Court Opinion

ID: 9672352
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 03:53:23.234488+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:16:15.554061
License: Public Domain

MURRAY, Chief Justice.
I do not concur with the opinion of the majority.
Appellent’s first point is that the evidence is insufficient to support the judgment of divorce, and that appellee failed to establish her allegations by full and satisfactory evidence.
Anne M. Cote was called as a witness and by her evidence, in my opinion, she failed to establish grounds for divorce. She testified that she and her husband had been talking of a divorce for several years, and this past August (Aug. 1964) it was finally discussed, but she did not want to take any action until after the holidays. She knew that unless the family was kept together during the holidays it would be very upsetting to their twelve-year-old son, Dennis. She was asked by counsel what prompted the suit for divorce, and she answered: “Well many, many different things have prompted me over the years. The way he has treated me, and I just hate to go into everything, but just recently, after we had our discussion at Carol’s office * * * I went back to my office, and went to work, and he left me. I don’t know where all he went, however, he was very busy cutting off all of my credit at Sears and Joskes.” The record shows that Anne earned some $825.00 per month as an employee of Emerson & Company, and that her husband, Delmar Cote, drew the sum of $380.00 out of the floor covering company that was owned by him and others. Anne undertook to testify that Delmar had drawn $2,110.48 out of an account they had with the San Antonio Savings Association, but an objection was offered to this testimony and was sustained. The fact was later established by an officer of the Savings Association. The account was supposed to *144be for their son’s education. She had requested, a number of times, that the account should be carried in her name as well as his, but Delmar refused. He wanted everything in his name.
Mrs. Cote admitted that she and Dee, as she called her husband, had breakfast together on the morning of January 13, 1965. She prepared the breakfast and she, Dee and their son, Dennis, ate together. As to what conversation took place, she said there was none. She simply told him breakfast was ready and he came in and ate. Dee went on to work and was served a little later that morning with a citation in the divorce case and a temporary injunction.
Mrs. Cote testified that on the surface she and Dee had a tranquil and peaceful marriage because she did not like to argue. She would usually do anything to avoid an argument. She had been hospitalized during their marriage for tension and it was discovered that she had a duodenal ulcer. This took place in August, 1961. Mrs. Cote was asked, “And, did you ever get ill again?” She answered: “Yes, I had strep throat in November, 1965 (the date is in error, the trial was in April, 1965), which I suffered after effects from, and developed a painful lump in my leg, and in, and I was three weeks off from work, and for quite sometime I was pretty disabled, for at least three months, and * * *• (she undertook to say what the doctor told her, but it was excluded by the trial court).”
She testified that during these times she was “most nervous” and “constantly upset.” She was then asked, “And why were you constantly upset?
A. Because I was having to face Dee every day, and try and get along with him, I tried everything to keep our home together for Dennis’ sake.
Q. As time progressed, and as the fall of 19d5 came along, what was the condition of your marriage with regard to arguments and tranquility around your household?
A. We had fewer arguments than before, because we weren’t speaking very much.
Q. I see. Why were you all not speaking?
A. Because it had just come to the point where he knew my feelings on the subject, and he wanted to make an agreement to where maybe we could work things out for Dennis’ sake. I said, I have been trying for ten years to keep the home together for Dennis’ sake, and all it is doing is upsetting me.
Q. I see. Now, when did you all have your first discussion about a divorce? I’m speaking specifically about the situation in January of 1964?
A. That was in August.
Q. You said there was a discussion about a divorce in August?
A. Yes.
Q. * * * From your first discussion, about a divorce in August, did your attitude relative toward the marriage change since then?
A. Did my attitude change?
Q. Yes, did your’s?
A. No, it did not.
Q. Well, did Dee’s attitude change at any time?
A. Yes, it did, because he was so over nice to Dennis, especially, and we — I even called him down one time about Dennis, and he said, ‘well, I realize I won’t have him very long. I know what the Texas law is, and I want to do everything I can do to cause his favor, if I have the opportunity.’
Q. What was his relationship with Dennis prior to this time?
A. Well, sometimes he would get out and play ball with him like any father would, and he did coach the team Dennis *145was on, but usually he was too busy or couldn’t be bothered, or just as if it was too much trouble.
Q. What has his attitude become since this — since this matter of divorce came up?
A. Well, he has, I feel sure, done everything possible to try and win Dennis. * * *
Q. Have you noticed any difficulty with Dennis after Dennis is with Mr. Cote?
A. Absolutely. He is extremely belligerent. He does not want to do anything I tell him to do. He is very hard for me to handle, and I have even had to talk with one of his teachers at school, who has problems with him.
Q. Does Dennis — does Dennis berate you?
A. When he comes back from being with his father on several occasions he has, and he is a very sensitive, lovely normal child, and does not ordinarily act like that.
Q. Do you try to be normally strict with him, and try to guide Dennis?
A. I am the one in charge of his upbringing, and of course, I have to be strict with him.
Q. Going back to the situation in January of 1965, just prior to this divorce being filed, what brought you to the realization to file this divorce?
A. Well, after I realized Dee was just pressing money, for every penny he could get out of me, and he made the remark earlier, I never had to work, and that is not so, because I went — I always said I would never work after I started my family and when we moved back here from Corpus we were paying rent here and on our house there, and he wasn’t making very much, and he was so unpleasant to live with, he said he just didn’t know how he was going to meet the bills. T don’t know how I’m going to meet them,’ and finally I said, ‘you know, 1 said I didn’t want to work after I started my family’—
Q. Just a minute—
A. But I told him if it would help I would go back to work for a while.
Q. Let me interrupt at that point. As I understand you said you went to work because it was necessary to keep your family financially solvent?
A. It was absolutely necessary.”
Mrs. Cote testified that Dee had insulted her in public by calling her an “elephant and ox” and telling people she was stupid. She further testified he threatened to do her bodily harm. “He has grabbed me and twisted my arm, and I had blue spots as a result, but he would not strike me. After he struck me years back, I told him he better not ever lay a hand on me again.” She stated that on one occasion he had bluntly ordered a friend of hers to leave the house.
“Q. Did you ever argue with your husband, or promote an argument with him, to your knowledge?
A. I didn’t pick any arguments with him. On occasion we would argue about Dennis, because he was so rough with Dennis, and then, almost all of our other arguments were over money.
Q. Do you know of anything you have done, which has caused this condition to arise which led to your seeking this divorce ?
A. No.”
Mrs. Cote admitted on cross-examination that she had gone out at night with her sister-in-law, and had seen a man whose first name is Dan, and that they had one or two intoxicating drinks together, and that she did not return home until after midnight. This occurred both before and after she and Dee separated. She had told Dee that she “had learned to almost hate him quite sometime back, and he was *146very aware of the past, and he knew I didn’t love him.” Most of their misunderstandings were about money.
Article 4632, Vernon’s Ann.Civ.St., provides in effect that a divorce can only be granted upon full and satisfactory evidence, whether contested or not.
Appellee seems to take the position that appellant having agreed to withdraw his contest of the divorce cannot now be heard to contend that the evidence relating to the grounds of divorce were not supported by full and sufficient evidence. Whether or not appellant agreed to withdraw his opposition to or contest of the divorce is immaterial because, in any event, the court is prohibited from granting such divorce unless the grounds relied upon are established by full and satisfactory evidence both to the trial court and to the Court of Civil Appeals. Art. 4632 reads as follows:
“No suit for divorce shall be heard, or divorce granted, before the expiration of sixty (60) days after the same is filed. In divorce suits the defendant shall not be compelled to answer upon oath nor shall the petition be taken as confessed for want of answer, but the decree of the court shall be rendered upon full and satisfactory evidence, upon the judgment of the court affirming the material facts alleged in the petition. Either party may demand a jury trial.”
Bell v. Bell, Tex.Civ.App., 389 S.W.2d 126; Hausladen v. Hausladen, Tex.Civ.App., 388 S.W.2d 952; Meyer v. Meyer, Tex.Civ.App., 361 S.W.2d 935; Gordon v. Gordon, Tex.Civ.App., 359 S.W.2d 134; Schyrock v. Schyrock, Tex.Civ.App., 353 S.W.2d 50.
Appellee’s divorce was sought on the grounds set out in Sec. (1) of Art. 4629, Vernon’s Ann.Civ.St., reading as follows:
“(1) Where either party is guilty of excesses, cruel treatment, or outrages toward the other, if such ill treatment is of such a nature as to render their living together insupportable;”
Parties cannot be divorced for incompatibility, or because they live unhappily together, for marital wranglings, or merely because they possess tempers. McNabb v. McNabb, Tex.Civ.App., 207 S.W. 129.
Before cruel treatment can be held to be of such a nature as to render the further living together of the spouses insupportable, it must be unendurable, intolerable, insufferable. Solis v. Solis, Tex.Civ.App., 317 S.W.2d 237; Ballard v. Ballard, Tex.Civ.App., 186 S.W.2d 294; Rowden v. Rowden, Tex.Civ.App., 212 S.W. 302.
The burden of proof was upon Mrs. Cote to show not only by the preponderance of the evidence but, further, by clear and convincing evidence, to the satisfaction of not only the trial court but also of this Court, that her husband had been guilty of excesses, cruel treatment or outrages toward hér of such a nature as to render her further living with him as his wife unendurable, intolerable and insufferable. This, in my opinion, she has not done. She says that her husband struck her many years ago and she warned him not to let that happen again, and he has not done so since. She said that at one time he grabbed her by the arm and twisted it, causing blue spots. She did not state when this happened or under what circumstances it occurred. It could have been a friendly scuffle that happened, many years ago, so far as this record shows.
Mrs. Cote was hospitalized for tension and they found she had a duodenal ulcer. She was asked what caused these troubles, but she did not answer, objection having been sustained to her attempted answer. She also suffered from a strep throat. She could hardly blame this on Dee. She said she was constantly upset, and when asked why, she replied: “Because I was having to face Dee every day and try and get along with him. I tried everything to keep our home together for Dennis’ sake.”
Appellee has not shown herself so free from fault, and appellant so guilty of excesses, cruel treatment or outrages toward *147her, unprovoked by her in any way, as to render their further living as man and wife unendurable, intolerable and insufferable.
In my opinion, the trial court erred in granting Mrs. Cote a divorce upon the evidence in this record. I would reverse the judgment and deny the divorce.