Handy publicly proclaimed that any attorney foolish enough to represent his wife in the divorce case "would be sorry." His attempts to intimidate Heney had the opposite effect, pricking Heney's conscience. Heney told his brother, Ben, that "If a lawyer can't take any case he feels it is right for him to handle, then he should take down his shingle." Heney and Handy had several confrontations. Handy intentionally attempted to run Heney over with his buggy more than once, and slandered Heney a coward, and also tried to provoke a fight. Clerk of the Court Brewster Cameron, a friend of both men, warned Handy that his threats might negatively influence the court, and Handy desisted for a while.