Judge: No divorce after death in Pa.

A dead man cannot obtain a divorce in Pennsylvania, an Indiana County judge ruled Wednesday in what has been cited as a landmark case in Pennsylvania.

Common Pleas Judge Carol Hanna refused a request by attorneys for murdered Blairsville dentist Dr. John J. Yelenic Jr. to grant a posthumous divorce.

Attorneys for Yelenic said if the divorce had been granted, it would have been a first in Pennsylvania.

The slain man and Michele Yelenic were married for more than eight years, but were separated for more than two years after a fiery split.

Yelenic, 39, was found murdered in his home April 13, a day before he was to sign paperwork finalizing his divorce. No arrests have been made.

His attorneys told the court that if the divorce was denied, the door would be opened for Michele Yelenic to challenge her husband's will. Yelenic's will names his adopted son as his main beneficiary.

Regardless of Hanna's ruling on the divorce, Michele Yelenic, 35, will receive money from a marriage settlement signed days before her husband's death.

Under the agreement, she will receive monthly child support payments of $1,337 along with $54,000 for her share of several properties the couple jointly owned, as well as a portion of his dental practice.

In addition, she will receive more than $38,000 from an annuity they held, money to pay for her White Township home and payments for their son's medical and educational expenses. She will receive this money from her late husband's estate.

In her ruling, Hanna referred to a 1927 Pennsylvania Common Pleas Court opinion that quoted an English case.

"A man can no more be divorced after he is dead than he can be married or condemned to death. Marriage is the union of two lives which can be dissolved either by death or by process of law, but after it has been dissolved in one of those ways, you cannot dissolve it again; you cannot untie a knot which has already been untied," Hanna said.

"The facts of this case are emotionally compelling. The husband's death was unjust and untimely," Hanna wrote in a 15-page opinion.

"The court acknowledges the sorrow of those who were close to (him) and their wish to give him in death what he sought in life," she said.

Yelenic's cousin, Mary Ann Clark, of Blairsville, is handling Yelenic's estate and has fought for the divorce, stating he would have wanted the marriage officially dissolved.

"I'm surprised and practically speechless. This was all done for John's sake, in his memory," Clark said.

"The last few days of his life, this is what he was living for, and he really wanted to see this (divorce) completed. It is disappointing."

Yelenic's attorney, Effie Alexander, of Pittsburgh, was uncertain if the ruling would be appealed.

"Obviously, we're disappointed. But you could tell from the opinion that Judge Hanna did put a lot of thought and effort into it," Alexander said.

Neither Michele Yelenic nor her attorney, Daniel Lovette, of Johnstown, objected to the request to grant the divorce. Lovette could not be reached for comment about the ruling.

Blairsville police are investigating the murder. Last week, family and friends of Yelenic announced a $10,000 reward fund for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the killing.