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Charles McKinnon approached the justice system without an address.

He walked away with the deed to a seven-unit apartment complex owned by the man he said broke his neck.

“It’s hard to believe all this is mine,” a grinning McKinnon, 56, said in front of the brick- and-siding apartment building on English Street, where several of the units are occupied by tenants.

McKinnon, homeless and often on his bike, won a $300,000 judgment in August against William Earle Jones, 32, of Gorrell Street. McKinnon said Jones, who works in construction, often hired him to paint.

When Jones didn’t pay the judgment, McKinnon’s attorney started a collection process that on Dec. 30 nabbed the apartment building, which has a tax value of $145,900.

Neither Jones nor his attorney, Kenneth Free, could be reached for comment. Early on, Jones filed a motion to dismiss the case, asserting that “Plaintiff’s own negligence was the proximate cause of his injuries.”

Legal observers said these “beat-’em-up” cases, with numerous potential stumbling blocks, often go nowhere.

“This was an unusual case because of the facts,” said presiding Superior Court Judge William Z. Wood Jr. “People don’t usually get their necks broken in fights, and you usually don’t get an attorney who will take the case.”

Even then, “A judgment without a solvent defendant is not worth a lot,” Wood said.

McKinnon, a freelance painter and draftsman who grew up in Greensboro, claims that on Aug. 26, 2009, after spending the day on a project at a church with Jones, they argued over money.

Jones had promised him $200 to help him paint but gave him only $100, McKinnon testified. McKinnon, with a slight build, said Jones, a bigger man, grabbed him around the neck from behind and slammed him to the ground. McKinnon landed on his shoulder.

“I couldn’t get up,” he said. “I looked up at him and said, 'Man, you’ve hurt me pretty bad.’ ”

McKinnon said Jones got in his truck and drove away. McKinnon was able to fish his cell phone out of his pocket and dial 911.

“I don’t think he thought he hurt me to the extent he did,” McKinnon said. “But he just drove away.”

McKinnon, who immediately had surgery and has accrued more than $38,000 in medical bills, suffered a twisted spine and has a metal plate in his neck. If he walks too much, he has difficulty breathing.

Not able to work, McKinnon fell behind in his rent and, while being evicted, began looking for an attorney. He was walking downtown, looking for a law firm he had seen advertised on television, when he came across Benson Brown and Faucher.

“Beat-’em-up cases are not very good cases,” said Drew Brown, who took the case. “Ninety-nine times out of 100, there’s no compensation.”

McKinnon insisted Jones had property worth going after. Something about the affable McKinnon and the unflappable Brown clicked.

“We liked this guy,” Brown said of taking a case that required a lot of work and potentially offered little. “Charles is a good guy, and sometimes lawyers just need to do this.”

When the case played out in court, McKinnon was accused by the defense of having been the aggressor.

“They were trying to say different things about my attitude and that I attacked him,” McKinnon said. “He’s probably 6-4, 240 pounds, and I had nothing to attack him with or to defend myself.”

The night before closing arguments, McKinnon slept on the courthouse steps, using an old-fashioned water pump near the courthouse to wash up.

The case wrapped up around lunchtime, and McKinnon and Brown waited in the courtroom for a verdict.

After five hours, the jury concluded that Jones committed battery against McKinnon, that it was not in self-defense, and that McKinnon did not aggravate Jones’ conduct. The jury  awarded him $300,000.

“I was still homeless, but I slept better that night,” McKinnon said.

The $300,000 award ended up being a compromise for jurors. Some wanted to give McKinnon as much as $800,000 based on injuries and his doctor’s testimony, said Garald Cottrell, the jury’s foreman.

“It just illustrates how easy it is for you to make one bad decision and somebody can walk away with your house,” Cottrell said.

Jones was convicted of misdemeanor assault in the criminal case in November and received probation and a suspended sentence, according to court records.

He has yet to make any payments on the money, which has accrued more than $20,000 in interest.

It took Brown the additional four months — and his firm $50,000 — to foreclose on the apartment building and get the deed.

“It wasn’t fun. He was in here every day asking for his money,” said Brown, a $300-an-hour attorney who says he might recoup $20 an hour for all his work if McKinnon collects what he’s due.

With a sheriff’s deed in hand on Dec. 30, Brown drove McKinnon to the property to take in what was now his.

Even before getting out of the vehicle, McKinnon had made the decision to sell it.

He hasn’t spent a night in the property because he doesn’t want to run into Jones, Brown said.

At that point, a friend of McKinnon’s agreed to let him move in — “since he knew I was going to get a couple of dollars,” McKinnon said, joking.

With the property under contract, McKinnon now comes around the law firm only every few days.

“Charles, what’s going to happen if I don’t give you your fair share?” Brown asked jokingly.

“It’s gonna be mighty rough,” McKinnon responded through the chuckles.

As for Brown, it looks like his firm will recoup the $50,000 and possibly more from the sale of the property. Brown said he’s also going after the rest of the money.

“It’s a different perspective when you have a client who doesn’t have a place to sleep and food to eat,” Brown said. “You don’t feel quite so bad losing money.”

For his part, McKinnon said he isn’t holding a grudge against Jones.

“I don’t think he thought it would end up this way over $100,” McKinnon said. “He got upset and lost control. I forgive him.”

Contact Nancy McLaughlin at 373-7049 or nancy.mclaughlin@news-record.com