Gillespie County Constables

Department Mission Statement or Duties and Responsibilities:

Duties of a Texas Constable

What The Law States

Article five, section Eighteen of the Texas Constitution delineates the
constitutional directives of the office of constable and how it is
organized.
86.021.LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE
A constable shall execute and return as provided by law each process,
warrant, and precept that is directed to the constable and is delivered by a
lawful officer. Notices required by Section 24.005, Property Code, relating
to eviction actions are process for purposes of this section that may be
executed by a constable.
A constable may execute any civil or criminal process throughout the county
in which the constable's precinct is located and in other locations as
provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure or by any other law.
A constable expressly authorized by statute to perform an act or service,
including the service of civil or criminal process, citation, notice,
warrant, subpoena, or writ, may perform the act or service anywhere in the
county in which the constable's precinct is located
Regardless of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, all civil process may be
served by a constable in the constable's county or in a county contiguous to
the constable's county, except that a constable who is a party to or
interested in the outcome of a suit may not serve any process related to the
suit.
The constable shall attend each justice of the peace court held in the
precinct.
Constables are not limited to only "serving the justice of the peace
courts";in fact, there is no statute to support this notion, at all.
Statutorily, process service for Justice Courts is only a small portion of
the official powers and duties of the office. By Statute, constables serve
ALL courts in the state of Texas and are also accountable for providing the
same services and duties as all other police agencies.
It is the duty of every Constable to preserve the peace within the officer's
jurisdiction. To effect this purpose, the officer shall use all lawful
means.
86.022 Power to Summon Resident Assistance
If a constable encounters resistance in the execution of any lawful process
or in the arrest of an offender, the constable may call for assistance any
resident of the county who is convenient.
Art. 2.13CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE. [37] [44] [45]
The Constable shall in every case authorized by the provisions of this Code,
interfere without warrant to prevent or suppress crime;give notice to some
magistrate of all offenses committed within the officer's jurisdiction,
where the officer has good reason to believe there has been a violation of
the penal law; and arrest offenders without warrant in every case where the
officer is authorized by law, in order that they may be taken before the
proper magistrate or court and be tried.