56 Neb. 1 | Neb. | 1898
Lead Opinion
In this case there has already been a description and discussion of the issues, which thereby were greatly simplified. (State v. Moores, 52 Neb. 770.) There has now been a trial of these issues to a referee, who has reported his findings of fact and conclusions of law in accordance with the requirements of the order under which he was appointed.
In Donnelly v. People, 11 111. 552, Catón, J., in the delivery of the opinion of the court with reference, to the degree of precision requisite in indictments and informa
In State v. Davis, 57 N. J. L. 203, Beasley, C. J., in the delivery of the opinion of the supreme court commenting upon the unjustifiable defense urged by the defendants, said: “It is not proper for this court to pass such a wrong as this without rebuke, and it is therefore ordered that judgment be entered that due process of law issue to remove these defendants from the offices into which they have intruded, and also that a fine of f200 be laid on each of said defendants for their malfeasance.”
In People v. Havird, 2 Ida. 498, there was under consideration the constitutionality of an act passed’ by the legislature of that territory in which was embodied a
The above references sufficiently illustrate the decided leaning of certain courts towards the practice ordinarily followed in the prosecution of criminals, and the danger that this bias may have influenced judgment as to the right of trial by jury. While some courts which incline towards the analogies afforded by the Code of Criminal Procedure do not evince so marked a leaning as above
We have examined such of the above citations of English text writers and adjudged cases as are within our reach, and have found in each of them a mere mention of
Other courts have sanctioned the views above expressed, but there is a limit which forbids reference to them. From the review of this question already indulged in, to perhaps an unwarrantable length, it is clear there exists such uncertainty as to the rule at common law that, if possible, the problem should be solved by resort to fixed principles rather than the disputed teachings of uncertain precedents.
It is provided in section 2, article 6, of the constitution of this state, that the supreme court “shall have original jurisdiction in cases relating to the revenue, civil cases in which the state shall be a party, mandamus, quo warranto, habeas corpus, and such appellate jurisdiction as may be provided by law.” By section 18, chapter 19, Compiled Statutes, the appellate and final jurisdiction of the supreme court is defined to be “of all matters of law, fact, or equity, where the rules of law or principles of equity appear from the files, exhibits, or records of said court to have been erroneously determined.” It is clear that the jurisdiction of the court with reference to informations in the nature of a quo warranto depends, not upon the fact that such proceedings are in their nature criminal, but upon the express language of the constitution. The extended review of the history of the remedy under consideration will not have been entirely useless if it has prepared us to accept the proposition that the legislature wisely provided, as it did in section 2, Code of Civil
“Sec. 280. Issues of law must be tried by the court unless referred a.s provided in section two hundred and ninety-eight. Issues of fact arising in actions for the recovery of money, or of specific, real, or personal properly, shall be tried by a jury, unless a jury trial is waived or a reference be ordered, as hereinafter provided.
“Sec. 281. All other issues of fact shall be tried by the court, subject to its power to order any issue or issues to be tried by a jury or referred as provided in this Code.”
These sections constituted a part of our Code of Civil Procedure at the time of the adoption of the constitution of this state, in which, as section 6 of article 1, known as the “bill of rights,” there were the following provisions: “The right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate, but the legislature may authorize trial by a jury of a less number than twelve men in courts inferior to the district court.” A consideration of these provisions leads unavoidably to the conclusion that in refusing a jury trial to tihe respondent no constitutional right of his was denied, as is illustrated by the opinion of the court in Sharmer v. McIntosh, 43 Neb. 509; Omaha Fire Ins. Co. v. Thompson, 50 Neb. 580, and Mayer v. Wilkinson, 52 Neb. 764. For reasoning in the same line in quo warranto cases see State v. Doherty, 16 Wash. 382.
Intimately connected with the proposition just dis
In the opinion already filed the matters which were held to be properly for trial as questions of fact were thus indicated: “The answer discloses that prior to respondent’s election he had paid to the county treasurer all the fines and penalties received by him, except the sum of $1,818.83. If this last named amount, or any portion thereof, was intentionally, willfully, or corruptly retained by respondent, he was ineligible to the office in question. Of the items which go to make up the said sum, the answer states, in effect, that $364 were never
“8. The respondent, Frank E. Moores, as clerk of the district court of said Douglas county, during his two terms of office, collected and received certain fines and penalties aggregating the sum of $6,119.91, which had been imposed by the district court of said Douglas county upon various offenders against the laws of the state of Nebraska.
“9. The respondent had accounted for and paid over to the county treasurer of said county, prior to the 9 th day of May, 1897, of fines and penalties so collected and received, the sum of $4,221.36 and no more; and that at the time of his election, on the 20th day of April, 1897, the respondent had not accounted for nor paid over to the said county treasurer the sum of $1,898.55 of the fines so as aforesaid received by him.
“10. On the 9th day of May, 1897, the respondent paid to the county treasurer of said county a part of said fines, to-wit, the sum of $1,818.83, but failed and neglected to pay the balance of said sum, to-wit, $79.72, which amount is still unaccounted for and unpaid.
*16 “11. The respondent- had no actual knowledge, until after expiration of his last term of office of clerk of the district court, that the statute required him to pay ail fines to the county treasurer of said county within ten days from receipt thereof, but he did understand at all times that it was his duty to make a report at the end of each quarter, and pay over to said county treasurer all of the fines and penalties received by him during said quarter.
“12. The first report and payment made to said county by respondent of moneys collected by him was dated IS! ovember 24,1888, and purported to cover a period from January 5, to September 30, 1888. Said report and payment included $145 witness fees, $74 trial fees, and $525 fines and penalties. Prior to making of said report the respondent had collected and received the following fines imposed by said district court of Douglas county, to-wit: $14 paid by Mike Meany, March 27, 1888, Docket 7, page 115; $100 paid by Charles White, March 21, 1888, Docket 7, page 183; $100 paid by Buck Copeland, March 21, 1888, Docket 7, page 185; $150 paid by -Cook, March 21, 1888, Docket 7, page 186. All of said fines were omitted from said report, and none of them were ever reported or paid to said county until May 9, 1897.
“13. May 7, 1889, the second report and payment were made by respondent, which purported to cover a period from September 30, 1888, to April 1, 1889, and included and covered $285 trial fees and $250 fines. During this period the respondent had collected and received $29.72 on a fine imposed by the district court of Douglas county on one August TJthof, which amount was paid to respondent October 23,1888, but the same was omitted from said report and no part thereof has ever been reported or paid to said county by respondent.
“14. July 20, 1889, the third report and payment were made by respondent, and purported to cover the quarter ending June 30, 1889, and included $170 fines and $181 trial fees.
*17 “15. October 26, 1889, the respondent’s fourth report was made, purporting to cover the quarter ending September 30, 1889, and included trial fees to the amount of $161, but no fines.
“16. February 7, 1890, the fifth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending December 31, 1889, which report included only $104 trial fees and no fines.
“17! April 2, 1890, the sixth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending March 31,1890, and which included only trial fees to' the amount of $93 and no fines.
“18. October 10,1890, the seventh report and payment were made by respondent, purporting to cover the period for which no reports had been previously made, up to and including September 30,1890, which report included $242 trial fees and $105 fines. This sum of $105 was made up of four fines, one of $25, paid to respondent March 17,1890; one of $5 paid to respondent January 22, 1890; one for $25 paid to respondent April 1, 1890; and one for $50 paid April 3,1890.
“19. January 23, 1891, the eighth report and payment were made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending December 31, 1890, and included $30 fines and $153 trial fees.- On the 27th day of September, 1890, the respondent collected of John Paegler a fine of $50 imposed by the district court of said county, which amount was omitted from said report and not reported or paid to said county until May 9,1897.'
“20. April 29, 1891, the ninth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending March 31, 1891, which included trial fees to the amount of $88 and no fines.
“21. February 17, 1892, the tenth report and payment by respondent were made, purporting to cover the period for which no previous reports had been made and up to January 1,1892. It included $156.47 fines and $314 trial fees. From this report was-omitted a fine of $3.53 paid*18 to respondent by Mrs. Perm, June 4, 1891, which amount was not reported or paid by respondent to said county until May 9,1897.
“22. July 6, 1892, the eleventh report and payment were made by respondent, said report being dated July 1, 1892, purporting to cover the period for which no reports had been previously made, up to and including June 30,1S92, and included $386 fines and $231 trial fees. From this report was omitted a fine of $25 imposed by the district court of Douglas county upon one Ernest Stuht¿ and which was paid to respondent May 21, 1892. This fine was never reported or paid to said county until May 9,1897.
“23. September 27, 1892, the twelfth report and payment were made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending September 30, 1892, and included $300 fines and $125 trial fees. From this report was omitted two fines of $100 each, imposed upon David Rich and Edson Rich, respectively, by the district court of said county, and paid to respondent July 23, 1892. No part of these fines was ever reported or paid to said county until May 9, 1897.
“24. January 1, 1893, the thirteenth report and payment were made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending December 31,1893, and included $28 fines and $232 tidal fees. From this report were omitted fines to the amount of $88.30, as follows: $30 paid by A. L. Creighton, October 8, 1892, Docket 31, page 35; $3.30 paid by Chester Mitchell, November 12, 1892, Docket 32, page 384; $10 paid by Henry Hagedorn, November 17, 1892, Docket 33, page 154.; $15 paid by Charles Shartow, November 23, 1892, Docket 33, page 165; $30 paid by Fred Pluyler, November 14, 1892, Docket 34, page 9. ■None of said fines were reported or paid to the county until May 9, 1897. Two other fines—one for $25, Docket 36, page 82, and one for $20, Docket 38, page 92—paid to respondent October 11,1892, were also omitted from said report, but were afterward, to-wit, on the 6th day of*19 April, 1895, reported and paid to said county by respondent.
“25. March 31, 1893, the fourteenth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending March 31, 1893. No fines were included in said report, but $88 in fines had been collected and received by respondent during the said quarter, as follows: $80 paid by Ed J. Dee, February 18,1893, Docket 34, page 320; $3 paid by Simon Levy, March 18,1893, Docket 36, page 78; $5 paid by Henry A. Homan, March 31, 1893, Docket 36, page 274. None of these were reported or paid to the county until May 9,1897.
“26. June 30, 1893, the fifteenth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending June 30, 1893. No fines were included in this report, but eleven fines, amounting to $350, had been collected by the respondent during this quarter, as follows: $15 paid by Mrs. Foster, May 25, 1893, Docket 33, page 149; $25 paid by John Shelby, May 29, 1893, Docket 34, page 5; $5 paid by Ed Tuttle, May 26, 1893, Docket 34, page 135; $10 paid by George Hicks, April 6-11, 1893, Docket 36, page 25; $75 paid by William Weabeseak, June 29, 1893, Docket 36, page 83; $5 paid by Frank Hauser, May 26, 1893, Docket 36, page 283; $100 paid by Bertie Mann, May 25, 1893, Docket 37, page 253; $10 paid by John Mathews, May 8, 1893, Docket 37, page 8; $50 paid by John Cliaplovski, June 20, 1893, Docket 37, page 379; $5 paid by Will Gresham, June 27,1893, Docket 38, page 91; $50 paid by Henry C. Hitt, June 17,1893, Docket 38, page 154. None of said fines were reported or paid to Douglas county until May 9, 1897.
“27. October 1, 1893, the sixteenth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending September 30,1893, and included trial fees to the amount of $124. No fines were included in this report, but five fines, amounting to $130, had been collected by respondent during said quarter, as follows: $25 paid to respondent on September 28,1893, and reported and paid by him*20 to said county April 6, 1895; $1 paid by George Russell, duly 21, 1893, Docket 34, page 26; $25 paid by S. Coyle, July 11, 1893, Docket 36, page 75; $75 paid by Robert Parks, July 3, 1893, Docket.37; page 278; $4 paid by Henry Martin, July 22, 1893, Docket 38, page 205. The last four of the above described fines were not reported nor paid to said county until May 9, 1897.
“28. January 1, 1894, the respondent made his seventeenth report, purporting to cover the quarter ending December 31, 1893, and included trial fees to the amount of $248, but failed to include five fines, amounting to $375, which were collected and received by respondent, as follows: $10, October 25, 1893, Docket 39, page 378; $5, October 19, 1893, Docket 40, page 171; $100 paid November 11, 1893, Docket 40, page 326; $250 paid November 15, 1893, Docket 40, page 359. These four fines were reported and paid to said county by respondent April 6,1895; $10 paid by Dan Sherroy, October 11, 1893, Docket. 36, page 81. This last mentioned fine was not reported or paid to said county until May 9, 1897.
“29. April 1, 1894, the eighteenth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending March 31, 1894, and included trial fees to the amount of $230.20. No fines were included in this report, but.three fines, amounting to1 $110, were collected by respondent during said quarter, as follows: $50 paid March 12,1894, Docket 40, page 73; $20 paid March 12, 1894, Docket 41, page 302; $40 paid February 26, 1894, Docket 42, page 303. None of said fines were reported and paid to said county until April 6, 1895.
“30. July 1, 1894, the nineteenth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending June 30, 1894, and included only trial fees, $309.50. No fines were included in this report. The respondent had, however, collected and. received during said quarter three fines, amounting to the sum of $435, as follows: $400 paid May 19,1894, Docket 43, page 385; $25 paid June 22, 1894, Docket 44, page 72. Neither of said fines were re*21 ported or paid to said county until April 6,1895; $10 paid by Frank Dolezal, May 29, 1894, Docket 43, page 394. Said last mentioned fine was not reported or paid to said county until May 9,1897.
“31. November 1,1894, tlie twentieth report was made by respondent, purporting to cover the quarter ending September 30,1894, and included trial fees to the amount of $241, but no fines. Pour fines, amounting to $975, were collected and received by the respondent during said quarter, as follows: $400 paid July 14, 1894, Docket 43, page 254; $25 paid October 2, 1894, Docket 46, page 312; $50 paid October 11, 1894, Docket 46, page 329— said three fines were not reported and paid to said county until April ¡6, 1895; $500 paid by Michael Wallenz, October 27, 1894, Docket 46, page 232. Said Wallenz fine was not reported or paid to said county until May 9,1897.
“32. No fines were reported or paid by respondent to said county between January 1, 1893, and April 6, 1895. On said last mentioned date the respondent reported and paid to said county seventeen fines, amounting to $1,500, fifteen of which had been received by him during that period, and two on October 11, 1892; but there were twenty-one fines, aggregating the sum of $1,063, collected and received by respondent during said period on the dates specifically set forth in the foregoing findings, which were omitted from said report and. not reported or paid to said county until May 9,1897.
“33. April 20, 1895, respondent reported and paid to said county four fines, amounting to $470, but failed to report or pay two fines, amounting to $50, which had been collected by him on April 15, 1895, as follows: $25 paid by Henry Jippi, April 15, 1895, Docket 49, page 360; $25 paid by Neis Borg, April 15, 1895, Docket 49, page 360. Neither of said fines has ever been reported by respondent or paid to said county.
“34. September 23,1895, respondent reported and paid to said county one fine of $300, but omitted from said report two fines, amounting to $25, which had been col*22 lectecl by Mm, as follows: $15 paid by Ed Tuttle, June 25, 1895, Docket 39, page 377; $10 paid by Richard Bur-dish, July 20,1895, Docket 40, page 306. Neither of said fines was reported or paid to said county until May 9, 1897.
“35. All fines collected and received by defendant, as hereinbefore found, were receipted for upon the appearance dockets, and the amount so received was usually entered upon a 'scratcher’ or blotter, kept by the respondent, to show cash received and disbursed, and no other memorandum or account of said fines was kept.
“36. None of the foregoing reports, made by respondent, were personally prepared by him. All of said reports were prepared by a clerk or deputy and handed to respondent, who signed them all. No comparison of any of said reports with the dockets or said 'scratcher’ or blotter was made by respondent personally to ascertain whether they were correct.
“37. The 'scratchers’ or blotters in which said fines and cash account were kept were destroyed prior to the time of the hearing of this case.
“38. No report or payment of fines was made to said county by respondent after September 23, 1895, until May 9,1897. On May 7, 1897, respondent’s attorney procured of the county attorney of Douglas county an itemized statement of fines, which, it was claimed, the respondent had collected and failed to report or pay to said county, and on May 9,1897, respondent paid to the county treasurer of said county $1,818.83, being the full amount of said finés shown by said statement and being all of the fines which the evidence shows were collected by respondent, and not, theretofore, paid to said county, except the sum of $79.72 which was received by respondent on fines of August Uthof, Henry Jippi, and Neis Borg, as hereinbefore found, which fines and amount were not included in said statement nor paid by the respondent.
“39. The respondent personally collected, received, and receipted for a large number of the fines paid into*23 his office between January 1,1893, and April 6, 1895, and knowingly, wilfully, and intentionally failed to include in any of the reports made by him during said period any of said fines, and knowingly, wilfully, and intentionally failed to report or pay to said county any of said fines, which amounted in the aggregate to $2,518, until April 6, 1895.
“40. The respondent did not keep public funds separate and apart from his private funds, but mixed them together indiscriminately. He received from his predecessor between $20,000 and $30,000 in trust funds which had come into the hands of said predecessor as clerk of the district court of said county. This amount respondent deposited to his own credit in the Merchants National Bank of Omaha, and thereafter carried but said single bank account, in which he deposited the funds, both public and private, received by him, including fines and penalties, and upon which account he drew checks for disbursements, whether made for a public or a private purpose. The only exception to this method of keeping the funds was the placing by respondent, in a comparatively few instances, certain funds in various banks and taking certificates of deposit therefor. In nearly every one of said cases the deposit was made and the certificate taken by order of the court, or for funds received by respondent in a particular case, and in all instances said certificates were either held for, or paid out in, the particular cases in which they were received, or their proceeds were deposited in said general account in the Merchants National Bank.
“41. Between January 1, 1896, and April 20, 1897, the respondent knowingly, wilfully, and intentionally withdrew, for purposes other than the payment of any of said fines, all of the funds in his said general account in said Merchants National Bank. The condition of said account on the morning of each of various days during said period was as follows: January 1, 1896, balance in account, $351,25; January 4, 1896, pverdrawn? $848.50; on*24 January 7, 1896, respondent borrowed $10,000 and deposited the same in said account to replace funds which he had used to pay his help; January 9,1896, balance in account, $2,844.48; February 1, 1896, balance in account, $358.89; March 1, 1896, balance in account, $15.17; April 1, 1896, balance in account, $80.17; May 1, 1896, balance in account, $263.88; June 1, 1896, balance in account, $146.99; July 1, 1896, balance in account, $233.53; August 1, 1896, balance in account $35.20; September 1, 1896, balance in account, $16.21; October 1, 1896, balance in account, $61.36; November 1, 1896, overdrawn, $12.82; December 1, 1896, balance in account, $12.82; January 1, 1897, overdrawn, $14.20; February 1, 1897, balance in account, $179.13; March 1, 1897, balance in account, $17.83; April 1, 1897, balance in account, $125.62; April 20,1897, balance in account, $596.91; May 9, 1897, overdrawn, $369.96.
“42. The balance of $596.91 in respondent’s said bank account on April 20, 1897, was no part of the fines so as aforesaid collected and retained by respondent, but the same was understood and considered by respondent to be his private funds, and the same was all drawn out and used by respondent for purposes other than to pay any of said fines prior to May 9, 1897.
“43. On and prior to April 20, 1897, the respondent had appropriated and converted to his own use all of the said $1,898.55 in fines which he had collected and received as clerk of the district court of said county and had failed to account for and pay over to said county as hereinbefore found, and on May 9, 1897, the respondent had none of said fines, but on said day borrowed of one John A. Creighton the whole of the amount paid to the county treasurer thereon, to-wit, the sum of $1,818.83, and respondent gave to said John A. Creighton his promissory note therefor. '
“44. On the 21st day of March, 1888, fines assessed against Charles White, Buck Copeland, and-Cook by the district court of Douglas county for gambling,*25 amounting in the aggregate to $850, were paid into the office of the clerk of the district court of said county, and receipts thereof were duly written on the appearance docket of said office, wherein said cases were recorded, by Y. M. Mackey, who was then the respondent’s duly authorized deputy, which receipts were unsigned. The fact that said unsigned receipts were in said dockets Avas called to the attention of respondent by the expert, Points, in the summer or fall of 1895. Respondent made no effort to ascertain Avhether said fines had been paid to him or into his office until after he paid the same to the county treasurer on the 9th day of May, 1897.
“45. On the 27th day of March, 1888, the respondent, by his duly authorized deputy, Y. M. Mackey, collected and received of one Mike Meaney the sum of $14 on a fine imposed upon him by the district court of said county for resisting an officer, and a receipt for said fine was duly entered and signed by said Mackey on the records of said office. The attention of the respondent was called to this receipt by the expert, Points, in the summer or fall of 1895. Respondent made no effort to ascertain whether said money had been paid until the 9th day of May, 1897, at which time he paid the same to the county treasurer of said county.
“46. On the 23d day of July, 1892, the respondent, by his duly authorized deputy, A. Store, Jr., collected and received of DaAdd Rich and Edson Rich $230, being fines of $100 each and $30 costs, imposed upon said parties by the district court of said county for contempt, and a receipt therefor was on said day duly entered on the appearance docket of the office of the district court where said contempt cases were entered and recorded. At the time said fines were collected the respondent was in Europe, where he remained about two months. On his return from Europe respondent learned that said $230 fines and costs had been paid into his office as aforesaid, and personally repaid the said Edson Rich the $30 costs so collected, and took the receipt of said Edson Rich there*26 for upon the appearance docket in said case, which receipt is dated February 18, 1893. .
“47. On the 27th day of October, 1894, the responden!; personally collected and received of one Michael Wallenx a fine of ¡$500, which had been imposed upon him by the district court of said county for selling liquor without a license. In the latter part of the year 1894 or fore part of the year 1895 the city attorney of the city of Omaha notified respondent that said fine and all others of a like nature should be paid to the city treasurer, and not-to the county treasurer. The county attorney of said Douglas county denied this proposition and insisted that the same should be paid to the county treasurer of the said county. Respondent declined to pay said fine to either the county or city treasurers until said dispute was settled. On the 9th day of May, 1897, he was first informed by the city attorney that the city released all claims on said Wallenz fine and the respondent on said day paid the amount thereof to the county treasurer of said county.
“48. The respondent did not retain or keep the money so received for said Wallenz fine, nor the amount thereof until the same was paid, but -said respondent did, prior to the 20th day of April, 1897, knowingly, wilfully, and intentionally appropriate and convert all of the same to his own use, and on the 9th day of May, 1897, the respondent did not have said fine or any part thereof, but borrowed all of the money with which to pay the same to the county treasurer as aforesaid.
“49. A competent accountant could have ascertained from the records of Douglas county all the fines collected and received by respondent and unaccounted for at the close of his second term as clerk of the district court of said county, as hereinbefore found, in two months, and, with reasonable diligence, the respondent could have discovered said fines, and that they were unpaid, long before the 20th day of April, 1897.
“50. The respondent collected and received, between*27 January 1, 1893, and October 1, 1894, thirty-five fines, exclusive of the Michael Wallenz fine, aggregating the sum of $2,018, nearly all of which were received and receipted for by the respondent personally. In failing to report or to pay over to said county any of said fines before April 6, 1895; in omitting from his report and payment of fines made April 6,1895, twenty of the thirty-five fines so collected; in withdrawing and converting to his own use all of the funds in the bank account in which said fines Avere placed, without first ascertaining whether any of the same remained unpaid; and in failing to pay any of said twenty fines to said county until the 9th day of May, 1897, the respondent Avas guilty of such flagrant disregard of duty as to fairly justify the inference that his conduct in failing to account for and pay over said fines was Avilful and corrupt.
“51. I find that before and at the time the respondent, Frank E. Moores, was elected to the office of mayor of the city of Omaha, on the 20th day of April, 1897, he'was in default as collector and custodian of public money, and Avas ineligible to the said office of mayor of the city of Omaha.
“findings of law.
“First. The office of mayor of a city of the metropolitan class is an office of profit and trust under the laAvs of this state.
“Second. A clerk of the district court, as to moneys received by him in payment (o.f fines and penalties imposed in said court, is a collector and custodian of public money Avithin the meaning of section 2, article 14, of the constitution.
“Third. The word ‘eligible’ relates to the capacity to be elected or chosen to an office as Avell as to hold office.
“Fourth. The statute requires a clerk of the district court to account for and pay over to the county treasurer all fines collected and received by Mm within ten days from the receipt thereof. This provision is mandatory^ and a failure to comply Avith it makes such clerk civilly liable on Ms official bond.
*28 “Fifth. The term ‘default,’ as used in said section 2, article 14, of the constitution, implies more than a mere civil liability. To constitute a default within the meaning of said section, there must exist on the part of a collector and custodian of public money a willful omission to account and pay over, with a corrupt intention, or such a flagrant disregard of duty as to fairly justify the inference that his conduct was wilful and corrupt.
“Sixth. All moneys received by a clerk of the district court in payment of fines and penalties imposed in said court are, when in his hands, trust funds of which he is the mere custodian and not the owner. He has no right to loan, invest, or in any manner convert to his own use any part of said funds, and any such loaning, investment, or conversion of same is by section 124 of the Criminal Code declared to be a felony.
“Seventh. A clerk of the district court who knowingly and intentionally deposits public moneys received by him in payment of fines imposed in his court, together with other trust funds, and his own private funds, in a bank in one general account, to his own credit, and before he has paid said fines to the county treasurer, as provided by law, knowingly, wilfully, and intentionally draws from said bank all of the funds so deposited, and uses the same for purposes other than the payment of said fines, thereby converts said public money to his own use, and is in default within the meaning of section 2, article 14, of the constitution, and ineligible'to any office of trust or profit under the constitution or laws of this state during said default.
“Eighth. I find at the time of his election on April 20, 1897, the respondent was in default as collector and custodian of public money, and ineligible to the office of mayor of the city of Omaha, and that the relief prayed for by complainant should be granted.
“E. J. Clements, Referee.”
After the taking of the evidence before the referee, the respondent, with proper leave so to do, amended his an
In section 53d of the Criminal Code it is provided as folloAvs: “Every magistrate or clerk of court upon receiving any money on account of forfeited recognizances, fines, or costs accruing or due to the county or state, shall pay the same to the treasurer of the proper county (except as may be otherwise expressly provided) within ten days from the time of receiving the same.” It would be a harsh rule which would hold a clerk liable for the mere failure to pay over fines, irrespective of oversight or other unavoidable excuse. The report of the referee, however, shows, and the evidence fully sustains it, that some of •the fines therein mentioned were carried from month to month; that the Wallenz fine was not held by agreement of parties, but because of protest against paying by attorneys of parties who had no right to control payment.
Judgment of ouster.
Dissenting Opinion
I dissent from the propositions that a respondent in quo warranto is not entitled, as a matter of right, to have the issues of fact determined by a jury, and that such
In Davis v. Morris, supra, the court of appeals of New York, in considering a provision in the constitution of that state relating to jury trials similar to our own, said: “At the time of the adoption of the constitution all cases
The writer has sufficiently familiarized himself with the history of quo warranto and the adjudications of the courts of England to be able to assert, without fear of successful contradiction, that the invariable practice at common law in informations in the nature of quo warranto and in writs of quo warranto was to try disputed issues of fact to a jury. During the fourth year of King George I. a jury was awarded upon the trial of a quo warranto proceeding in Rex v. Bennett, 1 Strange 101, and the same practice obtained in Rex v. Ellis, 2 Strange 995; Neville v. Payne, 1 Cro. Eliz. 304; King v. Jones, 8 Mod. 201. In the reign of King Charles II., Rex v. Higgins, 1 Vent. 366, an action of quo warranto, was tried to a jury. (Vide Rex v. Phillips, 1 Burr. 292; Rex v. Malden, 4 Burr. 2135; King v. Mayor of London, 1 Show. 274; King v. Carpenter, 2 Show. 47; King v. Pool, 2 Barn. 93; King v. Bingham, 2 East 308.) After diligent search I have been unable to find a single case in the English reports where a jury was denied to try an issue of fact in quo warranto, while a multitude of decisions are to be found in those
The practice in this state, prior to the adoption of the present constitution, was, it seems, to call a jury in quo warranto. (Kane v. People, 4 Neb. 509.) And the same rule obtained elsewhere. (State v. Tudor, 5 Day [Conn.] 329; People v. Rensselaer & S. R. Co., 15 Wend. [N. Y.] 113; Tuscaloosa Scientific & Art Ass'n v. State, 58 Ala. 54.).
In People v. Doesburg, 16 Mich. 133, it was decided that when an issue of fact is to be tried in quo warranto, it is not in the power of the court to deprive either party of the right to a trial by a jury against his consent.
In State v. Allen, 5 Kan. 213, which was a proceeding in the supreme court in quo Avarranto, a jury trial was awarded the defendant without deciding whether he was entitled thereto as a matter of strict right, the court saying: “At common law, in a proceeding in quo warranto, the respondent was probably entitled to a jury for the trial of questions of fact. (People v. Doesburg, 16 Mich. 133; Angell & Ames, Corporations 741 and notes; State v. Messmore, 14 Wis. 125; 3 Stephens, Nisi Prius 2429 et seq.; People v. Richardson, 4 Cow. [N. Y.] 97 and note a.) If the respondent at common law was in such cases entitled to a jury tidal, the defendant in a civil action, in the nature of a proceeding in quo warranto, is probably still entitled to a jury trial. (Bill of Rights, Constitution sec. 5; State v. Sheriff of Lyon County—decided at the January term of this court, 1868, but not yet reported; Work v. State, 2 O. St. 296; Greene v. Briggs, 1 Curtis [U. S. C. C.] 311.)”
State v. Messmore, 14 Wis. 125, was an original information in the supreme court in the nature of a quo warranto, in which the attorney general demanded a jury to determine the issues of fact. His request was granted. Dixon, C. J., speaking for the court, said: “The action is an important one. Although civil in form, it is in every other respect just what it was at common law— a public prosecution. The usurpation of an office, though it involves private rights and interests, has always been regarded as a public offense. The remedy is still by action in the name of the state. It is instituted and conducted by the attorney general under his official oath and responsibility. * * * For these reasons, we think a jury should be called in this court.”
Nrhile there is some conflict in the decision® in this country as to the right to have an issue of fact joined in quo warranto tried by a jury, the weight of the adjudications, as the writer conceives, confirms such right. (See Paine, Elections sec. 903; Commonwealth v. Walter, 83 Pa. St. 105; Commonwealth v. Allen, 10 Pa. St. 465; Commonwealth v. Delaware & Henderson Land Co., 43 Pa. St. 295; State v. Burnett, 2 Ala. 140; Buckman v. State, 34 Fla. 48; Van Dorn v. State, 34 Fla. 62; Bradford v. Territory, 1 Okl. 366; People v. Albany & S. R. Co., 57 N. Y. 161; People v. Van Slyck, 4 Cow. [N. Y.] 297; People v. Havird, 2 Ida. 498.)
Sections 280 and 281 of the Code of Civil Procedure are invoked in the majority opinion to sustain the proposition that the respondent was not entitled to a jury trial. Said sections being upon the statute book when the present constitution was adopted were modified by the
In Mayer v. Wilkinson, 52 Neb. 764, it was asserted that on a trial of an issue of fact on an application for mandamus, a jury trial is not demandable as a matter of right. The writer had no part in that opinion. What is there said upon the subject was not essential to a decision of the case, since the court had already reached the conclusion that a reversal of the judgment should be entered because the trial was had at chambers in vacation.
I am firmly convinced that the constitution was violated in the present case in refusing the respondent a jury trial when he made demand therefor. Moreover, the denial of such right is in violation of rules 14-16 promulgated by this court. {52 Neb. xiv.) The first of these provides that whenever an issue of fact is presented for trial in an original action, a commission, consisting of two electors of the state aj>pointed by the court, will select such number of persons having the qualification of jurors in the district court as may be designated in the order of appointment, and that a venire will be issued by the clerk for the persons so chosen. Rule 15 inakes provision for the challenges of jurors, and rule 16 declares: “The jurors summoned or called as above provided, or such of them as are not set aside or challenged as will make up the number of twelve, shall constitute the jury for the trial of said issue of fact.” This proceeding was instituted in this court, and, under the foregoing rules, the issue of fact tendered was triable to a jury.
There was no power to appoint a referee to try this cause against the objection of either party, and the order of reference was in violation of the right of trial by jury guarantied by the constitution. The writ of quo warranto
•It will not be claimed that quo warranto is an equitable proceeding; and if it be true, as the majority opinion argues, that it is not a criminal proceeding, then it must be a legal remedy, and hence this court was powerless to send the cause to a referee for trial without the consent of both parties. The conclusion that I have reached makes the expression of an opinion upon the other questions considered by my associates wholly unnecessary.
Concurrence Opinion
concurring.
While concurring in the judgment, I feel constrained to express my dissent from the proposition announced in the former opinion that, the first clause of section 2 of article 14 of the constitution is directed only against those who are in default either as collectors and custodians of public money or as collectors and custodians of public property. I think the provision should be construed as though it read: “Any person who is in default as a collector or custodian of public money or property,” etc. A construction based on a literal reading of the clause is not merely unreasonable, but leads to an absurdity. There never has been, and there is not the slightest reason to suppose there ever will be, in this state such an office as that of collector and custodian of public property. That the framers of the constitution or the electors of the state had such an office in mind as a possible legislative creation is beyond belief. Besides, there seems to be an insuperable difficulty in the way of one who is a collector and custodiam of money ever being in default in both, capacities. His relation to the money as collector necessarily ends where his connection with it as custodian begins. He cannot become a custodian without having been faithful as a collector. Thus a too literal interpretation, of the clause practically nullifies it. Being charged with the duty of issuing execution for the collection of fines and judgments on forfeited recognizances, the clerk of the district court is undoubtedly k collector of public money, but his possession of such money is only incidental to -its collection and he is, therefore, not a custodian within the meaning of the constitution.