,:ff()&-nev Ge+--- - I:: OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN

**Hon.** Fred V. blsrldlth County Attorney !wzn” c$lnt Y

, ~OXziS
Drar 

### Fir: Opinion 100. O-4372 Ro, “:?mtfiia th ?harItf of Bxmlen 

### Cotiaty

oWl eppoint ‘-adeputy aherWr Mthout I. ,’ M5tponaeti0a b.eLng paid to zQuoh,deputy,and **related** msttera.
Your letter ot naeet’~dste,raqueatinq the opinion oi~thls departmentmV.oertala queetium? atatad therein, Is, In part, 8s roliowai

“Csn the ?keilff ai ration @Otinty appoint e deputy shevlrtwithout aampeneetionbeide. peld to suoh dbputy? ‘Y, ,.3.stinah.Cdtity

he* a.populetIon of 38,308 $k$gto tha 1?&0~Fadsral Centaur. dy authority 12a, 9~0. 13,tha CQN~BSIQ~~~ECourt iixed the

### bsluzies

of oounty Qffioers, ino1ud.l~ 9herFtt. Our Oamalsaionare Court hse suthorizad and fixed selaria8 iQr’~twQ~daputIaa In tha C’harIrf*s

ottloa, end thoaa appointmentshave beenmsda. One daputy rhsrirr rbeldbp lagthe City of Tarrell, in Juetlaa Praoinat NQ.>~;3 ti,ICauWanCcGnty. WlaJustIoe precinctNo. 3 la lool*tad Terre11 Aviation, Ltd., en sirport situetwd upon lend beloag1% to Ksulmu!n County end beingoparnted by l&j. T. ??. Long snd assooiatae In limited pertnerehip,v&loh Is a school for the fllr,ht training of Rrltlsh oadsts, e.nd knoun (ISBrltieh Flight Training Sohool Co. 1. T.hls sohool Is the reoirient Or many gretultlee from botk the City of Terre11 end County of Kaufman. es well es frm the ZafensoPlant Corporation. Forr,erlp, sure .imerIoen cndeta alone Hlth the Britishwere trained there, but now only Rritiah. The predeoeseor in the ‘-herifr*a

offloe, fa: li:le with request fran the aahool’a offlclals, appointed two or three deputyHon. Fred V. Mtridlth, page 2

sharlfra,

among tha employeeaof the school; these OQ~XI~S~~Q~K were merely honorary, andmarried no compen8atloa,a8 the raohool wanted tohare swt officers on the premiseswho %ould he authorized to aot in oaae of hreaohtsof the ptaea, aiaoe the eohool la looattd out at the edge of the olty.

- "Terre11Atiat1on,Ltd., through Ita paramnel managar, haa now raquesttd our Yherlff to appoint a deputy there, and rtqueating that the -ergtent of tha Guard at the aehool be ao appointed. Our ?htrIff attbndad the aohoal of Instruction for newly eltoted "htriffs at Damp Yabry. and has some sort oi recolleotloa that et this sohoolhe was edvlstd that he could appoint no deputy sheriffWho we3 QOt paid ocmpenaetion oi **at** least fbO.00 per ronth. He atema to reoolltct that there waa either a deofsion on this point, or **an** tttorney general's opinionto this errtot, and hssitatea to give t raply to Terre11 Avlatlon, Ltd., oonceming their request until L.tia oorrtotlyadvised. If there be tush, I would appreaiatt aitation or oopy of oplnlon.
*I note from the provlfilons of Art. 6869, that a fheritf may appoint dtputIat*

. . .not txoetdlng 

### three In the Juatlotpreolnot Inwhich la looatad the oounty site oi auah oounty, and one in each Juatioa prtaInot....* The City of Tame11 Is lotattd,ad well aa Terre11 Avltv tloa, Ltd., In Juatlce preoinot Ho. 3, and the .Sharlfi alreadyhaa oae duly oonatituted deputy,drawingmonthly ooapanabtionby salary,residing In this preolnot. I find
no apeolal aot of the Legislature wlth raapeat to deputlaa ror the 3herIff In oountlea of a population Or 38,308,e8 la KatimrP County. *xi the Sheriff of x8urman Gounty appointed,with tha aanotlon and approval of the ComnissIonara Court, a. deputy ahtrlff to sot only on tha prtmLees of Terre11 Aviation, Ltd., tiithout oompeneetlonfrom the ttld Kaufman County, and without feea Or offlot, would auah appointee ba tuthorized to aarry a pistol and be a duly conatltuttd poaoe or

ricer, r):sd

hi:6sots as auohon **said** prtmlsea **ba** legally performed?Hon. Fred V. Merldltb, page 3

“(2) Is them suoh a thing as an ‘honorary’ deguty~shirlf?*a oamnlsslon? , . . .*

Article 3902, Vel7aon'S Annotetbd Civil Ctatutea, provides, in part!

w?ammver any distriot, oounty, -or precinot ofrloer Jhailr6quire the sarvioerr of deputies, assistants or clerks in the ~pclrrormanoe or hia duties,ha shall agply to the aounty aomm.%saionera’ oaurt or hl8 oaty for authorl~ty to appoint suahdeputlee, eumintsnts or olarks, stating by sworn applioetion the number needed, thepositian to be filled and the amount to be paid.

. . .*

In oonneotlon with ths foregdng statute, your attention ia dlreetcd to Artiole 6869, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Xatutes, tiich provides in part as follows:
T ?herirrs shellhave the povmr, by writing, to appoint one or nors daputiea ror theirrespeotire counties.

. . . . the number-or deputier aprainted by the sherltr or any one **oounty** shall be llaited to not exaaedlng **three** of theJustice eeoinots inwhioh in looated the oouoty site of sooh ocunty, and one in each Justfoe ?raalnet, and a list of theseappointments shall be postad up in a aonspiououaplses in ths clerk’s ofrice.....* This Dapartmenthas ruled prior to and einoa the. enaotment of tha qrasant oftloersl salarybill, underwhioh Ksufmsn County la now runatloning thst Artiole 6869 has been auperasdedby Art. 3902 in so far as said statutes are Zn c0nriict. This departm@ntheld in Opinion No. C-12 that Art. 6869 has been supersededby Art. 3902 in so rar as said SthtUteS SrS in COnfliOt. 30 quote rran Opinion So. C-12, in part, as follows:

“Thla depsrtesnt ie not Inpossession of any deiinltu dsclsi~on affeatlng the queatl.)nathand, and thereforemust arrive at the oonaluslcju that Art. 6869.

. . . ::ihioh applies t ths sheriffs under the fee law haa been super eded 8
. . . . by Art. 3902

. . . . and by the oriieersq salary law 0r the 7tat.e

or Texas.Hon. Fred v. i,:erldlth, ;?sze 1,

. It rests%rlt;lnthe discretion of Cotxt:;, as to ths number or deputieswhich the shollld

employ.e It is stated In thecase of Tarraat Countyvs. hith, 81 $. “‘.(261, 537:

“The Coremissioners' Court 0811limit the number and salary of deputy aherifisbut theyhave no ?ower over the nanins of the individualsto be appointed, and are espooially :rohibltedfrom attempting tiny such last nemed influenoe. Fx.I. ;:rt. 3902.”
In Gpl3looNo. 3-925, zendercd by this, deoartmem, it IS stated:
“In the case o,i‘Trammel vs. Yheltos, 45 -. . ?i9, the relevant provisiona of Art. 6869 substantiallythe sa!:e as enacted In 1989~which grants authority to the Zheriif to egpolnt deputirs ~ni limit their number nas held to bo directory. “ueh authority aswas by thla Artlole and creviouslpat common lawp.fven Co :;he ?herlrfwas SJ general law supermade& end invested in the Commissioners1Court under the provision6 or rirtiala 3902, eupra. Suoh e oon8truetion aswould harmonize the two srtlolas, 6869 end 3902, supre, should ba dven -with the later article oontrolling. rhlle said :rtlele d6i169 seek8 to llmlt thediaoretion to be exeroisedby the Sherirr,we osnnot say thst suoh Artiofe would, as a matter of law, restrict the power of the Comxlsoionera’ Court underArtiola 3902,aa amended, should the Sects warrant the neoessitp for the appointment by the SheriTZ 

### or more deputies thenwould he permitted under the provisions 

### or Artlole 6869.”
It WBB held in cur Opinion So. ~-1~96 that 9 aherlrr hea authority, ;ulththe approval d the oonmissioners court. to appoifit a deputy to servb without any compensation. ‘?crerore, in anewer to your rirst questicz. you are respeotiullgadvised that it Ia our opinion that the lheriii of ’ ?mdman County can oscolnt a deputy sherLrr i3lththe approval or the onmmiasioncrs’ -curt, to servewithout any compensation.Hon. FredV. Fdderidlth, page 5

In connection 31th the foregoing ntrtement, we dlreot your ettentlon to our OpinionNo. C-4420,wherein la statedl .~

*In the went a Commleaiomers’ Court authorizes the cherirr to appoint additional deputies to aerte without pay, the order authorizing euoh appointment should atate that the deputies to be appointedare to be allowed no salary,else theymlsht be eble to reooter for the mrrloes on 8 quantufn merit basis. Eerrlr County vs. Nerllle (CivilAppeels) 84 3. '7. (26) 834." it

In answer to your ssoond question, you ere advised that,

it is the opinion of this department that IIdeputy sheriff appointed to servewithout oompansatlon could legally oarry a pistol when eotuslly engaged in the disoherge of hia orrieial duty. (Tee *irticlea 485 **and 484,**  Vernon’@ Annotated Penal Code). The provlslons omtalhed in Article 484, 'Ternon's iihnoteted Fenal Code, regardlog ocmpensetlonof ,!40.00, or more, permonth, is applicable to deputy oonstebles and speolal polioemen end hee no applio~tion to e deputy sherirr.

It is our further opinion thet a deputy sheriff who la eppoizted in oonformltywith the foregoing stcatutes andwho IS servingwithout oompenssitlon would have the aem authority to aot in dlsoherginghis offiolclduties as any other deputy sherifi appointed.

Your third question is, “Ia there euoh a thing as en *honorary*deputy sharirr’s oommisaion:‘*

In emwer to this pus&ion, you are adviaod that we hate been unable to- find any statuto or oase Tertaining to t&10 c;uestion. Wo know of no law authorizing the iasuanoe of an *honorargwdoputg rherirr’s ~omnission. Yours very truly,