February 20, 1939 

Hon. Fred Erlsman 

Distrlot Attorney 

km&v 1st~ ,Texas 

Dear Sir: 

opinion No. 0-338 

Rr: Proper oredit for 

jail time 

Your request for an opinion on the following 

quest ions : 

“1. When a defendant has been oonvlcted 

in the County Court, and his punishment assessed 

at oonfinement in the County Jell, oan the costs 

of oourt be discharged st the rate ot three dollars ($3.00) per day, or must the oosts be oomputed on a basis of one dollar ($1.00) for eaoh 

day of Imprisonment? 

wZ. When a defendant has been oonvloted 

In the County Court, and his punishment asaessed at a rlne only, oan the costs of oourt 

be disoharged at the rate of three dollars ((3.00) 

per day, or must the costs be Satisfied on a basis 

of one dollar ($1.00) for each day of lmprisonment? 

n3. ’ h~hen a defendant has been oonvloted 

in the County Court, and his punishment assessed 

at oonfinement In jail, and by fine, what oredit 

oan be given on such fine and costs for eaoh day 

of confinement? 

V. When a defendant has been oonvlcted 

in the District Court for a felony, and punishment Is by fine (as in chioken theft oases etc.) 

what credit oan be eiven on such fine and costs 

for eaoh day of lmprlsonment?n 

has been received by this office. 
lion. Fred Erlsman, February 20, 1939, Page 2 

Artiolo 793, Code of Criminal Prooedure, as 

amended by the 45th Legislature, 1st Called Session, 1937, 

provides generally that when a detendant Is oonvloted of 

a misdemeanor and his punishment is assessed at a peounlary 

fins, If he is unable to pay the fine and oosts adjudged 

against him ho may for suoh time as will satisfy the judgment, be put to work in the work-house or on the oounty 

farm or publio improvements oi the oounty, as provided in 

Art$ole 794 end 794a, Code of Criminal Procedure, or, if 

there be no suoh work-house or farm or improvements, he 

shall be Imprisoned In jail for a sufflolent length of 

time to disoharge the full amount of fine or costs ad4 

udged apalnst him, rating such labor or imprisonment at 

3.00 for eaoh day thereor.. This Artiole also provides 

that the Commissioners1 Court of eaoh oounty, as defined 

by population braokets, shall at any regular or special 

term, by order made and entered in the minutes of the 

oourt, determine the rate o? wages to be paid convicts 

in their respeotlve oountles for labor or imprisonment 

at not less then $1.00 per day nor more than $3.00 per 

day. 

We are informed by the Comptroller’s Department 

that the population of Gregg County, aooordlng to the last 

Federal oensus, was 15,778. Therefore, Gregg County does 

not oome within the population bracket as set out in this 

statute and would be poverned by the statute as It arplles 

to those oountles not oomln. wlthln the designated population brackets rhloh allows % 3.00 per day for labor or lmprisonment for convicts who dlsoharga their fines and costs 

by labor performed in aocordanoe with the statute, or serves 

a suf*“foient length of time In jail to disoharge their 

fines and oo8ts. 

Artloles 794b and 7946, Code of Criminal Prooedure, 

provide that oonviots in oertaln counties oomin 

oertsln population brackets who either lay the1 $ EEout 

in jail or work such fines out on the oounty farm, oounty 

roads or other public works, shall reoelve a credit therefor of $1.00 per day for each day worked or spent In Jail. 

Xowever, Greg? County does not come within the populstion 

bracket as speolfled in these articles. Therefore, they 

would not be applloable to Greee County. 

Article 704, Code of Criminal Procedure, reads as 

r0110ws :

“If the punishment is %ny other thsn a fine, 
Hon. Fred Erllman, February 20, 1939, Pago 3 

the judgment shall speolfy It, and order it 

enforoed by the proper process. It shall 

also adjudge the oosts against the defendant, 

and order the oolleotion thereof as in other 

oases.W 

Aftlole 920, Code of Crlmlnal Prooedure, applies only to defendants who are oonvloted in justioe 

oourts and has no applioation to oounty oourt oases. 

%;o are informed by your letter that Gregg 

County does not maintain a work-house or farm and that 

prisoners are not worked on roads or pub110 improvementd. 

We rind no speolal statute which removes or 

prohibits your county from oomlng under the eeneral law 

as applicable to the questions submitted in your inquiry. 

In view of the foreeoinp stetutes, you are respeottully advised that it is the oplnlon of this Department that when a defendant has bean oonvloted in county 

oourt and his punishment assessed at imprisonment in the 

oounty jail or his punishment assessed by fine only, or 

where his punishment Is’ assessed at confinement in jail 

and by fine and where a defendant has been oonvioted in 

the dlstrlot Court for a felony and punishment 1s by 

fine, that the oosts in these oases and the fine, if any, 

must be oomputed on a basis of $3.00 per day for each 

day of imprisonment. 

Trusting that the foregoing answers your lnqulry, we remain 

Very truly yours 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

(St?nd) Ardell 3lliams 

AW:AW 

APPROQED : 

(Sipned) Gerald 0. Yann 

ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

Ardell ‘Nlllisms 

Assistant