Huffstutler v. Edge, 4 Div. 587

• Court: Supreme Court of Alabama
• Writing for the Court: FOSTER; SIMPSON; LAWSON
• Citation: 254 Ala. 102,47 So.2d 197
• Decision Date: 01 June 1950
• Docket Number: 4 Div. 587
• Parties: HUFFSTUTLER v. EDGE.

Page 197

47 So.2d 197 254 Ala. 102 HUFFSTUTLER
v.
EDGE. 4 Div. 587. Supreme Court of Alabama. June 1, 1950.
Rehearing Denied June 30, 1950.

Page 198

Clayton & LeMaistre, of Clayton, and J. Terry Huffstulter, pro se., for petitioner.

Crews Johnston, of Clayton, opposed.

FOSTER, Justice.

On certiorari to the Court of Appeals, in which they affirmed a judgment against appellant rendered by the Circuit Court of Barbour County, without a jury, in a suit for malicious prosecution.

[254 Ala. 103] Whether there was probable cause for appellant to believe that Edge had stolen any of the property mentioned in the indictment was a question of law when the facts became certain. When there is a conflict in the evidence as to material facts relevant to that issue, a finding of the facts on that basis is one of fact not of law. But the legal effect of such finding on the issue of probable cause is one of law for the court and not one of fact. Molton Realty Co. v. Murchison, 212 Ala. 561, 103 So. 651; McMullen v. Daniel, 229 Ala. 194, 155 So. 687; Brackin v. Reynolds, 239 Ala. 419, 194 So. 876; Green v. Norton, 233 Ala. 489, 172 So. 634.

This case was tried without a jury, so that the trial judge was due to find the facts from conflicting evidence and then determine as a matter of law whether those facts show an absence of probable cause. On appeal to the Court of Appeals from a judgment of the trial court holding that there was an absence of probable cause, the Court of Appeals was due to review the conclusions of fact as it would the verdict of a jury. It would not reverse the trial court on its conclusions of fact unless contrary to the great weight of the evidence.

But the legal effect of such conclusions being one of law is not benefited by any presumption that it is correct.

In this case, the trial court did not make a finding of fact in terms, so far as the Court of Appeals advises us, but having rendered a judgment for plaintiff must have held that the facts did not show probable cause. On appeal to the Court of Appeals that court drew certain conclusions of fact from the evidence. It also set out the substance of the evidence on which such conclusions were based. On certiorari to that court inferences or conclusions from

Page 199

the evidence will not be disturbed if they are not wholly unreasonable and arbitrary, although the evidence is set out. Reichert Milling Co. v. George, 230 Ala. 589, 162 So. 402; Sinclair Refining Co. v. Robertson, 247 Ala. 260, 23 So.2d 872.

Although probable cause in such a case as this may in a sense be said to be an inference from established facts, it has been definitely classed as one of law and not of fact.

There was not much material conflict in the evidence insofar as it affected the question of probable cause. Having found that it showed an absence of probable cause, we will assume that the Court of Appeals accepted as true the version of Edge in such matters of conflict.

Edge on a Sunday went to the place of the mining operations of appellant in Barbour County, where he had been operating as an independent contractor for appellant, and loaded on his own trucks a lot of machinery and supplies. He had left the job several weeks before because he could not make a success of it. He owned the machinery at one time. Whether he had sold it to appellant was disputed. He claimed he had not done so. Appellant claimed he had. He was moving it to Calhoun County where he had a contract. He also included some supplies which he did not own, but which belonged to appellant. He did this loading openly, apparently under the observation of appellant's employees on the job. He left the next morning with it after the loading was done on Sunday. There was nothing about his conduct that looked like stealing. He claimed the machinery was his own. While the supplies were not claimed by him, there was nothing stealthy about the act of taking them.

Appellant presented the matter to the solicitor of Barbour County. He was not enthusiastic an offense of...