Chap. 755.—An ACT to amend and re-enact sections 24 and 47 of an act entitled
an act to change the name of the town of Goodson to the city of Bristol and
provide a new charter for same, approved February 12, 1890, and to add inde-
pendent sections thereto.

Approved March 7, 1894. .

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That sec
tions twenty-four and forty-seven of an act entitled an act to change
the name of the town of Goodson to the city of Bristol and provide
anew charter for same, approved February twelfth, eighteen hun-
dred and ninety, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows:

§ 24. The council shall have power and authority, whenever it
deems it expedient, to establish new streets; to extend and alter
any street that has been or may hereafter be established; to have
the sidewalks and gutters along any street within said city such
width as they may prescribe, properly paved or otherwise improved,
repaired or altered at the proper cost and expense of the owner of
the lands and lots along the fronts or sides of which such sidewalks
or improvements may extend, and to levy and collect such local as-
sessments on each of such lots or pieces of land as may be necessary
to pay for said improvements. The said council is hereby em-
powered and authorized to levy and collect such local assessments
on each of the lots or pieces of land along the fronts or sides of
which granolithic sidewalks or improvements have heretofore been
made or extended on any of the streets in said city as may be neces-
sary to pay for the necessary cost or expense of said sidewalk or im-
provements, or such proportion of said cost or expense as the coun-
cil may deem expedient; said assessments to be collected in the same
manner as other taxes are collected, or by action or suit in the name
of said city, and said assessments shall bea lien on said lots or
pieces of land for the amount assessed against each one respectively.

§ 47. There shall be elected by the qualified voters of the city, on
the fourth Thursday in May next, and on the fourth Thursday in
May every year thereafter, one justice of the peace for each ward in
said city, who shall be residents of their respective wards, and shall
hold office for the term of one year, and until their successors be
elected and qualified, unless sooner removed from office. The said
justices of the peace shall be conservators of the peace in said city
and within one mile of the limits of the corporation of Bristol, and
shall have criminal and civil jurisdiction within the limits of the
city and within one mile of the limits of said corporation, and re-
ceive for their services such fees as are provided by law in respect to
justices of the peace in the counties of this state in their respective
counties.

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2. The office of police justice is hereby created for said city, and
the mayor of the same shall by virtue of his office perform the duties
of police justice as hereinafter prescribed. If at any time the mayor
declines to perform the duties of police justice and causes the same
to be entered on the record book of said city by the clerk of the
council, thereupon the council shall elect one of the three justices
of the peace of the said city to fill the office of police justice for said
city, who shall hold his office for the term of two years.

3. He shall possess all the jurisdiction and exercise the powers and
authority in civil and criminal cases of a justice of the peace within
the limits of said city and within one mile thereof, and also all
powers conferred upon police justices by the general laws of this
state, and in addition to the said powers and duties it shall be his
duty to enforce the penal laws and ordinances of the city and all
like orders and resolutions of the council; his jurisdiction shall ex-
tend, as to all ordinances, resolutions and orders of the council, to
the corporate limits of said city. In enforcing the laws and ordi-
nances of the city he shall have authority to impose such fines and
penalties and inflict such, punishment as by the laws and ordinances
are ordained as a penalty for any breach thereof.

4. The maximum limit of his jurisdiction in civil cases shall be
one hundred dollars, and where the matter in controversy does not
exceed twenty dollars his judgment shall be final.

5. An appeal may be taken from the judgment of the police jus-
tice in imposing penalties for infraction of the city ordinances to
the corporation court of the city, except in cases where the penalty
imposed is a fine not exceeding twenty dollars, in which case it
shall be final.

6. He shall have power to enforce the payment of any fine or pen-
alty imposed by him for any infraction of a city ordinance by im-
prisonment in the city jail.

7. He shall hold a court every day except Sunday, when the same
may be held, to take cognizance of such cases as may be brought be-
fore him under the laws of the state or the ordinances of the city,
and at the place prescribed by the council.

8. The said justice shall perform any other duties assigned him
by the city council, not inconsistent with the constitution and laws
of the state.

9. In case of the absence from the city, or inability to act, on the
part of the police justice, the council may designate some person to
act in his place, who, when acting, shall possess the same powers
and discharge the same duties as said justice and receive the same
compensation.

10. Any vacancy occurring in the office of police justice may be
filled by the council, of one of the justices of said city, and said
police justice may be removed by the mavor for malfeasance, misfea-
sance and gross neglect of official duty; and such aremoval shall be
deemed a vacation of the office, but all proceedings under this sec-
tion shall be by order of or motion before the said mayor, upon rea-
sonable notice to the party to be affected thereby.
11. The police justice shall keep a regular account of all fines,
forfeitures and costs imposed for the violation of the city ordi-
nances. He shall report the same in an itemized statement to the
council monthly. The chief of police shall collect such fines, for-
feitures and costs, and report the same monthly to the council, and
pay over the same monthly to the treasurer. The police justice
shall receive such salary as shall be fixed by the council, so as not
to be less than two hundred and fifty dollars, and shall in addition
thereto receive his fees as a justice of the peace, and a fee of fifty
cents for each warrant issued or tried or submitted for violation of
the city ordinances, to be assessed in the case as other costs of the
trial; but in no case shall said fee of fifty cents be paid by the said
city; and his salary shall not be diminished during his term of
office. The mayor, in the event of the election of a police justice, shall
receive a salary of not less than two hundred and fifty dollars, to be
fixed by the council, and shall not be diminished during his term of
office. , .

12. This act shall be in force from its passage.