OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Eowr8blr Ir8li.o 0. YlllUm8 

Dl8triot Attornq 

uNh~o;ncoIat7 

, 

D8ar sir: 

. 

r ea 8ioor a l k ing this that lo my 

rt8towrrt of foat8, 1 w&8 tb folloulag 8t8kwnt I 

WI8 Sbbrlff ‘8 doprtr~t of uuh 

Count7 18 oDmmtlog m&r Uu u-7 

the Sbrlff 8nd hl8 dO&MiO8 W -16 Ollt Of t&m 

U-7 furrd of t& OOUIkt7. %W aOQ8ttib of th8 

count7 U@ other p8808 OtfiOW8, uhroh 1M1Ufh8 

alt7 au-8 rod polloa Off1Oer8 of tin Clt7 of 
Brcllun, 8l-c mt utlcer the stlery 1111 ant of 

ttbt County, but dcpad upoll the ices of office 

for thelz csmpeasatlon ta axecut Ly: crlnlnal 

raPOC.88. 

‘In my opinion, I is01 that tt does notj 8lld 

t&St JOW h~tWlrt V8S C7#@Z8llt Of the f8Ct 

th6t 81l City POI:OCI 8rc 88 8 r&d0 00 8 86lCWy, 

but deslm y3ur opinion In ro8poare to the Qusatloa coatalned la p#lrik&r8ph tVo 8bove.” 

In reply to your orlglosl lwulry of July 15, 1946, ve 

8drl8ed yw, la our oplnlon Nn. 0-7296, that in the C8988 f ileed 

by the Chlcf of Police of Bmnham lh the Justice Court of Precinct 80. 3, Ysshi ton County, Ieras, he vould be tntltlcd to 

collect the fee of 1.W “for each comnltmcnt or release,” prsvldtd under Art. 1 ii!! 5, Code of Cr:mlnal Procedure, especially 

un&r 3cctl3n 5 tl-iexwof, vhere the vork performed for the fee 

18 ectuolly performed by tho Chfef of Police. 

Thl5 op:nlon V8ll premi5cd oh your statomnt that “the 

constable of the county and other peace officers, vhlch lncludea 

City kmshels an3 p?lica officers of the City of &c!IhEm, 8re 

not m&r the salary blll and of the Ccuuty, but CcpcnC upon the 

fees of office fw their c3npennEatloa la executl~ CikitXl proCE3S.U 

You nov ask, vhether It makes any difference Ln the appllcablllty of our O;jlnioo, 6s rendered, if the Chief of ?ollce 

1s employed bye the City of Brenban under a coatr8ct th8s p8ya 

him a f lx& 8al8ry per moclth, plus such fee8 88 he may CPTD :n 

cr ildlU1 cases? 

In October, 1541, in reaponw to the reqocst of the 

Dlltrlct Attzwy of Edloburg, Texna, thlr department wrote Its 

aplolon 8~. (i-37>1; and slncs 50150 of the questions therein d:8- 

CuBsed are close13 8kLn t:, the lqulrie8 you have made, Ye ado::. 

ea our suppleeontary oplnlon la thls ln8tancs, those port Ions 

which bear directly on your recent l6tter of August 2L., 144ia, tov1r: 

Yju8tfon X3. 3. DMCJ the fact t&t such officer 

(ChLef of Pollee) t5 *id 0 88tiry by the City, 

8ffOCt hi5 right to recelrc fees? 

?$wrtlon no. 4. I8 it proper for 8uch offiCM 

(Chief of PollCe) to &%~y the fee8 be Hd1i(*,8 

into the Irceourg of the City that employs him? 

4 l l l 4 l 
Hxmreblc LerlLc C. 'cIlU:uas - ~a@ 3. 

%cw rub3 oliisr 8re erpnrrly elven the 8uthorltp t3 fix the coqmaretlon of thalr offl~cerr. Art. 

1175, R.3. ‘Be olty could, tImefor., pa7 the Chlrf 

of poll08 8 88lary oal7, or 8 88-7 aad in l ldltlon, 

permit him to nt8l.n put of l ll of the 8tatUtOr7 fe88, 

Or hs OOuld b8 Wid 8triCtly 00 l f.0 ba818. 

%hlle the f8ot th8t ruch offlccr 18 paid & 8alary 

by the City, l 8 8t8t8d 10 ~OUF qW8tiOll, would not Iffeat hl8 right to eeelve th8 rtatutory foea provided 

for the nrrlc88 m 5iaa by him, lt ml&t 8ff8Ot hi8 

right t0 fet8ilI suoh fee8 for hlm8Oli. 

‘In 8flIV8P to your third quertien, it 18, therefore, flu oplaloa of thlr Dapwtwat, under tbb fact8 

stated, that ruch offloer 18 not prohlblted fran reoelvla& the rtatutory feea for the eerrlce8 reculsreC by 

him. Mlether 8uch offloor may keep such fees for hla 

OVn UW aD 8 p-t Of hlr ColnpsU8atiOQ, however, 18 U 

queetlon vhloh depend8 on th8 terms of t&i! ordlaanoe or 

Itgreamuat fl%lng hi8 OompenMtloo. A8 VI haor, not bean 

advlwd 41 to the O#Ct Mtux’e of the tern8 of hi8 Cm 

pwatim, ve 82-e unable to pa88 upoa that rpciflc 

point. 

Vovever, in your th:rd quest:zn , you ;p;&thgt 

ruch Qfflcer 18 peld 8 salary by the City. 

dloance tlrly hl8 oompea8atlon provide8 imrely that he 

shdll bo paid 8 salary and doer not exp r essll y uthorfze 

him to ret8ln, 113 addltlon thereto, any Seer a8 part of 

hi8 con~amtlon, therr, uf are of the oplnloo th8t he 

ootid aot be 8ntlttid to retaln ruoh fees 88 p8rt of 

hi8 O~M8t~OO, but 8houlb pey thea iat3 the City 

TPW8LU7. 

‘%8tUtel prtroriblng fe88 ior public OffiOer8 WU 

rtrlctly omatruad, ad hence 8 rl&t to tea8 amy a3t 

rerrt la *llcatloo. Where thlr right 1s left to conrtruotlon, the laqua* of the 18x7 must bc construed la 

favor of th5 government. k%ere l statute lo ca$abl~e of 

tvo oonstruct:oa8, one of VhlCh vould give en offloer 

compensatfon f7r hL8 8ervlce5 lo rddltton to hi8 88hry 

and the other not, the latter coartructlan ehould be 

cdopt8d. 34 ‘fOXa Jurlrprudcnce, PgSS 5a, 509. 

“In msrer to your fourth qwation, lt 18, therefore, the opinion of thl8 tiepartwnt, unclor the fmts 
Hoaoreble &rlla C. U:lllanr - paa 4. 

rtated, that unlnsrr the ctty 0rtYLamce or agreemeat 

flxiry the compasatloa ai l uah City Hershal axpressly and alearly l uthor!mr htm to retala ruoh feea 6s 

part of his ct%npoMatloa, it voulcl mt only be proper 

Sor him to pay hla fess into the City Treaeury, but 

ha vould be 8ubject to ariPlad,prorecutloa lf ha l pplied ruch fee8 to his own use. 

Cod-u.) 

(set? Art. 45, Penal 

In vlsv of the Soreeolng exprca8lonr on the subjeot 

md of our SomPar Opiaioa to you on Aul;uot 3, 1346, YB 8ubnit 

thet It would mt lDake my differmae ln the ej?~l:cabllity of 

our forum oplnloa that the Chief of Pollee ir smploycd by 

the City of E&w&am urxltr a coatrartt th&t pays hlr, a fl.xcrJ. 

salary pr month, plus such fees a8 he way eara ia crSmlc&tl 

Cams. 

Yours very truly