The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1924-11-20
JOINS KENOSHA'S
DIVORCE FIGHT
Milwaukee Comes Back in
With Kenosha in War
on Divorce.
In HEARTY SUPPORT
Milwaukee Judges Back Keno
sha's Movement to Keep Mil
waukee Couples From City.

Enthusiastic support was given the
movement started Saturday by the
county board of supervisors Of Kenosha
county to put an end to the parade"
of Milwaukee couples to Kenosha to
secure divorces when Milwaukee judi
ges hearing of the resolution passed
by the Kenosha county board gave it.
their unqualified endorsement and gave
indications that Milwaukee would I'M
tie with this and other counties in the
divorce laws so that divorce cases
would be kept in the home counties of
the principals.
Milwaukee judges maintain that the
bulk of the Milwaukee divorces are
still being secured in Milwaukee but
they admit that the tendency to carry
these suits to Kenosha or other neigh
boring counties is increasing at an
alarming rate and that something
should be done to stop the making of
Kenosha a Wisconsin Reno.
Circuit Judge Oscar M. Fritz de-
clared that conditions are coming to
a pass where Milwaukee couples go
to Kenosha or some other nearby
county to get their divorces just as
they go to Waukegan to get their mar
riages. He characterized the practice
as deplorable, and asserted that per-
sons should be required to get divorces
in their home counties where they are
known and where frauds can not SO
easily be practiced upon the courts.
McCarty Backs Move
William E. McCarty, chairman of the
Milwaukee county board of supervisors,
declared that he was in entire SYM
pathy taken with the action by the Ke-
nosha board and said that he consid
cred such law good thing for the
entire state.
"There would undoubtedly be fewer
divorces if persons had to get them at
home" he said. "The temptation to
get divorce is much stronger when it
is possible to go to some other county
and obtain the divorce quietly where
neither of the parties are known"
Circuit Judge Otto H. Breidenbach
also voiced his disapproval of the prev
alency of nonresident divorces.
Directed at Milwaukee.
The resolution passed by the Keno
sha board states explicitly that the
movement is aimed against the alarm
ingly increasing custom of Milwaukee
county couples to start divorce action
in Kenosha county courts to hasten the
action"
The Keuosha supervisors asserted
they did not intend to have Kenosha
made the Reno of Wisconsin. It was
said that a check of the Kenosha court
calendar for the last year showed that
so many Milwaukee divorce cases have
been docketed that other cases are de-
layed.
"Many couples go to Kenosha to
avoid the stringent system for collect
ing alimony in effect in Milwaukee, !"
Judge Fritz said. milwaukee county
installed the system twelve years ago
of requiring all alimony to be paid
to the court. Other courts have COM
paratively so few divorce cases that it
is not worthwhile to install this sys-
TEN.
Go to Other Counties.
milwaukee is also avoided for the
to control divorce litigation by pre-
venting too much freedom and liber-
atty in the granting of divorces. We
have endeavored to give divorces only
on legitimate grounds.
parties who want to get away from
this supervision go not only to Keno
sha, but to Waukesha and Racine and
other counties. BY no means a major
ity of the Milwaukee divorces are TAX
en- out Of the county, but the practice
is increasing.
"a law to force persons to bring
their actions in their own counties
would be a good law" the judge as
serted. "It is much easier to per-
petrate fraud upon a court if the
parties are strangers to the commun-
tiles. That is why many couples bring
divorce actions away from home. Those
who have enough money go further
away, IS Reno, for INSTANCE"