State v. Burney
Citation | 191 S.W. 981,269 Mo. 602 |
Decision Date | 29 January 1917 |
Docket Number | No. 20016.,20016. |
Parties | STATE ex rel. MURPHY v. BURNEY, Circuit Judge, et al. |
Court | United States State Supreme Court of Missouri |
Original proceeding in prohibition by the State, on the relation of David A. Murphy, a member of the board of police commissioners of Kansas City, Mo., against Clarence A. Burney, Judge of the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Mo., Division No. 6, and others. Provisional writ made absolute.
I. N. Watson and John T. Harding, both of Kansas City, for relator. Robinson & Goodrich, Frederick E. Stivers, and James E. Goodrich, all of Kansas City, for respondents.
This is an original proceeding in prohibition against respondent Clarence A. Burney, as one of the judges of the circuit court of Jackson county, to prohibit him from taking further cognizance of certain suits by injunction brought by respondents Hiram W. Hammil and R. L. James, the object of which latter proceedings was to enjoin relator (who is one of the police commissioners of Kansas City) from sitting in the hearing of certain charges pending against said Hammil and said James before said commissioners.
As forecast above, respondents Hammil and James are members of the police force of Kansas City; Hammil being chief of police, and James a captain of police therein. Prior to the commencement before respondent Burney of the injunction proceedings, certain charges were filed by relator David A. Murphy in his capacity as a member of the board of police commissioners of Kansas City, against respondents Hammil and James, which charges involved the official conduct of said last-named respondents as chief of police and captain, respectively. While separate actions were brought by Hammil and James seeking to enjoin relator as aforesaid, it is not necessary to cumber the record with the allegations in both of these injunction proceedings. That brought by respondent Hammil, we take it, is a fair type of both, and it contains, after the formal allegations of the official character of plaintiff therein as chief of police and defendant as commissioners of police, respectively, the below allegations, to wit:
The actions for injunctions filed, respectively, by respondents Hammil and James, coming on to be heard before Judge Burney on December 6, 1916, he issued thereon a temporary restraining order and fixed December 9, 1916, for hearing the application for the issuance of a temporary injunction. Pending the hearing upon such injunction, relator presented his petition to this court, and we issued thereon a provisional writ of prohibition, directed to Judge Burney, prohibiting him, till our further order, from hearing or proceeding further in said injunction suits. Thereafter Judge Burney filed herein his return, following which relator filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings.
The case has been briefed, and being a matter wherein both parties deem that the public interests require a speedy determination, it was submitted to us without argument, an order entered herein making our provisional writ absolute, and the matter of filing a written opinion deferred till a more convenient season.
The sole proposition involved is whether relator Murphy, who caused to be filed the charges against respondents Hammil and James, is, for that he caused the filing of such charges, disqualified from sitting as one of the police commissioners of Kansas City in the trial of said latter respondents upon such charges; relator taking the position that he is not so disqualified, and respondents taking the position that he is disqualified. If he is disqualified, then our preliminary writ herein should be quashed; if he is not, then such writ must be made absolute.
The board of police commissioners of Kansas City consists of two members (who are appointed by the Governor), and of the mayor of that city, who is a member ex officio of such board. It thus appears as a matter of interest, without perhaps affecting the point at issue, that there are two members of the board charged under the statute with the duty of trying the charges against respondents Hammil and James, against whom no attack is made.
The board of police commissioners of Kansas City is created by, and therefore "lives and moves and has its being" solely pursuant to, statute. Section 9771, R. S. 1909. The duties of such board of police commissioners are likewise prescribed by statute and are broad and comprehensive; as note the statute defining those duties, which read thus:
"They shall at all times of the day and night, within the boundaries of the city, as well on water as on land, preserve the public peace; prevent crimes and arrest offenders; protect the rights of persons and property; guard the public health; preserve order at every public election and at all public meetings and places, and on all public occasions;...
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