Ballard v. Wilson

• Decision Date: 11 October 1988
• Docket Number: No. 88-2060,88-2060
• Citation: 856 F.2d 1568
• Parties: Walter Harvey BALLARD, Jr., Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Honorable Fad WILSON, Judge, Municipal Court Number Three and City of Houston, Texas, A Municipal Corporation, Defendants-Appellees. Summary Calendar.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

Page 1568

856 F.2d 1568

Walter Harvey BALLARD, Jr., Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Honorable Fad WILSON, Judge, Municipal Court Number Three and City of Houston, Texas, A Municipal

Corporation, Defendants-Appellees.

No. 88-2060

Summary Calendar.

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

Oct. 11, 1988.

Rehearing and Rehearing En Banc Denied Nov. 9, 1988.

J. Brent Liedtke, Humble, Tex., for plaintiff-appellant.

Robert J. Collins, Asst. County Atty., Houston, Tex., for defendants-appellees.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

Before GEE, WILLIAMS and HIGGINBOTHAM, Circuit Judges.

JERRE S. WILLIAMS, Circuit Judge:

Appellant Walter Harvey Ballard, Jr. filed suit in federal district court against the City of Houston and the Honorable Fad Wilson, a municipal judge, seeking injunctive relief against the enforcement of the City's overtime parking ordinance, a declaratory judgment as to the constitutionality of that ordinance, and money damages. The district court dismissed all claims under the abstention doctrine of Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37, 91 S.Ct. 746, 27 L.Ed.2d 669 (1971). We affirm the dismissal of the injunctive and declaratory claims, reverse the dismissal of the claim for monetary relief, and remand.

I. Facts

Ballard has been charged with approximately thirty-six separate violations of the City of Houston's overtime parking ordinance. At the time Ballard filed his suit in federal court, approximately ten of these cases were still pending in municipal court. These criminal offenses fall into three categories: first, pending criminal cases; second, those cases in which Ballard was convicted and has filed an appeal; and third, those cases where Ballard was convicted, but has failed to appeal his conviction and pay his fine.

While these prosecutions were pending in municipal court, Ballard brought this action under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983, alleging the prosecutions for parking violations have violated his constitutional rights. Ballard argues that the City's overtime parking ordinance contains an unconstitutional presumption which impermissibly shifts the burden of proof to the defendant and compromises the defendant's right to remain silent. ¹ Ballard also alleges that it is the custom and policy of municipal court personnel, including the Honorable Fad Wilson, to violate a parking defendant's constitutional rights by refusing to provide a copy of the charges in advance of trial and failing to follow Texas law regarding proper instruction to the jury on the presumption issue. Ballard seeks injunctive relief against the enforcement of the city's overtime parking regulations, a declaratory judgment as to the constitutionality of the ordinance, and money damages and attorney's fees.

II. Younger Abstention

The district court dismissed all of Ballard's claims under Younger v. Harris, supra. Younger dictates that a federal court cannot enjoin a pending criminal trial in state court, absent exceedingly rare and extraordinary circumstances. This doctrine is based upon concerns of judicial economy and proper state-federal relations. In a companion case to Younger, the Supreme Court held that federalism principles also bar a federal court from issuing declaratory relief when there is a pending state criminal proceeding. Samuels v. Mackell, 401 U.S. 66, 91 S.Ct. 764, 27 L.Ed.2d 688 (1971). Finally, the Supreme Court has determined that a pending appeal of a state conviction, a failure to perfect a state appeal, or a pending post-judgment enforcement proceeding trigger Younger abstention. Huffman v. Pursue, Ltd., 420 U.S. 592, 95 S.Ct. 1200, 43 L.Ed.2d 482 (1975); Judice v. Vail, 430 U.S. 327, 97 S.Ct. 1211, 51 L.Ed.2d 376 (1977).

Thus, the pending proceedings for Ballard's parking violations are all state criminal prosecutions which clearly bring his Sec. 1983 claim within the scope of Younger. Ballard does not dispute the existence of these pending state proceedings, but nevertheless contends that Younger abstention is improper in this case. We agree with the district court that abstention is required under Younger except as to the damage issue. We must reverse and remand the court's dismissal of the claim for monetary relief for further consideration in view of the recent holding in Deakins v. Monaghan, --- U.S. ----, 108 S.Ct. 523, 98 L.Ed.2d 529 (1988).

A. Ballard first argues that Younger abstention is inapplicable because he confines his request for relief to future prosecutions under the parking ordinance, and does not ask the federal court to intervene in the pending proceedings. Ballard relies on Wooley v. Maynard, 430 U.S. 705, 97 S.Ct. 1428, 51 L.Ed.2d 752 (1977), where the Supreme Court granted declaratory and injunctive relief against the enforcement of a New Hampshire statute when "the relief sought is wholly prospective, to preclude further prosecution under a statute alleged to violate appellees' constitutional rights." 430 U.S. at 711, 97 S.Ct. at 1433. Wooley, however, is distinguishable because in that case there were no pending prosecutions, appeals, or enforcement proceedings. Instead, the suit was "in no way 'designed to annul the results of a state trial' ". Id., citing Huffman, 420 U.S. at 609, 95 S.Ct. at 1210. See also Doran v. Salem Inn, Inc., 422 U.S. 922, 930, 95 S.Ct. 2561, 2567, 45 L.Ed.2d 648 (1975).

In contrast to Wooley, any future injunctive or declaratory relief to Ballard would unavoidably be decided against the backdrop of pending state proceedings. Although Ballard confines his request for relief to future prosecutions, we cannot ignore the fact that any injunction or declaratory judgment issued by a federal court would affect the course and outcome of the pending state proceedings. An injunction would "serve notice to the state courts that an adverse declaratory judgment could be expected", and a declaratory judgment as to the constitutionality of the ordinance would actually resolve an issue central to the pending state proceedings. United Books v. Conte, 739 F.2d 30, 33 (1st Cir.1984). This is precisely the sort of interference condemned by the Supreme Court in Younger and Samuels.

We also note that a federal court ruling on the practices and procedures of the municipal court system, as is requested by Ballard, would require supervisory enforcement of the ruling by the federal courts. This type of monitoring of state court procedures also offends principles of federalism and was condemned by the Supreme Court in O'Shea v. Littleton, 414 U.S. 488, 94 S.Ct. 669, 38 L.Ed.2d 674 (1974). See also Parker v. Turner, 626 F.2d 1, 9 (6th Cir.1980), holding that where the complaint alleges failure of some state judges properly to follow the law, a federal court will not enjoin the alleged unconstitional practices even in the absence of a pending state proceeding, since the relief sought would require monitoring of the judges' conduct.

B. Ballard also contends that Younger abstention is inappropriate because he asserts harassing prosecutions and bad faith as establishing justification for use of the "rare and extraordinary circumstances" exception to Younger. 401 U.S. at 53-54, 91 S.Ct. at 755. The Supreme Court instructs, however, that these circumstances constitute a very narrow exception applicable:

[o]nly in cases of proven harassment or prosecutions undertaken by state officials in bad faith without hope of obtaining a valid conviction and perhaps in other extraordinary circumstances where irreparable injury can be shown is federal injunctive relief against pending state prosecutions appropriate.

Perez v. Ledesma, 401 U.S. 82, 85, 91 S.Ct. 674, 677, 27 L.Ed.2d 701 (1971); see also Kugler v. Helfant, 421 U.S. 117, 124-125, 95 S.Ct. 1524, 1531, 44 L.Ed.2d 15 (1975).

Ballard's thirty-six parking tickets simply do not fit into this exception. Although Ballard strenuously objects to the numerous arrest warrants, court settings, and fines he has suffered, there is nothing in the record to suggest that the citations result from the bad faith of the city officials instead of Ballard's own parking habits. As to Ballard's complaints regarding the municipal court's alleged failure to provide him with an advance copy of the charge and to instruct the jury properly, we note that "errors or mistakes by a trial judge are not 'special circumstances' warranting an exception to the Younger rule." Davila v. Texas, 489 F.Supp. 803, 809 (S.D.Tex.1980).

C. In his third argument against Younger abstention, Ballard relies on this Court's pronouncement that "[t]he operation of the Younger doctrine is dependent upon the ability of the state courts to provide an adequate remedy for the violation of federal rights." DeSpain v. Johnston, 731 F.2d 1171, 1178 (5th Cir.1984). Ballard contends that he has no adequate state court remedy because the state's highest criminal court has twice upheld as...