Scott v. Rouse
| Decision Date | 27 September 2022 |
| Docket Number | 2021-CP-01029-COA |
| Parties | JACOB B. SCOTT AND MELODY L. SCOTT APPELLANTS v. JAMIE SCOTT ROUSE APPELLEE |
| Court | Mississippi Court of Appeals |
BEFORE WILSON, P.J., McCARTY AND SMITH, JJ.
¶1. Jamie Scott Rouse was granted a divorce from her ex-husband Jacob Scott, after the chancellor found that Jacob had repeatedly raped Jamie's then-fourteen-year-old daughter (Jacob's stepdaughter). After the chancellor entered a final judgment, Jacob faked his own death and fled the State in an effort to avoid prosecution, but he was later apprehended in Oklahoma. The present appeal, filed by Jacob and his mother (Melody Scott), involves rulings by the chancellor following Jacob's apprehension. Those rulings relate to Jamie's efforts to enforce financial aspects of the final judgment and Jacob and Melody's claims that Jamie wrongfully retained property that belongs to them. For the reasons explained below, all the issues that Jacob and Melody raise on appeal are procedurally barred, either because they were decided by a previous final judgment that Jacob and Melody failed to appeal from or because Jacob and Melody failed to designate an adequate appellate record. Accordingly, we affirm the chancery court's judgment.
¶2. In March 2017, Jamie filed a complaint for divorce against Jacob in the Jackson County Chancery Court. In September 2017, a Jackson County grand jury indicted Jacob for nine counts of sexual battery and other crimes against Jamie's then-fourteen-year-old daughter (Jacob's stepdaughter). In January 2018, the chancellor granted Jamie a divorce on the ground of adultery after finding that Jacob repeatedly raped Jamie's daughter, resulting in her pregnancy. The chancellor awarded Jamie periodic alimony of $1,500 per month, $10,280.44 because Jacob had failed to comply with prior orders to pay the mortgage on the marital home and car notes, and $21,471.07 for attorney's fees. Jacob filed a motion for reconsideration or a new trial, which was denied. Neither party appealed.
¶3. In May 2018, Jamie filed a petition for contempt because Jacob had failed to pay the amounts ordered in the divorce decree. Jacob failed to appear for a hearing on the petition and the chancellor issued a warrant for his arrest. Jacob subsequently withdrew $45,000 from his retirement account, faked his own death, and fled the State.
¶4. In January 2020, Jacob was apprehended in Oklahoma, where he was living under an alias. In February 2020, Jamie filed an ex parte complaint for emergency support and other relief in the chancery court, and the chancellor entered an emergency order granting Jamie "temporary ownership of all assets belonging to Jacob." The chancellor also entered an income-withholding order directing the Social Security Administration to withhold and pay Jamie alimony from Jacob's Social Security disability benefits and to withhold and pay Jamie a lump sum of $10,280.44 from Jacob's "accumulated back pay."
¶5. In April 2020, Jacob filed a motion to dissolve the emergency order. He also filed a motion to set aside the withholding order, arguing that a withholding order could not be entered in the absence of a prior order to pay child support. In August 2020, the chancellor set aside the withholding order, agreeing that it was not proper because there was no order to pay child support. In addition, the chancellor noted that Jamie had remarried, which terminated Jacob's obligation to pay alimony.
¶6. In September 2020, Jacob filed a "Motion to compel Disclosure of and Return of Asset." He alleged that as a result of the improperly entered withholding order, more than $20,000 of his Social Security disability benefits had been disbursed to Jamie's attorney. He argued that the chancellor should order Jamie to account for and return the funds.
¶7. On December 9, 2020, the chancellor entered a "Final Judgment." The chancellor stated that on November 10, 2020, Jacob and Jamie both appeared in court with counsel, Melody appeared pro se,[1] and all parties presented testimony and other evidence. The chancellor found that as a result of the prior withholding order, the Social Security Administration had paid $22,308 to Jamie, which her attorney deposited in his trust account. Jamie requested that she be allowed to retain those funds, while Jacob sought their return. Jacob also sought the return of personal property allegedly in Jamie's possession. The chancellor noted that the original divorce decree granted Jamie a total judgment of $31,751.51 plus interest and that Jacob had defrauded Jamie and the court in an effort to avoid paying that judgment. Under the circumstances, the chancellor found that Jamie should be allowed to retain the funds in her attorney's trust account. The chancellor then stated that Jacob should "have exclusive use, possession and ownership of any and all items of his personal property." Apparently, Jacob's motorcycle was in the possession of Jamie's attorney, and the chancellor ordered him to deliver it to Jacob's attorney.
¶8. On January 6, 2021, Jacob and Melody filed a pro se "Motion to Appeal Final Judgment."[2] Their twelve-page motion consisted of thirteen wide-ranging legal arguments styled as "affirmative defenses" and a "prayer for relief" that sought damages and the return of personal property allegedly in Jamie's possession. The clerk's docket entry for the motion includes the following notation: "not an appeal to the Supreme Court[;] I specifically asked Melody Scott when she was at the counter."[3] Neither Jacob nor Melody attempted to set this motion for a hearing.
¶9. In May 2021, Jacob filed a pro se "Motion for Replevin and Motion of Contempt of Court." He alleged that Jamie had not returned his personal property, and he asked the chancellor to award him damages and fine and incarcerate Jamie. The chancellor held a hearing on Jacob's motion on June 21, 2021; however, Jacob and Melody did not designate the transcript as part of the record on appeal.
¶10. On June 21, 2021, following the hearing, Melody filed a motion requesting that the chancellor recuse himself. Melody alleged, among other things, that the chancellor had "manipulated" Jacob's and Melody's properties, sanctioned "blatant" "theft and disregard of justice," and refused to allow her to present evidence. The docket indicates that the chancellor held a hearing on Melody's recusal motion on July 23, 2021; however, Jacob and Melody did not designate the transcript as part of the record on appeal.
¶11. On August 5, 2021, the chancellor entered a "Final Judgment and Dismissal with Prejudice." The chancellor noted that during the hearing on June 21, 2021, Jacob claimed that Jamie was still in possession of certain items of Jacob's personal property. However, Jamie testified that she did not have any of Jacob's property. The chancellor found that Jacob failed to present any "credible evidence" to support his allegations and therefore denied his motions for replevin and...
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