Case Information
*1 OFF’ICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN L :
Boaorabh R. B. Ritohsy, Jr.
County Attorney
Jasper County
Jasper, IPera8
Cplnlon 30. 0.4272 .: R61 IO the oounty attkrnsy antltled to reo4:v4..10%~pomlM~on QD Q in ‘Ebb db38riOt oourt rin0 pf@ by defetiU~~% in n oantenpt gro- oee&lng oaae GRinw defendant had~violatsd an lniunoB$on 4s jblniiig her froa ~~911~~ liquor or utefnd her prenlaeo for thst I’ ptipP#? ‘: dqxmt-
mot on'th4 above ateted quee‘tion.irqada 68 rollows:
ing4~ oats0 *me U4k~br&ont'~@b oioldted~~en~~in- junoflon enJeinlng her '%mc&,sel2in(t~ llq$?r, ox uufng her ppi%&wq for @iat.; purpooe? ,.-., . .
,;' *&$bh 95b c~~'pro~iues~ The UXitriot # om$y’ attorzmf,#+ll be entibled ,to t4n p4z foe& or oLt/r,lmu~ fcMelture8 or a0luys ~ollsa8- . . : aa ;rar theC.,Std*a or oountp, upon .+Upibn8i1 ro- 'yv"y bT 45; : * I
~~.~~~~'J~lspr~d~n84, Vol 15, pam W2, says, ffi p~OV~&XI~of the ofxle of crhlxml prooeeburo or oounty attarney ahal' b4 that at44 distrlot entitlsd~ to tdn per sent of all f~Lne4, fortelforss or ~,oneye.oollsated for the "tat% OF County, upon reoovsrod by hhw he6 baen hbld to CO&- Jud~snta far no rl&t to commlseions rGr tta aolleotlon ci money in suite whioh am in every rerpeot afvil *2 HoGorclpra R. 3. FUtohey, Jr.* %XfJ 2
in abslwaoter or in no rcannar ooamotad with the abmfialstratfon of arlnlnal law, but to a.nply only 1~ case8 arlainr, undem t~ha Ten61 Code, or Coda or .2rininal Prooaa-dura.'
*!Che raota in the inntant kaoa arat x4y Selton had bean oonvlotad In ~oounty oourt la .Jaapar~County for selling liqtmr from her pr4~z;lsas.
An lnjunatlon was gotttn out In Cletrlot Court enjoining her frocuslng her wen?iaea ior that purppse. The rIolate the lnjunotlon, 3. Zortln of t&o Attornay Qanaral*a department prepared the papers Sor rrontampt prooeadinge tor lb. .Grady '<at- son at Iisameont, TarcSi E?r. ,-~Tatcon brought those papers to mu end I signed then, filed them and got out senloa. t-fr. Uertln epwarcd berc In court with Xr. 7atson and presented the acse ba- fore aage Adam. and Judps Adams riced the da- randant Kay Ralton $50.00 and oosta. ?.he paid ber tine ana oosta.’
Vroa the law abova quoted It appears to z~e t&et the question here la an to whether the eon- tenpt proo8adlags & 01Y11 Or orlnlnal in natura; ii. ii lt~arlse8 under the oriminal oodo G$ that 9roc4Qtva or the penal sods, than tha oounty et- torltay is entitled to the f-1 it not, than ha would not be anCltled to ft. As the lnjunotlon la baaed on a orfmlnal zmtter,-thst of vIolsting the UQllOr law, and tha Pul'pOSo of the iXijMOt:On 16 to enioroa the liquor laws, the 68~~ being of oriainal mture. it Ia.reaaonabla to &saw&a that the contempt proaeadluga would ba oonnaoted nith B orldnul mutter. If auoh ba ease then it Is logloal to'eay that the oounty sttornay woul6, ba entitled to tha aamaleslon.
" " . . . ~.
Under tha provisions or .%rtlole 666-29 aa8 Article Varnon's Annotated Panal Cods, it ia tha duty of the 667-27, Attorney CTenaral, or the Dlstrfot or County Attorney. uuou baring aallod to his attention by affldsrlt of any &dibla parson tbst any person who Is vlolatlnfg, 1s about to via- late, any ot the 9roYlrrlona of Texas Llquox Control Ant *3 Eonorablo'3. n. Ritehey, Jr.. ?agsa 3
or if any 96-t or Ilaense is wrougiullp lamed, to begla proaee4lng8 to restrain any such person from the threatened or any further vloletlon, or.operatlon under &uah permit or .I llaense.
The above gsntlosed statutes authorlsa the .ittornop Ceueral, or the D1strlct or County tittornep to bagln or ln- stltuts fnjwictlon protwadlng8~to reatraln 8ny uer8on irca f tho threatened or any further riolotion, of the Tassr Liquor
Control &at ox operation under II permit or llamse that has bsen wrongfully lsaued. Ifowewar, when tJ~,,injtmatlon La via- lstsd aontempt proosedln& la brought bJ virtue of Art1010 1911 Vernw's Aimotsted Clvll Yttatutes whlah provides:
%a Dlstrlot Court kaJ punish any parson guilty of ooutaapt of auah Court by rim not ex- oscdlng aOO.00, and by iaprlsocmeat not exaeed- lag'three,daJs.*
Contergts or Court an alasslrlaa ae diroat and as lndlnot or aosstruatlve, the test being whether the oontempt was ofte8gd.~wlthln or out of the prasenoe of the Court. This ‘ Clstlnotld~4r importsnt iron tho poaedural atendpoint dlreot
oontem~ts sre'prmlsh~ble stxmsrlly, while oosstruatlre oou- (3ZX tchpta rsqu@a a afrwta and Lea8 drsstla proosar, part0 Rat2irf, 3 3. 3. (2) 406; Er pate Robertaon, 11 3, F. 669).
A oontcapt oo~~~lttad in tha presenas or the Cotxt Ls dtbnonin0ma 6 dire&i ooncampt: A aonstruohirs oontempt is said to be on set done, not in the praaenae or haarl?a.g~ot the Court, but at s dlstanoa, PLL 8Ut w&lab teilds to bslfitth, to degrabe, o? obatruot, interrupt, gravmnt or embarr? tho adrainietratlon justloe. (XX : rts mnosn, 181 2. z, 3u; TX parts Yogler, 9 3. 'i:. (2) 733r
mdsr another alsssirlasblon, oonts!npte are r8qardOd ns olvll or arlulhsl. ?tmss proaaedlcgs instituted solely for th&purpoao or vludioeting di@ty OS the Court am orla-
TO quato from ?'exss Jurlspruaenota, Vol. 9, page 618.
saetlan 33 as followur
olri: autlons. It la said that men in zeccdtel oontcrmts or the tildcat aharuotcr there la -de csesntlal idea or aontuway, ullrul dloo'bmdi~no~ of or'dars and doarcee zads in the a&lnlotratlon
I of juutloe. 'zae ortenoe is a*wJax3t the edI?Llals- tsctlon of fuotlcc cad a@tiust sooloty, and hcnoc it bn9118a oriuLiaSlfty. On thla theory and the 7rrooerdl~s should oonflrn aa nearl$ as possible to proofmdlngs in crlnln~~l oasco. . . . !Tut ocm- EeEpt prooaedinw arc not orfulual 4u1ms within all tbc rules aad deflrtitlous of or&Am1 law.
?'beq ora asld to be oT a 4rfninal rcturc bcaauec they arc not groparly olvll aulta, end bcoaucc they lnYolv* the idesi 0r the puniahnsnt or un- outhorlmd oota. They are~mttcrs ml ~cncrla.
:ior la (I coutezppt 0r court ca 0rreas8. within the rwm.tng of the ?snal Godc,*
?%a oaac of Oasoy va. "tata, 25 T&r. R. 381, ezwng other thin&o. holds in effeot that e oontmpti or Court 1s not an oflouse within the meeting oi tho Penal Code. COIL- c tar&s erc aatters sul ~cnerle, anC not a&&u!1 in the eense
la~whloh orlmes era twated by url~f~ upon arlmlnal lew. ?hey erc cald to bc of a orirainal natuse, bcoaucc th&;J are properly air%1 malt%, and beoaum thex lnvolm the'idea CU the punlshmaut or,unau%horlaad aota. -(Also sse the 0866 I EX pnrte ?mtt, 123 ?. I?. (2). 3061.
3x0 statates arc silent rpeatding the procedure. upon om6iftm3nt r0r oonteapt, it 1~4816 that rsrarono~ nust Abe had to the oo&m4n law rnd nuah mdiI?~oatlons aa %rc found Then vna ,&I adjudged to be la flu %ha pm4eaeat.aYsllrble. otintcnpt.~ tacit a~.oontroYerey nhw;lcl be saoeotalmd and cr.6 thls~a~~udieetloa ohauk! bc entered in~the dotemlnab, &m~ea of the Court~;Lanb a -tilt or oomfttrsnt iam+ thenton, r0r it hoe been unlxoml~ .hsld thst ifqmlsomcnt Sor omtenpt C will not be tolcrotcd on 4 mcrc verbal order of the Judge.
(Ter. Jllr,, Vol. 9, page 6321 P;x part* 7JaOrrw, 277 3. 7.,699; xx pert0 lindmJW8, 100 ft. 3. 3761.
ma ordlmry torn or ludgmmi 1s thet the.vortt - bc aomlttcd to jail until tha rino and ooats are paid. (Xx perte Robcrtrran, 11 c. 3. 669). f,owmvor, Artlals 1911, sugra, the statute undsr~~.pM$&~;tha, prvoeeding was brou&t +Xxm not in‘ suoh prooticdinge, or said authorize the taxik&"@b~sts atr^tutc does not~plro~idi'Y0r anr o~sslw for the Elstrfat *5 Honorable' R. 8. Rltohey, Jr., Page 5
or county ii~torneg. vo have falled to find any ststnto- pro- viding a ocmla6lon r0r the Z3listrlot or County Attorney ahen tho prooeedlng Is under Artio1e 19&l, euprs.
Artlola 950, Code of Crlnlnal Proaedure orovldes that the Slstrlot or County Attorney shall be entitled tb ten percent (105) or au fines, r0rreif+ursa. or t20mq-a .00iieot8d ror the 8tata or oowty. upon judgaenta reoovered .by bin.
This Artlo$o dvea not apply to .oivll eotlons or. bohalr or to raonvor penaltfca a,?d confero uo right to COM- &tats mlsnlone ror the colleotlon of noney In sulfs whiah are in every reapeot oivll. in fact. end In no manner oonneated wlth the adalnistratlon of orlminel law, but agplles otiy in o.sses srlsing under the Penal Code, or Code of Crlmlnal Srooedum. (State ia. Iboore, 57 Tex. 307; %ate vs. ?laton, 192 5. n. iSl&+r !?tate vs. ilart, 70 :‘. 7. 91s). Thertiors, we do not believe that Article 950, suprs, authorized the County Attora p to roceiva ten peroanb (lO$) ooz3mi6sion on tho rlne pmld In tho ,above mntIoned oontmpt prooesding.
Xn 1% part0 tircen, 295 Z. I!. 910, the %prene Court said:
Where Oll&J ia adjudged 1~ contezipt Or COlWb for vlolatl~ an lajunotlon lssued’wder the ne- vloed ?tatuteo of 1925, &tiole 5110, (whltih pro- vlae8 ror M injunotion) sna foTbiddfnO the sale lntodaating Ilquore in violation of'the law, the ornate ifs e oiyil oeae; II orir~nd. omse~~ rlthin the seaalnp, or “evlcod ‘;I~11 ‘:tatcitw of 1925, mlole 1737, grovldi~ that the Zuprento court siey leaus writs of hrbeas oorpus In oerteln lnntoaoecr 1~ any oivll. case." (Parenthesis ours)
ias0 sF1e the rd~hdni; OSSBS, XX pm+3 ::0ir, 3ir 3. -. (2) 2771 7x psrte Greta, 372 3. "1. 161; 7% parte blderet, 203 z. 2. 764.
There ABe ocher aasos holding that violstion og suah Fnjun0tion :fb L( oh11 mtter: Sowever. none tk08e oases are aivil cases in ths striOteSt hold +&a$ auoh proceedings smne , or es that tarsz is ordinarily def:ned by law.
.~rtlolc 335, Ferson’s Annotated Xv11 "tatutes pro- vldve ln >artr
*:%en tt Zlstriot or Pounty ittorney has ool- leated aoney for the "tate or my County, he shall *6 Eonarable' R. 73. Xltohey, Jr., Pago 6
wlthiithlrty days arter wosiving the same, pey it into the Treesurg 0r the Sbato or the County in drloh it belongs, after deduoting thersfroa and ratalnlng the oornriaalono allowad hia thereon br law. Suoh Distriot or County Attorney shell be entitled to lw~ oomt.isrlon from the llr8t 31000 aolleoted by hit? in any one oaaa for tha State or .Couuty troll, a4 :ndlvldual oz! aostpa4, and 5$ on ell suma over 41000, to be retained out of the mqney when ooltr,otrd, and he shall also be entitled to retain the sam oamlaalons ou al'1 oolleotlona made for the 3tate or for the County. . . ."
Apparently the above quoted statute provide8 oak niselonn ror the Mstrlat or County Attorney on nonays ool- looted by hla-sII~:6lvll 8uitn and doeo not apply to acmtoz& prooeedfngs behau~, aa stated above, oontempt moaaedislga era ptoperly ololl suits. Gontan@e are matters au& gsnoric end are neither orlminal oases nor olrll oases in -the atrloteat sense; or au these terms Bra ordinarily de- fined by law. 1% have railed to rind any statute providing ia occxaiaslon ?or a Dietriot County Attorney on mmey paid aa a :l.ne in a oantexspt proooeding and in the abeenoe or auoh a statute, wa raspeotfully auswer the abovr stated question in the negative. Youre very truly -