142 Ky. 715 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1911
Opinion of the Court by
Reversing.
Princeton is a city of the fourth class. The public schools in cities of the fourth class, when regulated hy the act for the government of these cities, are governed by sections 3588-3606, Kentucky Statutes, and under these provisions the school district must cover the same territory as the city boundary. But the same General Assembly which passed the law governing cities of the fourth class also passed an act providing for graded common schools. (See Ky. St., 4464-4500.) By section 4489 it is provided that any city of the first, second, third or fourth class may aecept the provisions of the act and establish graded common schopls subject thereto, at an election held for that purpose. Pursuant to this section, the city of Princeton on June 18, 1908, held an election at which the majority voted to accept the provisions of the act and establish a graded common school thereunder. Afterward on October 20,1908, they held another election at which they elected trustees pursuant .to the
“Any graded common school district organized and existing under any special act of the. Legislature, and any such district that has been or may be hereafter organized under the general laws of this State, may, by and with the written consent of a majority of the legal voters in the territory to be added, extend the limits of such district so as to include such additional territory as the Board of Education, or trustees of . such district* may desire to take within the limits and add to such district. ’ ’
Under this statute, the school trustees, as they found, with the written' consent of a majority of the legal voters in the territory, extended the limits of the district so as to include territory outside of the city boundary, and levied a tax to carry on the school. W. O. Stone, who was a taxpayer in the territory thus-added, suing for himself and the other taxpayers situated like him, brought this suit , to enjoin the collection of the tax, on the ground that under the statute the boundary of the school district could not be extended beyond the city boundary; that the elections referred to were not properly held and. were void; that a majority of the legal voters therein had not consented that the territory should be added. The .circuit court granted a preliminary injunction, which was discharged by a judce of this court. The case then being prepared, the circuit court granted a perpetual injunction as prayed in the petition. The trustees appeal.'. (
So long as the school remained under sections 3588-3606, Ky.. St., and was a school maintained under the act for the government of cities of the fourth class, the boundary of the district was limited to the boundary of Ihe city; but-the Legislature, foreseeing that this might not in all cases be to the interest of the common schools, provided in the act authorizing the establishing of graded comuion schools that any of these cities might by a ma:iprity.vote accept the provisions of that act and estab
We are unable to see that there was any irregularity in holding the election. Section 4489 provides among other things that the mayor shall in such cases perform all the duties required of the county judge in carrying into effect the provisions of the law, and that the election shall be held by the officer whose duty it is to hold other city elections. The mayor made the order for the election just as the county judge is authorized to do in other elections by section 4464, Ky. St. That section provides that the county judge shall make an order directing the sheriff or other officer whose duty it is to hold the election, to open a poll, etc. Section 4467 provides “the said sheriff or other officer shall appoint a judge and a clerk of the said election.” There is no officer in the cities of the fourth class whose duty under the act it is to conduct elections. The sheriff - of the county is required by section 1467, Ky. St., to provide booths in each voting place and also the ballot boxes; he is required to notify election officers of their appointment, to provide for the holding of special elections, to give notice thereof, and in our statutes it has been customary for writs of elections to be issued to the sheriff. The mayor properly directed his order to the sheriff, as there was no other officer on whom was -imposed the duty of holding such an election. The officers appointed to hold the election have acted and have made their returns-without question.
Judgment reversed and cause remanded, with directions to dismiss the petition.