Mullen v. Peck
Mullen v. Peck
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiff, Margaret Mullen, having recovered a judgment against George Clemens, for damages resulting from the unlawful sale, by him, of intoxicating liquors to her husband, brought the action below, to subject the premises occupied by Clemens when the sales were made, to the payment of her judgment; the premises then being the property of the defendants below, who, it is alleged, permitted them to be used for the sale of intoxicating liquors thereon.
The action was brought under section 4364, of the Revised Statutes, which reads as follows : “If a person rent or lease to another, any building or premises to be used or occupied, in whole or in part, for the sale of intoxicating liquors, or permit the same to be so used or occupied, in whole or in part, such building or premises so leased, used or occupied, shall be held liable for and may be sold to pay all fines, costs, and damages assessed against any person occupying the same; proceedings may be had to subject the same to the payment of any such fine and costs assessed or judgment recovered, or any part thereof, which remain unpaid, either before or after execution issues against the property of the person against whom such fine and costs or
The principal question presented is, whether, under this-section of the statute, in order to charge the leased premises where the liquors were illegally sold, with the payment of' a judgment rendered against the seller for damages caused, by such sales, it is essential, either that the premises be let for the unlawful sale of intoxicating liquors thereon, or be permitted by the lessor to be used for such unlawful purpose. Or, may the premises be so charged when they are leased to be used for the sale of intoxicating liquors, or permitted', by the lessor to be so used, if the lease contain a provision that the lessee shall not sell contrary to law, and the lessor have no knowledge of illegal Sales by the lessee?
In support of the judgment-below, it is contended, (1),. that to hold the premises liable under the statute, they must have been leased for the unlawful purpose of selling liquors thereon contrary to law, or, such unlawful use must have been knowingly permitted by the lessor; and, (2), that unless the statute be given that construction, it is unconstitutional. To sustain the judgment of the circuit, court, it is necessary to maintain one or the other of these-propositions.
That section makes the lessor, having knowledge that intoxicating liquors are to be sold on the leased premises in violation of law, a joint wrong-doer with the lessee who makes the illegal sales, and authorizesythe person injured thereby, to sue both, or either, for all damages caused by such sales. To maintain the action against the lessor, under that section, it is necessary that he have .knowledge that liquors are to be sold on the leased premises in violation of law, or, that he knowingly permitted the sales that caused the injury. His liability is personal; the damages are made a lien on all
The remedy under section 4357 is more direct, and more comprehensive than that under section 4364. Under the former section, the injured party may recover directly against the lessor, either jointly with the seller, or severally, all damages sustained by reason of the unlawful sales, and immediately siezé, on execution, all of his property, except that specifically exempted, for the payment of the same; while undér the latter section, the remedy is only against the specific property on which the liquors were sold, and must be pursued by separate' action, after the recovery of judgment against the seller. If the same facts, which entitle the party injured, to the more direct and comprehensive remedy, must be established in order to make available the other and more limited one, the latter would appear to be unnecessary, and the section providing for it, without practical operation; for, upon the facts necessary to enable the plaintiff to maintain an action under the latter section, he could under the former section obtain the same, and even greater relief. In accordance with a well settled rule of interpretation, these sections of the statute must be so construed as to make, if possible, all their provisions operative; and to do this, it is only necessary, we think, to accord to the language of section 4364 its plain meaning. That does not make it essential, in order to charge the leased premises where the liquors were illegally sold with the payment of the damages caused by such sales, either, that the premises be leased to be used for the purpose of selling intoxicating liquors thereon in violation of law, or, that the lessor have knowledge that such liquors are so sold, or that he knowingly permitted the sales which caused the damages. It is sufficient, if the premises were leased to be used for the sale of intoxicating liquors, or were permitted by the lessor to be so used. With the policy of the statute, which counsel have discussed at some length, the court is not concerned. The duty is not devolved upon it, to find a good reason for the
The position, we think, is not sound. True, the lessor is not a necessary party to the action for damages against the person whose unlawful sale of liquors caused the plaintiffs injury. Whether the court, in the exercise of its discretion, might permit him to intervene and contest the plaintiff’s right to judgment, we need not decide. That question is not before us. It is also true, that the judgment recovered against the seller of the liquor, when not obtained by fraud or collusion, is so far conclusive against the lessor of the premises where the sales were made, that the latter cannot dispute the sales, or their illegal character, or the damages resulting therefiom. But the unlawful sale of liquor by the tenant, resulting in damages to the plaintiff, does not, of itself, create any charge upon the property of the landlord, nor does the judgment against the seller, itself operate to make the property liable for its payment. The premises on which the liquors were sold, can only be held liable for the damages, when they have been leased to be used for the sale of intoxicating liquors, or have been permitted by the lessor to be so used; and, to subject the leased premises to the pay-
It appears from the findings of fact, that the premises on which Clemens made the sales, on account of which the plaintiff recovered her judgment against him, were originally rented to him by Caleb Peck, the owner, in 1880, who died in 1883, leaving a will, by which the premises were devised to the defendant Rebecca J. Peck for life, remainder to the defendants Alanson and Mary J. Peck; and when the sales were made by Clemens, on the 28th and 29th of May,
The judgment of the circuit court will be reversed, and judgment entered subjecting the life estate of Rebecca f. Peckt to the payment of plaintiff's judgment. As to the other defendants the judgment is affirmed.
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