R-74
THE
TEXAS
AUSTIN na. TEXAS
Hon. W. A. Morri 8011 Op5.nion No. V-83
County Attorney
Milam County Re: Mileage ieea due oonsta-
Cameron, Texas ble within the meaning
of Artiole 1065, C.C.P.
Dear Mr. Morrison:
Your request for an opinion or this Depart-
ment r8aatti lII ffoii0~~:
Wilam County maintains no suitable
lock-up in one of its precincts removed
from the county seat. The constable of
this precinct frequently arrests intoxi-
cated persons obviously in no conilitfon
to pleaa to a charge before a magistrate,
and conveys them to the county deat‘for
incarceration overnight in the Jail.
“The following morning the conata-
ble returns to the county seat and returns
his prisoners to the magistrate nearest
their plaoe or arrest for pleading, as re-
quired by law. Upon oonviction, those who
are unable to pay the fine are re-trans-
ported back to the oounty seat for confine-
ment.
“Sec. 4, Art, 1029, provides in pa&,
as r0u0w8: *For removing or' conveying
prisone,rs, for raoh nils going and coming
. . . traveling otherwise than by railroad
fourteen cent a. t
*Q,uestfon: Is the constable entitled
to 14# per mile for each OS the three pos-
sible trips outlined aboveV
We are inrormsd that the county officers of
Milam County are on a salary basis and that precinct of-
ficers are compensated on a fee basis.
Hon. W. A. Morrisoa - Page 2 (V-83)
Inasmuch as this Department, in Opinion
__ No.
O-2341, dated Uay 20, 1940, ralea mat a cohatable may
not arrest, without a warrant, for the offense of being
drunk in a publio place, your request must be predltid
oa the assumptloh that the officer in question was in
possession or a valid warrant of arrest.
The rees a11euea pea00 srtlcers in nisaeeean-
or oases are set rorth in Artisle 1065, C.C.P. Se&Ion
9 thereor provides as follows:
“For emaveying a prisoner attor oon-
viotiea to the county jail, for each ai10
goiag and coming, by the nearest praatioal
mute by private oonveym~e, ten aents a
fsie6r by railway seven and one-half oents
.”
Sectioa 11 thereor provides aa follows:
’“For eaeh tile he may be coapelled to
tram1 in executing criminal process ana
muemoaing or attaching witness, seven md
oae-half oeats. For traveling in the se+’
vioe of prooess not otherwise provided ror,
the sum of seven ana cm-half cents for each
mile goihg and returning. If .two or more
peieens are mentioned in the same writ, or
two or more writs in the same case, he shall
oharge otiy for the distance actually and
heeersarily traveled ia the aame.e
Therefore, it is the opinioa of this Depart-
ment that prior to convictioa, the constable would be
entftled to seven and one-half cent8 per mile ror convey-
isg the prisoner in qUe8tioh to the county eaat of Milan
County or vice versa. Of course, if he baa ho warrant
for the arrest of the prisoner, he is not entitled to any
fee for conveying the prisoner to jail or for returning
him to the Court for trial or making bond. After convle-
tloa, the conetable weuld be entitled to tan cents per
mile when traveling by private conveyanoe and seven and
one-half centn per ml.10 when traveling by rail from the
justlee preolart to the county jail lf the county seat.
Im opiaiea’ No. 919, aatea July 13, 1939 the
8ame sub joot matter was ais0us80a,a copy of which is
herewith lnalosed for your information.
Hon. Vf. A. MorTison - Page 3 (v-85)
1. A constable of a justice precinct
in which there is no suitable lock-up, who,
having in hiss possession a valid warrant,
arrests an accused on a charge of drunken-
ness in a public place, and who, because OS
drunkenness is removed to the county jail
until he becomes sober and is then,conveyed
back to the Court in which charged, is en-
titled, upon final conviotlon, to seven and
one-half (7&) cents per mile for each ml18
golag~ and coming by the nearest praotioal
route, for conveying the prisoner to jail
and returning him to Court. Section 11, A.+
tic18 1065, C.C.P.
2. For conveying the prisoner to jail,
after conviction, the constable is entitled
to ten (log) cents per mile going and coming
if he travels b private conveyance, or seven
and one-half (7 i #) cents per mile if he trav-
81s by public conveyance. Section 9, Article
1065, C.C.P*
3. IS compensated on a salary basis,
Sees earned by a constable for travel must be
aeposltea in the Officers1 Salary Fund of
said county. IS colnpensated on a See baais,
such Sees may be retained, but must be ao-
counted for in conformity with law.
Yours very truly
ATTORNFIY
GEWRAL OF TEXAS
Burnell Waldrep
riw:a jm:wb Assistant
Znclosure