Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1939 )

OFFICEOFTHEA~ORNEYGENERALOFTEXAS AUSTIN Eon. Thomas A. :;hsat countyAttoraoy Liberty CQunty Liborby, Toxas Deer sir: la this lat, whera mpeawktienfer ,hls red aau amltted ’ geutaPEm?unty 1 neeosaary Is the at hIA6off~oo, pre- B premlus OR fire, r&bbery .aw~no. gaw.eot- I:and iimludZ~ the aost of t hie deputies, clueh e*ge&teee * OR, pre-detmwlaed aad elIewe amouzits, w nearl.9 an poerrlble,. by k+e,&miseiooclre* o@wt mmb cwah month for t6e emming pponth upon the aypliaation,, of eaah affioer, ata& the kisd, probe aaiount of expeadltwe 8, the neaeaslty Ye fo'.; the expea8eiOf tris orri7 a for UWh easu%n& month, whloh ap liootiorr crhall,~ before pm- sentat5oan to aaPd oowt, first be eadarsed by Hon. Thomas A. Wheat, Pa6e S! the county auditor, lf my, otherwise the oounty treasurer, only as to whether funds am arallabls for palms& of suoh expensse. The oomls~lon~rs’ court of the oouaty or the sherIif*sresldsnoe say, upon the written and sworn applicationor the sheriff stating the necessity theretor purobsse eqgipasrit for a bureau of orlmInal Idoatlfloation,sush as osmeras, finger print oards, Inks, aheml- oals, ~orosoopos, radio and laborstory oqulp- ment, tiling carda, flllng cabinets, tear gas and other equlpmsnt in keeplng with the systsm In use by ths Departmsntof Publlo Safety of this State, or the United Statom Dspartment or Justloe and/or Bursau of Cr~ninal IdentIrI- oatlon. *&oh purchases shall be mdo by eaoh offloor, when allowed, only by requisition in men&or provided by the eopntyauditor, If any, othsrwlso by the oom~I88Icmers*ooart. Eaoh ortloer shall, at ths oloss of seoh month of hI8 tsnurs or Offlae, rake an Itsmlsed aad sworn report of all approved expenses Iaourred by him and charged to his oooMty. looonpanylng nuoh report with in~oloos oerering suoh pm?- ahases a&d requisitionsIssued by him in sup- port or such report. Ii such oxpenses be tin- ~ourredIn aonneationwith any psrtlwlar oaso, auoh report shall naressuoh aaseb auoh report, Inroloes and repulsltionsshell be subjest to the audit of the sounty auditok, If aw, othsr- wise bp the tmmmlssIonorsloourt, and If'lt appears that any item was not Inaurrodby such officer, or that such iternwas not a necessary or legal expsase oi sUC$i OfiiOS; or plrobsaed upon pm&cti requisition,suoh Itrn she+11be by said oounty auditor or oourt rejeoted, bn wbloh ease the paymsnt of such itan my be adJubioated In any oourt OS oompstent jurladlotlon. AU suoh approved olaine and account8 &all be pa%d from the Orrfoere’ Salary Fonflunless othemlse provided herein...." Eon. Thoaas A..Viheat, Page 3 Artlole 26 of the Code of Crlnlnal Procedure reads as rollows: *The countyattorneysshall attend ths terms of all ccurts In his oounty below the gM40 of dlstrlot court.,and shall represect the Stats in all orlmrnaloaee8 urder oxaa- In&Ion or prosecutionIn said oarnty;and la the abaenee of the dI8trIOtattorneyhe shall representthe State alone, or when re- quelrted, shall aid the dI8trIotattorneyIn tho proseotitIon-of any oaeo in behalf0r the St&e In the dlatrlotoourt,mad 1.nmol., oamos he shall ~oolfe all ~.onbbair 0r the rees allowed by law to 018trIotlttoraeym, rooordIai& as hs aotod alone.orJolatly. fn suoh oases he shall reoelvoal.lor ome4U.f or the rees allouedby law to the dirtriot attorney whose Uutles he perfOrms,or assIs8e ln porrorniing, but shall reoelm no part Q? the ocnstltutlomal salaryallowed to 8oeh dlstrlatattorney,acoordl~ o#.hs aOted ,x&me or *JoIntly$provided that feoa oolleot- bd by the ooonty.attorneyfron tho stats for suoh nnlaes shall be deduoted by tho Camp- troller 0% Public AQOOUDtS imrtho.fees whioh otherwisewculd have been paI tc the dIstr?ot attorney had he represented the State alone; provldsd further this article shall not be ooa- strued as InhlbItIngany OaUnty lttoraey from voluntkrlly,with the otmeent0r ths diatrlot attorney,asalst1n.g the districtattorneyIn the performmoo of his reapeotlveduties, tith- out comp0nsatIon.~ nrtfols 6 section 21 of the state COnstI~tIOn reausi fn pert, ao kcllcws: * ....The ccunty attormeysshall mpnrnnt Hon. Thomas A. Fheat, Page 4 the State in all cases lo the dlstrlot end Znferlor courts in their respective oounties; but ii any county shall be inoiua0d in a die- tr:ct In whloh there shall be a distrlot attor- ney, the rO8peCtIve duties Of district attolc neya and county attorney* shall In such ocun- ties be ragdated by ths 4gislature. Ths Legi8hiture IMP,provide ror the eleotloa or district attorneys In suoh dlstrlotr, as ray be dewed neoesssry,and sake pxwIsIons for the aompensstlonor aistriot uttorneya, and county attortiys; prorIde4, dlstrlot attorners shall rsoslte an amual salary of fire hum&red dollars, to be paid .bytha State, as4 such foes oomlsrdoar and perqulmltasas'auubo prodded by law, Co umty lttorrwp ahaLl to- osl~s aa~o’oapsnsatIon en4 rueh fess, oaw4lrrlau and perpulsltes as may be prsaorIba8 by lsw.* Se are infonred by the Comptroller% offlee that Liberty coumty 1s ln the aerenty-fifthjudlelil tllatrfut rhloh 18 oomposed 0r rour ocunties, an4 that srrohjmllolal dirtriot has e duly eleotod, qualltled and actlo dlrttlot attoqwy. In the &seVO$M tar 3heppard;M Sr Bad 856, or It was held that ths county attorney ,$.JPjudicialdI8trIota oompooed of two or more oounties was wt entitled to fee8 rorassistlcg alstr~ot attorney in4 obtainiag final eoomlo- flon ror felonlerr In dietriot oourt, nor for represeatIng state, d,uringdistrict attoraey's absence, In habeas oorpus prooseillngs. Artlole es, Coda or Crlmlnal Prooedme, reads a0 follows: *Each district atterPay shall repressnt the State In all criminal asses In the die- trlot ocurts of his district, exoept In cases I where he has been, before his eleotion, em- ployed adversely. T&en any ariralaalprooeod- Ing IS had before an examining ocurt in hla dlstrfot or before a judge upon habeas oorpue, Hon. Thomaa A. Wheat, Pap 5 and he 18 notitled or the 88m*. and 16 St the t:me within the OouAty rzlem &oh prooeodlng in had, ho Shall reprmemt the 3tato therein, un- 18SS prevented by otimsr0rri0m dutls8." ~0 quote rr0t74th0 01~8 0f v0ge8 ~8. shbppafd, 8Upr8, aa r0il0r8: 113 at on00 lrgpmmt *It that a purpoao Or ml010 1026 ~8 t0 Terrpond k, the OdLi or Artlol* 66 rw oolopeMatlon to the ooulbty attorney for the 8OtilriOO8 m8OrfbOd by tb. latter 8tatutS a8 a mbjoot for 86qmmatloa. There 18 little doubt t&t IJI mmlng that 1 oiilom, along with the d18triot lttfmm~, 88 a b0nerioiut or the rm0 pmrib0a in ~UMolo 10s. the Loglalature ha* in irrdleto ! .oontomplatlon ~thapmvl8l6n8 of the othor.rr- tloh ragqrding the ompmmation 0r th8 oounty _ attorn8y le m0sf tXiit8, ma whloh, ln 8x0 p-88 tOZ4I8, ibit 8UOh OGii2@@~a~O~ t0~ ‘fM8 allowed by law to dlotrlot attome a.* 1t.b thue.i*onthat th8 right as the m L t6r to r000 In oas88 of ia04 ~aomiotloa, ~ru psoribra IQ .mlO18 io~m, dtJpMa8 00 V&,&U SW&h fw8 are allow& to the dlStrl& attorney of the dlstrlot rrhiohbmbraoes W118on aounty. That 8ald district attommy 18 not .allcmSdSaid fOe8 18 Qhilll.y d180108di by the ~OVi8iOM Of AeiOi8 loa; rOr th6 b8t-iidSa titiOie pI’OVldO8;iIl 8Ub8tWlO8, that dldi8triOt O&OX’- my, in a dldriot OOm$mPOd or l%m w arosO oauntleS, ~ball reoelrs a per dlas oompenaa- tlon, dopmdln& upon h1S atteabana. upon tha seesion or the sourt In the ~SQSSSS~;JperfoaLLaoa of hi8 Orffolal duty..... peq8atiOZI rar that 0rri0er lo 8 habear,oorpue4 Hon. Thonras A. %oat, Page 6 on.50 inVOlViE!J a rt310ng, ala, R8 w4 have eKi8G, the 8tatUte mefitionsd r8bltO8 ~SXOlUS&V+ ly to MrV1008 for wMoh the dI8triOt attcW- LISP,If he, Imtead of the oounty attorney, perf'ormedthem, would be entltl8d to rooelva the rM8 them provldod.* On Jun8 17th qd 26, 1936, thi8 drpartment'i&d in OpiniOM wrltten,