Court Opinion

ID: 9550461
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 18:35:31.821564+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:21:33.910015
License: Public Domain

Fatzer, J.,
dissenting: Upon a review of the record and the findings of the trial court, I must respectfully dissent.
As the majority opinion indicates, this was an action for divorce by the wife of a minister against her husband. The record is voluminous, the abstract consists of 290 pages; the counter abstract contains 250 pages; the abstract of exhibits contains more than 50 pages, and comprehensive briefs were filed by both parties. The trial consumed some eight days, and numerous witnesses testified for both sides. The plaintiff was granted a divorce for extreme cruelty and that issue is not before us. The principal question concerns the home of the parties at 903 Argentine Boulevard, Kansas City, Kansas, which the trial court awarded to the wife. This dissent concerns only that question.
In its memorandum opinion the trial court stated:
“To support Reverend Dawkins’ contention that he owns none of this property is tantamount to cutting Mrs. Dawkins off without anything to show for the years she served him as'his wife, and served this church as the pastor’s wife. This isn’t just, it isn’t equitable, and it isn’t proper under the evidence. It is argued that the Church doesn’t owe Mrs. Dawkins a living, but, as the daughter, Beverly, said, ‘Mother has as much in this thing as Dad after twenty-seven years.’
“Title to the real property commonly known and designated as 903 Argentine Boulevard will be ordered deeded to LaVerne Dawkins, and upon the failure of defendants to execute such a deed to the plaintiff, this decree shall stand in lieu thereof. Justice in this case demands that plaintiff have the right to occupy this home which was built for her out of the goodness of the hearts of the members of this congregation. Plaintiff shall be entitled to immediate possession of the premises. . . .”
*328The defendants filed timely motions for a new trial. On October 3, 1957, the court filed a memorandum opinion overruling those motions, pertinent portions of which read:
“There is only one serious question in this case — the setting apart, by the Court, to plaintiff of the real estate at 903 Argentine Boulevard, the record title to which stood in the names of the trustees.
“It should be remembered that Reverend Dawkins claimed and received credit on his federal income tax return for an $8,500.00 loss on account of the destruction of his home (before the flood) at 1033 Scott Avenue. Plaintiff’s testimony, uncontradicted, was that Reverend Dawkins told her the proceeds of this house, when rebuilt and sold, would be used in their new home. Reverend Dawkins was clearly proven to be lying with regard to the $7,000.00 he took in May, 1955, from the First State Bank loan of that date. He testified he took this money and paid bills on a structure he had erected in the Kaw Valley near Turner. Rebuttal testimony brought in by plaintiff refuted this testimony beyond question. This $7,000.00, plus the money from the sale of 10S3 Scott Avenue, plus the contributions made in response to Reverend Dawkins’ appeal for a home for his wife, more than equalled the cost of 903 Argentine Boulevard.
“Defendants’ counsel argue at length the ‘Trust Pursuit Rule.’ Turning the rule around, a tracing of Reverend Dawkins’ unquestioned personal funds would prove 903 Argentine Boulevard to be his property and subject to division by the Cowt in this action, even if the Court should ultimately be held to be wrung as to some of its other findings and rulings.”
On the whole this is a fact case.
The parties were married in 1929 at Hernando, Mississippi; the plaintiff was sixteen and the defendant was eighteen; they are the parents of six children, only two are minors, the twins, born in October of 1955. When married, Dawkins was employed at Sears Roebuck and Company, but in 1931 he returned to his home state of Arkansas to work as a cooper. Soon thereafter he began evangelizing in Leslie, Arkansas, and has successfully pursued that profession for the past 27 years. After traveling around the southeastern part of the country with his tent for some time, Dawkins decided to locate permanently in Kansas City, Kansas. He founded his church in the Armourdale district and began scouring the town for “saints,” as he referred to the members of his congregation. The early depression years were difficult. Economically, the Dawkins family was no different from other families in the district. Existence was difficult, as was the founding of his church — leaky roofs, drafty windows and crowded conditions applied equally to the family home as well as to Dawkins’ churches. The family existed on what he brought home from the church.
*329During the war years the economic picture brightened and the purses of the members of the congregation began to fill; jobs became plentiful; wages increased, and Dawkins began to prosper. As more money began to flow in, there was no change in the system of handling the finances of the church. As in the old evangelizing days, all the money collected came into Dawkins’ hands; there were no records or books kept.
Dawkins ran the church himself. He was its undisputed leader and dictated the policies and activities. When it became necessary to secure a loan from the R. F. C. to rebuild the church following the 1951 flood, that agency required that a board of trustees sign the note and mortgage to close the loan. Dawkins announced from the pulpit one Sunday morning in July, 1952, that A. J. Poltera, C. A. Hendon (Dawkins’ brother-in-law) and himself were standing for election as trustees. By a vote of the congregation Dawkins’ selection of trustees was ratified. At that time Poltera was ill and resided in California and since his election he has attended only two or three meetings of the trustees. The result was that while Dawkins had a board of trustees in name, one was his brother-in-law, one was ill in California, and Dawkins continued to dominate the church and run its affairs as in the past, even to the extent of signing Poltera’s and Hendon’s names to contracts “and things like that.”
Neither time nor space will permit detailing the great amount of evidence which reflected Dawkins’ domination of the members of his church. Plowever, a few incidents are selected from the testimony to demonstrate that dominance and his ability to secure money from the congregation by his eloquent and moving pleas. There was evidence that Dawkins procured group life insurance for the members of his church and stated he should be named as the beneficiary; that when one member wanted to name her mother as beneficiary, she was advised that if Dawkins or the Tabernacle or a member of his church was not made the beneficiary the policy would be worthless, and upon inquiry at the company office she was advised that no such rule existed; that members of the church were not to leave on trips or vacations unless they told him of their plans and made their tithes in advance, and if they disobeyed bim in any regard he would say “judgment was going to fall on them, and they would die a horrible death,” which statement, and others of similar import, would be made from the pulpit “so that usually *330they (the members) knew who he was talking about”; that if Dawkins did not like what some were doing with respect to buying a new automobile or a new home a distance away from the church, he would castigate them from the pulpit, and that he told members of the congregation to sell their jewelry and mortgage their property and give the money to the church. Further, Arnold Leach, the assistant pastor, testified that one of the fundamental doctrines Dawkins preached to his congregation was based upon St. Matthew 6, verses 1 to 4, which was,
“Not to blow a trumpet in your alms, but not to let your left hand know what your right hand doeth, but these things that are done in secret the Lord will reward you openly.”
There was evidence that as many as five collections would be taken at one service and that in addition to their contribution in church, members placed money in Dawkins’ hand as he stood outside the church after services, amounting to $100 at times, sometimes $50 and sometimes $25. The members did not want a witness of their gift, they gave it freely. Services were held three nights a week and on Sunday, so there were at least four occasions when offerings were taken during each week. In addition, there were extra or special offerings to which the members contributed, such as Daw-kins’ trip to Europe, and to build a home for Mrs. Dawkins as hereafter detailed.
As Dawkins began to prosper, he commenced to deal in real estate. He purchased properties throughout the city and resold them on optional contracts. In some instances he would take tide to the property himself; at other times title was taken in the name of him and his wife, and on still other occasions title would be placed in the name of some trusted member of the congregation. When the properties were rented, all rents were paid to Dawkins in cash. If the property was sold on optional contract, monthly payments were made to Dawkins which he did not share, and when the purchase price was paid in full, deeds would be executed to the purchaser, and, if the title was in the name of a member of the church, he would, at Dawkins’ direction, execute a deed.
A search of the record does not indicate when Dawkins purchased the 903 Argentine Boulevard lots where the home was built, or why title was placed in the name of the trustees. There was evidence that on September’ 4, 1952, a deed was executed in their favor.
During the summer of 1952 while Reverend and Mrs. Dawkins *331were at Shepardsville, Kentucky, Mrs. Dawkins became very ill, Upon Dawkins return be cried and pleaded from bis pulpit for tbe well-being of his wife. He told his congregation he had promised her and the Lord that if she was permitted to live he would see she had a home for her own; that she had never had anything like other women; that she had been a wonderful mother and wife, and he pleaded with the members to contribute money to build her a home. The congregation responded in its usual generous way and approximately $12,000 was donated. Witness after witness testified they gave their money to build a home for Mrs. Dawkins. ' The home is a large brick veneer ranch type house consisting of four bedrooms, two and a half baths, large kitchen, large dining room, living room with a fireplace, sun porch and a double garage, and was completed during 1953. Dawkins himself directed that a large “D” be cut into the shutters. Following its completion, the Dawkins moved into the new home, but not for long. Dawkins had located a nice duplex. The owners were in strained circumstances and Dawkins traded them a year’s free rent in the new home for their equity in the duplex. Later, the Dawkins returned to the home at 903 Argentine Boulevard.
There was some evidence that a plate was on the front door of the home indicating it was a parsonage. However, the record shows that it was placed there following a split between a Reverend Jolly and Dawkins over the leadership of the Body of Christ Church. Jolly became the leader of the church and Dawkins “pulled out from the Body of Christ before they (Reverend and Mrs. Dawkins) had their trouble. They didn’t have any as long as he stayed in the church, but after he pulled out, then is where they had trouble, because she wanted to do what she felt was right.” Regardless of what sign or placard Dawkins later had placed on the house, if any, the evidence was overwhelming that when he asked his congregation to contribute money to build the house, it was built for Mrs. Dawkins as her home.
Mrs. Dawkins commenced an action for separate maintenance on October 18,1956. During 1957 the parties effected a reconciliation. An agreement setting forth the conditions of the reconciliation provided in substance that the wife would renounce the church and its leaders to which she had been affiliated; that she work with Dawkins in his church, and that she join with her husband in executing to the trustees of Gospel Tabernacle a quitclaim deed to the home and *332other properties. As a result of that agreement the deed was executed and delivered to Dawkins. Following the reconciliation and the execution of the deed, Mrs. Dawkins attempted to comply with her part of the agreement, but when she attended church Dawkins called her “a dirty spirit” and told her to get out of the church and “stay away from the people out there.” It was then that Mrs. Daw-kins knew the marriage could no longer continue and she filed a supplemental petition asking for an absolute divorce.
Prior to the flood in 1951 Dawkins and his mother owned a tract of land on the Kansas River near Turner, Kansas. To acquire a site to bridge the Kansas River, the State Plighway Commission condemned Dawkins’ property and paid him $14,000. He retained $7,000 and paid the balance to his mother. During the trial Dawkins attempted to explain where that money was spent, by, as stated by the trial court, “lying” under oath, that he had expended it in erecting a structure in the Kaw Valley near Turner. His testimony in this respect was refuted beyond question.
Prior to the 1951 flood the Dawkins resided in a large 8 or 10-room house at 1033 Scott Avenue, which they owned. Dawkins sold that property after the flood. As previously indicated, the trial court found that the “$7,000.00, plus the money from the sale of 1033 Scott Avenue, plus the contributions made in response to Reverend Dawkins’ appeal for a home for his wife, more than equalled the cost of 903 Argentine Boulevard.” It was further found that “it isn’t just, it isn’t equitable, and it isn’t proper under the evidence” to cut “Mrs. Dawkins off without anything to show for the years she served him as his wife, and served this church as the pastor’s wife.” These findings of the trial court were amply supported by the evidence. Notwithstanding Dawkins placed title to the 903 Argentine Boulevard property in the name of the church trustees, a tracing of his unquestioned personal funds together with the contributions to build Mrs. Dawkins a home would prove 903 Argentine Boulevard to be his property and subject to division by the trial court in this action.
Concededly, this case presents a unique and most difficult question, but time and again this court has announced and applied the rule that where findings of fact are attacked for insufficiency of evidence or as being contrary to the evidence, its power begins and ends with the determination whether there is any substantial evidence to support them, and where findings are so supported, they *333áre accepted as true and will not be disturbed on appeal. (Dryden v. Rogers, 181 Kan. 154, 309 P. 2d 409; Ripley v. Harper, 181 Kan. 32, 309 P. 2d 412; Unruh v. Kansas Turnpike Authority, 181 Kan. 521, 313 P. 2d 286; In re Estate of Guest, 182 Kan. 760, 324 P. 2d 184.) These are just á few of the many cases and others may be found in 2 West’s Kansas Digest, Appeal and Error, §§ 1001-1013 and 1 Hatcher’s Kansas Digest (Rev. ed.), Appeal and Error, §§ 495-508.
In summary, the trial court heard evidence for eight days and saw and observed the witnesses. Dawkins’ testimony proved to be untruthful, and to say the least, the trial court was justified in refusing to give it credence. Equally important is the fact that the trustees were frequently by-passed by Dawkins after their selection. They were, as a matter of fact, ignored by him except when he saw fit to use them. In my judgment he should not be permitted to hide behind a board which he selected and cominated, and which the trial court found to be “a straw board created by Reverend Dawkins to meet a legal necessity, to-wit: the requirements of the R. F. C.”
I think the judgment of the trial court was correct and should have been affirmed.