Mulholland v. Marion County Election Bd.

Dist. Ct. erred in dismissing on abstention grounds plaintiff’s lawsuit seeking to enjoin defendant-local election board from enforcing Indiana anti-slating law that had been previously found to be unconstitutional in prior, unrelated lawsuit, where basis for dismissal was fact that local election board, which had seized plaintiff’s election flyers, had pending proceeding regarding plaintiff’s violation of anti-slating statute. Younger abstention did not apply since local election board’s proceeding was not sufficiently akin to criminal prosecution, where there was no possibility of imposition of criminal penalty. Moreover, local election board’s attempt to enforce statute that had previously been found unconstitutional was extraordinary circumstance that would preclude any application of Younger abstention doctrine.