Arnold v. City of Sherman

244 S.W.2d 880, 1951 Tex. App. LEXIS 1853
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 2, 1951
Docket14405
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 244 S.W.2d 880 (Arnold v. City of Sherman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Arnold v. City of Sherman, 244 S.W.2d 880, 1951 Tex. App. LEXIS 1853 (Tex. Ct. App. 1951).

Opinions

CRAMER, Justice.

This is a duly perfected appeal from a judgment, after a trial before the court without a jury, refusing appellant a writ of mandamus and money judgment, against the City of Sherman.

The history prior to the filing of the present proceeding is fully disclosed in the opinions of this Court, Arnold v. City of Sherman, Tex.Civ.App., 222 S.W.2d 314 and the Supreme Court, City of Sherman v. Arnold, 148 Tex. 516, 226 S.W.2d 620. The petition in the present suit sets out in substance that appellee city has a full time Fire Department consisting of about thirty men; that he has been for more than six months a duly constituted fireman occupying a duly and legally constituted position or office under a Civil Service classification; that the City of Sherman has a population of 17,156 according to the 1940 Federal census report; that Art. 1269m, Vernon’s Ann.Civ. St., applies to appellant City, it having been adopted at a proper election and other [881]*881formalities complied with. He further alleges he was suspended as a fireman on August 25, 1948 and he thereafter filed the first proceeding shown by the opinions cited above. After the Supreme Court judgment became final in the former case he alleges he reported for duty at his regular place of work on March 17, 1950 at the proper time on said date with the Sherman Fire Department and the Fire Chief refused to allow him to work; that on March 27, 1950 he appealed such refusal by the Fire Chief to the Civil Service Commission, which Commission refused him a hearing. He then filed this second suit in the District Court “in accordance with the provisions of section 18, Art. 1269m.” He further alleged that he is now a member of the Fire Department and has been a member thereof since the adoption of Art. 1269.-m and thereafter for more than six months and, under secs. 12 and 18 thereof, is a duly constituted fireman, occupying a duly and lawfully constituted office under a Civil Service classification and is entitled to the protection and benefits of the provisions of said Article. He asserts that the refusal of the Civil Service Commission to hear him was illegal, arbitrary and capricious, and denies him his rights under sec. 16, Art. 1269m, and that he should be reinstated in the Fire Department. He further alleges that under the holdings of our Supreme Court in his former case, 148 Tex. 516, 226 S.W.2d 620, his discharge on August 25, 1948 was null and void and of no force and effect. He then alleges that the City Charter of the City of Sherman, section 57, provides as follows: “The powers and duties of the City Manager shall be: * * * Article (b) To appoint and, except as herein provided, remove all directors of departments and all subordinate officers and employes in the departments; all appointments to be made * * to be upon merit and fitness along», all removals to be for good cause only to be judged of by the City Manager subject to the right of the appeal of the Commission whose decision shall be final.” He further alleges that -he was never discharged by the City Manager and was not given a hearing, or right of appeal to the City Commission as provided by the Charter and is therefore at this time a duly and legally constituted employee entitled to be reinstated and to recover his accrued salary. Further, the appellee City has legal funds available sufficient to pay his back salary; and •he has been deprived of his constitutional rights under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U. S. Constitution and Art. 1, sec. 19, of our State Constitution, Vernon’s Ann.St., and has no other legal or equitable remedy to secure his reinstatement other than by the writ applied for.

The evidence material to appellant’s points and appellees’ counterpoints (hereinafter set out) was as follows:

Former City Manager Franks testified in substance that after he consulted with the Fire Chief, he instructed the Fire Chief to inform the appellant he was indefinitely suspended. At the same time the City Manager instructed the City 'Clerk to make the proper notation of appellant’s discharge; that thereafter he has had occasion to consider, and reconsider, the employment or lack of employment, of appellant Arnold and has thereafter on occasions instructed the Fire Chief to advise appellant Arnold that he was still discharged and such instructions have been carried out. Such orders by the City Manager to the Fire Chief have been communicated to appellant Arnold orally on several occasions. The appellant’s attorneys on several occasions have been advised that appellant Arnold had been discharged from the Fire Department.

Arnold testified that on September 18, 1948 he reported for work at the proper place and time and was told that he was still suspended on the same charges, — insubordination to and assault and battery upon Fire Chief Cooper.

Mr. Jones, Assistant Fire Chief, testified that Arnold had reported for work and that he told Arnold that he had been directed by the City Manager to tell him if he reported for work he was still discharged.

Fire Chief Cooper testified that the City Manager told him on September 7, 1948 that Arnold was still discharged and that he then told the Assistant Fire Chief Jones [882]*882that he had such instructions and that if Arnold came back to report for duty, to tell him he was discharged and had no job with the Fire Department.

One of appellant’s attorneys testified that he had not made a request to the City Commission, or City Manager, for a hearing before the City Commission on the Arnold case, and there is no evidence of such a request by anyone else, at any time. The record further shows that Arnold has not applied for a job with the City Fire Department under Civil Service regulations, and has taken no examination, etc., thereunder.

Appellant briefs seven points, in substance: (1) There being no evidence, and (2) no sufficient evidence, in the record of a discharge of appellant by the City Manager, he is now an i employee, and was an employee of appellee City when Civil Service became effective in said City; (3) since the City Manager could not delegate his duty to discharge him, the trial court erred in not awarding the writ; (4) the only discharge or suspension of appellant being on written charges preferred under the authority of Art. 1269m, his discharge was a nullity since the statements to him by the Fire Chief and Assistant Fire Chief that he was still suspended or discharged were insufficient under the City Charter to give him notice; (S) appellant not having been lawfully discharged under the authority of the City Charter, he is still a City employee; (6) that having shown a clear right to the writ, the court erred in not awarding it; and (7) the trial court erred in holding the Supreme Court judgment in the first case was res adjudicata of the fact that the City Charter rather than Art. 1269m applies to this case.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Stanley L. Knee v. Samuel Ramirez
Court of Appeals of Texas, 2000
Trahan v. Trahan
894 S.W.2d 113 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1995)
Emma J. Trahan v. Jack F. Trahan
Court of Appeals of Texas, 1995
Dallas County Appraisal District v. Funds Recovery, Inc.
887 S.W.2d 465 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1994)
Browning-Ferris, Inc. v. Brazoria County
742 S.W.2d 43 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1987)
Employees Retirement System v. McDonald
551 S.W.2d 534 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1977)
Shield v. State
428 S.W.2d 684 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1968)
Gonzales v. Stevens
427 S.W.2d 694 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1968)
Jenckes v. Mercantile National Bank at Dallas
407 S.W.2d 260 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1966)
Arnold v. City of Sherman
244 S.W.2d 880 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1951)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
244 S.W.2d 880, 1951 Tex. App. LEXIS 1853, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/arnold-v-city-of-sherman-texapp-1951.