Balswic v. Balswic

179 Ill. App. 118, 1912 Ill. App. LEXIS 7
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedOctober 15, 1912
DocketGen. Nos. 5,577, 5,678
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 179 Ill. App. 118 (Balswic v. Balswic) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Balswic v. Balswic, 179 Ill. App. 118, 1912 Ill. App. LEXIS 7 (Ill. Ct. App. 1912).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Whitney

delivered the opinion of the court.

Appellee filed his hill for divorce, charging cruelty, habitual drunkenness and adultery. Appellant answered, denying all the charges. Replication was filed to such answer, and under the issues so formed, a trial was had by the court and a jury called pursuant to the statute on appellant’s motion. During the trial the charges of cruelty and habitual drunkenness were withdrawn, and the cause was finally submitted to the jury on the issue of adultery only. The jury returned a verdict finding the appellant guilty of adultery with one Charles Pochtus. A motion for a new trial was made, and pending the motion for a new trial, leave was asked and granted to appellee to amend his bill, which was accordingly done,' in effect changing the name, “Charles Bachtus,” to “Charles Pochtus.” The motion for a new trial was overruled and a decree of divorce was entered on the verdict of the jury. From this decree an appeal was taken to this court. Appellant assigns numerous errors, but confines herself, and specifically points out to this court in her argument the following: (1) The verdict and decree are not supported by, and are contrary to the evidence; (2) errors in rulings on evidence; (3) errors in instructions. All other errors assigned are by this court deemed to have been waived by appellant. Harrow v. Grogan, 219 Ill. 288; Banfill v. Twyman, 172 Ill. 123; Lingle v. West Chicago Park Com’rs, 222 Ill. 384. Complaint is made of 4 instructions given at the request of appellee, and qf 1 instruction refused, asked by appellant. The instruction given for appellee first complained of is as follows: “If you believe from all the evidence, facts, and circumstances in this case that the defendant is guilty of adultery, it matters not that such belief on your part is based upon direct or circumstantial evidence, or both.” The first criticism made by appellant is that it did not confine the jury to the consideration of the facts and circumstances in evidence, but allowed them to go outside the evidence to find facts and circumstances. While not technically accurate we cannot see that this instruction was harmful to appellant. While the precise point argued in this case was not specifically argued in the following cited cases, yet in Chicago & E. I. R. Co. v. Rains, 106 Ill. App. 539, and in the Supreme Court in Pioneer Cooperage Co. v. Romanowicz, 186 Ill. 9, an instruction similar in phraseology is held to be good. Even if it be conceded that this instruction is erroneous this court would not be justified in reversing the decree for such an error because appellant fell into a similar or worse error in some of her given instructions, in which the words, “under all the circumstances,” or “if the facts and circumstances,” were used, and is therefore in no situation to complain. A party cannot complain of an error in instructions when the same error is found in the instructions of the complaining party. McInturff v. Insurance Co. of N. A., 248 Ill. 92. The bill charges adultery with other men than those specifically named. Suspicious circumstances to say the least, were testified to in connection with Pochtus, Greenas and Bokus. It was proper for the court to give instructions on the question of adultery with any one, or all, of the parties named in the evidence and such instructions do not direct the attention of the jury to anything not alleged in the bill. Either the allegation of adultery with other men than those specifically named, or the allegation of adultery with those specifically named, were proper subjects of inquiry in the case, under the evidence, and it was proper for appellant to ask, and for the court to give, instructions based on the evidence as to either, or all, of such allegations. - The first refused instruction is justly open to the criticism that it had the tendency to mislead the jury, because it told them, if it had been given, that a greater amount than a preponderance of the evidence was required to find one guilty of adultery. The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that adultery may be established by a preponderance of the evidence: Stiles v. Stiles, 167 Ill. 576; Lenning v. Lenning, 176 Ill. 180; Heyman v. Heyman, 210 Ill. 524. Nothing reversible is perceived in any of the points made by appellant on the giving or refusing of instructions. It is claimed to be error for the court to have ruled that a conversation between the parties to the suit might be shown by the witness Behrens over the objection that the time and place of the conversation asked for had not been shown. There is no rule of evidence requiring the time and place to be fixed to show conversations with, or admissions of, a party to the suit. On cross-examination all such information can be elicited if desired. There is no error in that ruling of the court. The admissions of a party against his interest are substantive proof and may be shown in the first instance without a previous examination of the party making the admission and without first locating the time when, or place where, the admission was made. Second Borrowers & Investors Bldg. Ass’n 1. Cochrane, 103 Ill. App. 29, and authorities therein cited. It is next said that the court erred in sustaining an objection to the question asked appellee on cross-examination, which question was as follows: “When did you first begin to quarrel with your wife about going with other men?” Objection to this question was made on the ground it assumed that appellee had quarreled with his wife. The objection was sustained. The ruling was technically correct. Even if it be conceded such ruling was error, the next question put by appellant’s counsel was the same in effect, to which appellee interposed an objection, which was overruled, and the witness allowed to answer. Appellant’s counsel saw fit to pursue the inquiry no further. Next, appellant complains of a ruling of the court on an objection to a question which was never answered by the witness. The question put to the witness was as follows: “Now did you ever see these two parties that I have just named go into a bedroom?” Objected to and overruled. The question was not answered. Then counsel for appellee stated he would change the form of the question, which he did, and the question as changed was answered without objection. Appellant requested a jury trial, and her case was heard and decided by the jury as to all questions of fact. No reversible error is shown in rulings on evidence, or in the instructions given to the jury or in refusing instructions asked. The verdict of the jury stands exactly like a verdict in a suit at law, and is controlled by the same rules that are applicable to a verdict in a suit at law. This court must be satisfied the verdict is clearly against the weight of the evidence before it would be justified in reversing the case on a question of fact. The rule of law is that any competent evidence, direct or circumstantial, that satisfies the minds of the jury as reasonable and just men, that parties charged with adultery are guilty of it is sufficient to sustain their verdict. There is a large preponderance of evidence that appellant was of a lascivious disposition, evidenced by her conduct with men other than her husband; that she was guilty of taking improper liberties with other men and soliciting other men to have sexual intercourse with her. Her acts as shown by the evidence largely preponderate on the side of illegitimate sexual intercourse. Not one, but several, testify to different lascivious acts.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
179 Ill. App. 118, 1912 Ill. App. LEXIS 7, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/balswic-v-balswic-illappct-1912.