Jones v. Cooney

HOUSER, J.

— This is an appeal from a judgment which resulted from the issuance of a peremptory writ of mandate in the court below.

The following facts are taken nearly

verbatim,

from the statement of the ease appearing in appellant’s opening brief:

Charles A. Jones, the respondent herein, for many years was a member of the police department of the city of Los Angeles. On or about the fourth day of January, 1922, he was the duly appointed, qualified, and acting chief of police in said city, at which time he was regularly retired from further service in said police department; that at the time of his retirement he had served more than twenty years in said police department, and at said time there was in effect an ordinance of the city of Los Angeles which, among other things, provided as follows:

‘1 Whenever any member of the Police Department, as defined in section 13 hereof, shall have served for twenty (20) years or more in the aggregate in any capacity or rank whatever, said commission shall, upon his written request, or without such request if it be deemed for the good of said department, order and direct that such person be retired from further service in the police department. From the date of making such order, or from the date such order becomes effective, the services of such person in the Police Department shall cease, and such person so retired shall thereafter during his lifetime, be paid from such fund a yearly pension equal to one-half of the amount of the salary attached to the rank or position which he may have held in said Police Department at the time of such re

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tirement. Such pension shall be payable in equal quarterly installments. ...”

It also appears that at the date of respondent’s retirement the salary attached to the rank of chief of police was the sum of $400 per month; that after the retirement of respondent, to wit, on the eighth day of November, 1922, there was adopted by the electors of the city of Los Angeles an amendment to the charter of said city, which said amendment, among other things, contains the following provision: