Pennington v. STATE EX REL. JUD. SYSTEM

• Decision Date: 27 February 2002
• Docket Number: No. 21910.,21910.
• Parties: PENNINGTON COUNTY, a political Subdivision of the State of South Dakota, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. STATE of South Dakota, Acting by and Through the UNIFIED JUDICIAL SYSTEM; D.J. Hanson, in his Official Capacity as Acting State Court Administrator; and Jeffrey Krattenmaker, in his Official Capacity as Court Administrator for the Seventh Judicial Circuit Court, Defendant and Appellees.
• Court: South Dakota Supreme Court

641 N.W.2d 127

2002 SD 31

PENNINGTON COUNTY, a political Subdivision of the State of South Dakota, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. STATE of South Dakota, Acting by and Through the UNIFIED JUDICIAL SYSTEM; D.J. Hanson, in his Official Capacity as Acting State Court Administrator; and Jeffrey Krattenmaker, in his Official Capacity as Court Administrator for the Seventh Judicial Circuit Court, Defendant and Appellees.

No. 21910.

Supreme Court of South Dakota.

Argued on November 14, 2001.

Decided February 27, 2002.

James S. Nelson and David E. Lust of Gunderson, Palmer, Goodsell & Nelson, Rapid City, Attorneys for plaintiff and appellant.

Thomas J. Welk and Lisa Hansen Marso of Boyce, Murphy, McDowell & Greenfield, Sioux Falls, Attorneys for defendant and appellees. GORS, Acting Justice.

[¶ 1.] Pennington County sued the State of South Dakota Unified Judicial System (State) for a judgment declaring that the county did not have to provide space for court services in the courthouse or that the State had to pay for the space. The trial court ruled in favor of the State and the county filed this appeal. We vacate the judgment and dismiss the action.

FACTS

[¶ 2.] Pennington County, South Dakota, is the second most populous county in the state. It has a large courthouse which more than doubled in size in 1991 to meet the expanding need for courtrooms, the clerk of courts and court services. The county also built a new jail next to the courthouse. There are five circuit judges and three magistrate judges in the Pennington County Courthouse plus their court administrator, secretaries, law clerk and court reporters. In addition, the courthouse contains the clerk of courts office, eighteen court services officers and clerical staff. The judges also serve Custer and Fall River Counties which, together with Pennington County, make up the Seventh Judicial Circuit. County offices are also located in the courthouse, including the register of deeds, auditor, treasurer and others. The state's attorney and the sheriff are located immediately adjacent to the courthouse in a public safety building which also houses the Rapid City police department.

[¶ 3.] In 2000, the county determined that it needed more room for law enforcement and the state's attorney, and the county commission concluded that court services should vacate the courthouse or pay rent. In July of 2000, the county requested that the State remove court services from the courthouse. The State declined. The county sued the State (and the State Court Administrator and the Seventh Circuit Court Administrator in their official capacities) seeking a declaratory judgment that the county did not have to provide space for court services in the courthouse or that the State had to pay for the space.

[¶ 4.] This Court's previous Chief Justice appointed the Honorable Rodney J. Steele, a circuit court judge from Brookings, to avoid having a local judge, who might be interested in the outcome, decide the case. After a court trial, Judge Steele ruled in favor of the State and Pennington County appeals.

[¶ 5.] Court services officers conduct adult presentence investigations, SDCL 23A-27-5, and juvenile home studies, SDCL 26-7A-88, and supervise adults, SDCL 23A-27-12, 23A-27-12.1, 23A-27-13 and 23A-27-18.2, and juveniles who are placed on probation, SDCL 26-8B-6, or who are diverted from formal proceedings, SDCL 26-7A-10(3). Court services officers perform an integral part of the court functions. Hansen v. Kjellsen, 2002 SD 1, ¶ 9, 638 N.W.2d 548, 550 (citing Dorman v. Higgins, 821 F.2d 133, 137 (2d Cir.1987); Shelton v. McCarthy, 699 F.Supp. 412, 413 (W.D.N.Y.1988)).

[¶ 6.] Currently, court services is located in the courthouse in every county in South Dakota except Beadle County (Huron), where court services is located next door in the annex.¹ Prior to 1991, due to lack of space in the Pennington County courthouse, court services and a circuit judge were located at the juvenile detention center, which was more than a mile from the courthouse. Location of hearings, warrants for failure to appear, processing difficulties, delays in presentence reports and difficulty collecting restitution and fines resulted in the establishment of a planning committee to examine the space issues. The planning committee recommended, and the Pennington County Commissioners voted, to build an annex to the courthouse and to place court services on the second floor. Construction started in 1988 and the annex was occupied by 1991. Court services has remained in the annex to this date.

[¶ 7.] The legislature has previously spoken through appropriations regarding court services. Since unification of the judicial system in 1975, the legislature has appropriated money to pay for salaries, expenses, equipment and supplies for circuit courts and court services but has not appropriated any money to pay for any space. The legislature in its wisdom and within its authority has left it to the counties to provide and pay for space for courts and court services as counties have done throughout the entire history of the State. If the legislature wanted the State to pay all sixty-four counties for the space provided to court services, it could have said so in no uncertain terms and appropriated the money to pay the rent.

[¶ 8.] Both before and after court unification in 1975, it has been well understood that the counties provided and paid for space for courts and court services. Although there is no specific statute requiring the county to pay, custom and usage, while not determinative, is instructive in this case. Until 1983, counties were not only expected to provide space, but they were also expected to pay a share of the overall cost of the court system. See 1974 SD Sess.Law ch. 158. Then in 1983, counties were given a credit for the space provided. 1983 SD Sess.Law ch. 162 § 5. When the counties' share of the cost of the court system was phased out, the credit was repealed, too. 1985 SD Sess.Law ch. 164. However, repealing the credit did nothing to repeal the requirement to provide the space; there was just nothing to credit it against anymore.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

[¶ 9.] Jurisdiction may be raised at any time. Devitt v. Hayes, 1996 SD 71, ¶ 6, 551 N.W.2d 298, 300. This Court may raise issues of jurisdiction sua sponte. Weins v. Sporleder, 2000 SD 10, ¶ 8, 605 N.W.2d 488, 490

; Bohlmann v. Lindquist, 1997 SD 42, ¶ 10, 562 N.W.2d 578, 580; State v. Phipps, 406 N.W.2d 146, 148 (S.D.1987). Questions of jurisdiction are reviewed de novo. White Eagle v. City of Fort Pierre, 2000 SD 34, ¶ 4, 606 N.W.2d 926, 928; Risse v. Meeks, 1998 SD 112, ¶ 10, 585 N.W.2d 875, 876; State v. Vandermay, 478 N.W.2d 289, 290 (S.D. 1991).

ANALYSIS AND DECISION

[¶ 10.] In the United States, the individual states have all authority except that which they have delegated to the federal government or prohibited to themselves. US Const art 1 §§ 8, 10; McDonald v. Sch. Bd. of Yankton Ind. Sch. Dist. No. 1, 90 S.D. 599, 606, 246 N.W.2d 93, 97 (S.D.1976) (citing Kramar v. Bon Homme County, 83 S.D. 112, 115, 155 N.W.2d 777, 778 (1968)). The states have created local government entities such as counties, townships and cities to do the states' work at the local level. These subordinate arms of the State have only that authority specifically given by the state legislature. SDConst art IX § 1. "[A county] has only such powers as are expressly conferred upon it by statute and such as may be reasonably implied from those expressly granted." State v. Quinn, 2001 SD 25, ¶ 10, 623 N.W.2d 36, 38 (citing State ex rel. Jacobsen v. Hansen, 75 S.D. 476, 478, 68 N.W.2d 480, 481 (1955) (citations omitted)). Counties, like cities, lack inherent authority and derive their power from the legislature. See City of Marion v. Schoenwald, 2001 SD 95, ¶ 6, 631 N.W.2d 213, 216

; Welsh v. Centerville Township, 1999 SD 73, ¶ 10, 595 N.W.2d 622, 625; Donovan v. City of Deadwood, 538 N.W.2d 790, 792 (S.D.1995) (citations omitted). A county is a public corporation which exists only for public purposes connected with the administration of state government. County of Tripp v. State, 264 N.W.2d 213, 218 (S.D.1978). A county and its revenues are subject to state legislative control where there is no express contrary restriction.²

Id. at 218 (citing Slutts v. Dana, 138 Iowa 244, 115 N.W. 1115 (1908)).

[¶ 11.] The primary purpose of a courthouse is for court. State ex rel. Hottle v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 52 Ohio St.2d 117, 370 N.E.2d 462, 464 (1977)

. The primary purpose is the reason the building is called a courthouse.³ Pennington County agrees that the court should be in the courthouse and that court services is an arm of the court. The questions are whether court services should be in the courthouse with the court and who must pay for the space.

[¶ 12.] The State argues that the UJS has the inherent power to compel the county to provide space in the courthouse at county expense. However, we do not determine whether the UJS has inherent authority to require the county to provide space in the courthouse at county expense.

[¶ 13.] Article II of the South Dakota Constitution declares that the powers of the State government are divided into three distinct departments, the legislative, executive and judicial. The judicial department is now designated as the UJS. Therefore, this action, while in part being designated by the county as against the UJS and two of its administrators, who are sued only in their official capacity, is in reality a suit against the State itself.

[¶ 14.] The State is immune from suit unless it consents. Wilson v. Hogan, 473 N.W.2d 492, 494 (S.D.1991). The legislature may designate "in what manner and in what courts suits may be brought against the state." SD Const art III, § 27. "The State may also waive sovereign immunity by legislative enactment identifying the conditions under which lawsuits of a specified type would be permitted." Wilson, 473...