, * 

E A ORNEY GENERAL 

OPTEXA~ 

. 

Honorable C. 0. Murdoch 

County Attorney 

Menard County 

Menard, Texas 

Dear Sir: Opinion No. O-3078 

Re: Fees due offlcera under Article 

1055, V.A.T.C.C.P. 

Your request for opinion has been received and 

carefully considered by this department. We quote from your 

request as follows: 

"Does Article 1055 in the C.C.P. provide 

that counties shall pay one-half of the fees 

of County Attorney, sheriff, and judge of 

court, when defendant in a misdemeanor case 

pleads 'guilty' on examining trial, and is not 

actually tried as in a regular trial ? Or 

does it provide for the payment of one-half 

of the fees only when the defendant is actually 

tried before the Judge or a jury, at a regular 

trial, not an examining trial, and when he 

pleads 'not guilty'? This article applies, I 

presume, to all misdemeanor cases, regardless 

whether in the Justice Courts or County Court?" 

Article 1055, Vernon's Annotated Texas Code of 

Criminal Procedure, reads as follows: 

"The county shall not be liable to the 

officer and witness having costs in a miademeanor case where defendant pays his fine 

and costs. The county shall be liable for 

one-half of the fees of the officers of the 

Court, when the defendant fails to pay his 

fine and lays his fine out in the county 

jail or discharges the same by means of working such fine out on the county roads or on 

any county project. And to pay such half of 

coats, the County Clerk shall issue his warrant on the County Treasurer in favor of such 

officer to be paid out of the Road and Bridge 

Fund or other funds not otherwise appropriated." 
Honorable C. 0. Murdoch, page 2 O-3078 

Article 1065, Vernon's Annotated Texas Cede of 

Criminal Procedure, reads as follows: 

' The following fees shall be allowed the 

sheriff, or other peace officer performing the 

same services In misdemeanor cases, to be taxed 

against the defendant on conviction: 

"1 . For executing each warrant of arrest 

or capiaa, or making arrest without warrant, 

two dollars. 

"2 * For summoning each witness, seventyfive cents. 

“3 . For serving any writ not otherwise 

provided for, one dollar. 

j'4 .For taking and approving each bond, 

and returning the same to the court house, when 

necessary, one dollar and fifty cents. 

“5 . For each commitment or release, one 

dollar. 

“6 . Jury fee, In each case where a jury 

is actually summoned, one dollar. 

"7 . For attending a prisoner on habeas 

corpus, when such prisoner, upon a hearing, has 

been remanded to custody, or held to bail, for 

each day's attendance, four dollars. 

“8. For conveying a witness attached by 

him to any court out of his county, four dollars 

for each day or fractional part thereof, and 

his actual necessary expenses by the nearest 

practicable public conveyance, the amount to be 

stated by said officer, under oath and approved 

by the judge of the court from which the attachment issued. 

"9 . For conveying a prisoner after conviction to the county jail, for each mile, going and coming, by the nearest practicable 

route by private conveyance, ten cents a mile, 

or by railway, seven and one-half cents a mile. 

"10. For conveying a prisoner arrested 

on a warrant or capiaa issued from another county 
. . 

Honorable C. 0. Murdoch, page 3 o-3078 

to the court or jail of the county from which 

the process was issued, for each mile traveled going and coming, by the nearest practicable 

route, twelve and one-half cents. 

"11. For each mile he may be compelled 

to travel in executing criminal process and 

summoning or attaching witness, seven and onehalf cents. For traveling in the service of 

process not otherwise provided for, the sum 

of seven and one-half cents for each mile 

going and returning. If two or more persons 

are mentioned in the same writ, or two or more 

writs in the same case, He shall charge only 

for the distance actually and necessarily 

traveled in the same.' 

Article 1061, Vernon's Annotated Code of Criminal 

Procedure, reads as follows: 

'~iatrict and county attorneys shall be 

allowed the following Fees in cases tried in 

the district or county courts, or a county 

court at law, to be taxed against the.defendant: 

"For every conviction under the laws 

against gaming when no appeal is taken, or 

when, on appeal, the judgment is affirmed, 

fifteen dollars. 

"For every other conviction in cases of 

misdemeanor, where no appeal is taken, or when 

on appeal the judgment is affirmed, ten dollars." 

Article 1068, Vernon's Annotated Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, reads as follows: 

'If the defendant pleads guilty to a 

charge before a justice, the fee allowed the 

attorney representing the State shall be five 

dollars. The attorney who represents the 

State. in a criminal action in a justice's 

court shall receive, for each conviction on a 

plea of not sullty, where no appeal is taken, 

ten dollars. 

Article 1070, Vernon's Annotated Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, reads as follows: 
. , 

Honorable C. 0. Murdoch, page 4 O-3078 

"No fee shall be allowed a district or 

county attorney in any casa where he is not 

present and representing the State, upon the 

trial thereof, unless he has taken some action 

therein for the State, or is present and ready 

to represent the State at each regular term of 

the court In which such criminal action is 

pending; provided, that when pleas of guilty 

are accepted in any justice court, at any other 

time than the regular term thereof, the county 

attorney shall receive the sum of five dollars. 

In no case shall the county attorney, in consideration of a plea of guilty remit any part 

of his lawful fee." 

Article 1052, Vernon's Annotated Texas Code of 

Criminal Procedure, provides for the payment of certain 

fees to the County Judge and Justice of the Peace by the 

county, and reads as follows: 

"Three dollars shall be paid by the 

county to the County Judge, or Judge of the 

Court at Law, and Two Dollars and fifty cents 

shall be paid by the county to the Juztlce 

of the Peace, for each criminal action tried 

and finally disposed of before him. Provided, 

however, that in all counties having a population of 20,000 or less, the Justice of the 

Peace shall receive a trial fee of Three Dollars. Such Judge or Justice shall present to the 

Commiszlonerz' Court of his county at a regular 

term thereof, a written account specifying each 

criminal action in which he claims such fee, 

certified by such Judge or Justice to be correct, 

and filed with the County Clerk. The Commissioners' 

Court shall approve such account for such amount 

as they find to be correct, and order a draft to 

be issued upon the County Treasurer in favor of 

such Judge or Justice for the amount so approved. 

Provided the Commissioners' Court shall not pay 

any account or trial fees in any case tried and 

in which an acquittal is had unless the State 

of Texas was represented in the trial of sala 

cause by the County Attorney, or his assistant, 

Criminal District Attorney or his assistant, and 

the certificate of said Attorney is attached to 

said account certifying to the fact that said 

cause was tried; and the State of Texas was represented, and that in his judgment there was sufficient evidence in said cause to demand a trial 

of same." 
Honorable C. 0. Murdoch, page 5 0-3078 

Trial fees are assessed under the provisions of 

Article 1074, Vernon’s Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, 

which reads as follows: 

"In each case of conviction in a county 

court, or a County Court at Law, whether by 

a jury or by a Court, there shall be taxed 

against the defendant or against all defendants, 

when several are held jointly, a trial fee of 

Five Dollars, the same to be collected and paid 

over in the same manner as in the case of a jury 

fee, and in the Justice Court the trial fee shall 

be the sum of Four Dollars." 

You are respectfully advised that it is the opinion of this department: 

1. There is no necessity for an examining trial 

in a misdemeanor case when the defendant pleads guilty to 

same and the court has jurisdiction of the offense. For 

example, If a defendant was charged In the justice court 

with the offense of public drunkenness and the justice had 

started an examining trial and if the defendant stated to 

the court that he desired to plead guilty the justice should 

abandon the examining trial and enter a judgment against 

the defendant. Under such circumstances no fees should be 

allowed for an examining trial. The regular fees provided 

by law would be payable under such circumstances. 

2. The fees of the justice of the peace and county 

judge for their services in the trials of misdemeanor cases, 

both on pleas of guilty and contested cases, are payable by 

the county as provided by Article 1052, V.A.T.C.C.P., supra. 

3. If the defendant is legally convicted of a 

misdemeanor the sheriff and county attorney would be entitled 

to the fees earned by them and It would be immaterial as to 

whether the defendant plead guilty or plead not guilty and 

contested the case, except in the case of the county attorney, 

who would receive a smaller fee on a plea of guilty in 

justice court. If the defendant was not able to pay the fine 

and costs the same could be collected as provided by Article 

1055, V.A.T.C.C.P., supra. 

You are further respectfully advised that it is the 

opinion of this department that Article 1055, V.A.T.C.C.P., 

zupra, applies to all misdemeanor convictions where the defendant is unable to pay the fine and costs, regardless of' 

whether or not the conviction was had in the justice, County, 

county court at law, or district courts. See opinion No. 
Honorable C. 0. Murdoch, page 6 0 -3078 

O-2877 of this department, a copy of which Is enclosed herewith for your information. 

Very truly yours 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS . 

By s,fWm. J. Fanning 

Wm. J. Fanning 

,Asslstant 

WJF:GP:ac 

ENCLOSURE 

APPROVED FEB 20, 1941 

s/Gerald C. Mann 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

Approved Opinion Committee By s/BWB Chairman