City of Alexandria v. La Combe

57 So. 2d 206, 220 La. 618, 1952 La. LEXIS 1110
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedJanuary 14, 1952
Docket40541-40544
StatusPublished
Cited by35 cases

This text of 57 So. 2d 206 (City of Alexandria v. La Combe) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
City of Alexandria v. La Combe, 57 So. 2d 206, 220 La. 618, 1952 La. LEXIS 1110 (La. 1952).

Opinion

LE BLANC, Justice.

These four cases were consolidated on appeal as they involve the same issue and arose out of the same factual situation. Each defendant was convicted in the City Court of Alexandria on July 7, 1951, of violating one of the provisions of the gambling ordinance which had been adopted by the City Council of that City, and sentenced to pay a fine of $10 or serve ten days in jail. A motion to quash the affidavit on the basis of the alleged illegality, invalidity and unconstitutionality of the ordinance for the violation of which- they were being charged had been over-ruled and upon their conviction after trial, they each took an appeal to this court.

From brief of counsel for the City of Alexandria we learn that the facts leading to the charges preferred against the defendants are as follows: They were engaged in playing in a game of cards in which they were betting and playing for money; the game was being played, in a saloon which was owned by one of the players but it was not then open for business as it was five o’clock in the morning; money and cards were found on the table when the police intervened. The defendants admitted they were playing cards for money, but said it was a “friendly” game.

The ordinance relating to gambling which was adopted February 5, 1951, is quite lengthy and attempts to define gambling in several aspects but in view of the specific charge that is made in each of these cases it is necessary to quote only those parts and provisions -which are pertinent. They are the following:

“Section 1. Be It Ordained By The City Council Of The City Of Alexandria, Louisiana, in legal session convened that gambling as hereinafter defined is declared to be a misdemeanor and is prohibited within the corporate limits of the City of Alexandria.

“Section 2. Be It Further Ordained, Etc., that gambling is defined to consist of any one of the following acts:

* * * * % *

“(c) The intentional betting, wagering or risking the loss of anything of value in order to realize a profit of any game conducted with cards, dice, dominoes, or other contrivance, without reference as to how the same shall be conducted or operated.

“Section 8. Be It Further Ordained, Etc., that anyone.who violates the provisions of this ordinance shall be fined not more than $100.00 or imprisoned not more than 30 days or both fined and imprisoned in the discretion of the Court.”

*624 In order to get to the precise issue that is presented we think it proper to quote the latest State statute on the subject of gambling. It is now incorporated in the Revised Statutes of 1950 as part of the Criminal Code, LSA-R.S. 14:90, the source being Act No. 43 of 1942, and reads as follows:

“Gambling is the intentional conducting, or directly assisting in the conducting, as a business, of any game, contest, lottery, or contrivance whereby a person risks the loss of anything of value in order to realize a profit.

“Whoever commits the crime of gambling shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.”

The defendants’ contention on which their plea of illegality of that provision of the City ordinance which they are charged as having violated is based, arises out of that part of the definition which does not restrict gambling in any way in reference to the manner in which it is conducted whereas under the State law it is restricted in its definition to gambling that is conducted as a business. The municipality, City of Alexandria, it is urged, did not have the power to extend or enlarge the definition contained in the State statute.

We believe it is important, in considering the issue, to look a bit into the history of the legislation and jurisprudence of this State on t-he question of the right of municipalities to enact ordinances against gambling.

Counsel on both sides agree that such power as the municipality possesses, is. derived from the Legislature. That undoubtedly must be so, as far as gambling is concerned for Section 8 of Article 19 of the Constitution of 1921 specifically declares gambling to be a vice and ordains the Legislature to suppress it. Similar provisions were contained in the Constitution of 1898 and previous constitutions. Acting under such special mandates the Legislature did enact laws relating to gambling but the first general grant of such power by the Legislature to a municipality is found in Act No. 136 of 1898 known as. the “Lawrason Act” which is now embodied in LSA-R.S. 33:401. That Act was a very comprehensive one containing provisions under which municipalities could be incorporated. All of their powers, authorities, restrictions, etc., are fully defined and among those powers is the one: “To prohibit and suppress * * * games and’ gambling houses and rooms * * * and to provide for the punishment of the persons engaged therein. * * * ”

It is to be noted that the authority given to the municipality was to prohibit gambling but no definition of the word “gambling” is contained in the Act. Indeed, it appears that no previous Legislative act had laid down any definition of the word but apparently this Court was of the opinion that the mandate given to *626 the Legislature by the Constitution to suppress gambling had not precluded the Legislature from empowering municipalities organized under the provisions of the Act of 1898 from enacting Ordinances for its suppression. See Town of Ruston v. Perkins, 114 La. 851, 38 So. 583.

Subsequently, in the case of the City of Lake Charles v. Marcantel, 125 La. 170, 51 So. 106, the Court for the first time, apparently, considered the question of whether it was necessary to define the word “gambling” in municipal ordinances enacted by municipalities incorporated under the Act of 1898, and it was therein beld that in view of the well understood legal as well as the popular meaning of the word, no definition was necessary.

In 1920, however, the Legislature concluded that with regard to certain municipalities, that is those having a population of more than 5,000 and less than 100,000 inhabitants, there should be a special grant of power to the municipality to' enact ordinances relating to gambling for we find that by Act No. 125 of that year such authority was granted and, for the first time, in connection with the authority to pass laws prohibiting gambling, municipalities coming within its provisions were authorized “to define what shall constitute gambling”. The City of Alexandria is a municipality having a population of more than 5,000 and less than 100,000 inhabitants and, so far as the subject matter of the act was concerned, came within its purview.

The next Legislative pronouncement on the subject appears in Act No. 43 of 1942 which became Sec. 90 of the Criminal Code and in which for the first time the Legislature itself specifically defined the word “gambling”. The Criminal Code was incorporated as a foody in the Revised Statutes of 1950 and Section 90 is now LSA-R.S. 14:90 as indicated at the beginning of this opinion where its provisions were quoted in full.

In the Revised Statutes is also incorporated the section which replaced Act No. 125 of 1920.

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57 So. 2d 206, 220 La. 618, 1952 La. LEXIS 1110, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-of-alexandria-v-la-combe-la-1952.