Dorothy v. Drapeau

CRAIL, P. J.

This is an appeal from a judgment which denied a writ of mandate in a proceeding brought to compel the reinstatement of the petitioner under the State Civil Service Act to his position in the office of the building and loan commissioner and to compel the payment of the salary incident thereto.

Among the circumstances which resulted in the lay-off of petitioner were the following: About the first of January, 1931, the so-called Beesemeyer defalcation was discovered in Los Angeles. The collapse of the Guaranty Building and Loan Association soon followed. Our nation at that time was suffering from one of its worst depressions. When news of the Beesemeyer defalcation reached the public the work of the division of building and-loan supervision grew by leaps and bounds. For the purpose of restoring public confidence in the department, Honorable H. L. Carnahan was prevailed upon to assume the office of building and loan commissioner until the crisis was over. The office force was necessarily greatly increased. The climax came during the months of August, September and October of 1931, at which time the division had the largest number of employees that it has had

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in its history. Thereafter the work of the division decreased. Upon the resignation of Mr. Carnahan in January, 1932, former Governor Friend "W. Richardson succeeded to the office of building and loan commissioner. In the interest of economy former Governor Richardson decreased the number of employees and continued to so decrease the number until at the time of the petitioner’s lay-off there were only 36 employees. Prior to the time that Mr. Carnahan took over the office of building and loan commissioner the head office of the division had been maintained in San Francisco. When he took over the office, a great deal of the work being in southern California, he made the Los Angeles office the head office. When former Governor Richardson took over the work he moved the head office back to San Francisco. Petitioner remained with the branch office at Los Angeles. He was laid off some time thereafter. These circumstances are important for the reason that at the trial the case resolved itself into a question of the good faith of former Governor Richardson in laying off the petitioner; and a number of the duties, which petitioner claims it was his custom to perform in the Los Angeles office and which he claims were taken away from him, were matters which, by the very nature of things, would be handled through the head office.