McAlhaney v. McElveen

Richard K. McElveen, Sr. appeals the trial court’s denial of his motion for a new trial, arguing the trial court erred in ruling the jury’s award of punitive damages against him was not so grossly excessive as to shock the conscience of the court. We affirm.

I. Facts and Procedural History

This appeal arose from a custody dispute between McEl-veen and his former daughter-in-law — Molly McCullers McEl-veen (McCullers) — over her two children, who are McElveen’s grandchildren. When the custody dispute began, Matthew McAlhaney was dating McCullers. In an attempt to gain an advantage in the custody…