Christie v. Loomis

• Decision Date: 17 October 1893
• Citation: 32 Fla. 401,13 So. 891
• Parties: CHRISTIE v. LOOMIS et al.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

13 So. 891

32 Fla. 401

CHRISTIE v. LOOMIS et al.

Florida Supreme Court

October 17, 1893

Appeal from circuit court, Alachua county; Jesse J. Finley, Judge.

Action between Walter Christie and L. J. Loomis and others. Judgment, from which Christie appealed. Appellees now move to dismiss the appeal. Motion denied.

Syllabus by the Court

SYLLABUS

Service of a citation of the supreme court may be made by the sheriff of a county as deputy of the sheriff of such court through or by the instrumentality of a deputy of such county sheriff.

COUNSEL W. W. Hampton, for the motion.

Horatio Davis, opposed.

OPINION

RANEY, C.J.

Appellees move to dismiss the appeal on the ground that there has been no legal service of the citation. The return shows that the writ was served by the sheriff of Alachua county as deputy of the sheriff of the supreme court through or by the instrumentality of his own deputy. The sheriff of the county in which the supreme court may sit is, under section 1322, Rev. St., the sheriff of the court, and, as it sits in Leon county only, (section 4, art. 5, Const; section 1311, Rev. St.,) the sheriff of Leon county is its sheriff; but it is provided by section 1324, Rev. St., that 'all the sheriffs of the state shall ex officio be his deputies in their respective counties for the execution of process from said court.' In the second article of the twenty-third chapter, § 1241, of the Revision, which article relates to the duties of sheriffs, it is enacted that 'each sheriff shall in person or by deputy execute all process of the supreme court, circuit court, county court, and criminal court to be executed in the county and may serve all process of the county judge's court, justices of the peace courts, and board of county commissioners.' In our judgment, a purpose of the last section was to require the sheriff of any county to execute any process of this court held by him either as sheriff of the court (where he may be such) or as ex officio deputy of its sheriff, and it gives him the power to perform the duty either in person or by deputy. The decisions cited in behalf of the movant were made before the Revised Statutes became operative.

The motion is denied.