Stigall v. Sharkey County

57 So. 2d 146, 213 Miss. 798, 1952 Miss. LEXIS 427
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 3, 1952
DocketNo. 38026
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 57 So. 2d 146 (Stigall v. Sharkey County) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stigall v. Sharkey County, 57 So. 2d 146, 213 Miss. 798, 1952 Miss. LEXIS 427 (Mich. 1952).

Opinion

Roberds, J.

The history of this litigation is as follows: In February, 1943, Stigall and wife and Elliot and wife and W. R. Corley filed the bill herein against Sharkey County. They alleged they owned lands in said County, which lands were also located in Otter Bayou Drainage District; that prior to 1939 their lands were well drained by the drainage system of this District; that, as a part of such drainage system, there existed canals numbered 1, 3 and 2, all running east and west, that canal No. 2 was on the south; No. 3 was something like a mile north of No. 2, and canal No. 1 was about a half mile north of No. 3; that there was also a lateral ditch, extending north and south, and which emptied into canal No. 2 at the south end thereof; that in 1939 and 1940 the supervisors of said County entirely filled up said lateral ditch and [802]*802constructed a public road thereon and which road extended across canal No. 3; that Stigall, one of complainants, had theretofore constructed a bridge over canal No. 3 at the point where said north and south road crosses that canal, which bridge amply permitted the flow of water thereunder; that the supervisors removed that bridge and placed under the road at canal No. 3 two 48 inch culverts, covering them with dirt, raising the road to the proper level; that these culverts were entirely too small to carry the water; that as a result of the construction of the north and south road in the drainage ditch and replacing said bridge with culverts too small to carry the water the crops of complainants had been destroyed for the years 1940,1941 and 1942, and would be destroyed from year to year thereafter. The bill prayed for a money decree for such damage, and that an injunction issue requiring the supervisors to either remove said road so constructed in the’ drainage ditch, or adopt other means to afford drainage along that lateral ditch equal to that existing before construction of the road, and that the supervisors be further required to adopt means permitting the flow of water at the crossing of canal No. 3 as had existed before the placing of the concrete culverts thereunder. A further statement of the allegations of the bill may be found in Stigall v. Sharkey County, 197 Miss. 307, 20 So. (2d) 664.

Defendant demurred to that bill on the grounds (1) that the court in vacation had no power to issue a mandatory injunction, (2) that there was a misjoinder of parties and causes of action, and (3) that there was no equity on the face of the bill. The demurrer was sustained by the lower court. In the above cited case this Court held that the bill was not multifarious and that there was equity on the face of the bill, and the cause was remanded for further proceedings.

Before the next hearing Mr. Elliott and Mr. Stigall, two of the original complainants, had died, and the cause was -revived on behalf of their legal representatives.

[803]*803The cause came on for hearing again in September 1947. The chancellor concluded the supervisors had no jurisdiction over the road constructed in the lateral ditch and dismissed the bill.

On appeal Stigall v. Sharkey County, 207 Miss. 188, 42 So. (2d) 116, 120, this Court held that this was a county road and reversed and remanded the cause, saying, “The Chancellor did not decide whether the alleged wrongful acts caused complainant damage, and, if so, the extent thereof, nor whether mandatory injunction was justified, and, therefore, we express no opinion on those questions. The cause is remanded for determination of these questions upon another hearing.”

The cause was retried in 1950. On August 16, 1950, the chancellor, by final decree, dismissed the bill with prejudice. However, he rendered a written opinion setting forth his reasons for that action. There were two reasons: The first was that, while as we understand the opinion, he found complainants had suffered damage, yet the method of proving the damage was not the before- and-after value test, as set out and discussed in Baker v. Mississippi State Highway Comm., 204 Miss. 166, 37 So. (2d) 169, and, second, that the chancery court had no power to issue a mandatory injunction against the supervisors even though the merits of the cause should require this to be done.

We do not think the first reason is well taken. This was not a suit for damage to land. The money decree sought is for the value of crops. An itemized statement of such damage had been filed with, and rejected by, the supervisors, and these rejected claims were made exhibits to the bill. The before-and-after value rule applies only to actions for the value of, or damage to, land.

And, even though damage to land had been sought in this cause, along with the other relief prayed for, the before-and-after value test would not have been exclusive under the circumstances here. An unusual situation was presented, which would have justified the chancellor in [804]*804adopting such rules as in reason and fairness to the parties would have best enabled him to “arrive at the true, accurate amount of the damage”, as announced in the Baker case. And, in this connection, we think it would work undue hardship upon complainants to dismiss their bill on the ground that the proper method was not used in proving damage for the reason, so far as we have detected, defendant did not object to proof of damage by the method adopted.

The chancellor thought he had no power to issue an injunction. That, of course, would not have justified dismissal of the bill, because a decree for damage might have been rendered, had the proof so justified, the equity court having already taken jurisdiction. However, we think the chancellor has power to issue an injunction in this case' — at least, to effectuate some of the remedial objects of the litigation, if the proof and justice so require. Specifically, the bill prays that the County be required to open a drainage ditch on the east side of the road the County placed in the north and south lateral ditch, or adopt some other efficient method of drainage in that respect, and that it be required to provide under the No. 3 crossing openings sufficient to carry the water which formerly flowed thereunder. Neither object is designed to direct the supervisors as to the type or character of road they are to construct, or to interfere with their judgment in such construction. In this may be found a vital distinction between this case and City of Water Valley v. Poteete, 203 Miss. 382, 33 So. (2d) 794, relied upon by the learned chancellor, where the effort was to require the mayor and aldermen to change the elevation of the street.

In addition to this, we think the law of this case, in respect to the power to issue an injunction, has been settled by the previous appeals.

■ On the first appeal, 197 Miss. 307, 20 So. (2d) 664, one of the questions presented and decided was whether the bill showed equity on its face. Except for the injunction [805]*805feature the action, by its nature, would have been a suit at law for damages. The injunctive aspect ivas the only element of equity. That drew the entire case into equity. Section 437, 2d Ed. Griffith’s Chancery Practice. Indeed, on the first appeal this Court said: "The securing • of this mandatory injunction is the paramount and dominant purpose of the bill.” And the cause was remanded for further proceedings under that pronouncement.

On the second appeal, 207 Miss. 188, 42 So. (2d) 116, the cause was remanded to determine whether there had been damage and whether injunctive relief should be granted.

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Bluebook (online)
57 So. 2d 146, 213 Miss. 798, 1952 Miss. LEXIS 427, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stigall-v-sharkey-county-miss-1952.