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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF MISSISSIPPI NO. 94-CA-01005-SCT JAMES ALLEN MORTON v. JOLENE ANSEMAN THIS OPINION IS NOT DESIGNATED FOR PUBLICATION AND MAY NOT BE CITED, PURSUANT TO M.R.A.P. 35-A DATE OF JUDGMENT: TRIAL JUDGE: COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED: ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT: ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEE: NATURE OF THE CASE: DISPOSITION: MOTION FOR REHEARING FILED: MANDATE ISSUED: 09/29/94 HON. MELVIN MCCLURE PANOLA COUNTY CHANCERY COURT ROBERT G. ROY MICHAEL R. WALL CIVIL - DOMESTIC RELATIONS AFFIRMED - 5/29/97 6/19/97

BEFORE SULLIVAN, P.J., PITTMAN AND BANKS, JJ. SULLIVAN, PRESIDING JUSTICE, FOR THE COURT:

STATEMENT OF THE FACTS After dating for one or two years, Jolene Anseman and James Morton were married on September 16, 1978. Jolene was pregnant, and at the time of the marriage was having sexual relations with James, Troy Bourque, and Randy LeFleur. James knew that Jolene was pregnant when they married, and while Jolene never told James about the paternity of the child, James understood that he was the father. He testified that he would not have married Jolene had he known that the baby was not his or that Jolene had been having sexual relations with other men. Troy Bourque testified that Jolene told him that he was the child's father, but that Jolene did not tell James. Jolene testified that she told Troy that the child was James's and that she never told James that the child was not his. The child, Brandon Morton, was born on April 24, 1979. Three months later, James's brother told him that Brandon was not James's son. James testified that the first knowledge he had of Jolene's relationship with Troy Bourque was in the summer of 1991 when Brandon told him that Jolene had taken him to visit his "real father." James testified that he still believed that Brandon was his son until blood tests

conducted in December of 1993 revealed that neither James nor Troy was Brandon's father. On March 25, 1981, Jolene gave birth to another son, Josh. A DNA test conducted in December of 1993 revealed that neither James nor Troy Bourque was Josh's father. Jolene testified that Timothy Drew Robinson was Josh's father, but no blood test had been conducted to determine this fact. Again, James testified that although he suspected that Jolene was not faithful to him, he believed Jolene when she told him that both Brandon and Josh were his sons until the blood tests were conducted in 1993. James is named as the father on both Brandon's and Josh's birth certificates, and he always treated the boys as if they were his own and held himself out to be their father. Jolene and James were divorced on January 12, 1984, upon grounds of irreconcilable differences, and James was required under the divorce decree to pay Jolene $200 per month in child support. On July 14, 1986, Jolene filed a petition for citation of contempt against James for failure to keep up the child support payments. The chancellor held James in contempt and ordered him to pay the arrearage and attorneys' fees, totaling $2,400 plus court costs. After the contempt proceedings, Brandon and Josh, and sometimes Jolene, would live with James for periods of time, although testimony differed as to the dates and lengths of stays. James testified that while Jolene lived with him they agreed that he would pay her monthly car note in the amount of $153.43 and the $2,000 down payment in lieu of child support payments. James's mother testified that James would send her the money for the car payments and that she would pay the bank. Jolene testified that she paid the $2,000 car down payment, that she and James made car payments together, and that James was required in their separation agreement to assist her in buying a car. In fact, the separation agreement stated that James would make one-half of Jolene's monthly car payments. On July 13, 1993, Jolene filed another petition for citation of contempt claiming that James owed her $13,000 in back child support payments, because he had not made a payment since January of 1988. That left a total of $16,000 unpaid at the time of trial. The petition for citation of contempt was consolidated with James's complaint for annulment and motion for relief from the divorce judgment. Based upon the above evidence, Judge McClure ordered that James be relieved of future child support obligation, that James pay the $16,000 in child support arrearage plus $2,685 in attorneys' fees, and that the annulment be denied. It is from this judgment that James appeals to this Court. STATEMENT OF THE LAW Standard of Review "This Court will not disturb the chancellor's opinion when supported by substantial evidence unless the chancellor abused his discretion, was manifestly wrong, clearly erroneous or an erroneous legal standard was applied." Holloman v. Holloman, So.2d , 1996 WL 529540 (Miss.) (citations omitted) . I. THE TRIAL COURT COMMITTED MANIFEST ERROR IN DENYING JAMES MORTON'S PETITION FOR ANNULMENT. James first argues that he should have been awarded an annulment, because his consent to the

marriage was obtained by fraud. He contends that Jolene intentionally lied to him about the paternity of her sons and that he would have never married Jolene if he had known that he was not Brandon's father. James asserts that this fraud defeated the essence of the marriage contract, that he never ratified the fraud, and that he should therefore be granted an annulment. Miss. Code Ann.

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