Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1979 )

The Attorney General of Texas
September 6, 1979
MARK WHITE
Attorney General
Honorable Wilson Speir Opinion No. Mw-54
Texas Department of Public Safety
5805 N. Lamar Blvd., Box 4087 Re: Whether article 6687b, sec-
Austin, Texas 78773 tion 21(b), V.T.C.S., requires the
Department of Public Safety to
include information on traffic
accidents in the records of non-
paid law enforcement personnel or
fire fighters.
Dear Colonel Speir:
You have requested, our opinion regarding the scope of section 21(b) of
article 6687b, V.T.C.S. That statute, which was enacted by House Bill 1601,
66th Leg., 1979, ch. 478, at 1048, requires the Department of Public Safety
to remove from the licensing files of certain drivers all information relating
to particular kinds of traffic accidents:
The individual record of a licensee who is employed
as a peace officer or a fire fighter shall not include
information relating to a traffic accident if the
accident occurred during an emergency while the
peace officer or fire fighter was driving a law
enforcement vehicle or fire department vehicle in
pursuit of his or her duties as a peace officer or fire
fighter.
You ask whether the statute embraces volunteer and part-time firemen,
reserve peace officers, non-paid deputies and part-time peace officers.
In our opinion, section 21(b) clearly includes volunteer and part-time
firemen. Article 6243e, V.T.C.S., which creates the volunteer firemen’s
relief and retirement fund, specifically includes non-paid, volunteer firemen
within the ambit of “firefighter.” Although the scope of the term
“firefighter” may be narrower than that of “fireman,” Attorney General
Opinion H-1316 (1978), it is certainly sufficiently broad to embrace all
persons who “driv[e] a . . . fire department vehicle in pursuit of his or her
duties as a.. . fire fighter,” including volunteer and part-time fire fighters.
See
- Pruitt v. State, 363 So. 2d 552, 554 @la. 1978) (a “fire fighter” is “any
P. 171
Honorable Wilson Speir - Page Two (NW-541
person employed by any public employer whose duty it is to extinguish fires and to protect
life or property”); State Employees Retirement System v. Workmen’s Compensation
Appeals Board, 73 Cal. Rptr. 172, 175 (Cal. App. 1968) (“firefighting’ includes those who
perform tactical and logistic functions as well as those who physically extinguish flames).
With regard to peace officers, this office, in Attorney General Opinion H-549 (1975),
said that the term includes all those persons listed in article 2.12 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure and, in addition, any person so designated by another statute. See e.
6869.1, V.T.C.S. (reserve deputy sheriffs and constables are peace officers ; Attorney
T---Lp;I1 artic1e
General Opinions H-1157 (1978) (juvenile probation officer whose powers and duties are
prescribed by article 5142 is a peace officer); H-167 (1973) (adult probation officer may be
a peace officer under certain circumstances). Thus, an individual, including a reserve or
part-time officer or a non-paid deputy, is a “peace officer” for purposes of section 21(b) if
he has been so designated pursuant to article 2.12 ~of the Code of Criminal Procedure or
some other statute. See generally Attorney General Opinion H-94 (1973) which relates to
the meaning of the term “employed.”
SUMMARY
Volunteer and part-time fire fighters, as well as reserve or part-
time peace officers and non-paid deputies, are included within the
scope of section 21(b) of article 6687b, V.T.C.S.
MARK WHITE
Attorney General of Texas
JOHN W. FAINTER, JR.
First Assistant Attorney General
TED L. HARTLEY
Executive Assistant Attorney General
Prepared by Rick Gilpin
Assistant Attorney General
APPROVED:
OPINION COMMITTEE
C. Robert Heath, Chairman
David B. Brooks
Susan Garrison
Rick Gilpin
Tom Pollan
William G Reid
Bruce Y oungblood
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