posted on March 11, 2004 04:15:59 PM new
California's top court blocks San Francisco gay marriages
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The California Supreme Court on Thursday ordered an immediate halt to gay marriages in San Francisco, delivering a victory to conservatives who have fought for a month to block the ceremonies.
The court did not rule on the legality of gay marriages, and justices indicated they would decide in the coming months whether San Francisco's mayor had the authority to allow the weddings.
The dispute began Feb. 12, when Mayor Gavin Newsom ordered his administration to issue same-sex marriage licenses. A steady stream of gay couples from around the country have traveled to be married at City Hall, just a block from the Supreme Court. More than 3,700 couples having tied the knot in San Francisco so far.
The action by California's highest court came two weeks after state Attorney General Bill Lockyer and a conservative group asked the seven justices to immediately block the gay marriages.
The justices ruled unanimously that Newsom must "refrain from issuing marriage licenses or certificates not authorized" by California marriage laws.
"They restored order to chaos in San Francisco," said Joshua Carden, an attorney with the conservative Alliance Defense Fund.
Newsom's spokesman, Peter Ragone, said the city would comply with the ruling as soon as officials receive the order.
Jon Davidson, an attorney for the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, a gay rights legal aid group, said the ruling simply puts the issue on hold for now.
"The court has put everything on pause rather than stop," he said. "They are saying that until we hear this, you are on pause."
Had the court declined to intervene, the legal battle over gay marriage in California would have taken years as gay marriage lawsuits traveled through the state's lower courts.
Newsom's defiance of California law prompted several other cities across the nation to follow suit, and President Bush last month said he would back a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages.
The California court's action came as Massachusetts lawmakers reconvened Thursday to consider a ban on gay marriage. They gave preliminary approval to a proposal that would ban gay marriage but allow civil unions.
Massachusetts' highest court ruled in November that it was unconstitutional to prevent gays from marrying — a ruling that sparked a legislative scramble to amend the state constitution.
In statehouses nationwide, lawmakers are scrutinizing their constitutions to see if they could be construed to permit same-sex marriages, even in states where laws now bar them.
Lockyer and the Alliance Defense Fund said the court's action was urgently needed because thousands of newly married gays might otherwise think they enjoy the same rights granted other married couples — such as the right to receive the other spouse's property in the absence of a will.
The Democrats ran on 'Honesty' and I told 'em at the time they would never get anywhere. It was too radical for politics. The Republicans ran on 'Common Sense' and the returns showed that there were 8 million more people in the United States who had 'Common Sense' enough not to believe that there was 'Honesty' in politics." --Will Rogers
posted on March 11, 2004 05:08:22 PM new
States with Laws Passed by State Legislatures Banning Same-Sex Marriage (33):
Alabama
Arizona
Arkansas
Colorado
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
States with Laws Approved by Voters in Ballot Initiatives Banning Same-Sex Marriage (5):
Alaska
California
Hawaii
Nebraska
Nevada
How do override the states that had voter approved Initiatives? Those good citizens voted on the issue there is your answer...
posted on March 11, 2004 06:21:31 PM new
How do override the states that had voter approved Initiatives?
The Supreme Court will when they are declared unconstitutional or when the voters change there minds and want the laws repealed.
Those good citizens voted on the issue there is your answer...
There is a difference between good citizens voting on the issue and lawmakers passing laws on behalf of the voters. Here in Illinois there was never a question put on a ballot as to whether same sex marriages should be allowed. The goes for what is happening in Massachusetts right now. Lawmakers are deciding what is right and wrong not the people. In case you haven't been kept abreast, twelve, the question of whether same sex marriages should be allowed in Massachusetts was not going to be put on a ballot for another year or so. If there is any vote in Massachusetts it will not be because the good citizens voted on it.
Impeach Bush
Marriage is a Human Right not a Heterosexual Privledge.
Bigotry and hate will not be tolerated.
