QUESTION

Can my husband sue me if I call the police to have him escorted to the hospital when he's acting erratically and has been talking about suicide?

Asked on Jun 08th, 2013 on Divorce - Alaska
More details to this question:
My husband has been very emotionally unstable since he was laid off a few months ago. He goes from being very affectionate to yelling and screaming about divorce. He came to me and said that he wanted to kill himself because he didn't think he would ever find a job. I tried to keep the conversation positive and offered support, but things turned into an argument when I cited the feeling I have that he isn't supportive of me and I wish he were. It became an argument, calmed down, I needed time to decompress, so he left. He came back about 25 minutes later and was affectionate, asked if I wanted to do something, I said no, and it just became a huge argument. I'm really confused. He started saying he was in prison and yelling about divorce and killing himself and then he tried to say he was going to blackmail me by sending emails to my managers with what I don't know. He has a history of violence against me (broke my eye socket a year ago, but nothing since then), so I was concerned. He has a history of depression, but I have never seen this level of erratic behavior from him. When he left, he said he was never coming back, and I feared that he intended to kill himself as he had said before that he would drive into a ditch or ram a tree to kill himself. I called the police and told him only about the suicidal things and did not mention that he had been violent with me in the past. I knew he didn't have any weapons and would not fight with police and I told them that. They picked him up and took him to the hospital. I know that it was wrong of me to have argued with him and maybe I should have done something differently earlier, but I didn't know that he was going to be so erratic. Now, my husband is threatening to sue me and divorce me. I don't want a divorce. I just want him to get his mental health taken care of. As a side note, I do have a history of PTSD, but it is well managed and I have regular appointments with a psychiatrist.
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1 ANSWER

Suzanne H. Lombardi
In Alaska I do not believe that he would have any grounds to sue you. The police took him to the hospital not you. If you do not want a divorce you have to make sure that you are safe. A broken eye socket is a significantly serious injury. You would have grounds to get a restraining order against him if you are worried about his behavior. I worry that if you do not protect yourself this erratic behavior could turn, once again, to violence. If one party wants a divorce there is nothing that the other party can do. Alaska is a no fault state meaning that there does not have to be any reason to get a divorce. Please make sure that you are watching out for your safety during this difficult time for both of you. Just remember that you cannot fix him. That is for the professionals to do. You should try to get into counseling yourself to discover why you would stay with someone who hurt you so badly. This is not a judgment it is just a way for you to get some tools so that you feel safe. An attorney could go more thoroughly through your options.
Answered on Jun 11th, 2013 at 10:26 PM

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