State ex rel. Toryak v. Spagnuolo

The appellant, Ralph 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 assignments of error raise 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. We disagree.

The appellant was arrested June 13, 1979, on a warrant charging him with fathering appellee’s illegitimate child. Appellant’s first trial on November 13, 1979, ended in a mistrial.…