Tucker v. State

168 So. 2d 258, 42 Ala. App. 477, 1964 Ala. App. LEXIS 244

• Court: Alabama Court of Appeals
• Decided: March 6, 1964
• Docket: 2 Div. 110
• Status: Published

Opinions

PER CURIAM.

The appellants, Benny Tucker and Henry Will Shannon, were convicted in the Juvenile Court of Dallas County, Alabama, on a charge of contributing to the delinquency of minors. They were fined $100 and sentenced to serve twelve months in the county jail. In addition to the jail sentence and the fine imposed, and as a part of the judgment; the Judge, of the Juvenile Court required appellants to enter into a' bond or undertaking in the sum of $1000 conditioned to keep the peace for twelve months. Appeal bonds in the sum of $1000 each were executed and approved, thereby perfecting appeal to the Circuit Court. ' The 'sheriff having refused to release appellants from custody until they had executed the peace bonds, a writ of habeas corpus was sued out before the Circuit Judge, who entered a, Judgment denying habeas corpus.. The-peace bond for each petitioner was reduced to $500. The Circuit Judge entered an order allowing the petitioners' to appeal upon filing security for costs, but denying their prayers for bail pending appeal -to this'court in -lieu of the peace bonds. '

'Wé think this case is controlled by Section 419' of Title 15, Code 1940, alone. It will be observed that this 'section of ' the Code confers upon' “[a]ny court of record * * * on the conviction of any person for an offense against the person or property of another, when necessary for the public good,” the power to require the defendant to execute an undertaking, with sureties^ “to keep the peace for not exceeding twelve months, and, on his failure, may commit, him.” The peace bond authorized by.this section is an additional penalty .which the court may or may not impose upon persons who have been convicted of “an offense against the person or property of another.” The general sections of the Code just preceding Section 419 of Title 15 of the Code, relating to peace bonds, have no application to the peace bonds required in this case.

The peace bonds were a part of the penalty imposed by the court, and we think the peace bonds were superseded when the defendants executed their appeal bonds, just as were the judgments of conviction.

The above is a literal paraphrasing and adaptation of the holding of the Supreme Court of Mississippi in the case of City of Jackson v. Belew, 110 Miss. 243, 70 So. 346. See also Arnold v. State, 213 Miss. 667, 57 So.2d 484.

It is our opinion the writs should have been granted for a further reason. The affidavit charged that the defendant Shannon did “contribute to the delinquency of (certain named persons) in that he encouraged them by words or acts not to attend school and did transport them to places in Selma, Alabama,'to sit in or demonstrate against the laws of Alabama.”

The charge against the defendant Tucker was that he did, “contribute to the delinquency of (certain named persons) in that he encouraged them not to attend school and to demonstrate against the laws of Alabama.”

We think it is clear that under Section 419 of Title 15, Code, supra, sureties to keep the peace could only be required after conviction of an offense involving violence to an individual or his property. The charges against the defendants, as well as the evidence submitted on the hearing of the petition, clearly show that the peace bonds were not required in accordance with the terms of the statute.

The judgment denying habeas corpus is reversed and it is hereby ordered that appellants be released from custody, subject to the conditions of the bonds heretofore approved pending appeal from the Juvenile Court to the Circuit Court. '

Reversed and rendered.-