In Re Marriage of Carrillo

867 N.E.2d 70, 372 Ill. App. 3d 803, 310 Ill. Dec. 757, 2007 Ill. App. LEXIS 346
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided April 13, 2007·No. 1-06-2274·Published·Cited by 14 cases

Opinion

JUSTICE MCNULTY

delivered the opinion of the court:

Before the trial in this divorce action, the trial court ruled on temporary custody of the minor children of Carlos and Anna Carrillo and set a schedule for visitation. After the trial but before entry of the final judgment, Carlos moved to hold Anna in contempt for violating the visitation order. The court left that motion unresolved at the time of the judgment that finally disposed of all issues concerning custody and property distribution. Six months later the court dismissed the motion for the contempt finding without hearing any evidence. Following that dismissal Carlos filed an appeal from the judgment and the order dismissing his motion for a contempt finding. We find that we have jurisdiction to review the final judgment as well as the denial of the motion for contempt. We affirm the judgment and reverse and remand for further proceedings on the contempt claim.

BACKGROUND

Carlos married Anna in 1988. They had four children: Carlos Jr., Enrique, Lilliana and Gabriel. Anna and Carlos separated in 2002. Carlos, who acted pro se throughout the divorce proceedings, agreed to entry of an order of protection against him in October 2002. Anna petitioned for divorce. Carlos opposed the petition, as he argued that divorce would not serve the best interests of the children.

He also petitioned for an order to protect him and the children from Anna. He alleged:

“Mrs. Carrillo frequently stayed out in bars while her husband took care of the children.
*** On September 29, 2002, Mr. Carrillo discovered an email that confirmed his suspicions of an affair. Several months earlier, he had found condoms, sex jelly, and sex candy in [Anna’s] car.”

The court appointed Dr. Peter Nierman to evaluate the family. Also, the court granted Carlos weekend visits with his minor children. But the court entered a new plenary order of protection, in effect for six months, directing Carlos to stay away from the family home.

As grounds for a motion for interim fees, Carlos alleged that, “despite the fact that Anna Carrillo is guilty of infidelity, intimidation and many other crimes against [Carlos] and his children, she has enjoyed unparalleled protection under the law.” Carlos separately petitioned for an injunction to “prohibit[ ] Anna Carrillo from carrying out her illicit affair *** in the presence of the children.” The court denied Carlos’s motions but reduced his temporary support payments.

On one of the support checks Carlos wrote, “proof that cheating and lying does pay”; on another he wrote, “adultery and false charges are rewarding to a woman.”

Anna moved out of the family home in 2004, alleging that Carlos continued to harass her despite the order of protection. Judge Grace Diclder entered a third plenary order of protection on December 17, 2004, ordering Carlos to stay away from Anna’s new home and her workplace. The order on its face provided that it would expire on December 17, 2006.

Carlos petitioned for a change of venue. The trial court treated the motion as a request for substitution of judge and assigned the motion to a different judge for disposition. That judge denied the motion. In February 2005 Carlos moved to reconsider the denial of the motion, relying on the “history of prejudicial rulings” against him. He also filed an affidavit in which he swore that his children told him “[Anna] and her lover were frequently fighting in front of [the children] ***. *** [The lover] often got drunk when they argued.” Carlos said that because of Judge Dickler’s rulings, “the affair continued along with the mental abuse of [the] children.” He added, “It is so frustrating to see the discriminatory legal system applaud [Anna’s] infidelity and abuse of our family.”

Also in February 2005, Carlos moved to vacate the order of protection. He alleged:

“Anna Carrillo’s obsession with her lover has caused her to follow a reckless pattern of devastating acts of physical, mental and emotional abuse against [Carlos] and his children.
* * *
*** Anna *** [has] maliciously misused the domestic violence laws *** in order to freely pursue her adulteress lifestyle... an affair that started well before the part[ie]s separated.”

Carlos admitted that he had approached Anna at work, but he characterized his behavior as “numerous acts of kindness.” The court amended the order of protection to permit Carlos to contact Anna in case of a documentable medical emergency.

In an effort to divorce amicably, Anna offered to let Carlos have custody of their youngest son, Gabriel. Carlos Jr. had attained majority and Anna had already agreed to let Carlos have custody of Enrique for the remainder of his minority, while he finished high school. Thus, Anna would retain custody of only Lilliana, an autistic and disabled child who needed nearly constant care. Anna asked only half the value of the marital home as part of the proposed settlement. Carlos accused Anna of trading Gabriel for money.

At a hearing in May 2005, Judge Dickler explained to Carlos her perspective on the case:

“[Y]our case *** is one of the most challenging I have ever had. You refuse to see what is really going on. You continue throwing darts at everyone. You refuse to get an attorney no matter how many times I pleaded with you to please hire an attorney in your best interests. You continue filing the same motions. You miscomprehend what is going on. You continually act in your child’s opposite of best interests by involving them in these proceedings, telling them to write letters, *** and you continue this time after time after time.”

In September 2005 Carlos petitioned for a rule to show cause why the court should not hold Anna in contempt for violation of visitation orders.

We have no transcript and no bystander’s report for the trial on the issues of custody and distribution of marital assets. However, the record includes Dr. Nierman’s report concerning the Carrillo family. Dr. Nierman found:

“[N] either parent has conducted themselves in an exemplary fashion ***. The constant strategy of making allegations, the inability to compromise, the legal protections, the lack of communication, and the failure to insulate children from the fracas are all poor prognostic signs for the future. ***
*** Gabriel is essentially a positive child who loves scouting and sports, has a good outlook on school, [and] loves both his parents ***
*** Through his anticipations and expectations, it was clear his father was the more dominant parental figure as his father was truly functioning more as his guide through scouting, school, sports, video games, and friendships. It was also clear that Gabriel preferred the arrangement of Lilly living with his mother while he was at his father’s because this seemed the best situation for his belongings and his need for individualized attention. ***

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

In Re Marriage of Carrillo, 867 N.E.2d 70, 372 Ill. App. 3d 803, 310 Ill. Dec. 757, 2007 Ill. App. LEXIS 346 (Ill. Ct. App. 2007).

867 N.E.2d 70 (In Re Marriage of Carrillo) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

In re Parentage of A.L.G
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2026
Dale v. Shelton
2026 IL App (1st) 250698-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2026)
Royal Oak Condominium Ass'n v. Stevenson
2025 IL App (1st) 242317 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2025)
Vandalia Levee & Drainage District v. Keck
2023 IL App (5th) 220180-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2023)
In re Marriage of Krier
2022 IL App (3d) 210148-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2022)
In re Marriage of Potenza
2020 IL App (1st) 192454 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2020)
In re Paul L. F.
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2011
People v. Edith F.
947 N.E.2d 805 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2011)
In Re Marriage of A'hearn
947 N.E.2d 333 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2011)
In re Marriage of Duggan
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2007