Zimmerman v. Zimmerman

Collins, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. This is an appeal by William E. Zimmerman from a decree awarding his wife, Katherine E. Zimmerman, appellee, a divorce a mensa et thoro and alimony of ¹⁷⁸ $15.00 a week. They were married October 23, 1950. Both of the parties had been married twice previously.

With the parties in this home, in which the appellant had a substantial interest, lived appellee’s fifteen year old son, the appellant’s father over 80 years of age, and a cousin of the appellant who was suffering from an infected leg. This cousin, according to the testimony of the appellee “had an open leg, which the stench from that is terrible, you can not stand it, and everything in general — conditions were such that I just could not live there, and I asked my husband if we could not make another home, and he said he would not leave there under any conditions because the end was too close with his father. * * * Well, his cousin at times would lose control of his bowels, and I was expected to clean that up, plus his open leg. The bath room was full of secretions when he changed the bandages. The cousin refused to go to the doctor for any medical attention.

If you mentioned a doctor to him he would collapse, and yet he worked every day of his life. * * * It impaired my health, the continual argument and bickering, day in and day out. I could not hold my meals when I sat at the table with his cousin at night. The stench from it was so bad you could not stand it. * * * I weighed 126 pounds when I married him, and when I came home I weighed about 110 to 112, due to I could not eat.” She said she left him on February 7, 1951, after she told her husband that she could not stand the conditions, and she was going to leave. She testified that he said “Go ahead”.

He would not make another home for her. When she asked for another home she testified that “he said he would not, and after we were separated I seen him and asked about getting a separate place, and he told me positively no, he would not make a home for me, to get out and go to work.” She said: “The second day I left I went back to get some clothes, and his father had changed the lock, so I could not get in the house, and he peeped over the top of the door and laughed at me. I told him I was going down to get ¹⁷⁹ the radio car to get my clothes, which I did not do. I called my husband at work, and asked him why I could not get in, and he said his father was acting on his orders, that I could not get in unless he himself was home, and he worked during the day I would either have to come at night or Sunday when he was home.” Testimony was taken in open court on June 21, 1951.

The appellee said she did not go to work until the end of March, 1951, and her regular employment lasted only until the 21st of July. At that time her salary was $32.00 a week. The appellant claims that his wife knew the cousin’s condition when she went to live in the house. The wife said she did not know about the stench until after she went there to live.

The husband admitted that there was a stench coming from his cousin’s leg and he found the odor rather unpleasant. The appellee’s mother testified that the odor was sickening and that the appellant said it made him sick and he would see what he could do about it. The appellant said his overall salary was $60.00 a week, but his “take home” pay was about $48.00. He pays no rent for the house.

During the hearing of the case the trial judge said: “I am giving Mr. Zimmerman his opportunity now to tell me whether he wants to pay what would be a fair weekly amount from his salary, taking into consideration she is working now and capable of working, or whether he