Crowell v. Sonoma County

By the Court, Shafter, J. The complaint states that the plaintiff, before, and at the time of the grievances complained of, was lawfully possessed of certain lands in said county, describing them; that “ the defendant, contriving to injure the plaintiff on the 1st or October, 1859, at said county, built a bridge across the Santa Rosa Creek at the southern end of “C” street, in the Town or Santa Rosa, and in building said bridge, wrongfully and unlaw[315]fully erected an abutment at the north end of said bridge, extending into the channel of said creek, and has kept and continued the abutment in the channel of said creek for a long space of time, to wit: thence, hitherto; and thereby during all the time aforesaid unlawfully and wrongfully diverted and turned the water in said creek out of its regular channel, and prevented and hindered the water in said stream from flowing along its usual course; and that in' consequence of said diversion of the water in said creek by the erection of the abutment of said bridge in the channel of said stream by the defendant, the water of said creek flowed with all its force and weight against the said land of which the plaintiff was and is possessed as aforesaid, and said water of said creek washed off large quantities of said land and a.large amount of fencing thereon, together with houses and fruit trees, to the damage of plaintiff, one thousand five hundred dollars.” The defendant appeals from the judgment.

It was held in Sherbourne v. Yuba Co., 21 Cal. 113) that a county is not liable in damages to one, who, while an inmate of a county hospital, sustains injuries from unskilful treatment by the resident physician, or from the failure on the part of the officers 'of the hospital to supply sufficient and wholesome food.

In Hoffman v. San Joaquin County, 21 Cal. 426, the Court held that a county is not liable for damages at the suit of an individual, sustained by him in consequence of a want of proper repairs to a bridge on a public highway of the county.

The case at bar is clearly within the principle upon which the foregoing j udgments proceed.

Counties are mere instruments created by the Government for the purposes of internal administration. They have no rights as against the Government, and owe no duties to the public, nor to individuals, except such as are imposed by law.

By the Act of 1855, (Wood’s Dig. p. 650) it is made the duty of the Board of Supervisors of each county “to divide the county into a suitable number of road districts, and to appoint annually, or whenever vacancies may occur, an over