Title: Dickinson v. Bradley

State: florida

Issuer: Florida Supreme Court

Document:

298 So. 2d 352 (1974)
Fred O. DICKINSON, Jr., Appellant,
v.
The Honorable Ray B. BRADLEY, Etc., Appellee.
No. 44743.

Supreme Court of Florida.
July 31, 1974.
*353 Larry Levy, Gen. Counsel, Office of the Comptroller, Tallahassee, for appellant.
Fred W. Baggett, Tallahassee, and Michael Colodny, Miami, for appellee.
BOYD, Justice.
This cause is before us on appeal from the Circuit Court, Leon County. The trial court, in its final summary judgment, held that Appellant's attack on Chapter 71-468 as being unconstitutional was without merit, thereby giving this Court jurisdiction of the direct appeal.[1]
The facts of this case are as follows.
In 1962 Appellee, Plaintiff below, was elected to the office of Constable of the Second District of Dade County; he was re-elected to that office in 1964. In 1965 the Dade County Commission enacted an ordinance providing that all funds collected by Constables be remitted directly to the County and that Constables be paid solely through the County. Having been indicted on November 3, 1966, on a perjury charge by the Dade County grand jury, Appellee was suspended from office. On January 19, 1967, Appellee was removed from office, and on March 23, 1967, his replacement was appointed as Constable. Thereafter, Appellee was tried on the perjury charge and found guilty; however, on March 12, 1968, his conviction was reversed on appeal, and instead of seeking reinstatement to office, Appellee ran and was elected as Constable in November, 1968, taking office on January 7, 1969. In 1971 the Legislature enacted Chapter 71-468, Laws of Florida, which provided that the State reimburse Appellee $18,539.98 for compensation lost during his suspension from office. When Appellant-Comptroller refused to make payment pursuant to that statute on the ground, inter alia, that it is unconstitutional, Appellee sought a declaratory decree in the Leon County Circuit Court.
On the basis of these facts the trial court held as follows:
We find that the trial judge, in paragraphs 7 and 8 of his summary judgment, *355 noted above, gave an able and accurate explanation of the law governing this case. We agree with his analysis therein.
Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
It is so ordered.
ADKINS, C.J., and ROBERTS, ERVIN, McCAIN and OVERTON, JJ., concur.
[1]  Article V, Section 3(b)(1), Florida Constitution.
[2]  217 So. 2d 553 (Fla. 1967).