008 until Lee County Judge Archie Hayward ordered a wage garnishment in March.

Hernandez claims he never had an account with that bank nor did he ever receive notification to appear in court.

"This debt never existed," Hernandez said. "And they never sent me proof, just a statement with my name, my Social Security (number) and the amount of money they said I owe them."

After appearing in court Monday, he's required to prove the money removed was not his to receive an exemption to the garnishment.

He has 10 days to present bank statements to the court.

That money, which was taken out three weeks ago, left the family in a hole.

His partner Ghislaine Ampuero lost one check worth about $450 in the garnishment and their daughter, Ghislaine Hernandez, a soldier stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, lost one of her $436 military checks. With late draft charges from unpaid bills,

the family believes they lost about $1,000.

The 20-year-old had to sell her car to fly down to visit her parents before she's deployed to Iraq in August. Ampuero took a loan from her job at DHL to help catch up on payments.

Hernandez is unemployed, although he'd worked as a professional driver for many years.
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