Case Information
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-. OFFICE OF THE Al7’0RNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
i-o.yuuc ,-salau
Eonotisble Shelburne ii. Glovor county Attorney, Kayion County
J6efSePson, Texas . . Opinion Ho. o-4141
p2sr Sir:
‘: De: Doos a court or jury have the
right, as the Law now stands to suspend or revoke the driver’s license of a person who is con- .vlcted of the cisdmeanor of’ ’ drivln~ while intox:cateci?
Uo quote fro3 your recent letter askin our opinion on the .qucstion as stated above:
!In .a recent case ln 0Ur County Court, oz& Hill- 6rd D;ivls, plcaired guilty of drivFn,; while intoxicated, en& was flneO $50.00 and costs, and his Driver’s Li- “tense-suspended for a period of six nonths, the Court
takm the view that the. suspension VIS mn?lstory -under : . the statute.
“From a review of the authorities, I have conclud- ed that there 1s no law presently in force pemittinS the ‘suspension of a Driver’s License bccsuse of a.con- ’ ‘viotlon under the druu?c-driv3xg law.
‘Un&er Article 802s, Pens1 Co&, Acts 193i, &a ’ P. 26&Ch. Sec. l;it 1s provicied that In Lo&, all ceses vhere a defendant is convicted of driving a motor vehicle whlle’uu3or the Influence of ZntoxicatlnI liquors or nsrcotics, the Jury at the ssme tine shall add to their verdict-the length of t&!c thst the defcnd- ent shall be prevented from &lvinz sny notor vehicle on the highways of this State, not to exceed tFo;Te,srs.
leg ly?e iizzediatelg above is quote3 fr.ox Arbsole
aa 9 l , 1925. .,
“Article 6687r, Acts cf the 43th Legislsturc, re- pealed Article 802a of the Penal Code. ‘Then, by Housa
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Ronarable .Sholburno R. Clover, Page 2
Bill Ho. 20, Acts 1941, 47th Log., Sec. 45, Arti- cle 66873 was repealed.
‘1 take the nosltion that the repeal of ArtLolc 802~3 by Article &@a, R. S., 1925, had the effect destroying Article 8028, Penal Code, an0 It could not be revived except by a subsequent ‘act of tho Lesisls- -ture.
“House Bill 73 of the last Legislature retiuccd the penalty for drunk-driving as to the first offense to a misdcnoanor. Article 602a 0;’ the Penal Code wxs not referred to..
‘It 1s my conclusion that a Court 011 Jury under the law1 as it now star&+, has no pover to interfere vith a person’s right to drive slnply because of his conviction for violating the law.”
-We thtik gou must have overlookod the p:ovlsions of Arti- cle Iv, Section 24, Subd%vislo2 2 of IIouse Bill X:0. 20, as enacted at the recent .rc&a~ session of tho Party-seventh Lagislature. See page 253, Vol. 4, 1941.Vcrnon’s Texas Session Law Service. 4l-m pertineht language reads as follows:
‘Sec. 24. Automstlc suspension of license. ‘~ (a) The license of any person shall be automtlcally suspend- conv$ctfon of any of the Sollowin~ offen- ea upon final p3s:
,. “2.’ Driving a motor vehicle while under the ln- fluence of intox$cat%ng liquor or narcot:c drugs;
“(b) The suspension above providecI shall in the first instance be for a period of six (6) nonths. In event any license shall be suspentied under the provl- sion of t%s Section for a-second tine, se.16 second suspension sh?.ll be Sora period of one (1) yonr:
in + s +bi n =
. The above enacttient, hsvinz received the required smbor’of votes in csch,Rouse OS the Legislature, and approved br the Governor, became effective on April 23, 1941.
. ‘While it is true thhrt”Articlo 802, ‘Pen21 C&o, ‘hosbeen bended’ severs1 times, znd the lsst enoniiment mde the firstof- Sense a misdemcsnor, at ,a11 tties since the last codification the Pens1 Code .in 1925 we hcve had a prohibition egainst one .&ivinI or opereting a motor vehicle upon enI public rosd or high-
vsy in this St&e, or upon anI street or slleP within the limits OS en Incorporated city, town ,or villa&e, yhilo such person is (See intoxicated or under, tho influence of in.toxicetin~ liquor. penal Code, 1925, nev.,~kjrt. 802; Acts 1935, 44t3 LcG., 1st 0. s.
“.Ch. 424, p. 1654; Acts 1937, 45th Leg., ReCI Ses.‘Ch. 60, p. 108).
.. In 1931 the Forty-second Legislature prosed the first ret euthorlziq the suspension of driving’ ~privilegcs. (Acts 1931, 42ud Leg., Reg. sm. Ch. 162, p. 268.) In 1935, the Texas Driv- er’s License Lsw wssenacted; (Acts 1935, 44th .LeC.., 2nd C. S., Ch. 466, p. 1785) and Section 16 provided that the license any porson should be sutomcticnlly suspended or revo?red upon final conviction for “driving a motor vehicle vhile lmder the influence OS intoxicating liquor or narcotic druss.” It also nsde such revocation or susponalon effective f’0r.a period of six -’ (6) months. ,_. 0~ The Court of .Crtiinal Appeals held that the Texas Driv- arts License Law, supra,~‘, iripliedly reposled.the ststutc pessed See H3rd.s v. State (Tex. Cr. * b7 the Forty-second Legislature. App.) 109 s. we. (26) 201, Ibid, 109 s. w. (26) 203; X&evos v.. .- State (T&x. Cr. App. 109 Si If. (2d) 1051; Che.ney v. State (Tex. T 'i Saying the. six months, suspension Cr. App.) ,112 s. w. 2a) ‘461;. I xss automatic, many csses were reversed by the appellate court vherein juries had assessed a suspension for lonser periods thsn tlx months under the old law. -.’
While’the above Texas Drlvor’s License Law (Acts 1935,. I 44th Lee., Ch. p. 1785) was amended In 1937 (Acts 1937, 45th ch. p. 752), there t-as no chap .ln Section 16 thereof; leg., 1 Ul same stood as originelly pzoscd until both acts were specifi- Czllg rep&led bj section 45 of House Dill 20 of the Porty-ceventh i c _ kgislature. i 6
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gohyble Shelburne Ei~Glover, Page 4 t \ _i , . .
However, as stated above; tho’quoted lmS:ua.ge (&. H. B; Ho. sup~a). 113s expected, ln the. s&Te bill. . . /
‘. As, the lau’nov. s&k,’ upon. a~ firat~ ~o&~cti& of ‘drfv- &j vhile dr-mk” the slz noath’s suspension of the driver’s li- The jury ha3 nothing to do in cense is autonatlc a.96 nzndatory. -- the prcnises; if~3~incl dekndaut guilty an3 render a verdict accordingly, the court’s duty ls.prescribed by Section 25(a) of. raid Houqe Bill 30. 20: ; ;
“sec. 25. Wren court. ‘to .roport corivlct.iona. “sec. 25. . . Wren court. ‘to .roport corivlct.iona. : : (a) Whmever auy psrson (a) Whmever auy psrson is convicted is convicted of any offense of any offense ~‘fop vhich ~‘fop vhich this Act JE&~S automtic. this Act JE&~S automtic. the suswnslon the suswnslon or chauffeur’s
the.opcr3torgs,comerclal opoxtor’s, ++I%ense of such perscn, the court In which such con-
vlction~iis had shall. requ:ro the surrender to ‘It of all op~zrators I, co~~~orcial. operotor3’, and chauffeursg liceqSe3 then held by the pexon so convicted and thaw clerk of said court shall thereupon forvwd the sax8 toSether wkth a recbrd of’ such conviction .~ i,. to the De- partment, -vithln te” (19) 6.3~3 fro= the date of convlc-
, tion. n .*~ : r_ the above, vo are ..Trustlng tii,nt yoti cle’arly understand 2: _.,,. ._ 1’ ,.~- J- ‘. Yfqrs voi-y truly :’
. Asslstsnt BVtej