State v. Rockdale Associates, Inc.
| Decision Date | 05 April 1966 |
| Docket Number | No. 1190,1190 |
| Citation | 218 A.2d 718,125 Vt. 495 |
| Parties | STATE of Vermont v. ROCKDALE ASSOCIATES, INC. |
| Court | Vermont Supreme Court |
John P. Connarn, Atty. Gen., Montpelier, for plaintiff.
Thomas P. Salmon, John A. Lowery, Bellows Falls, for defendant.
Before HOLDEN, C. J., and SHANGRAW, BARNEY, SMITH and KEYSER, JJ.
An original information was brought before the Windham County Court on October 5, 1965 alleging that 'Rockdale Associates, Inc., a Massachusetts Corporation, registered to do business in the State of Vermont, with a place of business in Westminster, in the County of Windham, did then and there, between twelve o'clock Saturday night, August 21, 1965, and twelve o'clock Sunday night, August 22, 1965, conduct a secular business in violation of Title 13, V.S.A. 3301, by then and there selling merchandise, to wit, one nightgown.'
The defendant was arraigned on October 6, 1965 on the aforesaid information and entered a plea of 'Not Guilty.'
The statute, which defendant is alleged to have violated is Title 13 V.S.A. § 3301 entitled 'Sunday Business and Entertainment' and is quoted below:
'(a) A person shall not, between twelve o'clock Saturday night and twelve o'clock the following Sunday night, exercise any secular business or employment, except works of necessity and charity, nor engage in any dance, nor shall a person operate, promote or engage in any play, game, sport or entertainment, except winter and water sports, tennis, bowling, golf or horse shows during such hours which disturb the public peace or for which any compensation is received, directly or indirectly, except as follows:
(1) As otherwise provided in this chapter;
(2) Articles of food may be sold, served, supplied and delivered at any time of the day;
(3) Prepared tobacco, ice, sodas and soft drinks, ice cream, flowers, confectionery, souvenirs, antiques, baskets, newspapers, magazines, prescriptions, patent medicines, drugs, hospital supplies and locally made products may be sold and delivered, and real estate may be shown but not sold and fishing, hunting and other licenses may be sold at any time of the day;
(4) The sale of gasoline, grease, oil and other petroleum products to operators of motor vehicles, motorcycles, motorboats and aircraft may be made at any time during the day and making of repairs, including the sale of repair parts to motor vehicles, motorcycles, motorboats and aircraft so as to permit such vehicles to proceed under their own power and the towing of any such vehicle unable to proceed under its own power shall be permitted at any time during the day, but the sale of motor vehicles, motorcycles, boats, motorboats, outboard motors and aircraft is prohibited;
(5) The sale and rental of skiing, skating, golf, fishing, tennis, trap shooting, bowling, swimming and water skiing equipment, boats, motorboats and outboard motors, within ten airline miles of areas devoted to such sports shall be permitted at any time during the day but such sale shall not be permitted at any other place;
(6) The operation of any public utility which is subject to regulation by the public service board shall be permitted.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, any secular place of business not otherwise prohibited by law may be operated between twelve o'clock Saturday night and twelve o'clock the following Sunday night if the natural person managing or in control of the management of the place of business conscientiously believes that the seventh day of the week or the period which begins at sundown on Friday night and ends at sundown on Saturday night should be observed as the Sabbath, and causes all places of business in Vermont which he manages or over which he has control to remain closed for secular business during the entire period of twenty-four consecutive hours which he believes should be observed as the Sabbath.-Amended 1961, No. 273, eff. Aug. 1, 1961.'
The States Attorney and the defendant requested the Windham County Court to pass the cause to this Court for determination of certain questions of law, before final judgment, upon a stipulated statement of facts, in accordance with the provisions of 12 V.S.A. § 2386. The request was granted and four questions have been certified to this Court by the Windham County Court for our determination before the entry of judgment below:
'(1) Is VSA 3301(a)(3), excepting the sale of locally made products from the provisions of the act, null, void, and unconstitutional by reason of imposing an undue burden on Interstate Commerce in violation of Article I, Sec. 8, Clause 3 of the Constitution of the United State?
(2) Does 12 VSA 3301(a)(3) deny the Defendant equal protection of the law under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States in permitting the sale of locally made goods?
(3) Does 13 VSA 3301(a)(5) deny the Defendant the equal protection of the laws under the Fourteenth Amendment creating preferred classifications and discriminating as to one group of retailers to the detriment of others?
(4) Are provisions of 13 VSA 3301(b) essentially religious in character, thereby constituting a law respecting an establishment of religion in violation of Article I of the United States Constitution made applicable to the States by the Fourteenth Amendment?'
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State v. Shop and Save Food Markets, Inc., 262-79
...businesses is a suggested justification. Such protectionism, also, is not a permissible state objective. State v. Rockdale Associates, 125 Vt. 495, 499, 218 A.2d 718, 721 (1966); see Olan Mills, Inc. v. City of Barre, 123 Vt. 478, 486, 194 A.2d 385, 389 Search has revealed no permissible st......
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Retail Merchants Ass'n of Houston, Inc. v. Handy Dan Hardware, Inc.
...producers selling goods in Texas, violates the interstate commerce clause of the United States Constitution. Cf. State v. Rockdale Assoc., Inc., 125 Vt. 495, 218 A.2d 718 (exemption for local producers allowing Sunday sales where out-of-state producers could not sell on Sunday held unconsti......
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State v. Ludlow Supermarkets, Inc.
...we are called upon to review the enactment as presently constituted. This new statute, like its predecessors in State v. Rockdale Associates, 125 Vt. 495, 218 A.2d 718 (1966), State v. Giant of St. Albans, Inc., supra; and State v. Shop and Save Food Markets, Inc., 138 Vt. 332, 415 A.2d 235......
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State v. Elwell
...any answer from this Court must be given in the light of the factual situation in the case out of which it arises. State v. Rockdale, 125, Vt. 495, 498, 218 A.2d 718. Abstract questions are not to be answered in this kind of proceeding. Powers v. State Highway Board, 123 Vt. 1, 5, 178 A.2d ......
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Gillies No Title
...Two Guys from Harrison-Allentown,Inc. v. McGinley, 366 U.S. 582 (1961); andBraunfeld v. Brown, 366 U.S. 599 (1961). 51 State v. Rockdale, 125 Vt. 495, 218, A.2d 718(1966). 52 Giant of St. Albans, 128 Vt. 539, 268 A.2d 739(1970). 53 Id. 268 A.2d at 742. 54 Ludlow Supermarkets, 141 Vt. 261, 4......