Honorable Mack,Wallace Onlnlon -. No. ~~-1338 

County Attorney 

Hendersori County Re: 

Athens, Texas 

Whether male minors under the 

age of 17 years and female 

minors under the age of 18 

years may be confined In jail 

for failure to pay fines assessed against them under 

Section 14(a) of.Artlcle 

Dear Mr. Wallace: 666-17, V.P.C. 

In your recent letter 

whether or nota minor could .._ -_ _ 

you have asked the question 

?! "confined to jail- to lay . __ out nls fine m accoraance with the ordinary rules concerning fines", where such minor has been fined for violating 

the provisions of Article 666-17, 14(a), V.P.C. 

In Opinion No. WW-1171 thls office held that Section 

14(a) of Article 666-17, V,P.C, was an exception to Article 

23384, V.C.S. Under Section 14(a) of Article 666-17 all 

persons under 21 years of age are subject to the penalty of 

a fine of from Ten to One Hundred Dollars for violating Its 

provlslons. We hereby affirm the holding in that opinion, 

a copy of which Is attached hereto, 

The general rule Is that persons coming within the 

terms of the juvenile statutes may not be punished by incarceration for their violations of the law. In Opinion v-1328 

this office held that juveniles prosecuted and fined under 

the provisions of Article 8~1i, subsequently modified and 

re-enacted as 802e, V.P.C., could beg incarcerated in. jail 

in lieu of the payment of the fines assessed. The minor 

could not be placed In the same cells as adult offenders 

but must be segregated.as required by Section 17, Article 

2338-1, V.C.S. Also, this office has held that juveniles 

may be taken to jail pending posting of bond In those instances where certain trafiic regulations, enumerated In 

Artic.le 802e, V.P.C., have been violated. (Opinion WW-547) 

We think the instant situation l.s,analogous thereto 

and Inasmuch as the Legislature has seen fit to provide a 

fine for the prohibited act it necessarily follows that 
. ’ 

Hon. Mack Wallace Page 2 Oplnlon No. ww-1338 

the.flne to be effective must be collected either In cash 

or as Is provided for by statute. 

793 C.C.P. 

Arts. 783, 785, 787 and 

It seems to this office that public policy, as 

dictated by the enactment of the legislative body of the 

State, requires that the offender In these types of cases 

pay fUr his crime In time or money. We therefore hold in * 

answer to your question that a minor can.be confined In 

jail to lay out his fine In accordance with the statutory 

provision concerning fines In misdemeanor cases where he 

has been found guilty of violating Article 666-17 (14)(a), 

provided they are segregated from adult offenders. Art. 

2338-1(17), V.P.C. 

SUMMARY 

All persons under 21 years of 

Y 

e are re- 

- qulred by Section 14(a) of Art. 66 -17, Ver- .') 

,;" non's Penal.Code, upon conviction, to pay a 

fine of from Ten to One Hundred Dollars as 

,. assessed by the proper authority. If they 

. are unable to pay such fine they must be con- 

" Pined in jail to lay out the fine as required 

by law or until such Sine has been pald,provlded they are segregated from adult-offenders. 

Yours very truly, 

NVS:sh 

Enclosure 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE: 

W. V. Qeppert, Chairman 

Jay Howell 

W. 0. Shultz 

Charles Llnd 

. John Hofmann 

REVIEWEDFORTHE ATTCRNEYCENERAL 

BY: Hour Brownlee,Jr.