Bower v. Davis

DESMOND, J.,

pro

tem.

Plaintiff in this ease was arrested on July 5, 1935, incarcerated in the jail attached to Georgia Street Police Station in Los Angeles, and released the following morning. His complaint alleges that upon being taken to a cell, he was assaulted by the turnkey, one O. N. Conn; that when his personal effects were delivered to him, upon his discharge there was missing the sum of $35 cash which he claims was taken from him and delivered to the desk officer when he was-‘booked”. He further alleges that on the morning of July 6th, he demanded in vain the return

[679]

of said sum from this officer. About a week later he filed this action, claiming damages for assault and conversion, not against Conn or the desk officer, but against James E. Davis, chief of police of Los Angeles, and National Surety Corporation, which furnished “a bond in writing conditioned for the faithful performance by the defendant James E. Davis of his official duty required by law as such chief of police”.

Each of these defendants filed a general demurrer, both of which were sustained without leave to amend, judgment thereupon being ordered in favor of defendants.

Plaintiff bases his appeal from this judgment upon certain provisions of the Los Angeles city charter reading as follows: “The General Manager of the Police Department shall be known as the Chief of Police” (sec. 199, Stats. 1925, p. 1090), and “He shall have, in the discharge of his proper duties, like powers and be subject to like responsibilities as a sheriff in similar cases.” (Sec. 201, Stats. 1925, p. 1090.) Since ‘ The law is well settled that a Sheriff is answerable for the wrongful acts of his Deputy, committed under color of his office, and in the pretended discharge of his duty”

(Van Pelt

v.

Littler,

14 Cal. 194, 199; see, also,

Abbott

v.

Cooper,