Our St. Louis readers may be interested in a recent case in which a California woman who was sexually assaulted by her husband was forced to pay him spousal support during their divorce in 2010. The story is interesting not only because it shows the discretion judges have in family law cases, but also because of the way in which the case is spurring attempts to change state law in California.

The couple reportedly married in 1996, but the abuse began about two years into the marriage. Early on when the abuse began, she filed for divorce and got a restraining order, but never went through with it. Promises of reform got her to around 2002, when the physical abuse started up again. The abuse escalated in 2005, but it wasn't until 2007 that she filed for divorce again, not long after her husband threatened to kill her if she ever left or threatened to leave him.

In 2008, the woman took her husband to court and he was convicted of forced oral copulation. Two years later the couple had finalized their divorce, but not before the husband requested spousal support. To the surprise of many, the judge in the case ordered the woman to pay her unemployed and abusive ex-husband $1,000 per month, as well as $47,000 worth of legal fees from the divorce proceedings.

The woman reportedly works as a financial analyst and makes between $110,000 and $120,000 per year. Her husband, a former car salesman, has reportedly been supported by her since their 2002, when their first son was born.

Surprisingly, the judge would have been allowed to order her to pay her ex-husband $3,000 per month in spousal support, but that amount was lowered to $1,000 because of the man's history of domestic violence, as permitted by California's family code.

As a result of the case, San Diego's District Attorney is spearheading an attempt to change the language of California's family code so that a judge may not award spousal support to a spouse convicted of any violent felony. At present, the only situation where a judge may not make such an award is conviction of attempted murder.

Source: ABC News, "Victim Ordered to Pay Attacker Spousal Support," Christina Caron, November 4, 2011.