George H. Fuller Desk Co. v. McDade
George H. Fuller Desk Co. v. McDade
Opinion of the Court
Action against McDade and the sureties on his official bond given to qualify him for the office of sheriff of the city and county of San Francisco, to which he was elected in November, 1892. The condition of the bond was that he would perform the duties of his office according to law. Plaintiff alleged in its complaint that it was on May 25, 1893, and is now, the owner of certain goods described, of the value of eleven hundred and thirty-two dollars, at that date in the possession of the Carnall-Hopltins Company, a corporation; that on said May 25th McDade, in his capacity of sheriff aforesaid, and acting in virtue of a writ of attachment against the property of said Carnall-Hopltins Company, levied upon and took from its possession the said goods of plaintiff, and detains the same against plaintiff's will, “and notwithstanding that immediately thereafter plaintiff notified said defendant McDade that plaintiff was the owner thereof, and demanded possession thereof. .... That by reason of the wrongful conversion ” of said goods, plaintiff was damaged in the sum of twelve hundred dollars, for wdiich it prayed judgment. Defendants appeal from the judgment entered on a verdict in plaintiff’s favor for the sum of eleven hundred and thirty-two dollars.
Appellants insist that the complaint at best makes a case for the recovery of the property seized, and that the judgment for its value—not as an alternative if delivery cannot be had—is erroneous, for, they say, no conversion of the property is alleged in the complaint. We agree with them that the talcing from the possession of the Carnall-Hopkins Co., the defendant in the writ of
Appellants claim further that the complaint is bad in that it does not allege a demand for the property in the manner and form prescribed by section 689 of the Code of Civil Procedure, as amended in 1891, and in that a cause of action against McDade for a tort is misjoined with a cause of action against his sureties based on their contract. These points have been ruled adversely to their contention in recent decisions. (Brenot v. Robinson, 108 Cal. 143; Bell v. Peck, 104 Cal. 35.)
Searls, C., and Haynes, C., concurred.
For the reasons given in the foregoing opinion, the judgment is affirmed.
McFarland, J., Temple, J., Henshaw, J.
Hearing in Bank denied.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- GEORGE H. FULLER DESK CO. v. JOHN J. McDADE
- Cited By
- 8 cases
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- Published
- Syllabus
- Conversions—Attachment by Sheriff—Possession of Debtor.—The at. tachment by a sheriff of goods in the possession of the attachment debtor, which be has no reason to suppose to be the property of another, is in pursuance of the authority of the writ of attachment, and does not constitute a conversion of the property attached. Id.—Refusal to Surrender to Owner—Notice of Claim—Pleading.— Where facts are stated in a complaint, showing that upon notice of the true owner’s claim, the sheriff refused to surrender to plaintiff as such owner, the possession of property attached in the hands of another person, under a writ of attachment against such person, the complaint states a cause of action for the recovery of the value of the property from the sheriff. Id.—Recital in Pleading—Demurrer—Waiver of Objection.—The objection that facts showing a refusal to surrender possession after notice of plaintiff’s ownership are stated by way of recital rather than directly, is waived by the absence of a special demurrer specifying that fault, and, in such case, the complaint cannot be treated as bad on that account. Id.—Demand for Property—Action against Sheriff and Deputies— Misjoinder.—A complaint showing refusal of the sheriff to surrender possession of property attached after notice of plaintiff’s ownership is not bad in not averring a demand for the property in the manner and form prescribed by section 689 of the Code of Civil Procedure; nor does the fact that the complaint is against the sheriff and the sureties on his official bond to recover the value of the property show any misjoinder of causes of action in tort against the sheriff, and contract of the sureties on his official bond.