People ex rel. McMinn v. Haskell

Citations

• 5 Cal. 357
• 1855 Cal. LEXIS 143

Syllabus

<p>Tli3 thirty-ninth section of the Act concerning Courts of Justice, provides that, the Cleric of the Superior Court shall ue elected at the next municipal election of the City of San Francisco, and thereafter every two years, by the legal electors of the City of San Francisco, and shall hold his office for the term of two years from and after his election.” At the tim; of the passage of this Act, the municipal a:id general State elections were held on the same day in September. The fourth section of the Am mded Charter of San Francisco provides, that the municipal election shall be held on the fourth Monday in May in each year, and at an election held at this time, the relator was elected. Held, that by the thirtieth section of the Am mded Charter, the Legislature intended that the Cleric of the Superior Court should be elected at the mu iieipal election, on the fourth Monday in May, and the relator was therefore properly elected.</p> <p>Held, farther, that the relator is entitled to the office at the expiration of the two years from the date of the defendant’s election.</p> <p>The Legislature possesses the power to alter or abridge the term of office of purely legislative creation.</p>