Pupa v. Thompson

Decision Date15 August 1975
Docket NumberNo. 74-2505,74-2505
Citation517 F.2d 693
PartiesBenjamin PUPA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Ronnie THOMPSON, Mayor of the City of Macon, et al., Defendants-Appellants.
CourtU.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

Manley F. Brown, H. T. O'Neal, Jr., Lamar W. Sizemore, Jr., Macon, Ga., for defendants-appellants.

Carl J. Wilson, Jr., Macon, Ga., for plaintiff-appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia.

Before COLEMAN, MORGAN and CLARK, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM:

On January 24, 1973, this Court decided Block v. Thompson, 5 Cir., 1973, 472 F.2d 587. We there held that an Ordinance of the City of Macon, Georgia, dealing with the transfer of liquor licenses from one place to another fell short of the standards required by Hornsby v. Allen, 5 Cir., 1964, 326 F.2d 605.

The Block opinion concluded as follows:

"But although we hold this invalid on this record, this is a long way from reversing with directions to enter a mandatory order. For the right of the state to regulate liquor is broad, Mayhue's Super Liquor Store, Inc. v. Meiklejohn, 5 Cir., 1970, 426 F.2d 142; California v. LaRue, 1972, 409 U.S. 109, 93 S.Ct. 390, 34 L.Ed.2d 342, and the city of Macon should have an opportunity of enacting within a reasonable time 4 to be fixed by the Judge, an ordinance which will pass the Hornsby muster as to criteria and suitable hearing. We cannot forecast either the outcome under the new ordinance or its adequacy in a constitutional sense. That must be for another day and if Macon does the job right, hopefully that day will never come."

The record in the instant case fails to show that the District Court set a deadline for the enactment of a new ordinance nor was there any policing of "good faith" compliance as set forth in Block. 1

In October, 1973, Pupa petitioned the Mayor and Council of Macon to allow him to transfer his liquor license from downtown Macon to Napier Avenue. On October 30, the petition was denied because of objections from residents of the neighborhood. On March 16, 1974, the petition for transfer to a nearby location was approved by a 9 to 5 vote of the Council. The Mayor announced his intention to veto the approval but did not, in fact, veto it because the court below took action before the veto could be entered. Dohn, a Councilman, was not present on March 16 but he announced that had he been present he would have voted against approving the transfer.

On April 16, 1974, the Court mandatorily enjoined the Mayor and Councilmen to issue the desired transfer not later than 5 o'clock of that day. This order was promptly complied with.

On April 26, the Court considered the matter of allowing attorney fees to Pupa. It allowed one-half of a $500 fee against the Councilmen who had voted against the transfer in October. The other...

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2 cases
  • Perkins State Bank v. Connolly
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (5th Circuit)
    • December 19, 1980
    ...421 U.S. 240, 258-59 (, 95 S.Ct. 1612, 1622, 44 L.Ed.2d 141) (1975); Carter v. Noble, 526 F.2d 677 (5th Cir. 1976); Pupa v. Thompson, 517 F.2d 693 (5th Cir. 1975); Fairley v. Patterson, 493 F.2d 598 (5th Cir. 1974); 6 Moore's Federal Practice P 54.77(2), at 1709 (2d ed. Unpublished Memorand......
  • Schiff v. Williams, 74-2205
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (5th Circuit)
    • September 17, 1975
    ...can bring the court's action within any traditional exception permitted by Alyeska. It therefore must be vacated. See Pupa v. Thompson, 517 F.2d 693 (5th Cir. 1975). The awards of nominal compensatory damages and back pay are affirmed. The award of attorneys' fees is Affirmed in part and re......

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