Rep. Beverly Earle defaulted on an $8,000 loan for her son.

The Charlotte Democrat, who is running for mayor, was ordered to pay more than $3,000, plus interest, after defaulting on a loan for her son, Steve Jessup, the Charlotte Observer reports.

An attorney for RBC Centura argued in court that Earle and Jessup never replied to the lawsuit.

Earle said she didn't learn about the lawsuit until a few days ago, although a FedEx delivery confirmation from 2006 bears a signature with her name.

It's not the first time Earle's been in trouble with a bank. In three lawsuits from the early 1990s, companies argued that the ice cream shops she ran failed to pay them thousands of dollars it owed.

Earle eventually paid in at least two of the cases.