R-600 

PRICE DANIEL 

AUWTIN 11. - 

ATTORNEY GENERAL 

July 25, 1947 

Hon. Looneg E. Lindsey 

County Attorney 

Upshur County 

-.- - 

Opinion NO. v-312 

Re: Obligation of a 

Gllmer, Texas Juatlce of the 

Peace to accept 

or collect and to 

account for f he3 

and costa in his 

Dear Sir: 

court. 

‘You have requested an opinion from 

partment concerning the following questions: 

this De- 

“1. Are justices of the peace Equlred to collect finea, Costa), etc., In 

their oourts and if so, what is their 

compensation? 

“2. Are justices of the peace 

authorized to colleat fines, coats, etc. 

assessed in their COWtS, and if so, 

what is their coiapensation? 

“3. Does the record keeping and 

accounting for monies collected aa costs 

and finea by justlaes of the peace under 

Article 1619, v.A.c.s. 1925, constitute 

a part of the official duties of their 

offices and If 80, what Is their oompenB.StiOll? 

‘!4. Are justices of’ the peace rie- 

%MdE:; :?;!A ;~si 

proper oases o,n pleas of guilty and tendered to ,such justices either by the defendant or liy an officer collecting 3ame if 

the justice remands the defendant to the 

officer for the satisfaction of same?" 

We quote the following pertinent statutOry 

provisiona: 
Hon. Looney E. Lindsey - Page 2, V-312 

Art. 944, V.C.C.P. 

"All officers charged by law with collecting money in the name or for the use of 

the S,tate shall report in writing under oath 

to the respective district oourts of their 

aeveral counties, on the first day of each 

term, the amounts of money that have come to 

their hands since the last ter8 of their 

respective courts aforesaid.’ 

Art. 945, V.C.C.P. 

“Such repart &all at&e: 

“1. me amount oolleoted. 

:2. Uhon aa from rlhom,aollmted. 

“3. By virtue OS vhat p~ooorr, ool1ectrd. 

“4. The dirporition that haa boon 

made of the wnq. 

“5. IS no'money has been .collecteU, 

the repoh shall so atate.' 

Art. 946, V.C.C.P. 

'A report, 'suck aa Is required by the 

tvo pr0a.d~ articles, llhal.1 al.80 bo rd. 

of all money8 oolleotod for the count 

P 

vbich 

ropart ahallbe rd. to eaah mgular ora ef 

the comlasioners court for each oouaty." 

Al?*& 947, V.C.C.P. 

"llir ofSlaers.charged by law with the 

collection of money; within the meaning of 

the three preceding artiolea, and who are required to make the reports thereln mentioned, 

apex District and county attorneys, clerk8 

of the district and oountJ OOWts, she#lSSr, 

~constables, ,+nd $.mtlaes of the peaoo. 

Art. 950, V.C.C.P. 

"The distiict or county at30rn*y ah&i 
Hon. Looney E. Lindsey - Page 3, V--312 

be entitled to ten per oent of all fines, 

forfelturea’or moneys collected for the 

State or county, upon judgments recovered 

by him; and the clerk of the court in 

which said judgments are rendered shall 

be entitled to five per cent of the 8.. 

mount of said judgments, to be paid out 

of the amount when oollected.” 

Art. 951, V.C.O.P, 

“The ~sheriff or other officer, except 

a justice of the peace or his clerk, who 

colleata money for the State or county, 

except jury fees, under any provision of 

this Code, shall be entitled to retal: 

five per cent thereof when oollected. 

(Emphasis ours) 

Art. 1619, V.C.9. 

“Finea iapoaed and judgments rendered 

by justices of the peace shall be charged 

;glzIethe justice imposing or rendering 

He may discharge .aald lndebtedneaa by filing with the county clerk the 

treasurer’s recei t for the Smount thereof, 

or by showing to #i he aatlafaction of the’ 

conuniasionera court that he has used due 

diligence to collect the same without avail, 

or that the same have been aatlafled by imprisonment or labor. ” 

!She Court held in the case of !4cLennan County 

v. Boggeaa, 104 Tex. 311, 137 S.W. 346, that Article 

1143, V.C.C.P. (1911) (now Article 950, V.O.O.P.) vaa 

Inapplicable to a justice of the peace. lie quote the 

following from said case: : . 

'With regard to the OOlleCtion of 

,finea, Sorroiturea, or nioney due the state 

or county, vhile article 1013, (now 947) 

Code of Criminal Procedure, charges justioes of the peaoe with the duty of oollectlng money, within the meaning of 

article8 1010, 1011, and 1012 (now 944, 

945, 946) of the Oode T; Criminal Pro- 
Hon. Looney E. Lindsey - Page 4, V- 312 

cedure, which relate to the collection 

of money in the name of the state, and 

the report thereof to the reapeative 

district Courts of their ae~veral counties, and of money collected for the 

county to the commissioners’ court for 

each county, and prescribing the nature 

of such report, it I.3 clear that the exercise of such duty of collection means 

only their authority to receive the 

money from the person adjudged to pay, 

or from the officer by whom it IS in 

fact collected, and pay over to the proper source. It la Umaterlal whether or 

not the justice, aa such officer, should 

in the exercise of his duty bd required 

to perform some services without compensation having been provided therefor by 

law.’ Such is held to be incident to the 

office, ‘upon the acceptance of whidh the 

obligation to perform is impoadd. -The 

mere fact that the nature of his office 

and the duties Imposed require him to 

perform, in addition to judicial, certain ministerial services, Is not aufficient to warrant the implication that, 

because 5 per cent of the judgment collected is awarded the clerk of the court 

in which such judgment la recovered, 

therefore it was the intent and purpose 

of the lawmaker to include ,in the tery 

‘clerk’ that of justice of the peace. 

(Perentheais ours) 

In view of the foregoing, it la the mandatory duty of the justice of the peeae~to exercise due 

diligence to coll~ot $inea.baieaaed 3.n his Court; to 

accept such sines and,aoatp tqmdsred to him by t@e 

defendant or by an:‘oSSicar vho~~h~p’qolleated the same; 

to keep a record df-allL~,qon$@b Pskeived~by~hlm lbpayrent of sines; an4 trJ:siaka,~~~popt~‘thp~eoS 19d to a~- 

count for acme et this tiqa a+ in thQ qurSner ‘pre--~ 

scribed by the statutes. 

The Conatitutlpn firer the’ oo~enaatlon that 

nay be paid oertaln offlsera and $uthori@6b the tigialature to fix the &mpenabtion of.:qthqy.,gSSicera. The 

rule in Taxra relative’to compenaatioh of public officials la that “M~orficer may not cldipl or receive mg 
Eon. Looney E. Lindsey - Page 5/V-312 

mdney without a'law authorieing him to do so, and 

clearly fixing the amount to whioh he la entitled." 

RcLsnnan County v. Boggess, aupra. 'Binford v. 

Robinson, 244 S.W. 807;. Crosby County Cattle Company v. McDermett, 281~S.W. 293; Duclos v. Rarrls 

County, 291 S.W. 611, affirmed 298 S.W. 417. 

This office has repeatedly ruled that a 

justice of the.peace Is not entitled to retain commissions on Sines collected. Attorney General's 

Opinions Hos.'O-1162, O-4091, O-5108 and 0-5180. 

Therefore, it is our Surther opinion that 

the justioes of the peace are not entitled to compensation for collecting fines and aosta assessed in 

their courts or for keeping a reoord and aooounting 

for asme.. 

SUMMARY 

It is the mandatory duty of a justice of,the peace to exercise due dillgenae to colleot Sines assessed in his 

Court; to accept such Sines and coats 

when tendered to him by the defendant 

or by an officer who has collected 

same; to keep a record of all moneys 

received by him in,psyment of fines; to 

make reports thereof and amount for 

Same at the times and in the manner 

ptieticribed by the stattites. Such duties are’an.Lncld6nt to the office bf 

justiioe -of the peace for which no apecial compensation has been provided by 

the Legislature. McLennan county v. 

104 Tex. 311, 137 S.W.,346; 

;f;B;44, 945, 946, 947, 950, 951, 

. . . .; Art. 1619, V.C.S. 

Very truly yours 

JR:djm ATTORREYGE&RALOFTEXAS 

%7fZSiv+ 

Assistant