21 W. Va. 220 | W. Va. | 1882
announced the opinion of the Court:
In September, 1875, Alexander E. Humphreys filed a bill of injunction in. the circuit court of Monroe county alleging, that he was assessed in the county of Monroe, with over six hundred dollars for State, county and district taxes for the year 1873 and over four hundred dollars for the year 1874; that tax-ticlcets for said years and for said amounts were placed in the hands of S. A. Clark, late sheriff ot said county, for collection; that in July, 1875, said Clark died; that dur
The plaintiff was permitted to file an amended bill, in •which he says, that the original bill was filed in great haste, and alleges, that the books of said Clark show, that the said taxes for the years 1873 and 1874 have been fully paid, and that they were paid in a manner different from that set up in the original bill; that during the years 1873 and 1874 said Clark and Robert J. Glendy were partners in the purchase and sale of cattle; that during each of said years the plaintiff sold cattle to Glendy & Clark for an amount of money greater than the taxes due from plaintiff; that said Clark as sheriff had in his hands sundry executions and other legal process, upon which he collected for plaintiff considerable sums of money; ‘-that after the sale of said cattle and the collection of said executions, and about the time the taxes aforesaid became due and payable from plaintiff, the plaintiff and the said Clark made an agreement, that the said Clark
Patton administrator, and Adair answered the bill, denying the material allegations of the bill, and insisting, that “ a public officer will not be permitted to deal with the public revenues in satisfaction of his personal liabilities'; that money alone can satisfy tax-tickets; and no unexecuted agreement of satisfying the taxes due by a citizen to the State, county and district authorities by the individual indebtedness and liability of the public collector to the taxpayer will be countenanced or tolerated.” With the answer is exhibited a paper found among the papers of Clark, which would seem to show, that Clark was indebted to Humphreys in the sum of eighty-four' dollars and forty cents after crediting him with the taxes ot 1873 and 1874. ■
A number of depositions was taken in the cause,"among them was the deposition of the plaintiff', which is excepted to, but in the view, which I take of this case it'makes no difference, whether Humphreys’ deposition is read or not. The fact as-shown by the depositions is, that Clark was indebted to Humphreys in a greater amount than the taxes of 1873 and 1874 and that by said indebtedness the taxes wore paid. True Glendy testifies that he settled with Clark for these cattle transactions at the end of each year and paid
On the 13th day of October, 1876, upon a hearing of the cause the court perpetuated the injunction except as to seven dallars and two cents and gave costs against the administrator of Clark. Prom this decree upon petition of Patton, administrator, and Adair, an appeal witli-.s^ersecims was granted.
The only question to be decided is: Were the taxes ot Hmnphreys for the years 1873 and 1874, paid? We will not consider, whether an injunction would lie.in this. case. There was no demurrer to the bill; and the point was not raised in the court below nor here. It is also unnecessary to decide, whether Humphrey’s deposition is competent evidence, because it is of the same character as the other testimony in the case.
Does the record show, that the taxes were paid ? This Court held in. Wiley v. Mahood, 10 W. Va. 206, that, if an attorney had a claim for his client to collect, he could receive nothing but money without the consent of his client; and that if the attorney owed the debtor of his client, he could not settle his own indebtedness by giving up the claim of his client. If a debt could not be paid in that manner, in case of an attorney and a debtor -of a client, it seems to us, that for a much stronger reason a tax-payer cannot be allowed to offset the personal indebtedness of the sheriff to him in satisfaction of a public demand against the tax-payer. In Elliott v. Miller, 8 Mich. 132, it was held: “Taxes are due to the public and not to the tax-collector individually, and claims against him are not a legal tender for or offset against such charges.” The public cannot afford to wait for its necessary revenues until litigations like this are settled. A sound public policy as well as correct legal principle requires us to hold, that the taxpayer will not be allowed to offset the sheriff’s personal indebtedness to him against taxes due to the State, county or district. The State must have her revenues, and she must not be delayed in collecting them by any settlements to -be made of indebtedness from the sheriff to any tax-payer. Nor is it just to the sureties of the sheriff to permit the offsetting of the individual indebtedness of the sheriff to the tax-payer with taxes for which such sureties are liable.
Bill Dismissed.