Seikel v. Grimes

1941 OK 359, 119 P.2d 59, 189 Okla. 658, 1941 Okla. LEXIS 347
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedOctober 28, 1941
DocketNo. 30009.
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 1941 OK 359 (Seikel v. Grimes) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Seikel v. Grimes, 1941 OK 359, 119 P.2d 59, 189 Okla. 658, 1941 Okla. LEXIS 347 (Okla. 1941).

Opinion

RILEY, J.

This is an action commenced by plaintiffs in error, herein referred to as plaintiffs, against Stanley R. Grimes, as county treasurer of Pottawatomie county, herein referred to as defendant, to cancel of record certain special assessment charges against the land of plaintiffs.

Plaintiffs own 40 acres of land in the drainage area of Deer creek in Pottawatomie county. Proceedings to organize a drainage district included a petition for the creation of such district signed by 16 persons as owners of land to be affected. At that time L. C. Rooker was the owner of plaintiffs’ land.

The amount first assessed against plaintiffs’ land was $300, divided into ten annual installments. Bonds were provided for in 1927, due in ten annual installments. The last installment of the bonds was to mature December 27, 1939, but drew interest at 6 per cent from December 22, 1927. There was a charge against plaintiffs’ land of $18 as interest for the year 1928.

An assessment in the sum of $30 and an interest charge of $19:44 was entered on the treasurer’s books against plaintiffs’ land for the year 1929. About May, 1929, an additional assessment appeared to have been made against plaintiffs’ land in the sum of $20, but was entered on the treasurer’s book at $27, so that for the year 1930 there was a charge entered against said land as principal in the sum of $33 and interest in the sum of $17.94. For the year 1931, there was a charge of $33 principal and $15.96 interest; a like charge of $33 principal and $13.98 was entered for the year 1932. All the charges down to that year were paid by L. C. Rooker.

For the year 1933 there was a like charge of $33 principal and $11.88 interest charged on the original and supplemental assessment. In addition thereto there appears to have been made an additional charge against plaintiffs’ land in the sum of $55.05, representing its proportional share of a judgment which had been rendered in the federal court against the drainage district. The judgment bore interest and appeared to have been made payable in three annual installments. The additional charge on account of this judgment was $18.35 as principal and $5.92 interest, making a total charge for the year 1933 of $69.15.

Plaintiffs had, in the meantime, become the owners of the land involved. They paid the first half of the 1933 charges. There were like charges made for the years 1934 and 1935. For each of the years 1936 to 1938, inclusive, the charge was $33 with interest. The last half of the amount for 1933 and that of all subsequent years became delinquent.

The county treasurer threatened sale of the land and plaintiffs commenced *660 this action to cancel all unpaid assessments.

The trial court entered judgment canceling that part of the charge representing the supplemental assessment made in May, 1929, and the charges made on account of the judgment, but refused to cancel any part of the original assessment.

Plaintiffs appeal and contend that the court erred in not holding that the drainage district was never legally established and in refusing to cancel the original assessment and each unpaid installment thereof. The assignments of error are presented under three propositions.

The first proposition is that by reason of the record, the county commissioners never acquired authority to levy any assessments. A copy of the entire proceedings relative to the drainage district was introduced in evidence and is made a part of the case-made. Therefrom it appears that the petition filed with the county clerk is regular and sufficient in form. It appears to have been signed by 16 persons who represented themselves to be residents of Pottawatomie county and owners of land in the drainage district petitioned for and affected thereby.

The petition was filed August 11, 1926; it was endorsed “considered by board of county commissioners and approved this 11th day of August, 1926.” On the same day the county commissioners entered an order appointing viewers and a surveyor to assist the viewers as provided in section 13006, O. S. 1931, 82 Okla. Stat. Ann. § 302. The viewers qualified. They made, and on August 30, 1926, filed, their report, concurred in by the surveyor.

On the latter date the county commissioners entered an order fixing the time for hearing the petition and report of the first viewers on the 30th day of September, 1926, and directed the county clerk to give notice of the time and place for said hearing by publication as required by law.

Due and proper notice was given and published, and proof of publication was filed. The report of the first viewers contained the following finding:

“After an actual view of the said line of the proposed drain and premises along and adjacent thereto we find that said proposed drain and improvement is practical, and necessary and of private and of public utility and benefit, and would be a benefit to the agricultural interest and a benefit to the public and corporate roads and a benefit to the public health.”

On September 30, 1926, the date fixed for said hearing, the county commissioners made and entered the following order:

“Now, upon this the 30th day of September, 1926, a petition of Frank H. Seaton et al., for the establishment of a drainage district coming on for hearing, and the construction of a drainage ditch for said district, and it appearing that more than five persons, owners of lands included and to be assessed in said district, having petitioned for the establishment of said district, alleging that the same is necessary for sanitary and agricultural purposes, and that the construction of said ditch will be conducive to the public health and a public utility, and a board of viewers having been duly appointed for said district, and the said board of viewers did, upon the 30th day of August, 1926, duly report that said proposed ditch and drain was necessary for sanitary and agricultural purposes, and the same would be conducive to the public health and a public utility, and recommend that a drainage district be organized and constituted and due notice of time and place of said hearing having been duly published in the County Democrat, a newspaper of general circulation in the said county for two weeks, the last publication being more than ten days prior to the 30th day of September, 1926, at which time said matter was set for hearing and the petition coming on for hearing upon the said 30th day of September, 1926, and evidence being taken thereon:
“It is therefore hereby ordered and adjudged, by the board of county commissioners, that a drainage district be formed as petitioned for by the said *661 Frank H. Seaton et al.; to be known, named and constituted Deer Creek Drainage District No. 4, of Pottawatomie county, Oklahoma, to be composed of such territory as the board of viewers hereinafter to be appointed may designate, and is further ordered and directed that a petition and request be issued and directed to the judge of the district court of Pottawatomie county, Oklahoma, to appoint three disinterested freeholders from the regular jury list of names prepared for the district court of said county, who shall not be interested in the construction of said work, viewers for said district.”

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1941 OK 359, 119 P.2d 59, 189 Okla. 658, 1941 Okla. LEXIS 347, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/seikel-v-grimes-okla-1941.