In Re Dube

44 A.3d 556 (2012)

Facts

Jeannie (W) and Eric (H) were married in 1997. They purchased a home in Candia, where they lived with their son and one of H's children from a previous marriage. H's parents lived in an in-law apartment over the garage of the marital home. Eventually, they demonstrated little to no affection toward one another, and W refused to be intimate with H. On November 30, 2008, W learned that H had engaged in a single instance of adultery. While the pair discussed their marriage during a telephone conversation, W told H that she was going to kill the parties' minor child, H's child from a previous relationship, and H's parents. She also told him that she was going to burn down the marital residence. W “doused the marital residence and garage with gasoline and attempted to ignite it with a lighter.” W “destroyed a portion of the marital residence and property with an ax,” and then chased H's father around the house with the ax, as he tried to prevent her from lighting the gasoline. H obtained a restraining order against W. W was charged with two counts of attempted murder, one count of attempted arson, and one count of criminal mischief. H filed for divorce, claiming irreconcilable differences caused the breakdown of the parties' marriage. H amended his divorce petition for fault-based. W was convicted of one count of attempted arson and one count of criminal mischief and was subsequently sentenced to two to four years at State Prison. H asked the court to consider that W's “conviction of a crime punishable by prison for more than one year constituted fault grounds that caused the breakdown of the marriage.” The trial court granted H a decree of divorce “on fault. It concluded that an unequal division of the marital property in H's favor was warranted. The court denied W's request for alimony, finding it “unwarranted.” W appealed.