‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ Reportedly Owes Nearly $1 Million From Previous Lawsuit

Duane “Dog” Chapman could be forced to shell out some major change. The Dog the Bounty Hunter star reportedly owes nearly $1 million from a previous lawsuit, which led to a 2013 judgment ordering him to pay $880,000. While the judgment fell to the wayside, new legal documents obtained by TMZ reveal the original lawsuit’s filer is pursuing further legal action in an effort to collect.

The lawsuit, and the massive sum of money Chapman reportedly owes, goes all the way back to the early 2000s and is said to be connected to his 2003 arrest in Mexico. At the time, Chapman hired a lawyer to help sort out his legal troubles. While the lawyer was able to smooth things over the bounty hunter, Chapman reportedly filed a lawsuit against the lawyer, who was not named, after they got into a disagreement over the fees. The lawyer eventually filed a lawsuit of his own and after Chapman took the loss, a 2013 judgment filed in California ordered Chapman to pay the lawyer $880,000. Chapman, however, never paid up, and the lawyer is now seeking the full amount of money owed.

According to TMZ, the lawyer filed new legal documents in Hawaii, where Chapman lives, seeking the payment. However, nearly a decade later, Chapman could be forced to pay even more. In addition to the initial $880,916, Chapman now reportedly also owes interest. At this time, the Dog the Bounty Hunter star has not responded to the legal troubles and it is unclear if he will finally pay up.

The newly filed legal documents are just the latest blow to the famed bounty hunter this year. In March, it was confirmed that Chapman’s highly-anticipated next reality TV venture, Dog Unleashed, would not make it to the air on the new streaming platform called Unleashed Entertainment. Unleashed Entertainment CEO Mike Donovan confirmed to PopCulture that the series was canceled due to a breach of “contractual agreements” during the show’s production. According to Donovan, the company “received reports of actions taken” by Chapman during production that were in “breach” of contractual agreements, and following “a thorough investigation, including the review of hours of audio and video material,” the decision was made to halt production on the series. In addition to Dog Unleashed reaching cancellation status, Chapman’s other series Dog’s Most Wanted was also canceled earlier this year.

However, it has not all been bad news for Chapman. In early July, Chapman teased he was hard at work on a new reality series. Although Chapman did not provide any concrete details about the project, he shared a photo of himself and another man with a caption reading, “Another show in the can !!!!” Chapman shared any more social media posts about the project.