Category: Proposition 8 Trial

Court rejects motion to force Brown, Schwarzenegger to defend Prop 8

LGBTQ Nation • Friday, September 3, 2010 • Filed under: Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

A California state appeals court has denied a conservative law group’s request that it force Attorney General Jerry Brown and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to defend Proposition 8 in federal court.

The denial was issued Wednesday and entered Thursday on the website of the 3rd District Court of Appeals in Sacramento. [Fresno Bee]

Without explanation, the court denied a motion filed on Monday by Pacific Justice Institute on behalf of Joshua Beckley, a senior pastor at Ecclesia Christian Fellowship in San Bernardino, that sought to force the AG and Governor to defend the anti-gay-marriage law in the federal appeals case. [Court order here (PDF).]

The group had argued that Brown and Schwarzenegger have no right to pick and choose what state laws to uphold.

Both Brown and Schwarzenegger were named as defendants in the federal trial challenging Prop 8, and refused to defend it in court; both have said they believe Proposition 8 violates the U.S. Constitution.

If upheld, the ruling could prove significant in the federal case involving Prop 8.

U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker has indicated that Prop 8 proponents may not have a legal right to appeal his decision to allow same-sex unions in California, because they cannot prove they will be harmed — as required by law — if gay and lesbian couples wed.

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Appeals court grants ‘stay’ in Prop 8 ruling, gay marriage to remain on hold

LGBTQ Nation • Monday, August 16, 2010 • Filed under: Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

A federal appeals court on Monday put a hold on same-sex marriages in California, overruling a federal district judge who had earlier ruled that Proposition 8 — the state’s voter approved ban on gay marriage — was unconstitutional.

The “stay” means same-sex marriages won’t start on Wednesday as thousands of gay and lesbian couples had hoped.

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has placed such marriages effectively on hold until December at the earliest, granting a request by proponents of Proposition 8 to delay enforcement of the August 4 court order voiding the ballot referendum.

But in Monday’s order, the judges asked the ballot measure’s lawyers to submit arguments on why they have the legal right to appeal when the state’s top two officials, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Brown, had refused to defend the law or file an appeal. Continue reading…

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Judge lifts stay in Prop 8 ruling; gay marriage could resume August 18

LGBTQ Nation • Thursday, August 12, 2010 • Filed under: California, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

Gay marriage in California could resume next week as a federal judge today denied defendant’s motion for a permanent stay to his decision to overturn Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure that reinstated the ban on same-sex marriage, but extended the temporary stay another week.

Unless another stay is ordered by a higher court, today’s ruling creates a new window of opportunity for same-sex couples to marry, similar to May 2008, when the State Supreme Court overturned California’s ban on same-sex marriages. About 18,000 couples were married before Proposition 8 was passed by 52 percent of the vote that November.

Gay and lesbian couples lined up at San Francisco City Hall all morning in anticipation of today’s ruling, and officials in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and other jurisdictions indicated that if Walker lifted the stay, they would be performing marriages today on a first come, first serve basis.

But the Judge’s ruling extended the temporary stay until 5 p.m. next Wednesday, August 18, effectively allowing Proposition 8 supporters time to appeal his decision to 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and dashing the hopes of hundreds of gay couples hoping to marry today.
Continue reading…

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

California governor, attorney general call for gay marriages to resume

LGBTQ Nation • Friday, August 6, 2010 • Filed under: California, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown filed motions in federal court late Friday, asking the judge to allow the state to begin performing same-sex marriages.

In his brief, Schwarzenegger called on U.S. District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker to lift the stay on his ruling that California’s gay marriage ban is unconstitutional, thereby allowing gay marriages to resume:

“The Administration believes the public interest is best served by permitting the Court’s judgment to go into effect, thereby restoring the right of same-sex couples to marry in California,” the brief read.

“Doing so is consistent with California’s long history of treating all people and their relationships with equal dignity and respect.”

The Governor’s brief here (PDF).

News of the Governor’s brief came shortly after Attorney General Jerry Brown filed a motion to lift the stay in the decision to overturn Proposition 8. In that motion, Brown wrote:

“While there is still the potential for limited administrative burdens should future marriages of same-sex couples be later declared invalid, these potential burdens are outweighed by this Court’s conclusion, based on the overwhelming evidence, that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional. Accordingly, the harm to the plaintiffs outweighs any harm to the state defendants.”

“…The Attorney General respectfully requests that Defendant-Intervenors’ request for a stay pending appeal be denied>”

Brown’s motion here (PDF).

Walker ruled Wednesday that the gay marriage ban created by Proposition 8 violates federal equal protections and due process laws.

However, he agreed to block gay marriages from immediately resuming until he can consider arguments on whether to keep the ban in effect while its supporters take their appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Both Schwarzenegger and Brown were named as defendants in the federal trial challenging Proposition 8, and both declined to defend it in court.

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Prop 8 supporters claim Walker’s ruling unfair because he’s a gay judge

LGBTQ Nation • Friday, August 6, 2010 • Filed under: California, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (2)

Full coverage on Wednesday’s ruling here.
Reaction to Wednesday’s ruling, here.
Next steps: Judge to decide whether to lift ‘stay’ in ruling.

Walker

Is Judge Vaughn Walker gay? Does it matter?

Not surprisingly, supporters of Proposition 8 say the U.S. District Court judge who overturned California’s voter approved ban on gay marriage should have recused himself from the case because, they say, he is gay — and therefore is biased.

“The ‘trial’ in San Francisco in the Perry v. Schwarzenegger case is a unique, and disturbing, episode in American jurisprudence,” Maggie Gallagher, Chairman of the Board of NOM, said in a statement. “Here we have an openly gay (according to the San Francisco Chronicle) federal judge substituting his views for those of the American people and of our Founding Fathers who I promise you would be shocked by courts that imagine they have the right to put gay marriage in our Constitution. We call on the Supreme Court and Congress to protect the people’s right to vote for marriage.”

Although Walker has never publicly commented about his sexual orientation, Gallagher and others point to a February 7, 2010 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, effectively “outing” the judge. Continue reading…

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Prop 8 next steps: Judge to decide whether to lift ‘stay’ in ruling

LGBTQ Nation • Thursday, August 5, 2010 • Filed under: California, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

Full coverage on Wednesday’s ruling here.
Reaction to Wednesday’s ruling here.

The federal judge who struck down California’s voter-approved ban on gay marriage must now decide whether the ban should remain in tact while the ruling makes its way through the appeals process.

Prop 8 opponents at a rally to celebrate the ruling to overturn the gay marriage ban.

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled Wednesday that Proposition 8 was in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment guarantees of equal protection and due process of law.

But shortly after issuing his ruling, Walker issued a temporary “stay,” effectively leaving Prop 8 in tact while he considers whether his ruling should remain on hold as the case moves to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The stay prevents gay couples from marrying while the case is being appealed, but legal analysts speculate it is unlikely that Judge Walker would maintain the stay — judges often hesitate to do so after they have found people’s fundamental rights are being infringed. Continue reading…

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Prop 8 trial witness Ryan Kendall speaks out for equality

Kelvin Lynch • Thursday, August 5, 2010 • Filed under: Advocacy, Colorado, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

Ryan Kendall (Photo: The Kendall Project)

Ryan Kendall is a name you will be hearing a lot more in the weeks and months to come.  The 27-year-old from Denver served as a fact witness in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, a.k.a. the federal Prop 8 trial.

Kendall testified about knowing he was gay at a young age, and the horrors of experiencing so-called “reparative therapy” at the hands of NARTH as a teenager.  His testimony was a pivotal moment, not only for the case, but also for Kendall himself, who says he “still feels like a kid who just wants to be loved.”

Kendall, who plans to become an attorney, says the experience of testifying in the historic trial made him realize just how many unsung heroes fight for equality in the United States.

“To me, a hero is anyone who tries to make this a better place for all of us – for the people in our lives, and those that will come after us,’ says Kendall. “Even the smallest act can change the world.” Continue reading…

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Advocates, opponents, politicians react to today’s Prop 8 ruling

LGBTQ Nation • Wednesday, August 4, 2010 • Filed under: California, National Agenda, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (1)

While gay rights advocates from across the country celebrate Wednesday’s historic ruling in which U.S. Judge Vaughn Walker overturned Proposition 8, California’s 2008 voter approved ban on gay marriage, political groups, elected officials and activists on both sides issued reaction, ranging from jubilation to furiously denouncing the court’s ruling.

Following are excerpts from today’s statements; full text available by clicking the respective links:

Statement from Chad Griffin, Board President of the American Foundation for Equal Rights:

The lawsuit was initiated by the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), a nonprofit organization created to support the plaintiffs in the case.

“This decision follows the founding constitutional principle that every American is to be treated equally under the law. No law may violate the U.S. Constitution, and our courts were established to protect against unfair laws. Today was an example of our nation living up to its founding ideals.”

Protect Marriage.com Statement:

Andy Pugno, general counsel for ProtectMarriage.com, the official proponents of Proposition 8, said “Today’s ruling is clearly a disappointment. The judge’s invalidation of the votes of over seven million Californians violates binding legal precedent and short-circuits the democratic process. But this is not the end of our fight to uphold the will of the people for traditional marriage, as we now begin an appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

“It is disturbing that the trial court, in order to strike down Prop 8, has literally accused the majority of California voters of having ill and discriminatory intent when casting their votes for Prop 8.”

Evan Wolfson, Executive Director of Freedom to Marry:

“Today’s federal ruling strikes down a cruel and unfair constitutional amendment that should never have become law and affirms that the freedom to marry belongs to every American. As the first court to strike down race restrictions on marriage said in 1948, “the essence of the right to marry is freedom to join in marriage with the person of one’s choice.

“There is no gay exception in the Constitution to personal choice and the right to marry, and there is no good reason to continue excluding same-sex couples from marriage.”

National Organization for Marriage statement:

“Big surprise! We expected nothing different from Judge Vaughn Walker, after the biased way he conducted this trial,” said Brian Brown, President of NOM.

“With a stroke of his pen, Judge Walker has overruled the votes and values of 7 million Californians who voted for marriage as one man and one woman. This ruling, if allowed to stand, threatens not only Prop 8 in California but the laws in 45 other states that define marriage as one man and one woman.”

HRC Statement:

The Human Rights Campaign – the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization – praised Wednesday’s historic decision:

“After hearing extensive evidence in support of marriage equality, and essentially no defense of the discrimination wrought by Prop 8, Judge Walker reached the same conclusion we have always known to be true – the Constitution’s protections are for all Americans, including the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese.

GLAAD Statement:

“The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), the nation’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy and anti-defamation organization, joined same-sex couples across the nation in applauding today’s historic decision to overturn Proposition 8.”

“After hearing extensive evidence in support of marriage equality, and essentially no defense of the discrimination wrought by Prop 8, Judge Walker reached the same conclusion we have always known to be true – the Constitution’s protections are for all Americans, including the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese.

Maggie Gallagher, Former President of NOM:

“Did our Founding Fathers really create a right to gay marriage in the U.S. Constitution? It is hard for anyone reading the text or history of the 14th Amendment to make that claim with a straight face, no matter how many highly credentialed and brilliant so-called legal experts say otherwise.

“Judge Walker has added insult to injury by suggesting that support for marriage is somehow irrational bigotry, akin to racial animus. The majority of Americans are not bigots or haters for supporting the commonsense view that marriage is the union of husband and wife, because children need moms and dads.

“Judge Walker’s view is truly a radical rejection of Americans’ rights….”

Statement from California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger:

Schwarzenegger, named as a defendant in the case, commended today’s ruling. He opposed Proposition 8 and declined to defend the ballot measure in court.

“For the hundreds of thousands of Californians in gay and lesbian households who are managing their day-to-day lives, this decision affirms the full legal protections and safeguards I believe everyone deserves. At the same time, it provides an opportunity for all Californians to consider our history of leading the way to the future, and our growing reputation of treating all people and their relationships with equal respect and dignity.

“Today’s decision is by no means California’s first milestone, nor our last, on America’s road to equality and freedom for all people.”

Statement from California Attorney General Jerry Brown:

Brown was also named as a defendant in the case, and as with Governor Schwarzenegger, declined to defend the ballot measure in court.

“In striking down Proposition 8, Judge Walker came to the same conclusion I did when I declined to defend it: Proposition 8 violates the equal protection guarantee of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution by taking away the right of same-sex couples to marry, without a sufficient governmental interest.”

Statement from Geoff Kors, Executive Director for Equality California:

“We are thrilled with today’s ruling, which affirms that the protections enshrined in our U.S. Constitution apply to all Americans and that our dream of equality and freedom deserves protection. Judge Walker has preserved our democracy by ruling that a majority cannot deny a minority group of fundamental freedoms. This is as much a victory for the soul of our nation as it is for the thousands of same-sex couples and their families who will be directly impacted.

“We are truly indebted to Ted Olson and David Boies and to the American Foundation for Equal Rights. We owe Governor Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown a great deal of gratitude for their unprecedented decision not to defend this discriminatory measure.”

Follow our complete coverage on Wednesday’s historic decision here.

For achived coverage on the trial, including opening and closing arguments and day-by-day reporting coverage during the trial, browse our extensive coverage here.

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Prop 8 unconstitutional: Federal judge strikes down CA gay marriage ban

LGBTQ Nation • Wednesday, August 4, 2010 • Filed under: California, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

Reaction to Wednesday’s ruling, here.
Next steps: Judge to decide whether to lift ‘stay’ in ruling.

A federal judge on Wednesday struck down California’s Proposition 8, the 2008 voter approved ban on gay marriage, ruling it “unconstitutional” and fails to “advance any rational basis” to deny gay men and lesbians a marriage license.

In his 136 page ruling, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker wrote:

“Plaintiffs challenge Proposition 8 under the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. Each challenge is independently meritorious, as Proposition 8 both unconstitutionally burdens the exercise of the fundamental right to marry and creates an irrational classification on the basis of sexual orientation.”

“Plaintiffs seek to have the state recognize their committed relationships, and plaintiffs’ relationships are consistent with the core of the history, tradition and practice of marriage in the United States.“

“Moral disapproval alone is an improper basis on which to deny rights to gay men and lesbians. The evidence shows conclusively that Proposition 8 enacts, without reason, a private moral view that same-sex couples are inferior to opposite sex couples.”

Read the complete ruling here (PDF).

Walker presided over a 13 day non-jury trial earlier this year on the constitutionality of Proposition 8, the first in federal court to examine if states can prohibit gays from getting married without violating the U.S. constitutional guarantee of equality.

Judge Walker

Walker’s decision is expected to be appealed to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and then up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Attorneys for the Proposition 8 defense team, anticipating the decision against them, filed court papers Tuesday night, asking Walker for a stay of his ruling. The motion indicated that the Proposition 8 lawyers will immediately ask the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review the ruling.

In fact, within hours of handing down his decision, Walker issued a ruling granting a temporary stay of his order until Friday, allowing opponents of same-sex marriage time to file appeals, appearing to bar an immediate resumption of weddings between gays and lesbians in California.

To win a permanent stay pending appeal, Proposition 8 proponents must show that they are likely to prevail in the long run and that there would be irreparable harm if the ban is not enforced.

Plantiffs (left to right) Paul Katami, Jeff Zarillo, Kris Perry and Sandy Stier before the start of their trial in San Francisco. Photo credit: Reuters

The trial was instigated by a lawsuit filed by two same-sex couples — Kristin Perry, Sandra Stier, Paul Katami and Jeffrey Zarrillo — who said that Proposition 8 violated their constitutional rights to equal protection and due process.

“For our entire lives, our government and the law have treated us as unequal. This decision to ensure that our constitutional rights are as protected as everyone else’s makes us incredibly proud of our country,” Perry said.

“Kris and I have raised four children, own a home and have professional careers. But because of Proposition 8, our family is still not complete. For us, equal rights are about our family having the recognition and protections that other families have,” Stier said.

“We just want to get married, just like our friends, family and relatives can. We are thankful to live in a nation of equal laws,” Katami said.

“We hope this decision brings us closer to the day when Americans no longer have to fight in court for the rights the Constitution says we all already have. We are grateful that the American Foundation for Equal Rights, Ted Olson and David Boies came together to fight for us, and millions of others, so that finally, every American will truly be equal under the law,” Zarrillo said.

The lawsuit, Perry v. Schwarzenegger, was initiated by the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), a nonprofit organization created to support the plaintiffs in the case. To represent the plaintiffs, AFER retained former U.S. Solicitor General Theodore Olson and David Boies (who worked on opposite sides in Bush v. Gore, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that gave George W. Bush the presidency in 2000).

AFER was founded by political consultant Chad Griffin, and counts Hollywood powerhouses Bruce Cohen, Dustin Lance Black and Rob Reiner among its board members.

Olson (left) and Boies

During the trial, Olson and Boies called 16 witnesses to testify against Proposition 8, including professors and historians from the nation’s top universities, experts in the fields of marriage, sociology and politics, and presented emotional testimony from gays and lesbians about why marriage mattered to them.

“Through its decision today, the court has acted in the best traditions of a legal system established to uphold the Constitution and the principles of equality upon which this nation was founded,” said attorney Theodore B. Olson. “On no less than 14 occasions, the Supreme Court has held that marriage is a fundamental right. This decision recognizes that Proposition 8 denied the plaintiffs, and tens-of-thousands of other Californians, that fundamental constitutional right and treated them unequally.”

“The Supreme Court has long held that marriage is a fundamental right. Equal protection under the law is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, and this ruling affirms that universal right of every American,” plaintiff’s attorney David Boies said. “Depriving the fundamental right to marry causes grievous harm to millions of Americans and their children.”

The backers of Proposition 8 called only two witnesses, both of who made concessions under cross-examination that helped the plaintiff’s case.

Proposition 8, which outlawed gay marriages in California five months after the state Supreme Court legalized them, passed with 52 percent of the vote in November 2008 following the most expensive campaign on a social issue in U.S. history.

Wednesday’s ruling comes just weeks after a federal court in Boston ruled that a key part of the government’s Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional and took away a state’s right to define marriage.

The ruling came after Massachusetts sued the federal government over the law, saying it forced the state to discriminate against its citizens.

Walker’s ruling is the first in the country to strike down a marriage ban based on federal constitutional grounds — previous cases have cited state constitutions.

More on the Prop 8 ruling, including reaction from both sides, from LGBTQ Nation as it develops.

For achived coverage on the trial, including opening and closing arguments and day-by-day reporting coverage during the trial, browse our extensive coverage here.

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

Prop 8 supporters: ‘We are the victims’

Kelvin Lynch • Saturday, July 24, 2010 • Filed under: California, Politics, Proposition 8 Trial • Comments (0)

"Traditional marriage" supporters feel they are the victims of gay equal rights

David Thompson, an attorney saddled with the unfortunate task of representing Prop 8 defendants, remarked in court during the federal trial that supporting the Prop 8 campaign was” political kryptonite,” according to the Washington Post.

Thompson, while cross-examining Stanford professor Gary Sergura, attempted to show that Prop 8 supporters “had been assaulted, gotten death threats and been subjected to economic boycotts,” and that the gay rights movement had suffered because of it.

In other words, Thompson was saying Prop 8 (a.k.a. “traditional marriage”) supporters are the victims here, not gay people. And that gay people have brought negative backlash upon themselves by standing up for their equal rights. Continue reading…

Previously from LGBTQ Nation:

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