Sheryl S. Darden v. Thomas v. Darden
| Decision Date | 18 May 2000 |
| Docket Number | 75508,00-LW-2315 |
| Parties | SHERYL S. DARDEN, Plaintiff-Appellee v. THOMAS V. DARDEN, Defendant-Appellant CASE |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
Civil appeal from Domestic Relations Division, Common Pleas Court,
For Plaintiff-Appellee: JOHN J. READY, ESQ., 500 Courthouse Square, 310 Lakeside Avenue, West, Cleveland, Ohio 44113.
For Defendant-Appellant: RAYMOND J. COSTANZO, ESQ., Costanzo & Lazzaro, 13317 Madison Avenue, Lakewood, Ohio 44107-4814.
Appellant Thomas Darden appeals a decision by the trial court in favor of Appellee Sheryl Darden (nka Sheryl Sutler) on her motions to show cause and for attorney fees. Thomas Darden assigns the following three errors for our review:
Sheryl Darden cross-appeals and assigns the following four errors for our review:
Having reviewed the record and the legal arguments of the parties, we affirm the decision of the trial court. The apposite facts follow.
On February 14, 1977, the trial court granted Thomas Darden and Sheryl Darden a divorce award and custody of the minor child, Todd, (D.O.B. 01/02/76) to Sheryl Darden, with an order for Thomas Darden to pay child support. Sixteen years later on May 7, 1993, Thomas Darden filed a motion to reduce the child support. Darden argued his income had been reduced, his living and other expenses increased; additionally, he argued from his second divorce the court had imposed a $303.00 per month child support order for another child. He also argued the trial court should re-evaluate Sheryl Darden's earning capacity.
the trial court ordered him to pay Sheryl Darden through CSEA
$10,000 by July 31, 1994; pay 65% of his income or maximum allowed by law towards the arrearage; and to assign to Sheryl all commission due him as an professional athlete.
The court scheduled a hearing on Sheryl Darden's motion for attorney fees for January 17, 1995. Neither Thomas Darden nor his attorney appeared at the fee hearing. The court determined that Darden failed to satisfy his $64,994.30 arrearage or to make the payments mandated by the court's order that he pay CSEA 65% of his net income. The court ruled that Sheryl Darden had incurred attorney fees totaling $54,390 plus $229.00 in costs for a total of $54,619.00 and ordered Thomas Darden to pay those fees and costs. The trial court found that Thomas Darden had amassed more than two dozen contempt findings and sentenced him to 90 days in jail.
On May 24, 1995, Thomas Darden filed a motion for relief from judgment, a motion to suspend execution of his jail sentence pendente lite and, in the alternative, a motion to modify the trial court's judgments. Thomas Darden argued that the trial court's contempt finding was erroneous and that he had, in fact, made a $20",000 payment to CSEA in April 1993 and a $10,000 payment to CSEA on February 28, 1995. Thomas Darden also argued he was not properly served with notice of the January 17, 1995 hearing.
The trial court granted Thomas Darden's motion to suspend execution of his jail sentence. In a July 10, 1995 journal entry, the trial court denied Darden's other motions and denied his claim of lack of personal jurisdiction. The court held that the "court's prior order sentencing defendant to 90 days in jail shall be enforced unless Defendant purges his contempt by paying $10,000 toward his arrearages within 30 days of journalization of this entry." Darden was ordered to return to court on August 10, 1995 for a review of his compliance with the court's orders.
On July 20, 1995, Darden filed an appeal (App. No. 69322) of the trial court's decision. In a journal entry dated August 10, 1995, the trial court found that Darden failed to purge himself of his contempt, and ordered the immediate execution of his jail sentence. On August 21, 1995, Thomas Darden filed a motion to stay execution of the jail sentence and a motion for bond. Darden filed another notice of appeal (App. No. 69453) challenging the court's August 10, 1995 order. In Darden v. Darden (May 2, 1996), Cuyahoga App. Nos. 69322, 69453, this court affirmed the trial court's judgment. We held that, since Thomas Darden appeared at the May 18, 1994 hearing, he was precluded from raising the lack of personal jurisdiction in the case. We also held that Thomas Darden invoked the continuing jurisdiction of the domestic relations court by filing a motion to modify child support. In upholding the trial court's finding that Thomas Darden failed to purge himself of contempt, we noted that Thomas Darden failed to appear at the hearing on January 17, 1995 and that he failed to make any support payments after the May 18, 1994 hearing.
We also upheld the trial court's decision to order Thomas Darden's jail term into execution. Citing Thomas Darden's longstanding history of failing to meet his child-support obligations, we reasoned that Thomas Darden failed to comply with the stipulations he made at the May 18, 1994 hearing and presented no competent evidence that he was financially unable to meet his obligations.
On December 2, 1996, Sheryl Darden filed a motion to show cause and a motion for attorney fees. A hearing on the motion was originally set for February 18, 1997. The hearing was continued several times, finally being conducted on August 11, 1997. On February 19, 1998, the Magistrate issued his report and recommendation.
The Magistrate found that Thomas Darden had $10,110.84 in income for 1996 from the Bert Bell NFL Players Retirement Trust and that he failed to pay at least 65% of that income to Sheryl Darden as required by the trial court's order of June 9, 1994. The Magistrate also found that Thomas Darden was required to make two lump sum payments of $10,000 each and one payment of $12,500 in addition to the 65% of his income. The Magistrate also found Thomas Darden in contempt of court for failing to obey the trial court's order of January 17, 1995 and recommended that Thomas Darden be sentenced to 90 days in jail or 500 hours of community service which was to be suspended if Thomas Darden purged his contempt by paying a lump sum of $11,492.05 plus 2% processing fee and by making monthly payments of $547.67 plus 2% processing fee through CESA for 12 months or until the arrearage is fully paid, whichever comes first.
The Magistrate also calculated the amount of interest on the unpaid support award and on the attorney fee award as $12,387.22. He also ordered Thomas Darden to continue to pay at least $547.67 per month plus a processing fee on his support obligation. The Magistrate also ordered Thomas Darden to pay $21,863.56 towards Sheryl Darden's attorney fees. The Magistrate also ordered that additional interest would accrue on the judgment effective August 11, 1997.
In an amended journal entry filed March 16, 1998, the Magistrate again found Thomas Darden to be in contempt and recommended that he be sentenced to 90 days in jail. The Magistrate stated that Thomas Darden could purge his contempt by making a lump sum payment of $11,492.05. After calculating the accrued interest on the judgment and deducting the payments made to CSEA by Thomas Darden, the Magistrate concluded that total unpaid accrued interest on the court's prior judgments was $12,387.22. The Magistrate also found that, as of August 11, 1997, Thomas Darden was in arrears in the amount of $114,920.49. The Magistrate sentenced Thomas Darden to 90 days in jail or 500 hours community service and ordered that the contempt could be purged if Thomas Darden paid $11,492.05 plus a 2% processing charge to CSEA within 30 days. The Magistrate ordered Thomas Darden to continue paying at least $547.67 through CSEA until his arrearage was fully paid. The Magistrate also ordered that, effective August 11, 1997, additional interest would accrue on the principal balance of $60,301.49. The Magistrate also ordered Thomas Darden to pay $21,863.56 to Sheryl Darden for attorney fees as additional spousal support.
On April 23, 1998, the trial court issued an order adopting the Magistrate's decision, but that order was vacated on April 30, 1998 under Civ.R. 60(A). On April 29, 1998, Thomas Darden filed objections to the amended Magistrate's decision. In a journal entry dated October 13, 1998, the trial court sustained Thomas Darden's...
To continue reading
Request your trial