State Ex Rel. Toryak v. Spagnuolo

MILLER, Chief Justice:

The appellant, Ralph A. Spagnuolo, appeals from a final decision of the Circuit Court of Harrison County adjudicating him to be the father of an illegitimate child. The appellant’s only assignment of error raises the question of what is the proper standard of proof in a paternity action. The appellant contends that the lower court improperly held that only proof by a preponderance of the evidence was required.

The appellant was arrested June 13, 1979, on a warrant charging him with fathering the appellee’s illegitimate child. W.Va.Code, 48-7-1, et seq. The appellant’s…