Plys

This dispute arises from harassing and provocative text messages sent during a span of four-and-a-half months in 2015. Between March and July 2015, plaintiff Joel Plys and his friends received over 20 disparaging text messages from more than 12 different cellphone numbers. They were almost exclusively about Plaintiff's daughter's paternity. 1 Through personal investigation *171 and manipulation of his social media access settings, Plaintiff came to understand that debtor-defendant Danilo Geronimo Ang, Jr. was responsible. He reported this to the La Mesa Police Department. A police detective questioned Defendant, who confessed to sending the texts. The harassing messages then abruptly stopped.

Plaintiff and his wife, Jackie Plys, sued Defendant in small claims court. That court awarded them $10,150. Defendant appealed. Following a trial de novo, the San Diego Superior Court affirmed the judgment and tacked on $1,354 in additional costs and attorney's fees. Within a week, Defendant and Svea Fujiko Komori (collectively, "Debtors") filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

Plaintiff initially sought a nondischargeability finding of the state court judgment under §§ 523(a)(2), (a)(4), and…