Hammel

Judgment in favor of defendants followed upon the demurrer to plaintiff’s complaint being sustained without leave to amend. This appeal is from that judgment.

Appellant, the county of Los Angeles, sought by its action to recover from respondent Hammel and his codefendants, the sureties on his official bond, a sum of money which it was alleged had been collected after June 1, 1913, as fees for services rendered by said Hammel in his official capacity as sheriff of the county. It was the contention of the sheriff that the law entitled him to retain the fees for his own use as part of his compensation. The judgment of the lower court was in agreement with that contention. The people of the county, at the November election of 1912, adopted for the purposes of local government a charter pursuant to the authority given by an amendment to the state constitution, known as section 7% of article XI. At the time this charter became of effect the sheriff of the county was serving an unexpired portion of the term for which he had theretofore been elected. In addition to the salary allowed him, he had received and retained certain fees. These fees were retained by him under express authority…