In re the Estate of Donnelly

William T. Collins, S.

This is a proceeding to determine the validity of an election filed by the husband of the deceased to take his intestate share of her estate. His right to do so is contested by the respondent executrix upon the theory that his abandonment of the deceased and his failure to support her constitute a bar under the statute. (Decedent Estate Law, § 18, subd. 4.)

The testimony developed the record of a strange and turbulent domestic relationship between the deceased and the petitioner. At the time of their marriage, Mrs. Donnelly was employed as a highly paid executive in the…