Evening star., 1917-11-12
LIMITS AUTHORITY
OF COMMISSIONERS
Court of Appeals Reverses De.
cision in Chevy Chase Sani-
torium Case.

Holding that the District Commits
sioners lack authority to decide a
purely legal question. and that they
which was not a nuisance at common
law. and has not been made a nuisance
by statute. the District Court of Ap-
peals. in on opinion by MFR. Justice
Robb, today sustained the right of the
Chevy Chase Sanitorium to continue te
operate q private hospital near Chev,
Chase circle.
Police Court Judgment Reversed.
The court reversed the Judgment OF
the Police Court and remanded the case
| with directions to dismiss the informa
| tion brought against the corporation
! The company had been convicted in the
Police Court of maintaining a private
hospital without a license. writ OF
error was allowed by the appellate
i court and arguments were heard last
! spring.
Justice Robb in his opinion, announced
from the bench, pointed out that the
sanatorium had been granted license,
and on the faith of 1t had expended
! $4,000. The Commissioners had called
on DIR. p. r. Logic, in charge of the
institution, to show cause. the justice
stated. why its license should not be
revoked because 1t had become a nui-
sance to the neighborhood
No fraud was charged in obtaining the
license, 1t was suggested, and no al
legation made that any regula ton con-
cerning the conduct of the institution
had been violated.
The Commissioners. after considering
, the evidence, reached tho conclusion
that the sanatorium was "a nuisance
to the neighborhood' and did not de-
clare that any other violation Of the
or that the maintenance Is a menace to
the lives and health of the people OF
Chevy Chase. Counsel for the District
suggested that "a fair and reasonable
nuisance as used in the regulation and
in the order revoking the license OF
the sanatorium is used in its colloquial
rather than its technical. sense. :
composed of lay members who would
give to the word nuisance its COLO
quial and generally understood mean
ing. rather than its technical legal
definition"
For Courts Of Law and Equity.
Justice Robb declared that the estab-
lished courts of law and equity alone
can conslusively decide the question of
nuisance which must be established
in its legal sense, and not in its col
, loquial sense.
Commissioners Exceeded Authority,
In attempting to decide this question.
he asserted, the Commissioners ex-
ceeded their authority and their action
Is therefore void and the order revoking
the license is of no effect.
The court goes further in its opinion
and rules that section 13 of the regu-
lations in SO far as 1t attempts to
clothe the Commissioners with power
to determine what Is a nuisance, is
void.
To the suggestion of counsel that by
accepting a license under the regula-
tion the sanatorium is estopped to
question their validity. Justice Robb
said that by accepting the license the
corporation could not make valid what
was plainly invalid.
Referring to the claim of the right
of the Commissioners to decide the
question of nuisance the appellate court
said: TT would make possible incon-
sistent decisions by the same board
concerning institutions similarly situ-
ated, for while the board might brand
as q nuisance an institution located in
Chevy Chase. 1t might conclude that
such an institution would be highly de-
sirable in different surroundings. al
though cne Institution would be an
much entitled to protection under the
law as the other"