City of Galveston v. Winslow

218 S.W.2d 508, 1949 Tex. App. LEXIS 1603
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 24, 1949
DocketNo. 12064
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 218 S.W.2d 508 (City of Galveston v. Winslow) 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
City of Galveston v. Winslow, 218 S.W.2d 508, 1949 Tex. App. LEXIS 1603 (Tex. Ct. App. 1949).

Opinion

MONTEITH, Chief Justice.

This action was brought by appellees, A. E. Winslow and some 59 other plaintiffs for the recovery, from the City of Galveston and the Board of Trustees of the Galveston Wharves, of compensation claimed to be due them for services alleged to have been rendered by them as members of the police department of the City of Galveston.

They alleged that during the period from April 30, 1943, to April 1, 1946, they were employed by the Board of Trustees of the-Galveston Wharves and that, as such employees, they had been appointed police officers of the City of Galveston by its governing body under the authority of Galveston Ordinance No. 107, and that by reason of such employment and appointment, they were subject to the rules and regulations and ordinances of the police department of the City of Galveston and laws of the state of Texas relating to the management and control of its police officers and their hours of service and rates of pay. They alleged that during the two-years next preceding the filing of this suit they had been required by the Board of Trustees of the Galveston Wharves, which was an agency of the City of Galveston, to work in their capacity as police officers of the city 7 days in each week and that they had worked a total of 70 days during that period of time for which they had received no pay. Each appellee sought recovery of the sum of $605 as reasonable compensation for the 70 days for which they had not been paid, and the sum of $160.00 in additional salaries which they claim to be entitled to under the provisions of Article 1583 of the Penal Code of the State of Texas, Vernon’s Ann.P.C. art. 1583.

By trial amendment appellees alleged that appellants were estopped from denying in this action that appellees were members of the Police Department of the City of Galveston by the judgment and defenses relied upon by appellants in the case of National Council of Railway Patrolmen’s Union v. Sealy et al., Trustees of Galveston Wharves, D. C., 56 F.Supp. 720, and affirmed by the Circuit Court of Appeals, 5 Cir., 152 F.2d 500.

[509]*509In a trial before the court without a jury, judgment was rendered that appellees were entitled to the remuneration provided under Article 1583 of the Penal Code of the State of Texas aggregating the sum of $29,054.30, and that they had not been paid for the services alleged to have been rendered by them.

No findings of fact or conclusions of law were requested by the parties or filed by the trial court.

Under their points of appeal, appellants assign error in the action of the trial court in holding in the judgment rendered that appellees were members of the police department of the City of Galveston, and that they were entitled to compensation rendered as such police officers under the provisions of said Article 1583 of the Penal Code. They contend that the judgment rendered in the United States District Court in the case of National Council of Railway Patrolmen’s Union v. Sealy et al., supra, comprising the Board of Trustees of The Galveston Wharves was not res judicata of the status of appellees in this suit and that it does not establish by res judicata that appellees have the statutory right to recovery.

The material facts in the record are undisputed. The evidence adduced consists principally of stipulations by the parties supplemented by exhibits.

The applicable provisions of Article 1583 of the Penal Code of the State of Texas read:

“1. No member of any fire department or police department in any city of more than twenty-five thousand (25,000) inhabitants shall be required to be on duty more than six (6) days in any one week. * * *

“6. It shall be unlawful for any city of more than sixty thousand (60,000) inhabitants to require or permit any such fireman and policeman to work more than twelve (12) hours per calendar day or more than seventy-two (72) hours in any one calendar week and, in no event, more than one hundred and forty-four (144) hours in any two (2) consecutive calendar weeks in the discharge of their duties except in case of emergency which may arise where it may become necessary to work more than twelve (12) hours per calendar day or more than seventy-two (72) hours in any one calendar week or more than one hundred and forty-four (144) hours in any two (2) consecutive calendar weeks for the protection of property or human life; said fireman and policeman shall draw additional compensation for the number of hours worked in addition to the regular twelve-hour calendar, day, or more than the regular seventy-two (72) hours in any one calendar week or more than the regular one hundred and forty-four (144) hours in any two (2) consecutive calendar weeks or if required to work on any day which has been designated as the day of the week that such member of said department should not be required to be on duty, additional compensation at the rate of time and one-half overtime computed upon the basis of their monthly salary shall be paid to them for such additional time as they are required to work.

“7, It is further provided that in any city of more than sixty thousand (60,000) inhabitants each member of any such department shall receive a sum of One Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($150) per month as a minimum wage for said services so rendered.”

The pertinent parts of Ordinance No. 107, under the provisions of which ap-pellees are alleged to have been constituted policemen of the City of Galveston, was adopted October 7, 1920.

Section 1 of said article provides that the Board of Commissioners of the City of Galveston shall appoint special policemen or watchmen at private places of business and institutions for duty in and at such places of business and institutions, upon the request, and upon the recommendation of the owners, or proprietors of such places of business and institutions, and the police and fire commissioner of the City, and that said special policemen or watchmen, while on duty in and at such places of business and institutions, shall have the power and authority of a regular police officer of the City of Galveston, and that they shall see that the ordinances of the City are complied with and-that when -they are not on duty in and at such places of busi[510]*510ness and institutions, for which they are appointed, their powers as such officers shall cease.

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Bluebook (online)
218 S.W.2d 508, 1949 Tex. App. LEXIS 1603, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/city-of-galveston-v-winslow-texapp-1949.