Gilmer v. Redwine
Gilmer v. Redwine
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
This is a writ of error to a judgment of the Circuit Court of Scott county, pronounced at its May term, 1920. This judgment, in part, is as follows:
“* * * for motion of Mrs. Bettie Redwine, administratrix of S. L. Redwine, deceased, for the appointment of a committee for T. O. Gilmer, who has been convicted of a felony and sentenced to the penitentiary, the court doth appoint C. W. Dougherty as said committee, it appearing that the notice has been given according to law, and the said T. O. Gilmer appearing in court, the court selected the said Dougherty as his committee.”
T. O. Gilmer objected to the appointment of a committee on several grounds which were overruled by the court. To this action of the court the said Gilmer excepted. His bill of exception is reproduced, in part, as follows:
“Whereupon the said Gilmer was brought into court, and by counsel objected to the appointment of a committee for him, on the following grounds:
“First: Bettie Redwine had no interest in the matter of an appointment for him.
“Second: He had no estate for which to appoint a committee.
“Third: He had not had sufficient notice of said motion.
“But the court overruled his said objections, and appointed C. W. Dougherty committee for the said T.. O. Gilmer over the protest of the said T. O. Gilmer, no evidence having been offered by either party. To which action of the court in appointing said committee, the said T. C. Gilmer excepted, and prays that his bill of exceptions be signed, etc.”
Four things are necessary to furnish authority to a court to commit an estate under this section:
1. The person whose estate is proposed to b.e committed must have been convicted of felony and sentenced to the penitentiary, or to the State convict road force, for one year or more.
2. There must be some estate, real or personal, belonging to the convict.
3. The motion must be made by an interested party.
4. The estate, or some portion of it, must be within the territory of the court making the commitment.
It is manifest that if a motion under the section, supra, is resisted in the trial court, and the existence of any one, or more, of these grounds of jurisdiction is challenged, evidence that the grounds so challenged do exist must be furnished.
The objections of the plaintiff in error were taken in time and saved by proper bill of exceptions.
For the reasons given, it is considered that in the situation presented, the trial court erred in committing the estate of T. O. Gilmer to C. W. Daugherty, and its order in this respect must be reversed.
Reversed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- T. O. Gilmer v. Bettie Redwine
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. Prisons and Prisoners—Committee for Convict—Requisites for Appointment.-—Under section 4998 of the Code of 1919, to authorize the court to appoint a committee for a convict it is necessary that the person whose estate is proposed to be committed should be convicted of felony and sentenced to the penitentiary, or to the State convict force, for one year, or more; that he should own real or personal estate; that the motion should be made by an interested party, and the estate, or some portion of it, must be within the territory of the court making the commitment. If the existence of any one, or more, of these grounds of jurisdiction is challenged, evidence that the grounds so challenged do exist must be furnished. 2. Prisons and Prisoners—Committee for Convict—Requisites for Appointment—Case at Bar.—In the instant case the convict objected that he had no estate to be committed, and that the party making the motion for the appointment of his committee had no interest in the appointment of a committee for him. Held: That as these facts were in issue, they should have been affirmatively established, in order to support the jurisdiction of the trial court.