Supreme Court of Alabama, 1931

Barrow v. City of Bessemer

Barrow v. City of Bessemer
Supreme Court of Alabama · Decided December 17, 1931 · Brown, Anderson, Thomas, Knight
138 So. 553; 224 Ala. 48; 1931 Ala. LEXIS 26 (Southern Reporter)

Barrow v. City of Bessemer

Opinion of the Court

BROWN, J.

The ordinance under which Barrow was prosecuted levies a license tax against persons, firms, or corporations engaged in the business of manufacturing or bottling soft drinks, or their agents, within the corporate limits of the city of Bessemer, using the method of bottling as a basis for classification.

Applying the rule of strict construction, it is clear that selling and delivering the product is not within the purview of the ordinance. This differentiates this case from Town of Guntersville v. Wright, 223 Ala. 349, 135 So. 634, and the cases therein cited.

On the facts stated by the Court of Appeals in its opinion, the ease was properly disposed of by that court, and the writ of certiorari is due to be denied.

Writ denied.

ANDERSON, O. J., and THOMAS and KNIGHT, JJ., concur.

Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.