Savell v. Savell, 45922
| Decision Date | 26 October 1970 |
| Docket Number | No. 45922,45922 |
| Citation | 240 So.2d 628 |
| Parties | Alton SAVELL v. Mrs. Blanche Brown SAVELL. |
| Court | Mississippi Supreme Court |
Thomas D. Lee, Roy Noble Lee, Forest, for appellant.
A. B. Amis, Jr., Newton, for appellee.
This is an appeal by Alton Savell from a decree of the Chancery Court of Newton County which granted a divorce to Mrs. Blanche Savell. The decree also awarded Mrs. Savell the custody of and support for the minor daughter of the parties, granted her exclusive use and possession of the home and eighty acres of land and $200 as attorney's fee. The appellant contends on appeal that the lower court erred in granting the divorce and the subsequent awards of custody, support, use of the home property, and attorney's fee.
The daughter of the parties being now married and self-supporting, the provisions of the decree relating to her custody and support and the appeal thereon are now moot and will not be considered on this appeal.
We have examined the record of the evidence in detail. It reflects a pattern of intoxication on the part of the appellant and abuse of the appellee consisting of threatening language, financial neglect of the family, and, in the past, physical abuse. This ill treatment of the wife was alleviated somewhat when the defendant ceased to drink in 1966. However, from the evidence it is apparent that the defendant did not contribute to the support of the family and continued in the use of vituperative language toward his wife, including threats of bodily harm to her. This course of conduct, enhanced by the appellant's return to the use of intoxicants, is sufficient to support the chancellor's finding of habitual cruel and inhuman treatment by the defendant toward his wife. The emotional stress and worry resulting from the defendant's behavior is sufficient, in our opinion, to meet the requirement of reasonable apprehension of physical abuse.
It is obvious that habitual cruel and inhuman treatment may consist of repeated acts of the same nature such as personal violence, or it may consist of a series of acts, some of the same nature and some of different natures, but which, when taken together, tend to cause pain and suffering on the part of the innocent spouse. There are many kinds of acts such as wilful failure to support, verbal abuse, neglect, and the like which, if taken alone will not constitute cruelty, but when taken together will manifest a course of conduct as a whole which may amount to cruelty. * * * (Bunkley and Morse's, Amis Divorce and Separation in Mississippi, § 3.14(8), p. 122 (1957)).
See also Sandifer v. Sandifer, 215 Miss. 414, 61 So.2d 144 (1...
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