Case Name: The Wardens of the Poor of Granville County v. William M. Sneed
Court: Supreme Court of North Carolina
Jurisdiction: North Carolina
Decision Date: 1810-07
Citations: 1 Mur. 485
Docket Number: 
Parties: The Wardens of the Poor of Granville County v. William M. Sneed.
Judges: 
Reporter: North Carolina Reports
Volume: 5
Pages: 485–487

Head Matter:
The Wardens of the Poor of Granville County v. William M. Sneed.
)>From Granville.
The act of 1808, ch. 153- sec. 3, declares the appointment of deputy cleric of the county court, to be incompatible with the office of a. justice of the peace ; and further declares “ that, if after the passing of the act, any person holding the office of justice of the peace, shall accept the appointment of deputy cleric, his office as a justice of the peace, shall be vacated; and if being deputy cleric he accept the office of justice of the peace, his appointment as deputy cleric, shall be vacated : and if any person shall presume to act in any of the said offices, contrary to the true intent and meaning of the act, he shall forfeit and pay the sum of fifty pounds.” This act does not extend to the case of a man who was both deputy cleric and justice of the peace before the passing of the act; and who subsequently ~ continued to act as a justice of the peace, without resigning his appointment as deputy clerk.
This was an action of debt, brought to recover the penalty of fifty pounds, imposed by the act of 1808, ch. 32, s. 3, which declares, that “ the following appointments are declared to be incompatible with the office of a justice of the peace, that is to say: clerk of the court of pleas and quarter sessions, deputy clerk thereof, deputy sheriff, constable and county trustee", and any person who now holds, or may hereafter accept the office of justice of the peace, and who shall accept of any of those appointments in the same county, shall thereby vacate his said office j and any person holding either of these appointments, who shall accept the office of justice of the peace in the same county, shall thereby vacate his said appointment; and every person who shall presume to act in any of these offices, contrary to the true intent and meaning of this act, shall forfeit and pay the sum of fifty pounds, to be recovered in any Court having cognizance thereof, in the name of the wardens of the poor for such county, and to he applied by them to the use of the poor.” The Defendant had been duly appointed and commissioned as a justice of the peace foi^ Granville county, and had taken the oaths prescribed by law for his qualification, before the passing of this act. He had also been duly appointed, and had qualified as deputy clerk of the court of ¡deas and quarter sessions for Gran-ville county before 1he passing of this act; and he continued to act as a justice of the peace in the said county after the act went into operation, without having resigned his appointment as deputy clerk of said Court. It was submitted to the Supreme Court to decide whether the Plaintiffs were entitled to recover.

Opinion:
By the Court.
This being a penal act, is to he construed strictly. The case of the Defendant is not within the letter of the act. The offence charged against the Defendant, for which the forfeiture is sought to be-recovered, is, u acting as a justice, of the peace after the act went into operation, without resigning his appointment as deputy-clerk of the County Court." If subse quently to the passing of the act, he had accepted the ap-pointnient of deputy-clerk, his office of justice of the peace would have been thereby vacated : If, being deputy-clerk, he had subsequently to the passing of the act accepted the office of justice of the peace, his appointment as deputy-clerk would thereby have been vacated. This must be construed to be the true intent aiul meaning of-the act: and the act declares, that if any person shall presume to act in any of the said offices, contrary to the true intent and meaning of the act, he shall forfeit fifty pounds'. The Defendant's case does not come within either branch of the act. He did not, after the passing thereof, either ac-eepl the appointment of deputy-clerk, or the office of justice of the peace. He held both, béfore the act passed. Let: judgment be entered for the Defendant.