OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

tioxtorablo To@. $, Dart 

aounty Attoramy 

xeadall cotaty 

BoarJio, "knr 

pur e&r 
- _ 

. . ,” 

.,.i 

Eoxorable Joa. B. Dart, Pcge 2 

dies an unmitural death, axospt unbar ecntanoe 

of the lcw, or in tho abmnoo of ona or mm3 

good witnessca. ' 

"An the purpoeo of an inquest is to determine the OQUBB of death, not to prove *ether 

a pareon lc dud or not, the justice of the 

peaoc ia of tha opinion that the rmatlon of 

wltnsases in thi. artlole mean. witnao8*8 to 

the oaus. of duth and not nsoomsarlly witne8635 th0 ‘fact thd death has 000urrod. 

%f 0curss. in thou 0sse8 where the witnusa. to a. unn.tar.1 dwth .a. both th. 

oauce and the death ltmlf fher'e m10.d bs no 

oeoeaslty.for~ma lnqwrt. But *hero the oawe 

of a&h oaotus iii one ~laoa an4 the Math 

in another it would se& that an Inquest 

.hoald bo hrld to a.o.rtain the oars. of 

death.“ 

Totu qaastlon, aa we oadsrstand it, 

by ua in the heading of this letter. 

is a8 stated 

ATt.lola 968, cod. of Crirnixi.1 Plv..&lrs giV.8 the 

oiroumtanoes under whlah a just100 of tbr pasae'is authorized to hold .n inquut. Suoh artlolo reads as hollows: 

%ny ju.tioi of alo yuoe s&U b. l w 

thoriead, and lt.8bsU'bo US tlUty, t0 hdLd 

inquest. wlthoot.8 j.ury ?ltMn nim oW*, in 

the fOllowlng O..us' 

9. Whia 0. p-n dleb ln prlSe* 

. “A!. m&z & &ob zlm kula4. or i&l 

a ny c a lm0 a .an 8na 88ur 8l do a m. l XWP t .wilor 

a enteno e o f tb a lnw. or in the a b smo e ~0f 0m 

or mo r e good wlitnu8e8. 

-3. Khan the body of a hup*m bdag 1. 

found, and tho .irowtanoes of hi. bath (II-. 

anlnOWl. 
Horlornble Jo..& Dart, Page 3 

that he oame to hi. death by unlawful means.g 

~phasls our..) 

invoke4 in 

Subseotion 4 of Artiol. 960, eupra, may pmslbly be 

rour faotU~oa.8, but thf. do.8 not l pp.ar prob- 

.blo from the entire aontext of your latter. If the jwtloe 

of the p-0. h.4 r...on.bl. ground. to swpsot the -cm.. 0.m. 

to her am&h 

oat&on for an "7 

unlawful maas there would br ample juntlflnquost b.o.u.8 or tha provlsloao OS Artlols 

lvu, ooae or crlmlml PTOOO~UWI, as~~404, msuhg 68 foi1OUBl 

"If a pamon noalro an injury In on0 aouat~ 

and die8 la another by raaun or sprh inJury, 

thb offrn6sr ayr’be procrooukd in the ooonty 

whonthe learns r.o.1v.d orrbanthwbath 

o;yAzwor ln the oounty whom the dud. b6ay 

&&as0 of the aboto sSotuto ths o** of althar 

Buu or~Xwl&l'Couaty wouli3 bare ~rrdsdiatiea te try Zho 

.Ue~ 23&e 'I.nqcmst uzhr %ubd.lvision 4 of Artiol. 968, supra, 

u6ul4 not depend ?Ipoa the prereaoo or absuioa of d&tsssos 

l lthar at thb 8o.n) of th. injury ar brth. 

We nort d~drsrtto th. ooastraotion to be p&owl 

UQ.B l3ubseotlon & of said Article WL 

IthMkorl 

of .. lnqu.st ls to eb 

taaly . ..o+tx t&t th. pup088 

infommtloP u to rbrthera 

bath w awoe& by lol. orialml sot .M to 0-n eTlba.0 

to preveat usape 0X. the @ltr, as Wll an to $?srnlSh 8 

fwadmtlan far a. **aal pro.e6utloa in oa.6 (irth 1. shorn 

to br fslOailieor m Othemis@ unlawn& ,. SW PiirbOa f. ibb 

Ia the instad oarno, va am cb the Opinion tht 

1% mu&l be es l amantial~to know the oamo of th. d.dh .8 

tha faot ot bath lt..lf, tm fulfill the porpo8.r of the 

statute as disowsad in the oitd o.oU. F'rcr the 8upmnar 

Court cam or pohk Oounty *a Philllp8, supm, we tak. fh. 

followfly pertinant lasnm.g.1 
. . 

Xi1 

Ho~:orabla JOE. B. Durt, Page 4 

“. . . The foot that death bnd resulted 

from vlolonae, end the further root, for esem~le, that the rlolsnoe ooreieted of a blow 

upon the head, are but steps in asoertainlng 

whether or not a crime haa beon odtted. 

The blow may have oharaoterlstlos other thsn 

thoee of a physlaal mtura. It may bare bean 

aooidentsl or it msy have been Intentional. 

It may hnvo boon ulllful, uncl without jwtifloation, or it nay bate beon jostlflsbls. 

In ecoompll#hlng the purpose or the inqumst, 

It is 08 Important to dotermine the80 Uttar 

aharaateristios o? sn wt of violenos rhioh 

has led to a doath as it is to eman tha 

ra0t that them was violenoa, and that aah 

wus 1te mault. . . .- 

w8 dlrsot your espoolsl attantlon to ths dlsousslon 

or the requlremeats of a nlid inquest boron rollsotlon~of 

s fee thereror in the @au of Pierson v. Gelvutan Conat~, 

(Civ. App.) olted abova, spaolflcall~to paga SO of 151 

s* n. (26). 

It la our opinion that your question should br ~J.urored that -good wltnsasu w to the caum of duthwould be 

as essential as "good wltnesse8 * to the bath lt8eU; an& Li 

all or the othw e8mntlal ruqtiraments OS a valid lnquost 

have been mat, tha justice OS the peaoa la entitled to his 

fee. 

Your. vary tnlly 

ATTO?.LWf GlCXFX4.L ~SlStMt