Hull v. Hull

165 N.E.2d 151, 130 Ind. App. 409, 1960 Ind. App. LEXIS 115
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedMarch 4, 1960
Docket19,117
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 165 N.E.2d 151 (Hull v. Hull) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hull v. Hull, 165 N.E.2d 151, 130 Ind. App. 409, 1960 Ind. App. LEXIS 115 (Ind. Ct. App. 1960).

Opinion

Smith, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment granting appellee a divorce, custody of five minor children with an order for their support, the furnishings and effects in their home, attorney’s fees in the sum of $450.00, physician’s fee for his services in the sum of $35.00 and a'money judgment of $1,000.00.

The issues were formed by appellee’s complaint for divorce, support money, custody of minor children, a *411 restraining order and attorney’s fees. Appellant filed an answer to the complaint in two paragraphs, the first being in denial and the second being a cross-complaint praying for a divorce and custody of minor children. Appellee filed an answer in two paragraphs to said cross-complaint. Upon the issues thus joined, the cause was submitted to the court for trial and the court entered the following judgment:

“IT IS THEREFORE CONSIDERED, ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED BY THE COURT, that the bonds of matrimony heretofore existing between the parties be dissolved and held for naught, and the plaintiff ELIZABETH K. HULL is granted an absolute divorce from the defendant PAUL I. HULL.
“IT IS THEREFORE CONSIDERED, ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED BY THE COURT, that the plaintiff is granted the care, custody and control of the minor children of the parties: . . . , and defendant is ordered to pay the sum of Thirty-Five Dollars ($35.00) per week, first payment due June 29, 1957 for the support of said minor children, which payments are to be made through the Clerk’s office.
“IT IS THEREFORE CONSIDERED, ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED BY THE COURT, that the defendant pay to Dr. Everett W. Gaunt the sum of Thirty-Five Dollars ($35.00) for his services, the same to be paid forthwith.
“IT IS THEREFORE CONSIDERED, ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED BY THE •COURT, that the defendant is to pay plaintiff’s attorneys, Salyer & Woolbert, an additional sum of Four Hundred Fifty Dollars ($450.00) for his services to plaintiff as her attorneys herein, the same to be paid forthwith.
“IT IS THEREFORE CONSIDERED, ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED BY THE COURT, that the plaintiff is awarded all house-. hold furnishings and effects in the home of the par- . ties and the defendant has no interest therein. De *412 fendant is.awarded all personal property now in his possession, including tools and the automobile.
“IT IS THEREFORE FURTHER CONSIDERED, ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED BY THE COURT, that the plaintiff recover of and from the defendant, PAUL I. HULL, the sum of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) as alimony. That the costs of this action are assessed against and ordered paid by the defendant in the sum of $___________”

The error assigned is the overruling by the court of appellant’s motion for a new trial, which motion, in part, specified that the decision of the trial court is not sustained by sufficient evidence and is contrary to law.

The appellee, in her complaint, charged the appellant with certain acts of cruel and inhuman treatment. On appeal, we are required to determine whether or not there is any evidence of probative value produced by the appellee to sustain the allegations of her complaint, bearing in mind that we are not permitted to weigh such evidence; and the rule is well established that this Court is permitted to consider only the evidence most favorable to the appellee.

The evidence most favorable to the appellee tends to establish the following facts: that the appellant nagged, quarrelled with and called the appellee vile, profane and vulgar names; that the appellant struck, beat and assaulted-the appellee; that the appellant accused the appellee of associating with other men even to the extent of committing adultery with them; that the appellant constantly found fault with the appellee and everything that she did; that the appellant drank intoxicating liquor and stayed out late at night; that the appellant objected to the appellee taking their children to Sunday school because the appellee was not able to get all of her housework done before leaving *413 for Sunday school; that the appellant struck the appellee in the ribs which caused the appellee a great deal of physical suffering; and on one occasion, that the appellant upset the bed in which the appellee was lying and injured her neck and muscles thereof. There was evidence tending to show that all of these acts of cruel and inhuman treatment caused the appellee to become ill and nervously disturbed to the extent that she was under the care of a physician. There was also evidence produced by the appellee as to the nature and extent of the property owned by the appellant and appellee; the financial condition of the parties and the approximate income of the appellant.

In considering evidence relative to the charge of cruel and inhuman treatment, such as we have before us in this case, the Supreme Court of Indiana, in the case of Heckman v. Heckman (1956), 235 Ind. 472, 478, 479, 134 N. E. 2d 695, spoke as follows:

“In considering the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the finding of the court, a fragment, part or portion of the evidence is not plucked from the whole and appraised alone, but all the evidence, together with all the permissible and reasonable inferences deductible therefrom, is surveyed to determine the ultimate facts and circumstances established thereby favorable to the decision of the trial court. A reversal of a judgment predicated upon a finding results only when there exists no competent evidence to support such finding.
“The trial court has before it, within its sight and hearing, the physical presence of the parties and oftimes their children. It hears their testimony, notes their actions and reactions, observes their sincerity, emotions, inflections and tones of voice, apparent state of health, and experiences the tenseness of the human drama enacted there within the confines of the court room. The appellate tribunal, on the other hand, has before *414 it only the cold, written record. It sees only words, phrases, sentences, questions and exhibits. It is without authority to weigh the evidence and determine only that the requisite rules of law have been observed and duly applied, and that justice has been fairly and impartially administered.
“Cruel and inhuman treatment is a relative term, and depends upon the circumstances of each particular case. Stewart v. Stewart (1911), 175 Ind. 412, 94 N. E. 564. It may consist of a series of wrongs, no one of which, in itself, would be grounds for a divorce.” (Our emphasis.)

In the case of Wingard v. Wingard (1957), 128 Ind. App. 44, 145 N. E. 2d 733, the appellee filed a cross-complaint alleging certain acts of cruel and inhuman treatment. The trial court found for the appellee on his cross-complaint and entered a judgment accordingly.

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Related

Hill v. Hill
204 N.E.2d 222 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1965)
Kessler v. Kessler
192 N.E.2d 4 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1963)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
165 N.E.2d 151, 130 Ind. App. 409, 1960 Ind. App. LEXIS 115, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hull-v-hull-indctapp-1960.