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Do you and your spouse have any children under the age of 18 from this marriage? Telephone number:. When to call you back? For whatever reason that year, she didn't check any, but that was what her duty was is to go and do those things. The Chancery Clerk's office published a newspaper notice forty-five days before the redemption deadline, and the Forrest County Sheriff placed the notice on the door at the West Pine Street home.
From this procedural history, Reid opined at the hearing that Florimonte did not get notice. Reid further testified in detail about the procedure generally taken by the Forrest County Chancery Clerk's office in a tax sale.
Forrest County
First, the office attempts to deliver a landowner's notice to the address listed on the deed and the land roll. Following this procedure in today's case, the chancery clerk's office could find only the West Pine Street address.
Next, the office attempted to serve process on Florimonte via the sheriff. Process was returned because Florimonte could not be found in the county, nor could a family member over age sixteen be found at the West Pine Street residence. Next, certified mail was attempted at the West Pine Street residence, but it was returned because the home was vacant.
Newspaper publication against Florimonte ran on July 9, , more than forty-five days prior to the redemption deadline, as required by statute. When all of these efforts failed, the office executed a search for another address. Reid said the standard procedure is to check the records in the county tax collector's office. The office then checks the voter registration rolls, the Polk City Directory, and the phone book. Reid testified that there was no reason to think that the office had not conducted an exhaustive search based upon Styron's affidavit.
Reid further testified that the chancery clerk's office does not call closing attorneys or grantors in an attempt to find the property owner. Reid likewise testified that nothing about the process was out of the ordinary and was in fact in accordance with the way all other tax sales were handled. At the hearing, Betty J. Reed testified that she paid the taxes on the four-acre property for the years through On May 14, , Chancellor Fair entered an opinion, holding that the tax sale was void because Florimonte never received personal service of process via the sheriff, noting that posting the notice on the door was not in accordance with the provisions of Mississippi Rule of Civil Procedure 4.
Additionally, the chancellor found that Florimonte did not receive notice by mail because the chancery clerk failed to be diligent in locating his address. Finally, according to Chancellor Fair, the affidavit was insufficient because the deputy chancery clerk failed to fill in the blanks detailing her diligent search.
On June 12, , Chancellor Fair entered judgment in favor of Florimonte. On June 21, , Reed filed a motion to alter or amend the judgment, and the chancellor denied this motion on August 6, Reed then perfected her appeal to this Court. Parker, So. The clerk shall issue the notice to the sheriff of the county of the reputed owner's residence, if he be a resident of the State of Mississippi, and the sheriff shall be required to serve personal notice as summons issued from the courts are served, and make his return to the chancery clerk issuing same.
The clerk shall also mail a copy of same to the reputed owner at his usual street address, if same can be ascertained after diligent search and inquiry, or to his post office address if only that can be ascertained, and he shall note such action on the tax sales record.
Mississippi Public Records
The clerk shall also be required to publish the name and address of the reputed owner of the property and the legal description of such property in a public newspaper of the county in which the land is located, or if no newspaper is published as such, then in a newspaper having a general circulation in such county.
Such publication shall be made at least forty-five 45 days prior to the expiration of the redemption period. Notice by mail shall be by registered or certified mail.
In the event the notice by mail is returned undelivered and the personal notice as hereinabove required to be served by the sheriff is returned not found, then the clerk shall make further search and inquiry to ascertain the reputed owner's street and post office address. If the reputed owner's street or post office address is ascertained after the additional search and inquiry, the clerk shall again issue notice as hereinabove set out. If personal notice is again issued and it is again returned not found and if notice by mail is again returned undelivered, then the clerk shall file an affidavit to that effect and shall specify therein the acts of search and inquiry made by him in an effort to ascertain the reputed owner's street and post office address and said affidavit shall be retained as a permanent record in the office of the clerk and such action shall be noted on the tax sales record.
If the clerk is still unable to ascertain the reputed owner's street or post office address after making search and inquiry for the second time, then it shall not be necessary to issue any additional notice but the clerk shall file an affidavit specifying therein the acts of search and inquiry made by him in an effort to ascertain the reputed owner's street and post office address and said affidavit shall be retained as a permanent record in the office of the clerk and such action shall be noted on the tax sale record.
Should the clerk inadvertently fail to send notice as prescribed in this section, then such sale shall be void and the clerk shall not be liable to the purchaser or owner upon refund of all purchase money paid. Chancellor Fair, in his detailed opinion, interpreted Mississippi Code Annotated Section to require the chancery clerk to issue personal service by summons, service by mail, and service by publication. The chancellor likewise stated:. As this case turns on the affidavit, no other reason need be discussed. As the Court of Appeals has succinctly stated:.
Statutes dealing with land forfeitures for delinquent taxes should be strictly construed in favor of the landowners. Brown v. Riley, So. Any deviation from the statutorily mandated procedure renders the sale void. Hart v. Catoe, So. Roach v.
Forrest County Marriage & Divorce Records - County Courts
Goebel, So. This Court has stated:. Rush, So. The case sub judice is factually similar to Rush but clearly distinguishable. In , O. Rush conveyed a parcel of property to Eloise Moffite. However, it was actually Alexia Rushing, Moffite's first cousin, who purchased the property, using Moffite's name with Moffite's permission. When the tax bill came due, Rush's name was listed on the bill. Accordingly, the Lauderdale County Tax Collector published notice in the local newspaper in Rush's name. The property was sold for delinquent taxes, and the Lauderdale County Chancery Clerk attempted to notify Moffite by certified mail, which was returned as undeliverable.
Moffite's address listed on the deed was actually that of her daughter's, instead of the address where she had resided for thirty-five years. The Lauderdale County Chancery Clerk signed a form affidavit which read:. Affiant made diligent search and inquiry to determining the street and post office address of Eloise Moffite New Owner , Rush O. That the acts of search and inquiry made by affiant in an effort to ascertain the reputed owner's street and post office address are specified as follows:.
Telephone directory, R. Polk City Directories for several years, telephone contact probable relatives , records in Tax Collector's office, Tax Assessor's office, and Circuit Clerk's office voter registration file, also the deed which requires name and address of Grantee and Grantor when filed for record. Affiant was still unable to ascertain the reputed owner's street or post office address after making such search and inquiry for the second time, and no additional notice was issued. Litigation ensued, and after an evidentiary hearing, the chancellor held that the tax sale was valid.
On appeal, this Court discussed the egregiousness of Moffite's actions by pointing out that she had violated Mississippi Code Annotated Section 2 and, accordingly, she could have been charged with perjury under Mississippi Code Annotated Section In affirming the chancery court judgment upholding the validity of the tax sale, we emphasized that while we in no way minimized the duties of chancery clerks and tax collectors to strictly comply with the applicable statutes relating to tax sales, our laws likewise do not permit landowners to ignore their responsibilities to be diligent in timely paying accrued property taxes.
It is clear that the facts in Rush differ from those in the case sub judice.
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Moffite's intentional misconduct is altogether different from Florimonte's oversight. But most importantly, the facts surrounding the chancery clerk's affidavit are different in today's case. On the face of the affidavit, nothing was done to find Florimonte.
Forrest County, Mississippi - Wikipedia
On the face of the affidavit, Styron did not check any blanks and did not note any sources of her search. Accordingly, we find that the chancellor did not err in finding that the Forrest County Chancery Clerk's office did not comply with the notice requirements of the statute. Rankin, So. Custin, So.