TX: "Probate Judge is Shunting Aside TX Law"

Jack Hood is 88 years old, but I wouldn't place any bets against him in an arm wrestling match.

The World War II veteran says he still submits to workouts that include 200 curls of 25-pound dumbbells.

“Don't (mess) with me,” Hood warned Tuesday.

I can't print the expletive he actually said. But I also can't print an image of the grin that followed, proving the old man remains not only tough, but also funny and sharp.

It matters, though, because Hood's stepdaughter and her attorneys are arguing in court that he is not qualified to manage the assets he shares with his wife of 35 years, Billie Ray Hood, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

Debra Catalani, who is Billie Ray's daughter, is instead arguing that she should control the couple's assets, a claim that shunts aside state law.

The law — Section 883 of the Texas Probate Code — states that when one spouse is incapacitated, the other spouse “acquires full power to manage, control, and dispose of the entire community estate as community administrator.”

Nonetheless, the same probate judge who has considered the dispute for more than two years, Judge Tom Rickhoff, signed an order channeling much of Jack and Billie Ray's assets to Catalani.

Last month, the Fourth Court of Appeals reversed Rickhoff's partition order and remanded it back to his court for more hearings.

“Incredibly, Section 883 was not raised in the trial court by the parties or by the trial judge,” the chief justice wrote.

It's been a frustrating two years for Jack Hood.

I can understand why.

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Probate Judge is Shunting Aside Texas Law