Morris v. Nowotny

• Decision Date: 26 March 1959
• Docket Number: No. 10645,10645
• Citation: 323 S.W.2d 301
• Parties: Chester Ray MORRIS, Appellant, v. Arno NOWOTNY et al., Appellees.
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

Page 301

323 S.W.2d 301

Chester Ray MORRIS, Appellant, v. Arno NOWOTNY et al., Appellees.

No. 10645.

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas, Austin.

March 26, 1959.

Rehearing Denied April 15, 1959.

Chester R. Morris per se.

Will Wilson, Atty. Gen., Leonard Passmore, Asst. Atty. Gen., Q. C. Taylor, Kerns B. Taylor, Graves, Dougherty & Gee, Austin, for appellees.

HUGHES, Justice.

Appellant Chester Ray Morris sued the University of Texas, Arno Nowotny, Dean of Student Life, Carl Bredt, Associate Dean of Student Life, Dr. Paul White, Director of the Student Health Center, Dr. Anthony P. Rousos, a member of the medical staff of the Student Health Center, all University of Texas employees, and the Honorable Tom E. Johnson, County Judge of Travis County, '* * * for punitive and exemplary damages for the sum of two hundred thousand ($200,000.00) and costs of suit * * *' for 'false imprisonment, false arrest, libel, violation of civil rights and for being falsely barred from readmission to the University of Texas.'

The Trial Court sustained a motion for summary judgment filed in behalf of Judge Tom E. Johnson and a plea in abatement filed by the University and its employees. Judgment was rendered that appellant 'take nothing' as to Judge Johnson and that the University and its named employees 'go hence without day.'

Appellant has not appealed from the judgment in favor of the University of Texas.

Appellant is not an attorney and he is not represented by counsel herein. All pleadings and briefs of appellant referred to herein were signed by him and by him alone.

We will notice first the action of the Trial Court in rendering summary judgment for Judge Johnson and in so doing we will quote or state the substance of the pleadings as to him.

Appellant plead that while he was in the Travis County jail he was visited by Judge Johnson, Dean Nowotny and Doctors Rousos and White and, we quote from his petition:

'At the conclusion of the visit defendant Johnson said, 'I guess you don't know me, Chester, I am Judge Johnson. It is thought that you should be sent to Austin State Hospital for a period of observation not to exceed ninety days and let them see if they can find anything wrong with you.' Then he turns to defendants Rousos and White and says, 'You gentlemen think he should be sent to Austin State Hospital for observation'. They both shook their heads. 'Oh, Yes'.'

Again we quote the pleading regarding Judge Johnson:

'Defendant Tom E. Johnson did deliberately, maliciously, willingly and knowingly fail to give the plaintiff a fair trial. If defendant Johnson knew why he was asked to make his decision, he received such information in private. The plaintiff never appeared before the judge, defendant Johnson in the court room.

'* * * The plaintiff found a paper signed by defendants, Paul White, Anthony P. Rousos and Tom E. Johnson entitled, 'Testimony--Mental Illness.'

The paper helped to commit plaintiff to Austin State Hospital.'

Appellant alleged that he was arrested January 31, 1956, taken to the Austin State Hospital February 2, 1956 and dismissed March 15, 1956. He also alleged that this confinement was without due process of law and constituted false imprisonment. ¹

Judge Johnson in his motion for summary judgment alleged that he acted solely in his capacity as County Judge of Travis County in the matters about which appellant complains. We quote from his motion:

'Heretofore on the 31st day of January 1956, an Information was duly executed under oath by L. C. Stromquist, was filed with the County Clerk of Travis County, Texas and was brought to the attention of this defendant as County Judge of Travis County. A certified copy of said Information is hereto attached and made a part of this motion. Whereupon on February 1, 1956 this defendant in his official capacity as aforesaid entered an order in Cause No. 1801 entitled 'In the Matter of Chester R. Morris, Mental Illness,' in the County Court of Travis County, Texas, ordering that a hearing on said matter be held in the Travis County Court House at 4:30 P.M. on February 1, 1956, and directing that the Clerk issue to the said Chester R. Morris a notice of said hearing as provided by law. A hearing was held pursuant to the above order in the Travis County Court House at the appointed hour on February 1, 1956. At said hearing two reputable physicians authorized by law to practice medicine in the State of Texas, neither of whom is on the staff of any Texas State Hospital, and each of whom had examined the said Chester R. Morris within the preceding five days of said hearing, gave testimony under oath as stated in Exhibit 'B' attached hereto and made a part of this motion.

'III

'At the conclusion of said hearing this defendant, in his capacity as County Judge of Travis County, entered an order in said Cause No. 1801 temporarily committing the said Chester R. Morris to the Austin State Hospital as authorized by law. A certified copy of said order of temporary commital is hereto attached, marked Exhibit 'C' and is made a part of this motion.

'IV

'This defendant further says that all actions taken by this defendant concerning the matters referred to in plaintiff's petition were taken by him in obedience to what this defendant, in his judicial capacity, conceived to be required by the applicable law of the State of Texas, particularly House Bill 126, of the 45th Legislature, approved May 5, 1937; Acts of 1937, 45 Legislature, pages 542-545, Chapter 268, also known as Article 3193o-1, Vernon's Civil Statutes of Texas, Annotated.'

We will not copy the exhibits referred to by Judge Johnson since no objection has been raised as to their sufficiency in form. We will say that we have examined such exhibits and that they appear to be regular and valid in all respects. We also note that the doctors executing the affidavit referred to by Judge Johnson were appellees Doctors White and Rousos.

We quote, in full, appellant's answer to Judge Johnson's motion for summary judgment:

'The plaintiff never received the Notice of Hearing to be held in the court room of the Travis County Courthouse at 4:30 PM, February 1, 1956, which defendant Tom E. Johnson alleges he directed the clerk issue to the plaintiff. The plaintiff could have easily been served with notice of hearing since he was confined in jail at Travis County Courthouse on February 1, 1956.

'II

'The plaintiff was not present at said hearing if any in the court room of the Travis County Courthouse at 4:30 PM. February 1, 1956, nor was he represented by counsel.

'III

'The visit of defendants Johnson, Nowotny, Rousos and White to the plaintiff at his cell on February 1, 1956 did not constitute a legal hearing and did not constitute court.'

Judge Johnson asserted and the record conclusively shows that in all matters relating to appellant and about which he complains that he, Judge Johnson, was acting in a judicial capacity and under the authority specifically conferred upon him as County Judge by Art. 3193o-1, V.A.C.S., repealed by Acts 1957, 55th Leg. p. 505, relating to the temporary commitment of persons thought to be mentally ill.

That there may or may not have been procedural errors in the commitment of appellant is not material in this case. A judge is simply not civilly responsible in damages for his errors or mistakes. As to this the law has long been well settled. The general rule is stated in 25 Tex.Jur. p. 254, as follows:

'Under the broad principles applicable to public officers generally, a judge is not civilly liable for acts performed in the exercise of his judicial functions, even though they were wilful or malicious.'

The first case decided by our courts involving this question was Rains v. Simpson, 1878, 50 Tex. 495, where an elaborate discussion is found. The court there quoted from Chief Justice Kent writing in Yates v. Lansing, 5 Johns., N.Y., 282, in, part, as follows:

'Whenever we subject the established courts of the land to the degradation of a private prosecution, we subdue their independence and destroy their authority. Instead of being venerable before the public, they become contemptible; and we thereby embolden the licentious to trample upon everything sacred in society, and to overturn those institutions which have hitherto been deemed the best guardians of civil liberty.'

The latest case noticed on this subject is Griffin v. Connally, D.C.S.D.Tex., 1955, 127 F.Supp. 203. This case is in accord with these principles.

We entertain no doubt but that the summary judgment in favor of Judge Johnson was properly rendered.

We now undertake to summarize or quote from appellant's petition its allegations which relate to Doctors White and Rousos and Deans Nowotny and Bredt:

'On January 31, 1956, defendant Carl Bredt, stating that he was acting under instructions from defendant Arno Nowotny, did order plaintiff to stay off the property of the University of Texas. This was ordering the plaintiff to stay off state property at times of the day when this property was supposed to be open to the public. Defendant Carl Bredt gave plaintiff no reason for his request to stay off University property. When plaintiff did refuse to obey orders, defendant Carl Bredt did have two University of Texas police arrest plaintiff in less than 15 minutes after he left defendant Bredt's office. The police carried plaintiff to defendant Bredt who says, 'I told you to stay off University property.' The plaintiff replied, 'I told you I was not going to do it.' The plaintiff was later accused of trying to fight. This was not true. The plaintiff was making gestures.'

After pleading that he was placed in jail appellant alleged:

'The plaintiff was given solitary confinement at the court house jail. This also served to keep the arrest of the plaintiff a secret and prevent him from receiving assistance. Defendant Paul White pretended to be a friend of the plaintiff and visited the plaintiff at the court house jail....