State ex rel. Curtis v. Durein

46 Kan. 695
CourtSupreme Court of Kansas
DecidedJuly 15, 1891
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 46 Kan. 695 (State ex rel. Curtis v. Durein) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. Curtis v. Durein, 46 Kan. 695 (kan 1891).

Opinion

[696]*696The opinion of the court was delivered by

Johnston, J.:

Frank Durein asks the reversal of an order and judgment made in an injunction proceeding. On March 19,1886, the state of Kansas obtained a final judgment of perpetual injunction against Frank Durein and Conrad Kreipe, forever enjoining them, and each of them, from using or permitting to be used a certain building in the city of Topeka as a place where intoxicating liquors are sold, bartered, or given away, or kept for sale, barter, or gift, otherwise than by authority of law. On April 1, 1891, the county attorney of Shawnee county filed an affidavit with the clerk of the district court, charging that Durein & Kreipe had violated the perpetual injunction which has been mentioned, and thereupon the court issued an attachment to bring them before the court, and requiring them to show cause why they should not be punished for the alleged contempt. On April 13, 1891, Durein appeared, and a hearing was had upon the charge of contempt, when it was found that Durein had willfully and knowingly used, and permitted others to use, .his premises as a place where intoxicating liquors were sold and given away without authority of law, in violation of the decree and judgment of the district court, and he was adjudged to be guilty of contempt. The penalty imposed was that he should be confined in the county jail for 40 days, pay a fine of $500, and that a fee of $100 be taxed for the county attorney as a part of the costs in the case; and, further, that Durein should stand committed to the jail of the county until the fine and costs were paid. A reading of the testimony leaves no doubt that Durein was engaged in the unlawful sale of intoxicating liquors on his premises, contrary to the decree of injunction; but nevertheless he insists that the proceedings in contempt were erroneous, and the judgment unauthorized.

[697]*6971 contempt-jury trial. [696]*696The first error assigned by Durein is that his demand for a jury trial was wrongfully refused. While the proceeding was of a criminal nature, it was really incident to and one of the final steps in the civil action of injunction. Pie was not [697]*697entitled to a jury trial in the original proceeding, and neither could he demand a jury as a matter of right to try the charge that he had violated the injunction previously granted. The constitutional provision that “ the right of trial by jury shall be inviolate,” has no application in a summary proceeding of this character. This guaranty does not extend beyond the cases where such right existed at common law; and the right to punish for contempt without the intervention of a jury was a well-established rule of the common law. (Kimball v. Connor, 3 Kas. 414; The State v. Cutler, 13 id. 131; In re Burrows, 33 id. 675; McDonnell v. Henderson, 74 Iowa, 619; The State v. Becht, 23 Minn. 411; The State v. Doty, 32 N. J. Law, 403; The State v. Matthews, 37 N. H. 451; Candy v. The State, 13 Neb. 445; Arnold v. Commonwealth, 80 Ky. 300; King v. Railway Co., 7 Biss. 529; Neal v. The State, 9 Ark. 259; Crow v. The State, 24 Tex. 12; Hart v. Robinett, 5 Mo. 11; Eikenbury v. Edwards, 25 N. W. Rep. 832; Rapalje on Contempts, § 112; 3 Am. & Eng. Encyc of Law, 719.)

2. error assignment- not considered. The next error alleged is, that declarations made by Conrad Kreipe, not in the presence of Durein, were received in evidence over his objection;. but counsel fail to point out where, in the voluminous record brought up, such testimony may be found. The pressure of business in this court is such that we cannot stop to search through a large record for a^eSed errors that are not specifically pointed out, as the rules of the court require. Besides, the concessions that have been made in this case would in any event render the objection immaterial.

The further objection is made that Durein was sworn as a witness at the instance of the state. The record discloses that the court sustained an objection and did not require him to testify; and, hence, there is nothing substantial in the objection.

Is is next contended that the court had no authority, to allow the county attorney a fee of $100, to be taxed as costs [698]*698against the defendant. It is claimed that the authority for taxing a fee for the county attorney in such a case may be found in §4 of chapter 165 of the Laws of 1887. It is there declared that all places where intoxicating liquors are manufactured, sold or given away in violation of law are common nuisances, and provision is made for abating and-enjoining the maintenance of such nuisances. To accomplish this object, provision is made in' the same section for maintaining three proceedings or actions: First, a criminal action for prosecuting and punishing those who maintain a common nuisance; second, a civil action to abate and perpetually enjoin the maintenance of a nuisance; and, third, the prosecution and punishment of those who, in violation of an injunction, proceed to keep and maintain a common nuisance. It is then provided that—

“In case judgment is rendered in favor of the plaintiff in an action brought under the provisions of this section, the court rendering the same shall also render judgment for a reasonable attorney’s fee in such action in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendants therein, which attorney’s fee shall be taxed and collected as other costs therein, and when collected paid to the attorney or attorneys of the plaintiff therein.”

[699]*6994. attorney's fee - unauthorized allowance. [698]*698In the contempt proceeding a trial is had, and there is also a formal judgment rendered, as well as in the other proceedings provided for in that section. There is an equal necessity for the services of the attorney general or county attorney in that proceeding as in the others. Although summary in its character, and the trial is had without a jury, an information or complaint must be filed and proper preliminary steps taken to bring the party before the court for trial. Evidence is then produced, and if the defendant is convicted the court imposes a fine of not less than $100, nor more than $500, and imprisonment in the county jail of not less than 30 days nor more than six months. As the state obtains a judgment in such a proceeding, it would seem under the provisions of the statute that an attorney’s fee might be awarded in that case the same [699]*699as in the other. In the present ease, however, an insuperable objection exists against the allowance of such a fee and the taxing of the same as costs against the defendant. No proof was offered before the court with reference to what constituted a reasonable attorney’s fee in the case; and hence the allowance of the same was unauthorized.

3. Injuction violation- statute- punishment It is further contended that there was no authority to impose the penalty adjudged by the court against Durein. The ground of this claim is that the judgment of injunction was given in 1886 under the authority of § 13 of chapter 149 of the Laws of 1885, but that the violation of the injunction was in 1891, after that section had been amended and repealed.

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Bluebook (online)
46 Kan. 695, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-curtis-v-durein-kan-1891.