McLaughlin v. French

492 So. 2d 254
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedAugust 5, 1986
Docket86-762
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 492 So. 2d 254 (McLaughlin v. French) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
McLaughlin v. French, 492 So. 2d 254 (La. Ct. App. 1986).

Opinion

492 So.2d 254 (1986)

Kay McLAUGHLIN, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
Marion FRENCH, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 86-762.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

August 5, 1986.

*255 Gary W. Partney, Alexandria, for defendant-appellant.

Stafford, Stewart and Potter, Paul Boudreaux, Alexandria, for plaintiff-appellee.

Before GUIDRY, DOUCET and KING, JJ.

GUIDRY, Judge.

This is a suit brought by Kay McLaughlin against Marion French seeking to have him disqualified as a candidate for the Rapides Parish School Board, District H. Plaintiff alleges that defendant is disqualified because he is not in fact domiciled in the district from which he seeks election.

The Petition was filed July 23, 1986. After a hearing, on a rule to show cause why defendant should not be disqualified as a candidate, judgment was rendered in favor of plaintiff and against defendant, disqualifying him as a candidate in the primary election to be held September 27, 1986. This appeal followed. For reasons set out below, we affirm.

EXCEPTION

The defendant first urges that the trial court erred in failing to find that the plaintiff lacked "standing" to challenge the qualifications of the defendant. The defendant filed an "exception of no right of action" which the trial court denied.

La.R.S. 18:491 provides:

A registered voter may bring an action objecting to the candidacy of a person who qualified as a candidate in a primary election for an office for which the plaintiff is qualified to vote.

La.R.S. 18:1401 provides:

A. A qualified elector may bring an action objecting to the candidacy of a person who qualified as a candidate in a primary election for an office in which the plaintiff is qualified to vote.

* * * * * *

The record reveals that plaintiff is a registered voter and qualified elector of District H who can object to defendant's qualifications. She is presently the incumbent and is a duly qualified elector of Ward 5 Precinct 1. The defendant's exception of no right of action lacks merit.

MERITS

The defendant next urges that the trial court erred in failing to find that the defendant was domiciled in the district for which he had qualified for candidacy.

La.R.S. 17:52E provides, in part, as follows:

* * * * * *
E. Any person who at the time of qualification as a candidate for the school board has attained the age of eighteen, resided in the state for the preceding two years, and has been actually domiciled for the preceding year in the parish, ward, or district from which he seeks election is eligible for membership on the school board.

* * * * * *

The minutes of the official proceedings of the Rapides Parish School Board provide that District H encompasses an area excluding the Town of Lecompte. The issue, thus, is whether defendant is actually domiciled in the Town of Lecompte or in District H.

*256 The defendant claims that his residence on 1811 Gordy Street is not in the Town of Lecompte. In discussing the ordinances and maps describing the Town of Lecompte the trial judge in the ruling of the court stated as follows:

"In connection with P-14 [map of Lecompte] which is the map identified by Mr. David [r]ead in conjunction with P-2 [Ordinance 967] clearly shows that in 1976 now we're talking about, before Mr. French had ever thought about purchasing property in the Town of Lecompte there was some error in the call in Ordinance 967 which is P-2. There's no doubt in my mind about it. You have to read Ordinance 967 in conjunction with P-14 and you see that the description set forth on the third page of the attachment to Ordinance 967 which is our original 661533 of the records of Rapides Parish and that first paragraph on Page 3 says:
"Thence proceed in a northerly and westerly direction along the western or southern bank of Bayou Boueff to a point on the western or southern bank of Bayou Boueff which lies along a southern projection of a line east of and paralleling the eastern right-of-way of Mimosa Street at a distance of 300 feet."
Now, if that 300 feet is correct then I fully agree with you it would drop way down into and past Mr. French's property. No doubt about it but when you go to the next paragraph that 300 feet should be 30 feet. There's no doubt in my mind about it. Whenever you look at P-14 and then you read the next paragraph:

"Thence proceed northeasterly ... and here's the important thing

along said line which lies east of Mimosa Street and parallels Mimosa Street at a distance of 30 feet to a point which lies along the southern right-of-way of Holly Street projected and intersecting the western right-of-way line of Chicago Rock Island Pacific Railway."
The only way it can run to that point is for it to be parallel to and 30 feet east of Mimosa Street. If it were 300 feet east of and parallel to Mimosa Street it would be way down and not even get anywhere near that point and then when you continue on with their description it follows the exact corporate limit lines as set forth on P-14 so there's no doubt that Mr. David had a typographical error. When you look at the typographical error and correct it to what it's supposed to be, the corporate limits of Lecompte is exactly as it should have been as reflected on P-14.
Now, subsequent to that they came along with other Ordinances and brought in ... now, this would have left 14 feet and widening to 16 feet of the defendant's house outside the corporate limits at the time of this annexation in 1976. Following that annexation there was another annexation which picked up everything west of that 30 foot east of Mimosa Street, thereby picking up the remainder of the defendant's house. There's no doubt in my mind about it. That is evidenced by the Ordinances and is evidenced by subsequent filings that shows that P-14 is in fact the corporate limits, outer limits, of the Town of Lecompte as of the time those last Ordinances were taken putting the defendant's house wholly within the corporate limits of the Town of Lecompte.
Now, it's hornbook law that when there's an error in description and you have a survey or a map that you can refer to, I know normally it's attached, but when we have something we have to read it in the manner which will give full construction and intent to the Town of Lecompte Ordinances. If this weren't so, then the whole Town of Lecompte would not exist. Mr. David made the error. The Council didn't make the Error and I'm not going to punish the Town of Lecompte for their error.
Subsequent to that P-19 was filed. Now, while it's termed "Suggested," I think what happened there was the Clerk gave that to Mr. David and said, "Mr. *257 David, get this filed for us to comply with the provisions of the law for these Ordinances." That's the subsequent annexations and Mr. David, I think, just inadvertently filed one which said "Suggested Town Limits" when it was in truth and fact the actual town limits that were annexed and the true town limits of the Town of Lecompte as of that date.

It appears that if the 300 foot description in Ordinance 967 was correct the defendant's house at 1811 Gordy Street would not actually be located in the Town of Lecompte. That description, however, is not consistent with the maps and other ordinances.

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492 So. 2d 254, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mclaughlin-v-french-lactapp-1986.