In Re Banta

California Court of Appeal Apr 6, 1938 No. Crim. 3062Published

Before: York

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Holding. The court held that the municipal ordinance regulating the hours for the sale of meat is a valid exercise of police power and that the initiative process used to adopt it complied with the city charter.

Issues

Whether the initiative ordinance was submitted to the voters within the time limits prescribed by the city charter.
Whether the ordinance constitutes unconstitutional discriminatory class legislation.

Disposition. remanded

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“The conduct of meat markets and butchershops is a proper subject of regulation under the police power of a municipality.”

“It will be noted that the section provides that the call for an election to be held must be issued within forty days, and not that the election itself shall be held on a date within that period.”

“The writ of habeas corpus is discharged and the petitioner is remanded.”

YORK, P. J.

Petitioner was convicted of a violation of subdivision (h) of section 27 of ordinance No. 35 (N. S.), as amended by section 2 of ordinance No. C-1491, ordinances of the city of Long Beach, in that he sold and offered for sale at his place of business uncured and uncooked meat after 6 P. M. on July 30, 1937, the aforesaid day not being Saturday. Upon application to this court he was granted a writ of

habeas corpus

by which he seeks to have determined the legality of his arrest and detention.

The section of the ordinance, above referred to, reads as follows: “It shall be unlawful for any person within the City of Long Beach to sell or offer for sale any uncured or uncooked meats at wholesale or retail, or to remove any uncured or uncooked meats from any place of business in the City of Long Beach for the purpose of sale or delivery to dealers or consumers or for the purpose of any delivery, or to receive at any place of business any uncured or uncooked meats, except that on days other than Sunday, New Year’s Day, Decoration Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Armistice Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas, wholesale meat markets and wholesale meat dealers may sell and deliver between the hours of 6:00 o ’clock a. m. and 4:00 o ’clock p. m., and retailers of said meats may sell and deliver between the hours of 8 :00 o’clock a. m. and 6:00 o’clock p. m.; except further that on Saturdays the lawful hours of sale, receipt and delivery for retailers shall be from 8 :00 o ’clock a. m. to 7:00 o ’clock p. m. except when Saturday falls on any holiday above named; and except that wholesale meat markets and wholesale meat dealers may sell and deliver to ships at any hour of any day. ’ ’

Petitioner contends that the above ordinance under which he is charged is unconstitutional and void for the following reasons: 1. The initiative measure was not submitted within the time provided by the city charter. 2. The ordinance was never adopted by the city, council as required by section 8 of said ordinance. 3. That the ordinance is discriminatory and class legislation.

Petitioner insists that this ordinance was not submitted to a vote of the people within the time provided by the

[624]

In Re Banta

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YORK, P. J.

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