Ex Parte Davison

13 S.W.2d 40, 321 Mo. 370, 1928 Mo. LEXIS 765
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedNovember 24, 1928
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 13 S.W.2d 40 (Ex Parte Davison) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ex Parte Davison, 13 S.W.2d 40, 321 Mo. 370, 1928 Mo. LEXIS 765 (Mo. 1928).

Opinion

*373 GENTRY, J.

The petitioner, Roger Davison, has made application to this court for a writ of habeas corpus, alleging that he is unlawfully deprived of his liberty by Anton Schuler, Sheriff of the City of St. Louis. By agreement of counsel, service of the writ was waived, as was also the body of the petitioner, and the sheriff promptly made return. There is no dispute about the facts: petitioner was arrested by one of the police officers of the city of St. Louis and an information filed against him in the Police Court No. 1 of that city, charging him with the violation of Sections 1665 and 1667 of Ordinance No. 36614 of said city. Petitioner was put upon trial in said police court, found guilty and fined. In due time petitioner appealed to the St. Louis Court of Criminal Correction, where he was again found guilty, his fine being assessed at one hundred dollars. Fail *374 ing to pay such fine, petitioner (defendant therein) was committed to jail, which jail is under the control of the sheriff of said city.

Said sections of the ordinance are as follows:

“See. 1665. No stone quarry shall hereafter be opened, or brick kiln located or slaughter house, glue factory, vitriol factory, soap factory, candle factory, tannery, rendering factory, or garbage works established on any lot of ground or in any building within a distance of three hundred feet of any building, built and inhabited, or any building used as a place of public assemblage before the opening, locating, or establishing of any of the classes of business above mentioned.

“Sec. 1667. Any person, firm, or corporation violating any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than five hundred dollars. Each clay such violation exists is hereby made a separate offense.”

The information charges that, “In the city of St. Louis and State of Missouri, on the 29th day of June, 1928, the said Roger Davison did then and there open and operate a stone quarry within a distance of 300 feet of an inhabited building, to-wit, ‘city blocks 5094-5095, located between Drury Lane and Wellington Court, Manhattan and Leamington Boulevards, within the limits of the city of St. Louis.’ ”

It is claimed by counsel for petitioner that said sections of the ordinance are in conflict with both Sections 4 and 30 of Article II of the Constitution of Missouri, and also with the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. On the other hand, counsel for the sheriff, who also represent the city of St. Louis, take, the position that the above sections of the ordinance are not in violation of a.ny constitutional provision, but that the same constitute a reasonable exercise of the police power of the city. The well prepared briefs of counsel on both sides have made our labors lighter as the questions for decision are specifically pointed out.

I. In this day of greatly increased population of cities and towns, the legislative body of such municipality has the power to make necessary and reasonable regulations regarding the use of the property therein. Often it has been held that such regulation does not deprive the citizen of the use of his property, but simply prohibits him from the use thereof for purposes deemed objectionable. Sic utere tuo, tit aUenum non loiedas. Citations in support of this proposition are unnecessary, it being g. fundamental rifle of law.

*375 II. It is true that the necessity, the reasonableness and the wisdom of an ordinance are matters to be decided by the legislative body of a municipality, yet courts have supervisory power to examine the ordinance and pass on such questions. [City of Carthage v. Block, 139 Mo. App. l. c. 391; Baker v. Hasler, 218 Mo. App. l. c. 7; St. Louis v. St. Louis Theatre Co., 202 Mo. l. c. 699; Cooley on Const. Lim. (7 Ed.) 280; Beach on Pub. Corp., sec. 512.] And the question may be raised and determined by habeas corpus. [Church on Habeas Corpus, sec. 352.]

III. The owner of property has the right to use the same in any manner he may see fit consistent with the rights of others. Hence, the prohibiting by ordinance of the use to which the owner may make of private property is taking said prop-g-^y meaning of the Constitution. In his work on Limitation of Police Powers, Professor Tiedeman uses this language: “The constitutional guaranty of protection for all private property extends equally to the enjoyment and the possession of lands. An arbitrary interference by the government, or by its authority, with the reasonable enjoyment of private lands is a taking of private property without due process of law, which is inhibited by the Constitution.” [Tiedeman’s Limitation of Police Powers, sec. 122.]

IV. The question in the instant ease is, has the city the right to prohibit the use of property for a purpose which is not a nuisance per se and not injurious to the health, morals or safety of the community ? It cannot be argued that a .stone quarry belongs to the same class as a brick kiln, slaughter house, glue factory, soap faetory, tannery, rendering factory, or garbage works. It is a fact well known, and courts will take judicial notice thereof, that in the operation of a brick kiln fires are used and large quantities of smoke discharged through the chimneys; and in the other businesses mentioned objectionable fumes are emitted. The city’s legislative body no doubt ascertained that the operation of such establishments within three hundred feet of a residence or building used as a place of public assemblage would be injurious to the health as well as offensive and injurious to the occupants thereof. In determining this case, it is not necessary for us to consider the reasonableness of the ordinance prohibiting such occupations within such territory. But the sole question we arc called upon to decide is the reasonableness and the constitutionality of that part of the ordinance which prohibits the opening of a stone quarry within such prohibited territory. There is much authority in support of the proposition that a city may prohibit from certain territory soap fac *376 tories, slaughter houses, livery stables and other business, the operation of which necessarily result in injury to the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of such territory. [Tiedeman on Limitation of Police Powers, sec. 104; Reinman v. Little Rock, 237 U. S. 171; 2 Dillon, Munic. Corp., secs. 690-692; 2 Kent’s Com., p. 340.]

In speaking of a stone quarry this court said; “"We do not have to go to the books to ascertain that it is not a nuisance per se.’1 [St. Louis v. Construction Co., 244 Mo. l. c. 485.] We know of no injury that would result to anyone by reason of the opening up of a stone quarry, unless such operation was accompanied by blasting. Of course, the use of explosives in a stone quarry might result, as it often has resulted, in the breaking of glass and plaster, the cracking of walls and other injury to houses, as well as injury to persons; and the noise incident to such explosions interferes with the enjoyment of private homes as well as schools and churches.

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

Related

People Tags, Inc. v. Jackson County Legislature
636 F. Supp. 1345 (W.D. Missouri, 1986)
Hoffmann v. Kinealy
389 S.W.2d 745 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1965)
State Ex Rel. Triangle Fuel Co. v. Caulfield
196 S.W.2d 296 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1946)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
13 S.W.2d 40, 321 Mo. 370, 1928 Mo. LEXIS 765, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ex-parte-davison-mo-1928.