Texas Attorney General Opinion: LA-112 Page: 1 of 3
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O r TEXAS
U AUSTIN, TEXAS 78711
JOHN L. HILL
A'FTORNEY G RAL
August 4, 1975
The Honorable Henry Wade Letter Advisory No. 112
District Attorney
Dallas, Texas 75202 Re: Whether a person may serve
both as city councilman and deputy
sheriff.
Dear Mr. Wade:
You have requested our opinion concerning whether a person may
simultaneously hold the offices of city councilman and deputy sheriff.
Article 2, section 1 of the Texas Constitution provides that the powers
of government shall be divided into three departments; legislative, judicial, and
executive, and that:
no person . .being of one of these depart-
ments, shall exercise any power properly
attached to either of the others, except in
the instances herein expressly permitted.
In Attorney General Opinion H-7 (1973) we interpreted this provision to mean:
. . . that an employee of one department is
barred from assuming any position or office
in either of the other two departments if he
exercises governmental powers in any de-
partment.
See also Attorney General Letter Advisory No. 65 (1974); Monaghan v. School
District No. i, Clackamas County, 315 P. 2d 797 (Oregon 1957); State v. Burch,
80 N. E. 2d 294 (Ind. 1948); Saint v. Allen, 126 So. 548 (La. 1930).
Article 5 section 23 of the Texas Constitution creates the office of Sheriff
as part of the judicial branch. 'Since a deputy sheriff is an employee of the
sheriff's department he is of the judicial branch. See State v. Moore, 57 Tex.
307 (1882). Accordingly, as a general matter he may not exercise legislative
powers.
City councils have been repeatedly held to exercise legislative powers.
Kimbrough v. Walling, 371 S.W. 2d 691 (Tex. Sup. 1963); Davis v. City of Lubbock,
326S. W. 2d 699 (Tex. Sup. 1959); Ex Parte Naylor, 249 S.W. 2d 607 (Tex. Grim.
App. 1952); City of Nassau Bay v. Nassau 13ay Telephone Co., Inc., 517 S.W. 2d
613 (Tex. Civ. App. -- Houston 1974, writ ref'd. n. r. e.); City of Grand Prairie v.p. 383
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Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: LA-112, text, August 4, 1975; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth276775/m1/1/: accessed July 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.