Cox v. Jerome

JAMES, J.

Petition for writ of mandate to require respondent, as auditor of the county of Orange, to issue to petitioner certain warrants upon the treasury of the county, in payment of money which it is alleged is due to petitioner for official services performed as justice of the peace of Santa Ana, township. An answer was filed raising issues of law only, and the matter has been submitted for decision.

[98]

At the time petitioner assumed office in January, 1915,. the law provided that justices of the peace should receive from the county for services rendered in criminal cases the sum of $75 per month. On the eighth day of August, 1915, an enactment of the legislature [Stats. 1915, p. 1032] became of effect which provided that in counties of the fourteenth class and in townships having a population of fifteen thousand or over, the justices of the peace should receive for services rendered in criminal cases the sum of one hundred dollars per month. The township in which petitioner was acting was found by the census taken to contain over fifteen thousand inhabitants, and his claim was thereafter made for compensation at the increased rate. The vital question presented is as to whether, under the constitutional prohibition against increase of compensation during the term of office of certain officials, petitioner shall have the benefit of the larger amount for his services in criminal cases. Section 9 of article XI of the constitution provides as follows: “The compensation of any county, city, town, or municipal officer shall not be increased after his election or during his term of office. ...” It is argued that a township justice of the peace is neither a county, city, town, nor municipal officer, and that therefore there is no constitutional restraint placed upon the legislature to increase the compensation of such justice at any time. The legislature is required, under the direction of section 4 of article XI of the constitution, to establish a system of county governments which shall be uniform throughout the state. It is in that section also provided that the legislature may provide for township organization. But no township organization, within the meaning of the section referred to, has been established. While the legislature has from time to time, by various general laws and statutes known as county government acts, provided for a uniform government of the counties and subdivisions therein, it has been held that the townships mentioned in such acts have no governmental machinery or officers so distinct from the county as to identify such townships as being possessed of functions designed to be possessed by “township organization,” referred to in section 4 of article XI above cited. In