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JOAN MURPHY NEFF v. JOHN L. NEFF
Court of Special Appeals of Maryland
October 5, 1971
The parties weremarried on October 11, 1969 in Santa Barbara, California. They had previously met in 1948, Mr. Neff's first wife having been a good friend of the appellant. Sometime in February 1969 after his first wife's death, Mrs. Neff visited the appellee's home in Maryland and shortly thereafter the parties were married. Appellee struck her in the face with his fist, knocking her to the floor, and that he then kicked her. She further stated that he was intoxicated, used vile language, and told her that she was to leave. This incident was not denied by appellee and was corroborated by appellee's eighteen year old daughter who generally supported appellant's testimony. Mrs. Neff testified thatafter the physical assault, her husband got an ice pack for her face and apologized for his behavior. She described the atmosphere after this incident, up until the time she left the marital abode four months later, as very tense. While appellee was away on business, Mrs. Neff consulted an attorney. Upon her husband's return, she requested that he come with her to her lawyer's office. This resulted in a disagreement. Mrs. Neff became afraid that some physical violence would occur upon her husband's return and at that time decided to leave. The wife left the marital home and filed for a
divorce a mensa et thoro on grounds of cruelty or, in the alternative, constructive desertion. Her husband cross-filed for desertion. The trial court found that, while there was one incident of an act of cruelty, the parties continued to live together as husband and wife until the wife left the marital home. There was no justification for the wife to leave at the time she did; her life was not in danger and the marriage itself did not render her physically or mentally incapable. Even though some disagreement existed during the marriage, such incident did not justify the wife in leaving. Hence the wife left the husband unjustifiably. Further the trial court held the wife deserted the husband.
Whether the trial court erred in dismissing wife's bill of complaint on grounds of cruelty?
It is settled that conduct of one spouse which compels the other to leave may justify a
divorce to the other on the ground of desertion, even though the conduct may not justify a divorce on the ground of cruelty; it must, however, be such as to render impossible a continuation of matrimonial cohabitation with safety, health, and self-respect. For such a situation to exist there must be a pattern of persistent conduct which is detrimental to the safety or health of the complaining spouse, or so demeaning to his or her self-respect as to be intolerable. This Court concludes, as the chancellor implicitly concluded, that the incidents complained of by the appellant were not sufficiently serious to come within the rule stated above. It has repeatedly been held that the law of Maryland does not countenance the separation of husband and wife, except for grave and weighty reasons. However objectionable Mr. Neff's conduct may have been, when weighed in the balance against the rule of the cases, this court cannot find it legally sufficient to justify the wife's desertion. The court affirmed the judgment of the trial court that dismissed the wife's bill of complaint for
divorce on grounds of cruelty and granted the husband's cross-bill for desertion.
Disclaimer:
These summaries are provided by the SRIS Law Group. They represent the firm's unofficial views of the Justices' opinions. The original opinions should be consulted for their authoritative content.
Maryland Divorce Grounds Cruelty Single Act Lawyers Attorneys
By: Atchuthan Sriskandarajah
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