Conner v. Charleston High School Dist.

• Decision Date: 05 September 1939
• Docket Number: 14939.
• Citation: 4 S.E.2d 431,191 S.C. 412
• Parties: CONNER v. CHARLESTON HIGH SCHOOL DIST. et al.
• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court

4 S.E.2d 431

191 S.C. 412

CONNER v. CHARLESTON HIGH SCHOOL DIST. et al.

No. 14939.

Supreme Court of South Carolina

September 5, 1939

Huger Sinkler, of Charleston, for petitioner.

H L. Erckmann, of Charleston, for respondents.

PER CURIAM.

This is a taxpayer's suit, brought by permission, in the original jurisdiction of the Court to enjoin Charleston High School District, created by Act of the General Assembly approved June 2, 1939, 41 St. at Large, p. 353, from issuing and selling bonds pursuant to the terms of the Act.

The facts in this case are:

The Charleston School District, through its regularly elected or appointed trustees, has been the recognized authority for the operation of all public schools, grammar schools and high schools, within the boundaries of the said Charleston School District, which are coterminous with the territory of the City of Charleston, South Carolina.

The constitutional amendment applicable to the bonds of this School District (approved February 24, 1921, XXXII Stats. 90) reads as follows: "Provided, further, That the limitations imposed by this section shall not apply to the Charleston School District, comprised within the present limits of the city of Charleston, such school district being hereby expressly authorized to vote bonds to an amount not exceeding one million ($1,000,000.00) dollars, the proceeds of such bonds to be applied solely to the erection and maintenance of school buildings in said district, under such restrictions and limitations as the General Assembly may prescribe, and where the question of incurring such indebtedness is submitted to the qualified electors of said school district, as provided in the Constitution, upon the question of bonded indebtedness."

This School District has issued and has outstanding bonds up to one million ($1,000,000) dollars, although there is in the Sinking Fund approximately four hundred thousand ($400,000) dollars.

Substantial sums have been heretofore expended for high schools within the District, to the prevention of making apparently necessary expenditures for the grammar schools; and the Trustees of the District made an investigation of the conditions of the schools and found as a fact that the present facilities are inadequate, deplorable and should be remedied.

The General Assembly by an Act approved June 2, 1939, created the Charleston High School District, having an area coterminous with that of the City of Charleston and with that of the Charleston School District, and authorized said Charleston High School District, by and through its Trustees, to issue and sell bonds up to eight per cent. of the assessed value of the taxable property in said District; that out of the proceeds arising from the sale of said bonds there be paid four hundred thousand ($400,000) dollars to the Charleston School District for certain High School buildings now owned and operated by Charleston School District, and the balance to be used as provided in said Act. It devolves the duty of Trustees of the Charleston High School District upon the Trustees of Charleston School District, and makes the holding of office as a Trustee of Charleston School District as a pre-requisite to the holding of office as a Trustee of Charleston High School District. The operation and maintenance of the present high school system of the Charleston School District are vested in the respondents in their capacities as Trustees of Charleston High School District. The four hundred thousand ($400,000) dollars above referred to is to be received by respondents in their capacity as Trustees of Charleston School District, and is to be expended for the purpose of building additional grammar schools. There is to be appointed for the Charleston High School District a director of business management, who shall be the same person appointed to such office for the Charleston School District, and whose term of office shall be the same, and subject to the same rules and regulations. His compensation as director for Charleston School District is also to cover his services for the Charleston High School District. And throughout the Act, the affairs and management of Charleston School District and Charleston High School District are intertwined.

It appears from the admitted facts that the respondents have met and organized in pursuance with the statute creating Charleston High School District, and have adopted resolutions providing for the issuance of four hundred thousand ($400,000) dollars of bonds for the purpose of taking over the physical high school properties from Charleston School District. In addition, they admit that they contemplate the issuance of additional bonds and, if necessary, up to eight per cent. of the assessed valuation of the taxable property within the School District.

The main attack on the Act under discussion is that the right to issue bonds thereunder is prohibited by the constitutional amendment hereinabove set out, which limits the issuance of bonds to one million ($1,000,000) dollars, and requires the question of incurring such indebtedness to be submitted to the qualified electors of the school district. It appears to be unnecessary that we consider any other question.

Before making disposition of this question, it is well that we state again the settled rule in this State, that before an Act of the Legislaure may be declared unconsitutional, its invalidity must be shown beyond reasonable doubt. In fact, it has been stated that to merely doubt the validity of a statute is to resolve the doubt in favor of its validity. But where its unconstitutionality appears beyond reasonable doubt, it is the duty of ...