Abstract
In a turmoil of emotional distress and in fear of the outcome of an already deteriorating pregnancy, she fled the marital home with only her small son and a suitcase full of clothes. This woman's husband had publicly and privately bullied, berated, belittled and browbeat her throughout their marriage, but since she became pregnant she feared that his campaign to keep her in a constant state of emotional disequilibrium would also harm the child she carried. Her husband controlled her by keeping a tight grasp on the family finances providing her with meager spending money and forcing her to produce receipts for every penny she spent. He punished her by taking her checks, credit cards and car keys. In front of their child, he cursed and demeaned her until she was reduced to tears. However, he never hit her in front of witnesses and the few incidents of physical abuse were not recent.
Recommended Citation
Sylvia Clute,
Divorce Denied: Have Mental Cruelty, Constructive Desertion and Reasonable Apprehension of Bodily Harm Been Abolished in Virginia?,
25
U. Rich. L. Rev.
273
(1991).
Available at:
https://scholarship.richmond.edu/lawreview/vol25/iss2/3