Townley v. Hartsfield

• Citation: 168 S.W. 140
• Decision Date: 01 June 1914
• Docket Number: (No. 15.)
• Parties: TOWNLEY v. HARTSFIELD.
• Court: Supreme Court of Arkansas

168 S.W. 140

TOWNLEY v. HARTSFIELD.

(No. 15.)

Supreme Court of Arkansas.

June 1, 1914.

Appeal from Circuit Court, Sebastian County, Greenwood District; Daniel Hon, Judge.

Proceeding by Virgil Townley against W. A. Hartsfield. Judgment for defendant, and plaintiff appeals. Affirmed.

At the general election in 1910 Frank Irvin was elected road overseer of Center township in the Greenwood district of Sebastian county, Ark. The statute provides that his term of office shall be the same as that for township and county officers. See Act No. 177, Acts 1905, approved April 18, 1905. Irvin entered upon the discharge of his duties as such road overseer, and continued in said office until his death, some time in October, 1912. At the general election held in 1912 he was again elected to the office of road overseer. He died before his first term expired, and on the 29th day of October, 1912, the county judge of Sebastian county appointed Virgil Townley to fill the vacancy caused by his death. In November, 1912, a new county judge having come into office, W. A. Hartsfield was appointed road overseer for said township; and the latter qualified and entered upon the discharge of the duties of said office. This is a proceeding by Virgil Townley against W. A. Hartsfield to try the title to said office. The decision of the lower court was in favor of Hartsfield, and Townley has appealed.

Jesse A. Harp, of Ft. Smith, for appellant. Pryor & Miles, of Ft. Smith, for appellee.

HART, J. (after stating the facts as above).

It will be noted from the statement of facts that Irvin died while he was serving his first term and before his new term had commenced. The general rule is that, if the deceased was himself the incumbent of the office and was elected to succeed himself, a vacancy is created in the first term by his death; but, by the weight of authority, at the commencement of the second term no new vacancy arises, and the appointee for the balance of the first term holds over until the election and qualification of his successor. State v. Speidel, 62 Ohio St. 156, 56 N. E. 871; State v. Elliott, 13 Utah, 471, 45 Pac. 346. See, also, People v. Lord, 9 Mich. 227. That is to say, when one who is holding an office, and who has been elected to succeed himself, dies before entering upon the new term, a vacancy is thereby created in the term in which he was serving, but not in the new term for which he has been elected and upon which he has not entered. Therefore the one who is duly appointed and qualified to fill the vacancy thus created will hold the office for and during the unexpired term of the predecessor and until his successor has been elected or appointed and qualified in the manner provided by law.

It is not disputed by counsel for Hartsfield that Townley's appointment was valid, but it is claimed that his term ended when Hartsfield was appointed in November,...