Summerfield v. Pringle

144 P.2d 214, 65 Idaho 300, 1943 Ida. LEXIS 72
CourtIdaho Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 15, 1943
DocketNo. 7087.
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 144 P.2d 214 (Summerfield v. Pringle) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Summerfield v. Pringle, 144 P.2d 214, 65 Idaho 300, 1943 Ida. LEXIS 72 (Idaho 1943).

Opinions

*303 BUDGE, J.

This action is brought by respondent to recover damages for alienation of affections of her former husband, P. H. Pringle, by appellant. The cause was tried by the court and jury resulting in a verdict in favor of respondent and assessing her damages in the sum of $50,000, upon which verdict, judgment was entered, from which this appeal is prosecuted.

The trial court in instruction No. 1, briefly summarized the pertinent allegations contained in the amended complaint* of respondent and the answer thereto by appellant as follows:

“By her second amended complaint the plaintiff alleges in substance: That on or about the 11th day of April, 1937, at Sacramento, State of California, the plaintiff was lawfully married to P. H. Pringle, who is the son of the defendant, Clara M. Pringle; that pursuant to a judgment and decree of divorce, entered in this court * * * plaintiff herein was restored to her maiden name of Gertrude Summerfield; that by reason of said marriage the plaintiff became and was entitled to the support, company, society, and protection of her said husband, and that from and after the time of said marriage and until the interferences on the part of the defendant hereinafter set forth, said P. H. Pringle was deeply attached to his said wife, the plaintiff, and the plaintiff and her said husband lived happily together as husband and wife, and, but for the wrongful and malicious acts of the defendant hereinafter set forth, they would have continued so to live as husband and wife.
*304 “That following said marriage * * * up to and until the fall of 1938, they resided at Sacramento, California, and that upon the solicitation and inducement of the defendant, thereafter they established their home on a farm owned by defendant near the village of Kimberly, in Twin Falls County, Idaho, and immediately upon their residing within the State of Idaho defendant conceived and harbored an intense dislike and hatred of plaintiff, and from said time did wrongfully and maliciously, by the use of subtle arts, contrivances, and threats, and knowing the said P. H. Pringle to be the husband of the plaintiff, continuously and systematically sought to prejudice and poison the mind of said P. H. Pringle against the plaintiff, and to alienate his affections from her by falsely telling him that the plaintiff was not good enough for him, and occupied a station in life beneath him; that plaintiff was not strong enough to be a farmer’s wife; that plaintiff had no regard for money and spent it unnecessarily; that plaintiff had married him on account of defendant’s money; and further by defendant referring to plaintiff in the presence of said P. H. Pringle as ‘that woman’, and by displaying an attitude and pursuing a course of conduct towards plaintiff in the presence of said P. H. Pringle designed to convey to said P. H. Pringle the fact that defendant did not approve of plaintiff as the wife of said P. H. Pringle; and by suggesting and encouraging said P. H. Pringle to mistreat plaintiff, both physically and mentally, in an attempt to force plaintiff to leave said P. H. Pringle, and that unless the said P; H. Pringle separated from and got rid of plaintiff, said defendant would refuse to renew the lease of the premises farmed by said P. H. Pringle and owned by said defendant; would refuse any financial assistance to said P. H. Pringle, and would disinherit the said P. H. Pringle, who, together with a sister, are the only heirs of said defendant, and thus threatening to deprive said P. H. Pringle of an inheritance of in excess of $250,000.00; and that the defendant, by the continued and systematic use of her said arts and contrivances, and by said repeated threats to the said P. H. Pringle, did wrongfully and maliciously alienate the affections of the said P. H. Pringle from the plaintiff herein, and that as a result thereof, on or about the 25th day of May, 1940, the said P. H. Pringle and the plaintiff herein became separated, and on or about the 14th day of October, 1941, became divorced, because of the fault of said P. H. Pringle; that *305 by reason of the wrongful and malicious acts on the part of the defendant hereinabove alleged, said P. H. Pringle became estranged from plaintiff and his affections and regard for her were destroyed, and plaintiff has been wrongfully deprived by the defendant of the comfort, society, support and protection of her husband, and of the happiness and benefits she otherwise would have received at his hands, and has suffered great distress of mind, body, and estate, to her damage in the sum of $50,000.00; and is entitled to punitive damages by reason of the wrongful, malicious and wilful acts of the defendant hereinabove alleged in the sum of $25,000.00. Plaintiff prays judgment against the defendant in said amounts.
“In answer to said complaint the defendant denies each and every allegation of said complaint except that defendant admits that the plaintiff and P. H. Pringle, who is the son of the defendant, were lawfully married April 11, 1937, at Sacramento, California; and that pursuant to a judgment and decree of divorce, as alleged in said complaint, the plaintiff herein was restored to her maiden name of Gertrude Summerfield. Defendant prays that the plaintiff take nothing by reason of her complaint herein.”

Appellant has assigned and relies upon six assignments of error, some of which are subdivided. We will not discuss the assignments in the order set out in appellant’s brief-but will undertake to cover all material errors assigned. We will first consider assignment of error No. 4, namely that: “The evidence is insufficient to sustain the verdict and the judgment * * The record is voluminous and it would be pointless to undertake to recite the evidence at length. The following synopsis of evidence adduced upon the trial finds support in the record.

Respondent, Gertrude Summerfield, and P. H. Pringle first met in November, 1936, while both were residing and working in Sacramento, California. During the Christmas holidays of that year, 1936, respondent was introduced by P. H. Pringle to his father and mother, appellant herein. Respondent and P. H. Pringle were married April 11, 1937, in Sacramento. Respondent testified that while she and her husband lived in California, they “had been very happy.” In November, 1938, at appellant’s request, the young couple moved to Twin Falls County to go on one of appellant’s farms. Upon their arrival in Twin Falls, they were met by appellant who, upon seeing respondent, remarked: “ ‘Oh, *306 did you come too? I thought you’d stay in California until Harold got things settled.’ ” While respondent and her husband were making the farm house liveable, they stayed some three weeks with appellant, whose attitude even at this early date was “very cool” towards respondent, being evidenced in such small ways as not talking to respondent at the dinner table and not passing food to her; and also referring to respondent as a “snip”, and criticising respondent’s house cleaning to such an extent that respondent apologized for her lack of training in scrubbing floors and so forth, and asked appellant to be more patient.

After the couple moved onto the farm, they experienced, while appellant was absent, tranquil, natural days of life conducive to a happy, stable marriage.

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

Related

Ryan Conner v. Bryan F. Hodges, M.D.
Idaho Supreme Court, 2014
Conner v. Hodges
333 P.3d 130 (Idaho Supreme Court, 2014)
Sanchez v. Galey
772 P.2d 702 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1989)
Howes v. Fultz
769 P.2d 558 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1989)
Cheney v. Palos Verdes Investment Corp.
665 P.2d 661 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1983)
Fundermann v. Mickelson
304 N.W.2d 790 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1981)
Massey-Ferguson Credit Corp. v. Peterson
626 P.2d 767 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1981)
Jolley v. Puregro Company
496 P.2d 939 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1972)
Cox v. Stolworthy
496 P.2d 682 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1972)
Olsen v. Hawkins
408 P.2d 462 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1965)
Seamons v. Spackman
341 P.2d 442 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1959)
Hubble v. Record
331 P.2d 270 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1958)
Zenier v. Spokane International Railroad Company
300 P.2d 494 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1956)
Rino v. Statewide Plumbing & Heating Co.
262 P.2d 1003 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1953)
Driesbach v. Lynch
259 P.2d 1039 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1953)
Hayward v. Yost
242 P.2d 971 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1952)
Covey Gas & Oil Co. v. Checketts Et Ux
187 F.2d 561 (Ninth Circuit, 1951)
Boice v. Bradley
92 F. Supp. 750 (D. Idaho, 1950)
Checketts v. Bowman
220 P.2d 682 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1950)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
144 P.2d 214, 65 Idaho 300, 1943 Ida. LEXIS 72, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/summerfield-v-pringle-idaho-1943.