Case Information
*1 .
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AU-IN ,‘\ .\ /
. . . . . pi. ~~0~633~. re. ~210 9 dm tofpauparsana 8U& idiota. 8ud lulFuoE $8 08nuot be 8dlaltt&, into - -- .-......m.“w”. . . . . . ..“.“~.“.... “.V.“.T . ..*-..*. . . - -......... _ .-._.. ._.-- _- --.. - ..__ ._ . ___.__.._.-.. -- . . . . -....--
HonorabloA B.Hlolcenon,Paga 2
We quot. from 32 Texas Jwfqmdeaaa, page. 6~ ud u ~fonovrt 9aageKlwalua8s*par8onmybattclQto b. a ~pmtpor' rho is ~.ry pcor, but tha tmrm 1.
ltttuall~ und.r8too6 la our eata to Rman a pmr8ca 80 itagmat u to ba dependeat 0a the pub=0 rw support. Th.tialmurtuu4oaauatb.8ppll~
toap.noavhohualvaytlb..nablatotlupport
himolr aad thoda dap.allaat upon him.,..
‘It I.8 mQ8 the dutr cf caawl.uloaan’ o&rta topr0~dar0~th,~upgort0+f~~~a0~ r.sl&nta OS the v.rlous oount1.e; but thla duty
does not extend tc traaalant prama vho ax-u ua- able to .upport themael~e., T&a term 'sup-', amana mm. tha a l ttp plylng r o od, U~U8.d; olothlng and living quartaM; it m all that is nwesary~to bodily heal&and ~swmrort, laalud- .I Iw propar eara W trutmttt dur~.al&ne~.. * Thlr, it h.. b..a uld, '1. l .upr.m. obllg.tlon hrnarnitJ* itapam 0r atky 8tatt0~ mt0.t t8by 008tm0t r0r lasdi~rl ~O~S~I~OXKWE~ COGS 4.rYlce. to b. -Md to p.up.r., . . . .
2r th8= 3.8 a pubu0 h06piw in th8 00ttttt7, It 1. the duty o? #a oomlu~Ioa.rs@ court rids for rcndlag tharm tha hdlgeat rlakt but thm oourt is r.qtlrmd to rotnl swh parsons to prl- y.t.ho.plt.l. ortopubllo hoaplW.out.ld.th. aOuItty....w %43 p0v.r~ md duti0s 00tay owria-
l M Oourt., atml th. obllrptloxu 0r tm countlu to palp.M, arm rix.4 by 8tatutc, md oanuot ba impliaatlon. Thata mahrgmd upoa by ttaamo8s~ p0Y.r. rad dutl.., In 80 ru u rppllo.bl. horn, ar. d.ilaad %t rrd reatrlot.6 bJ th. provl.lon.
Yonorable A. E. Riakeraon, Qags 3 2351 and 8s~. St. 1925. IXI of htiolsr
Artiole 2351 it iu prowled that each aomUsrlon- em* aourt shall (subdi~l~ion 11) 'provide for the support OS pauper8....neldmntrr of their county, vho are unable to support themsmlves,~ and (subdlrloion l2) 'for the burial of paupers.~ In Artiole 4438 it 18 provided that 'If there is a regularly established publlo hospltal.ln the aounty, the eomal~sioner8~ oourt shall provide for mendIng the lndlgmnt alok....to auah hoapl- -1. In the latter provlalan the duty md authority of the comolsslon.~' oourt to rend the indigent ttlak to hoapltala 18 llalted to 'publlu' ho8pital. vlthln the county, vhioh vision, by maea- implication, exoludes any duty authority to rend suoh persona to prl- vate hospitals, to publio ho8pltals without the oouaty."
The term "indigent" hu been deBned br the oourts on many 00cas10n.. Ve quote the following definitions;
'A person Is Indigent vho is destitute of pISpOrty or moana oomfortable aubslstence; cne vho Is needy or poor." junemu County VII, wood couuty, 85 xu 387, 388, 109 HIS. 330.
bword ~lndlgent~, when used in oonneation with atlmlatllona to county hospitala, lnaludes inbabitaat of oounty who poseeases required quallflcatlon8 of residence, and hu lnaufft- ~cient mwans to pay far hia plaintenanoe in prl- vate hospital mftor provldlng for those vho legally claim hir m~pport.~ Ooodall va. Brite, 54 Pao. 2nd 510, 515, 11 Cal. App. 2nd 540.
“To be lmltgent does not meau that 8 per- 8on muat be a pauper, and, vlthltt the w of the statute relating to the oommitnmat of the lnune the Government Hoapital for the lnune, an lamme peracn vlth lnauffiolmnt eatate to pay for hia alnteaance in the hoe- pltal after providing for those Gho oould olain *4 Honorable A. E. Bloker8on, Page 4 -~Depree ~8. Distrlot
Me support, is indigent." oi Ooluabir, 45 *pp. DA. 9, 59.
Thus It may be won thfit sll psupem sre AndAgent pemotm . Aa to vhather o r ut zndigetat peraott 1s l pUpor vi11 be determined by the degree of his indlgenoy. This ls 8 question oi Ssat for the oowift8lowPS~ 00Wt to brt8rminm in thmlr lloutld dia0ret1ott. If the ooamtisslonersf oourt deter- mines that att lndlgent pernon 1s l pauper th e oourt vould be ruthorlzed to rid him u muah under Artiole 2351, Sub. ll, supm; Ve~~kenunrb~toiirrdws~tu~~quir~ury putifJUb?W rod, Or ~OOO&UPS VirsFOb~ th0 OOd8#iOtWI%' OOUFt detomlner the que8tlon0rpsuperisnnor~8tstute requiring the inking up of a roll of djpdimted psupsrs of the aounty.
You are therefom respeotfully advised that it Is the oplnton of this departmnt that if the ~ommf.mdonmm~ court determinea that an Indigent is a pauper it my Sumlah modi- ail rid and mdlolae8 him u such, regaxwllma8 vb.ether not he hss beea plsaed upon the pauper roll of the county, iwmuahss there LsnoatstutoryreqPIIQUfrem8ntrorthe~ up or a oouut~ paper roll. It is the further opiaion of thzL8 department that th. oomml.~lo~ra 1 oowt haa ,th4 authority to rid *indigent mlok9,.rho my or amy not be 'psupers', by aendIng much tlndlgent sick' to *publlo' hosplt8l8 wlthln the aounty. The qwatlon OS ~lndlgenoy~ ia 8180 e question of faot to be &ter0laed e the ooad8aionem~ oouct.
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