Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1995 )

QTNfice of tip JWmwp @ened &ate of aexae DAN MORALES hTT0RNF.Y GPNERAL January19.1995 Honorable Lynn Ellison OpinionNo. DM-3 18 District Attorney Atascosa County Courthouse Re: whether articles 2.12 and 2.13. Code of Circle Drive, No. 5A criminal Prowdq autholize peace officers Jourdanton, Texas 78026 to enforce city oniinanccs (RQ-719) Dear Mr. Bllison: You ask “[wlhich peace officers are authorized by Articles 2.12 and 2.13, Texas Code of CriminaI Procedure to enforce city ordinances.” Article 2.12, captioned ‘Who are peace officers,”contains 26 entries including“sheriffs and their deputies,”“marshalsor police officers of an incorporated city, town, or village,”“law enforcement agents of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission,”“officers commissionedby the General Services Commission.” “investigators commissioned by the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners,” “’ mvestigators employed by the Texas Racing Commission,”and “officers commissioned by the Texas High-Speed Rail Authority.” Code Crim. Proc. art. 2.12 subsets. (l), (3). (6), (9). (17). (20). (23). Article 2.13 provides: It is the duty of every peace otlker to preserve the peace within his jurisdiction. To effect this purpose, he shall use all lawful means. He shall in every case where he is authorized by the provisions of this Code, interfere without warrant to prevent or suppress crime. He shall execute all lawfbl process issued to him by any magistrate or court. He shall give notice to some magistrate of all offenses committed within his jurisdiction, where he has good reason to believe there has been a violation of the penal law. He shall arrest offenders without warrant in every case where he is authorized by law, in order that they may be taken before the proper magistrate or court and be tried. In our opinion articles 2.12 and 2.13 do not in themselves authorize any “peace officers” to “enforce city ordinances.” The terms “offenses” and “penal law” in article 2.13 must, we think, ‘referto state law and not to municipal ordinances even where the latter are penal in nature. Notably, article 2.13, rather than merely “authorizing,”imposes a duty on “every peace ol?icer”to enforce the law as provided there. We think it would be anomrdousand that the legislature could not have intended that “every peace officer”Iisted in article 2.12. for example, a racing commission investigator, have a “duty” by virtue or ;rti.Ie 2.13 to p. 1686 HonorableLynnEllison - Page 2 (DM-318) enforce ordinances of municipalitieswithin his “jurisdiction” for example, ones pertaining to building code violati0ns.t We lind no reported cases involving the enforcement of mmicipal ordinances by peace officers other than the marshals or police of the city itself The authority of the latter to enforce city ordii derives not, we think, from articles 2.12 and 2.13, but from the charter and/or ordinances of the city in conjunction and WMistent with state law provisions spwitic thereto. see, e.g., Local Govt code 5 341.021 (marshal of type A general law municipalityhas same powers and jurisdiction wOeXeanewarrants,toprsventandsupp~crime,andtolrrestoffeadas”a9~, radshall”performothaduties,notinconristaawitb~elaw,thatthegovaningbody confbrs by ordimnw”); V.T.C.S. art. 6701d, 5 27 (local authotities may regulate tra5c -by lwans of police officers-). It may be that certain other peace officers on the article 2.12 list can be given luthoritytoenforcecertaincityordinancesundathepropaciraunstances,bPrtrgainwe do not think that this authority would derive fkom articles 2.12 and 2.13. See, e.g., V.T.C.S. art. 46g (airport secmity pet-so& commissioned by political subdivision operating airport); Local Oov’tCode ch. 362 (mutual law safe r-cementassistanw provided for by agmemem of counties, municipalities,and/or joint airports). Sii your question is limited to the effect of articles 2.12 and 2.13, we do not attempt here to resolve which peace 05cu-s may unda other laws, ordinances, etc. be law5lly given authority to enforce municipalordinances. SUMMARY Code of Criminal Procedure articles 2.12 and 2.13 do not in themselves authorize peace officers to qlforce city OrdinMws. DAN MORALES Attorney General of Texas Honorable Lynn Ellison - Page 3 (DM-318) JORGE VEGA First Assistant Attorney General SARAH J. SHIRLEY Chair, Opinion Committee Prepared by WilliamWalker Assistmt Attorney General p. 1688