White v. Com ex rel. Feck
| Decision Date | 01 March 1957 |
| Citation | 299 S.W.2d 618 |
| Parties | Robert D. WHITE, Appellant, v. COMMONWEALTH ex rel. Jean FECK, Appellee. |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court — District of Kentucky |
Beverly White, Winchester, George E. Barker, Lexington, for appellant.
Jo M. Ferguson, Atty. Gen., Earle V. Powell, Asst. Atty. Gen., R. R. Craft, Commonwealth's Atty., J. Smith Hays, Jr., Winchester, for appellee.
CLAY, Commissioner.
In a bastardy proceeding in the county court, upon a jury verdict, appellant was adjudged to pay the child's mother $35 a month for 9 years, and $50 a month for 9 succeeding years. He attempted, in forma pauperis, to appeal to the circuit court as authorized by KRS 23.030(2). His appeal was dismissed on the sole ground that he did not execute the performance bond required by CR 72.01.
We have held that a bastardy proceeding is civil in nature, and therefore the rules of civil procedure govern the method of taking an appeal. Commonwealth ex rel. Baker v. Bondie, 277 Ky. 207, 126 S.W.2d 148. In West v. Shepherd's Committee, 127 Ky. 323, 105 S.W. 419, we recognized that Section 726 of the Civil Code of Practice (requiring a trial de novo) applied to appeals in bastardy proceedings. Section 724, governing the manner of taking appeals, would likewise have been applicable, and since CR 72.01 incorporates the provisions of this Civil Code section, it has the same force and effect. KRS 447.151; KRS 477.156.
On its face CR 72.01 prescribes the procedure for taking appeals from the county court to the circuit court in all civil cases, unless otherwise provided by statute. See KRS 25.070. It requires the execution of a bond 'to the effect that the appellant will satisfy and perform the judgment that shall be rendered upon the appeal * * *' (our emphasis) as a condition precedent to taking such appeal. We are of the opinion that this requirement was not intended to apply to bastardy proceedings for the reason that it would effectively deny a party the right of appeal granted by staute. KRS 23.030(2).
A bastardy proceeding is unique. While it is civil in nature, it has a criminal aspect. In addition, the judgment of the county court in such a case may creat a very substantial civil libility. In the present case the liability imposed on appellant exceeds $9,000.
The legislature specifically authorizes an appeal in a bastardy proceeding. Unless the conditions of such appeal are reasonable, the defendant is effectively denied this right. See Oertel v. Louisville & Jefferson County Planning & Zoning Commission, Ky., 251 S.W.2d 275; White v. Commonwealth, Ky., 287 S.W.2d 625. As we have heretofore mentioned, the potential liability of defendant under the county court judgment is $9,000. He is a pauper. Looking at the realities...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Perry v. Com., ex rel. Kessinger
...law" will be utilized. Such law in a civil case, as already recognized by the Kentucky Court of Appeals in White v. Commonwealth ex rel. Feck, Ky., 299 S.W.2d 618 (1957), includes the Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure, and thus CR 35.01. In 1964 when the General Assembly adopted the Uniform......
-
Pendleton v. Com. ex rel. Rawlins
...Goldy v. Commonwealth, 289 Ky. 613, 159 S.W.2d 989. The Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure govern such a proceeding. CR 1; White v. Commonwealth, Ky., 299 S.W.2d 618. The method of taking an appeal in a civil proceeding from a judgment of the county court is set forth in CR 72. A certified c......
-
Stathis v. Farmers Bank & Capital Trust Co.
...from that provided in other cases generally, and for obviously different reasons.' It is true also that in White v. Commonwealth ex rel. Feck, Ky., 299 S.W.2d 618 (1957), a bastardy rpoceeding, we held the execution of a bond on appeal was not essential, but we wrote, 'One of the reasons gi......
-
Com. ex rel. Murphy v. Morehead
... ... This matter of appeal from the actions of the county court in bastardy proceedings has twice been before this court. In White v. Commonwealth ex rel. Feck, ... Ky., 299 S.W.2d 618, we held that a bastardy proceeding is civil in nature and, therefore, the civil rules of ... ...