Jordahl v. Democratic Party of Virginia

• Decision Date: 28 July 1997
• Docket Number: No. 96-2402,96-2402
• Citation: 122 F.3d 192
• Parties: Vern T. JORDAHL; Mary-Beth Larock; Virginia Leadership Council, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF VIRGINIA; Richmond City Democratic Committee, Defendants-Appellees, Commonwealth of Virginia, Intervenor-Appellee, and Mark R. Warner; Pixie Bell; Lawrence H. Framme, III; Chester A. Roberts; John Does, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fourth Circuit

Page 192

122 F.3d 192

Vern T. JORDAHL; Mary-Beth Larock; Virginia Leadership Council, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF VIRGINIA; Richmond City Democratic Committee, Defendants-Appellees Commonwealth of Virginia, Intervenor-Appellee and Mark R. Warner; Pixie Bell; Lawrence H. Framme, III Chester A. Roberts; John Does, Defendants.

No. 96-2402.

United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.

Argued June 4, 1997.

Decided July 28, 1997.

ARGUED: M. Miller Baker, Carr, Goodson, Lee & Warner, Washington, DC, for Appellants. Monica Leigh Taylor, Gentry, Locke, Rakes & Moore, Roanoke, VA; John Hardin Young, Falls Church, VA, for Appellees. Alice Ann Berkebile, Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General, Richmond, VA, for Intervenor. ON BRIEF: Brian M. Tauscher, Matthew J. Cuccias, Steven F. Gatti, Carr, Goodson, Lee & Warner, Washington, DC; James Bopp, Jr., Bopp, Coleson & Bostrom, Terre Haute, IN, for Appellants. Leisa Kube Ciaffone, Gentry, Locke, Rakes & Moore, Roanoke, VA; R. Claire Guthrie, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellees. James S. Gilmore, III, Attorney General of VA, Office of the Attorney General, Richmond, VA, for Intervenor.

Before WIDENER and MURNAGHAN, Circuit Judges, and PHILLIPS, Senior Circuit Judge.

Affirmed by published opinion. Judge MURNAGHAN wrote the opinion, in which Judge WIDENER and Senior Judge PHILLIPS joined.

OPINION

MURNAGHAN, Circuit Judge:

In 1989 and again in 1993, the Virginia Leadership Council, Vern T. Jordahl, a member of the Virginia Leadership Council, and Mary-Beth LaRock, a member of the Concerned Women for America, prepared and sought to distribute voter guides comparing the political positions of the various candidates for the offices of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General and General Assembly members. The voter guides did not endorse any candidate for a particular office. In both instances, the Democratic Party of Virginia sought and obtained three injunctions forbidding the plaintiffs from distributing the guides.

Thereafter, the plaintiffs sued the Democratic Party of Virginia for allegedly using state statutes and judicial proceedings to suppress political speech in violation of the First Amendment. The district court granted the Democratic Party's motion to dismiss on the grounds that the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over the matter. See Jordahl v. Democratic Party of Virginia, 947 F.Supp. 236 (W.D.Va.1996). For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

The instant case centers upon three injunctions issued by the Virginia state courts. On November 7, 1989, the Commonwealth of Virginia held regularly scheduled elections for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and Delegates to the General Assembly. Prior to the election, the Virginia Leadership Council (VLC) and Vern Jordahl (Jordahl), a member of the VLC, prepared over one million voter guides for distribution comparing the policy positions of the various candidates for office. The voter guides did not endorse any of the candidates.

1989 Richmond Injunction

On November 4, 1989, however, the Democratic Party of Virginia (DPV) filed a Bill of Complaint in the Richmond City Circuit Court alleging that the VLC and others were violating the Virginia Fair Elections Practices Act (VFEPA), Va.Code Ann. § 24.1-251 et seq., repealed December 1, 1993. ¹ On November 6, 1989, one day before the election, the Richmond Circuit court entered an order enjoining the VLC from distributing political literature "without first identifying ... the person causing the literature to be distributed and including on any literature distributed the required authorization statement as required by § 24.1-277 of the Code of Virginia." The Order provided that the injunction automatically expired on November 11, 1989, or upon compliance by the VLC with the statute. Subsequently, on October 11, 1994, the Richmond action was dismissed for failure to prosecute.

1989 Fairfax Injunction

On November 4, 1989, the DPV also filed suit in the Circuit Court for Fairfax County against the VLC and others, alleging that the "Read Before You Vote" pamphlet ² and certain "Voter Cards" were being distributed in violation of the VFEPA. As its counterpart in Richmond had, the Fairfax court entered an order enjoining the VLC from distributing the "Read Before You Vote" pamphlet and "Voter Cards" until an expedited hearing on November 6, 1989, or the VLC could demonstrate its compliance with the VFEPA. Following the hearing on November 6, 1989, the Fairfax court entered an order permanently enjoining the VLC from distributing either the pamphlet or voter guides. On September 30, 1994, by stipulation of the parties, the Fairfax court entered an order dismissing the claims against the VLC as moot and dissolving the injunction with respect to the VLC and Jordahl.

1993 Fairfax Injunction

On November 2, 1993, the Commonwealth of Virginia held regularly scheduled elections for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and Delegates to the General Assembly. Prior to the election, Mary-Beth LaRock (LaRock), a state representative for Concerned Women for America (CWA) prepared voters guides outlining the various candidates' positions in the upcoming election. The voter guides did not endorse any candidate. LaRock prepared over one million of these guides and was in the process of distributing the guides when the DPV filed suit in Fairfax County Circuit Court.

Again, the DPV alleged that LaRock and others were violating the VFEPA and sought an injunction. After initially entering a temporary restraining order, the Fairfax Court entered an order permanently enjoining LaRock and others "from distributing any writing ... about candidates for any [elective] office ... without first filing a statement of organization with the [Virginia State] Board [of Elections]" and identifying on the writing "the person responsible therefor" and the registration number.

Following the Fairfax Court's action, LaRock and others filed suit against the Fairfax Court judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The district court dismissed the suit on the authority of Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37, 91 S.Ct. 746, 27 L.Ed.2d 669 (1971). See Family Found., Inc., et al. v. J. Howe Brown, etc., CA 93-1339A (E.D.Va. Oct. 29, 1993). The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court denying LaRock and others' request for an emergency stay. See Family Found., Inc. v. Brown, 9 F.3d 1075 (4th Cir.1993). The Virginia Supreme Court dissolved the Fairfax court's injunction on November 1, 1993, without opinion. Thereafter, LaRock voluntarily dismissed her appeal to this court as moot. On February 7, 1994, over the objections of LaRock and others, the DPV nonsuited the 1993 Fairfax action. On April 8, 1994, the Fairfax Court vacated the order of nonsuit and dismissed the case without prejudice.

Virginia Statutes

On December 1, 1993, by a prior act of the Virginia General Assembly, the VFEPA was repealed and replaced by the Virginia Campaign Finance Disclosure Act (VCFDA), Va.Code Ann. § 24.2-900 et seq. (Michie 1993 & Supp.1996). In 1996, the General Assembly enacted further amendments to the VCFDA, which became effective on July 1, 1996. See Act of May 6, 1996, ch. 1042 (further amending Va.Code Ann. §§ 24.2-901, 24.2-908, 24.2-910, and 24.2-1014). Specifically, the following relevant changes were made. First, in 1993, the term "political committee" was redefined to exclude 501(c)(3) corporations. See Va.Code Ann. § 24.1-254.1 and Va.Code Ann. § 24.2-901. Second, the 1996 amendments to § 24.2-1014(B) of the VCFDA added the term "clearly identified candidate" and deleted the term "potential nominee."

On October 2, 1995, the VLC filed the instant action against the DPV and other individuals, seeking compensatory and punitive damages, and injunctive and declaratory relief. The district court scheduled a hearing on plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction together with a hearing for a preliminary injunction request in a related case. ³ At the combined hearing, the district court announced that it would refrain from ruling on the motions while the parties sought dissolution of the 1989 Fairfax Court injunction which remained in effect. ⁴ The Fairfax Court dissolved its injunction on March 21, 1996 with respect to the remaining parties.

On February 21, 1996, the VLC filed a nine-count First Amended Complaint against the DPV, seeking compensatory and punitive damages, and declaratory and injunctive relief. Counts One, Two, Three, Seven, and Eight, were brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Count One alleged that various provisions of the VCFDA, in connection with Va.Code Ann. § 8.01-620 (1992 & Supp.1996), authorizing circuit courts to grant injunctive relief, constituted a system of prior restraint in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. Counts Two, Three, Seven, and Eight are § 1983 claims for injuries caused by the two 1989 and one 1993 injunctions entered by the Richmond and Fairfax state courts. Counts Four (abuse of process), Five (abuse of process), Six (malicious prosecution), and Nine (trespass to chattels) are state law claims for injuries allegedly caused by the issuance of those same injunctions.

On March 16, 1996, the DPV filed a motion to dismiss the VLC's complaint alleging, inter alia, that the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction. On June 7, 1996, the VLC filed a motion for partial summary judgment as to the federal allegations contained in Counts One, Two, and Seven and as to the state allegations in Count Nine of the complaint. On July 26, 1996, the Commonwealth of Virginia filed a motion to intervene because the VLC's complaint called into question the constitutionality of Va.Code Ann. §§ 24.2-908, 24.2-910, and 24.2-1014. The district court granted the Commonwealth's motion.

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