HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 34 Ordinance ITo• 34s___
An ordinance providing for the forfeiture of bonds given
for the aprearance of parties in the corporation court and prescrib-
in the manner of procedure therein, etc.
RL IT ORDAINF;D 9Y TTTE BOARD OF C012TISSIONIRS 07 THIS CITY
Off' +'ORT 7TORTH.
Sec. 1. That whenever a defendant in a case pending in the
corpor-ation court is under bond to appear and ans rer a charge in
said court and fails to an»ear on the day upon which said case is
subject to be tried and is called for trial or who _nails to aplear
at any subsequent date when his or her c ,se comes up for trial-
then a Forfeiture of his bond shall. be taken.
Cec. ?.Such -Forfeiture shall be ta':en in the folloving
manner; The name of the defendant shall be called distinctly at the
door or entrance of the court room in which the corporation court
'is being held at the' tine and if the defendant does not appear
within a reasonable time after such call_ is made judgment shall
be entered that the state of Texas for the use of the city of
ort 7,o.-th recover of the defendant the amount of money in which he
is bound and of his sureties the amount of money in which they are
respectively bound; which judgment shall state that the same will be
made final unless good cause be shorn, at the next regular 4ate
for hearing of cases in which -orfeiture preceding have been institut-
ed_, why the defendant did not ap,,ear.
Sec. 3. Upon the rendition of such judgment of forfeiture
the clerk of the corporation court shall issue citation notifying the
sureties of the defendant t',at the bond of the defendant has been
forfeited and requiring t:1em to ap,.ear at the regular time for the
hearing of such cases and show why the judgment of forfeiture should
not be made final; but it shall not be necessary to give notice to
the defendant of such forfeiture.
Se(,. 4. The citation shall be sufficient if it contains t)tf
_'ollowin requisittA.
lst. It shall run , "In the name of the State of Texas" and
shall. be directed to and served by the city marshal or any police-
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man of the city of "ort Worth, it being t%ie intention and purpose
hereof to permit service to be made by and to require it of any one
who is regularly ar,pointed and who ids be qualified as a memberlof
the police force. .
2. It shall be directed to the ?iarshal or any policeiaan of the
city of -%rt Worth -.
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3. It shall state the none of the principal in such bond and
th, name of the sureti,,s.
4. It shall state the date of such bond and the offense for
which the principal was required to ap_.;ear and answer.
5 . It shall state that such bond has been declared forfeited by
the corporation court and state the time when such forfeiture was
taken and the mount .for which it was t-aken against e-tch party
thereto.
G, It shall )10�ify, the suretir-4; to appear in said court at a
not be made final.
7, It shall be signed and attested officially by the clerk of
the corporation court.
Sec. 5. Sureties shall be entitled to notice by service of
such citation for the length of time and in the manner required in
civil actions in the justice court and the officer serving the
citation shall return the same in the manner provided for the re-
turn of. citation in civil actions in the Justice courts in the State
of Texas.
Sec, G , There the surety is non-resident of the state and
where he is a transient person or where his residence is not known
the City Attorney may upon application in Y.Titing to the clerk of the
corporation court stating the facts obtain a citation to be served
by publication and the same shall be served by publication and retu-,
rncd in the sine manner as in like cases in civil actions in the
justice court.
"ec. 7. rep service of citation is made by uublieation the
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City of ±'ort worth shall pay the costs of such publication and the
amount of such costs shall be taxed as costs in the case.
Sec, 8. ;service of a certified copy of citation upon any
one absent from or -,.ny non-resident of Tarrant Co,.nty may be l-;iade
outside of the limi`s of said county by any per�;on competent to ma'.:e
oath of the fact and the affidavit in writing of such person stating
the facts of such service shrill be a sufficient return.
^ec, 9, 77here a surety is dead at the time the forfeit-
ure is t zY,en the forfeiture shall nevertheless be v ;lid but the fin&
,judgment shall not be rendered where the surety has died either
before or after the forfeiture has been take U,q,7.ess his e.,_ecutor
adrninstrator or heirs as the case may be have been cited to apj�ear
and :how cause vir_y the judgment of forfeiture should not be made
final in the same manner as is provided in the case of the sur6
JLt4, themselves.
Sec. 10. ZTZenever a forfeiture has been dedlared upon a
bond the -- clerk of the corporation court shall docket the ease in
the name of "The t,.to of Texas" for the use of the city of 'Fort
..orth, as, plaintiff and the p=incipal and his sureties as defend-
. ,
nts. And on the date upon which the sureties are required to ap-
pear and answer, and by 10 o'clock A. M. of said date, said uret-
ies may file answer showing cause why the defendants did not appear
according to the requirements and conditions of the bond so forfei-
ted.
Sec. 11. Tile judgment declaring forfeiture shall not be set-
aside because of any defect of form of said judgment or of citation
or of any defect of form in other procedings but such defect of
Form may at any time be wnnended under the directions of the cot]-tt
"ec. 12. The defenses which may be set up to exonerate the
defendant or his sureties from the liability of the forfeiture shall.
be substantially those and only those which constitute a defense to
the forfeiture of a bail bond as presuribed by the code of crimin-
al procedure of the State `of Texas in so fax as the provisions of
said statute shall be applicable to cases in the corporation Zcurt.
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�'ec. 13. When no defense is filed by the sureties within
the time prescribed by this ordinance the corporation court may
enter judgment final by default a�cU nst all the defendants and where
answer is filed, if upon a trial of the issues Lis made by anstirer
filed by the sureties, no sufficient cause is shown Why the principal
failed to ap ,ear the judgment shaal be made final against him and
his sureties for the amount for which they axe respectively bound and
the corporation court shall order the issuance oexecution
i ..s ce f to be
made by the clerk of said court and the S� shall be substantia-
lly as is provided for execution in the justice court and the same
shall be i--;sued, levied and collected in the s me manner and out of
any property that would be subject thereto if the said execution
had been issued out of the justice court of preinet number 1 of
Tarrant County.
Sec. 14. Executins issued for the collection of a judg]-
ent rendered upon the forfeiture of a bond as provided 'or herein
shall be addressed to the marshal a#14 any policeman of the city of
-Tort Florth and shall be collected by such. officer in the same rianner
as judgments from the justice court of ?precinct No. 1, are collected
and the said officer shall have power to levy said executinn+pon
any property situated in Tarrant County.
Sec. 15. In the event there, is no iroperty found in Tarrant.
Oounty subject to sale under execution and out of which the said
execution may be satisfied and a return r- the officer is made
showing Mch fact then the judge of said court shall have power to
direct the clerk of said court to issue an execution to the sheriff
or any constable of any county of this state upon request of the
City Attorney of the city of 'Fort Y�orth and said execution shell be
levied and collected by the sheriff or any constable of such county
in the same manner that executions from the justice court are
levied and collected.
Sec. IC. The first Monday in each month and the third
1.1onday in each month shall be and the s_,me are hereby designated
as the dates for filing of ansi°,ers by sureties and the trial of
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forfeiture cases but where the answer is filed on or b9fore said
dates the corporation court shall have authority to re et any case
or cases for trial upon any other d,.te.
Sec. 17. 1n all cases-tivhere the defendants have been ser-
ved with notice for a sufficient length of time prior to said first
Idonday or third I,lond:.y as the case may be to have required them
to answer if the case had been pending in the justice court then
the said defendant shall be required to answer on such first 'Monday
or third Tonday as the case may be and in the event answer is not
so filed on said date �y 10 o' clock A. 1!T. of said date the judge
of said court shall have the right and power and it shall be his
duty to enter judgment final by default. in the event of service of
citation at a date to late to require ansv-✓er at the next ensuing
date for the trial of forfeiture cases the service shall. never-
tl--�eless be binding and shall require ,,nswer-at the next date Cher ;
for such cases.
Sec, 18. mhe rules of ?procedure in tri�.,l of civil cases in
the county court of Tarrant County -dhere not in con-'flict herewith
and where not otherwise provided by law shall be in :Corte and ap-
lied as to procedure in said forfeiture cases.
rec. 19. 2h at all ordinances and parts of ordinances in
conflict herewith be and the salve are hereby repealed and this
ordinance ;)e in force and effect from and after its pa:--sage (lnd
publication us required by law.
I hereby certify thal the above and foregoing ordinance 1vas
presented and unanimously passed by the Board of Commissioners of the
Cite of Fort Worth, at a session held, July 23rd, 1907.
w.J. Estes,
Cite Secretary.
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