Beam v. Hart
Beam v. Hart
Opinion of the Court
Gary Beam appeals from the dismissal of his complaint challenging the result of a mayoral election in the City of Arab. We affirm.
Beam and Johnny H. Hart were opposing candidates in the mayoral race. On September 15, 2000, Hart was declared the winner, by a five-vote margin. On September 18, Beam filed a contest of the election, alleging that illegal absentee ballots had been counted. Seven days later, on September 25, Beam filed his bond as security for costs. On October 2, the circuit court dismissed the complaint, on the ground that the bond was not timely filed, as required by § 17-15-29, Ala.Code 1975. Beam appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court, and that court transferred the appeal to this court, pursuant to § 12-2-7(6), Ala.Code 1975.
This municipal election contest is governed by § 11-46-69, Ala.Code 1975. That section provides, in pertinent part:
“Any contest ... must be commenced within five days after the result of the election is declared. Such contest shall be instituted in the manner prescribed by Section 17-15-29.”
Section 17-15-29, dealing with contesting the election of a municipal officer, provides, in pertinent part:
“[T]he party contesting must file in the office of the clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the election was held, a statement in writing, verified by affidavit, of the grounds of the contest as provided in this article and must give good and sufficient security for the costs of the contest, to be approved by the clerk.”
Beam claims that the circuit clerk failed, until that day, to set the amount of his bond as required by § 17-15-29. He argues that unless an election contestant is notified of the amount of the bond he must file, he cannot comply with the statutory requirement to give “good and sufficient security for costs.” Dobbins v. City of Anniston, supra, presented a similar situation, yet our supreme court held that the election contest was untimely. Beam invites us to overrule Dobbins, which, of course, we have no authority to do. See § 12-3-16, Ala.Code 1975.
The judgment of the circuit court is affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.