Conservative group acts to delay ruling striking down gay marriage
May 23, 2008
Howard Mintz - San Jose Mercury NewsIssue date: 5/22/08 Section: Real News
"Of course a delay would be unfortunate," said Rich Butler, who has been with Michael for 13 years. "But it's still a great day that we can eventually get married. We've already waited this long."
Gay couples have begun making wedding plans across California since the state Supreme Court issued its 4-3 ruling last Thursday finding that it is unconstitutional to deny those couples the same right to marry as heterosexual couples. Ordinarily, the Supreme Court's ruling would go into effect 30 days from being released, which could have opened up the gay wedding business as early as June 16, depending on when the state could update its paperwork.
But a proposed ballot initiative and further legal wrangling continues to cast uncertainty over the process.
Gay marriage foes appear to be close to qualifying a ballot initiative that would trump the state Supreme Court's ruling and again forbid same-sex couples from marrying in California. In Thursday's court papers, the defense fund warns that allowing gay marriages to proceed in the coming months "risks legal havoc and uncertainty of immeasurable magnitude" if voters approve the constitutional change.
The justices seldom grant requests to rehear a decision, but internal court procedures still automatically trigger an additional 30 to 60 day delay in finalizing a ruling while the justices resolve the petition.
Top court officials say the request will be addressed no later than August, meaning couples will have three months to wed before the November election if the justices refuse to stay their ruling.
A spokesman for Attorney General Jerry Brown said state officials would not back the request for a stay. The state defended the law in the Supreme Court, but Brown and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger both said last week that they would respect the outcome of the ruling.
In another development Thursday, Secretary of State Debra Bowen and the state's legislative counsel issued statements saying that the court's ruling giving gay couples the right to wed does not impact the legal rights of registered domestic partners. Bowen said her office has been getting dozens of calls each day and wanted to assure same-sex couples that getting married would not jeopardize their domestic partnership status.
Gay couples have begun making wedding plans across California since the state Supreme Court issued its 4-3 ruling last Thursday finding that it is unconstitutional to deny those couples the same right to marry as heterosexual couples. Ordinarily, the Supreme Court's ruling would go into effect 30 days from being released, which could have opened up the gay wedding business as early as June 16, depending on when the state could update its paperwork.
But a proposed ballot initiative and further legal wrangling continues to cast uncertainty over the process.
Gay marriage foes appear to be close to qualifying a ballot initiative that would trump the state Supreme Court's ruling and again forbid same-sex couples from marrying in California. In Thursday's court papers, the defense fund warns that allowing gay marriages to proceed in the coming months "risks legal havoc and uncertainty of immeasurable magnitude" if voters approve the constitutional change.
The justices seldom grant requests to rehear a decision, but internal court procedures still automatically trigger an additional 30 to 60 day delay in finalizing a ruling while the justices resolve the petition.
Top court officials say the request will be addressed no later than August, meaning couples will have three months to wed before the November election if the justices refuse to stay their ruling.
A spokesman for Attorney General Jerry Brown said state officials would not back the request for a stay. The state defended the law in the Supreme Court, but Brown and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger both said last week that they would respect the outcome of the ruling.
In another development Thursday, Secretary of State Debra Bowen and the state's legislative counsel issued statements saying that the court's ruling giving gay couples the right to wed does not impact the legal rights of registered domestic partners. Bowen said her office has been getting dozens of calls each day and wanted to assure same-sex couples that getting married would not jeopardize their domestic partnership status.
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