{ "id": 1650432, "name": "Bell, Guardian v. Silas, Guardian", "name_abbreviation": "Bell v. Silas", "decision_date": "1954-05-24", "docket_number": "5-422", "first_page": "694", "last_page": "696", "citations": [ { "type": "official", "cite": "223 Ark. 694" }, { "type": "parallel", "cite": "268 S.W.2d 624" } ], "court": { "name_abbreviation": "Ark.", "id": 8808, "name": "Arkansas Supreme Court" }, "jurisdiction": { "id": 34, "name_long": "Arkansas", "name": "Ark." }, "cites_to": [ { "cite": "16 Ark. 377", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ark.", "case_ids": [ 8725228 ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ark/16/0377-01" ] }, { "cite": "173 S. W. 427", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.W.", "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "116 Ark. 361", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "Ark.", "case_ids": [ 1532270 ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/ark/116/0361-01" ] } ], "analysis": { "cardinality": 361, "char_count": 4729, "ocr_confidence": 0.511, "pagerank": { "raw": 6.848989183728895e-08, "percentile": 0.41751102091280223 }, "sha256": "19ca25ef459393df7e7ec7950c8554d65a5c5619615513850bff96f44b78e61d", "simhash": "1:028119ce6a847794", "word_count": 789 }, "last_updated": "2023-07-14T21:02:33.600099+00:00", "provenance": { "date_added": "2019-08-29", "source": "Harvard", "batch": "2018" }, "casebody": { "judges": [], "parties": [ "Bell, Guardian v. Silas, Guardian." ], "opinions": [ { "text": "Griffin Smith, Chief Justice.\nLen Harmon and his wife, Elsie, and their infant child, were killed near White Hall, 111., May 8th, 1953. Their other two children (Gerald, a boy of six, and Shirley Ann, two years younger) were with their parents, but survived the ordeal. Harmon and his wife had formerly resided at Piggott, Ark., but had been in Indiana for approximately six years. Dorse Silas is the grandfather of Gerald and Shirley Ann,, Mrs. Harmon having been his daughter. Silas and his wife now reside in Independence county at Cushman.\nWilliam E. Bell had resided near Decatur, Indiana, for almost five years, but in March, 1953, he went to Clay county, Arkansas, to assist his father on a farm. The witness is an uncle by marriage of the two children. Bell\u2019s statements, and admissions by other interested witnesses, are that guardianship and administration matters were necessary in order to collect compensation paid by the railroad company, eighteen thousand of which appears to have been received by the administrator in addition to $3,000 in insurance.\nShortly after the tragic wreck the paternal grandmother of the two children, and the maternal grandparents, with other relatives, held conferences to determine what course ought to be pursued. It was agreed that Bell should go to Indiana to negotiate with or sue the railroad company and to collect insurance.\nAppellee and his wife contend that there was no agreement regarding custody of Gerald and Shirley Ann other than the paternal grandmother\u2019s statement that she was not in a position to care for them. Appellee and his wife, however, say that it was understood that they were to have the children.\nThere is little doubt that appellee knew that Indiana guardianship and administration would be required as an incident to collection of the sums they hoped for.\nPerhaps the maternal grandparents were not familiar with legal terminology to the extent that they understood what a guardian\u2019s duties would be; but it is certain that they acquiesced in the suggestion that Bell return to Indiana and take whatever steps might be necessary to collect for the minors.\nFollowing the accident Shirley Ann was taken to a hospital in St. Louis. Gerald was hospitalized at Ken-nett, Mo., and from there he was taken to appellee\u2019s home. Bell later had the boy for a short time, but appellee then took the child to Cushman and has kept him in spite of Bell\u2019s protests. Shirley Ann is now in appellant\u2019s home.\nIn Landreth v. Henson, 116 Ark. 361, 173 S. W. 427, Chief Justice McCulloch, speaking for an undivided court, said that our decisions had followed the common law rule that the last domicile of the deceased father of an infant constitutes his legal domicile, and cannot be changed or removed by his own act until he reaches his majority. See Grimmett v. Witherington, 16 Ark. 377.\nAppellee cites the Restatement, Conflict of Laws, \u00a7 39: \u201cIf both parents of a minor child are dead and no guardian of the child\u2019s person is appointed, the child by living with its grandparent at the latter\u2019s home has the domicile of that grandparent\u2019\u2019. This summation is predicated upon a situation where there is no guardian.\nIn the case here presence of the minor in this state was incidental to the ill-fated trip. At the time the parents were killed Gerald, because of his tender years, was incapable of deciding whether he preferred to live in Arkansas or in Indiana; nor was this taken into consideration when the family discussions were had'\u2014 discussions resulting, as appellee says, in an understanding that both children should be reared in his home.\nBell was appointed guardian in Indiana May 19, 1953. Appellee\u2019s appointment in Independence county did not occur until September 14th. On August 7th Bell executed bond for $38,000 with Capitol Indemnity Insurance Company as surety.\nIn consenting to Bell\u2019s appointment in Indiana appellee may have had in mind the unexpressed reservation that the foreign court\u2019s authority would be limited to the designation of a guardian impliedly restricted to financial functions, but the court had no information respecting this implication.\nIn these circumstances we are not willing to say that Gerald, solely bs^ virtue of the family discussions, or because of his accidental presence in the state, was a resident of Arkansas or that for legal purposes he was domiciled here. We therefore defer to the foreign court\u2019s judgment and hold that appellant is the duly appoint cal guardian, and entitled to custody of the child.\nReversed.", "type": "majority", "author": "Griffin Smith, Chief Justice." } ], "attorneys": [ "Chas. F. Cole, for appellant.", "W. J. Arnold and C. T. Bennett, for appellee." ], "corrections": "", "head_matter": "Bell, Guardian v. Silas, Guardian.\n5-422\n268 S. W. 2d 624\nOpinion delivered May 24, 1954.\n[Rehearing denied June 28, 1954.]\nChas. F. Cole, for appellant.\nW. J. Arnold and C. T. Bennett, for appellee." }, "file_name": "0694-01", "first_page_order": 716, "last_page_order": 718 }