Honorable Doug Crouch Opinion No. c-635 District Attorney Tarrant County Re: Whether a corporation court Fort Worth, Texas may legally tax costs in a criminal case. Dear Sir: By your recent letter you have requested an opinion of this office as follows: "We would, therefore, like to request your opinion whether, in view of the above mentioned statutes, the County Judge or County Clerk should Impose, require to be collected, or record any costs (except the maximum of'$T:50 for a warrant commented on in Article 45.06) which are assessed by the .Corporatlon Court in cases which are on ap- ,' peal from said Corporation Court. "We would further like to request your opinion as to the legality of a corporation court assessing or collecting any costs In a criminal case." Insofar as your statement in parenthesis "(exce t the , maximum of $7.50 for a warrant commented on in Article t 5.06): is concerned, we direct your attention to the fact that Arti- cle 45.06, of the 1966 Code of Criminal Procedure, after pro- viding for a city to make rules providing for execution a- gainst the property of the defendant, or imprisonment of the defendant for the collection of fines imposed by the Corpo- oration Court, then provides that "All such fines, and the special expenses described in'Artlcle~l7.04 dealing withthe requisites of a personal bond and a special expense for the Issuance and service of a warrant of arrest, after due notice, not to exceed $7.50, shall be paid. in& the city treasury for the use and benefit of the city, town or village." Article 17.04 of the Code provides for the requisites of a personal bond, and the conditions of the bond are that. -3083- . Honorable Doug Crouch, page 2 (c-635) the defendant will pay to the court the principal sum of dollars plus all necessary and reasonable ex- penses incurred In any arrest for fallure'.toappear. It neces- sarily follows that If the defendant fails to appear, and a forfeiture of the bond has been declared, that, not only the principal of the bond but such special expenses would be re- coverable In a civil suit as provided in Article 22.10 of the Code. Such spemexpenses for the Issuance and service of a warrant of arrest referred to In Article 45.06 would not be chargeable as costs in the criminal case. Articles 45.07 and 45.11, 1966 Code of Criminal Pro- cedure provides as follows: Article 45.07 Collection of costs "NO costs shall be provided for by any ordinance of any incorporated city, town, or village, and none shall be collected." Article 45.11 Disposition of fees "The fine imposed-on appeal and the cos'tsImposed on appeal shall be col- lected of the defendant, and such fine of the corporation court when collected shall be paid into the municipal treas- ury." It is the opinion of thls of,ficethat the county judge or county clerk cannot lawfully tax costs in criminal cases on appeal from the corporation court other than those costs which are incurred in the county court by virtue of the 1966 Code of Criminal Procedure. The corporation court cannot law- fully tax costs against a defendant in a criminal case. The county judge or county clerk cannot collect, Impose or record any costs assessed by the corporation court in criminal cases. The corporation court cannot lawfully tax any costs against a defendant in,a criminal case. Expenses allowed by Article 17.04, 1966 Code of Criminal Procedure, are collectable -3084- , Honorable Doug Crouch, page 3 (c-635) only by civil judgment and not as costs in a criminal case. Yours very truly, WAGGONER CARR Attorney General of Texas Assistant Attorney General APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE W. V. Geppert, Chairman W. 0. Shultz Philllp Crawford Lonny Zwiener Robert Flowers APPROVED FOR TBE ATTORNEY GENERAL By: T. B. Wright -3085-