THE~ATTORNEY GENERAL OP TEXAS

**PRICE** DANIEL ATTORNEY

GENERAL 

### August 24, 1948

Hon. Alfred M. Clyde 

### DistrictAttorney Fort Worth, Texas 

### OpinionNo. V-667


### Re: The legalityof the payment of travel expenses of witnesses subpoenaedin a aepenaencg case. Dear Sir: Reference is made to your recent request, vhlch reads, in part, as follows:

"We have severaldependencycases 

### pending in the Civil Courts of Tarrant County in which the Chief ProbationOfficerhas filed an action In the name of the State to declare the childrenneglected and dependentchildrenana to Puake them wards of the Court in order that they may be protectedIn accordance with the statute8of this State.
"In a 

### recent case e e . in the 17th DistrictCourt, Tarrant County,Texas, it was necessaryto subpoenaa 

### number of wltnesses from countiessurroundingTarrant County 6 e , The.abovementionedcause was held on July.29, 1948, 

### ana at the completion of the hearing, the subpoenawith a request for travelingexpensesvas 

### presented to He. Levis D. Walli Jr,, District Clerk of Tarrant County, Texas. Payment vas 

### refusdd on the basis that under the lava of Texas there are no provisionsfor paying the fe,es,of witnesses except,

in criminalcasks. In oraer,toadequately prove the allegationsmade In our petition It was necessarythat the above xiamed wit

### nesses appear. "The Proseoutionaf our penalng cases 

### will depend largelyupon the statements of

### Hon. 

### Alfpka M. Clyde,page 2 (V-667)

witnesseswho must be Subpoemea 

### from aurpounalnr:

counties,but we are reluctantto issue such subpoenasunless there is some assurancethat the witnesses will be 

### reimbursed for their travelingexpenses. I would 

### appreciatean Immediateruling in this matter”lnorder that I may know how to proceed. (Emphasis aaaeaj Article 2338&l, Section 13, V. C. S., pro’ vld38, in part, as follows:

"TheJuage may conauct the hearing In an informalmanner ana may adjourn the hearing from time to time. In the hearing of any case the generalpublic may 

### be excluded. All cases Involvingchildren shallbe heard separatelyana apart from the trial of cases againstadults. "If 10 jury is demanded,the Judge shall proceedwith the hearing. When the proceedingIs with a jury, the verdict ahall statewhether the,juvenlleis a 9&elinquent

child'within the meaning 

### of this Act, ma if the Judge or jury finds that the child is delinquent,OP 

### otherwise vithin the provialensof this Act, the courtmay by order duly enteredproceed as follows8 "(1) place 

### the child on probationOP 

### under supervisionin his own home or in the cuetody~of

a relative or other fit person,upon such terms as the court shall determine

; “(2) commit the child to a suitable public institutienor agency, er to a suitableprivate instltmtionore agency authorizedto care for children; OP 

### to place them in suitablefamilyhomes or parentalhomes for an Indeterminateperiod of t&me, not extendingbeyond the time the child shell reach the age of twenty-one (21)years; "(3)make such furtherdispositionas the court may deem to be HOP the best in-Eon. Alfred M+ Clyde, page 3 (V-667)

terest of the child, except a8 herein othenriae povidod.

“Bo adjudloation upon the status of sny child in the,juz4sdictlon of the court shall operate to impose any of the civil dlsabilitles ordl.narll~ i 

### "g osed ‘by aonvictlon,, nor shall 113~

### child e deem* ed a cridnal by reason of suqh.adjubication, tir shall such adjudioatlon be eaed a oonviotion

Section 21 of the sane ktlole provides that an appeal isay be taken by any 

### par%yaggdeved to the Court of Civil Appeals, and the case ry be carried to the Supreme Court by wHt of error or upon certiiicate as ln other civil cat3es.

- \
_~ --. 

### That a juvenllrproceeding is not ccinilul 

### .nnature is clear17evidenced in the holdi= of the :ourt L i.H.(M P the o&se of %ndj v. Wilson, 

### 142 Tex. 460,. 179 269, wherein the court statedf "tile Aot doer not 

### umlePkks to OODvict and $&wish 8 ahlld $0~’ thi oolrmisdon of a Grimor s e Thr 0nlJ ISSW to be. drterdned at the twirl is whether the juvenile is a ‘delinquent child’ wlthln the mean- of the Act.

r * “it hre boa pepeatedlg 

### held by oth&%W, in oonstlruing acts siri- 1 lar.to the one under oonsideratlon, that such statutes are not criminal in nature,-
‘-----and where their propose is for the.education and refopmatlon of the mlnor, an&the institution to whiah,he,or she ia 00&tted Is hot 

### penal lr nature. the 

### denial of ~the zighi of ‘a jury~ trial ‘is not 8 

### violation~of the.Constltution

. . . "Ii the objects of the kt are to be aooomplished, the pl”ooeedlngs’thoPounde~ must necessarily be olvil ir +ure, and while ln sow 

### respoctethe orders, or the judgment of the court r~ Uve the characteristics of a judgment In a crl.d~l. . ,_

Hon. Alfred M. Clyde, page 4 (V-667)

case, the customary rules of evidence in civil cases, developed through long experience as essential in arriving at the truth wlt4f

reasonable certainty, must be followed.
It is apparent from the foregoing that such cases are civil in their nature. In fact, one of the main purposes for which the above Act was passed was to remove the stigma of crime from the juvenile in such cases.

After a careful investigation and search of the statutes, we are unable to find any statute providing for 

### or authorizing the payment of traveling expenses of wltnesaes in such proceedings. Art. 2338-1, supra, makes no provisions whereby such witnesses may be reimbursed for traveling expenses when brought before the court in such hearings.

Since such 

### cases are civil in their nature, and in the absence of any authority to compensate such witnesses, it is our opinion that such witnesses may not be reimbursed for traveling expenses. Although the officers may encounter extreme difficulty in obtaining witnesses in such proceedings, nevertheless the duty of supplying such compensation rests exclusively with the Legislature. SUMMARY

Witnesses subpoenaed in juvenile delinquency cases may not be reimbursed for traveling expenses under presently existing statutes.

APPROVED: , Yours very truly,
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS

BY RNRY GENERAL HA:vmb:mw :