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by OnTopMag.com

San Francisco — The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday denied a request by Proposition 8 supporters to rehear Perry v. Brown en banc, which means that the case is almost certainly heading for the Supreme Court.

Proposition 8 is the 2008 voter-approved constitutional amendment which put an end to the legal weddings of gay and lesbian couples taking place in California after the state Supreme Court ruled that the state's law limiting marriage to heterosexual couples is unconstitutional. Approximately 18,000 gay couples married before Proposition 8 went into effect.

The American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER) formed to challenge the constitutionality of the amendment.

"BREAKING: 9th Circuit will not rehear #prop8 case. HUGE turning point in our case for #equality4all," the group tweeted on Tuesday.

Last February, a 3-judge panel of the appeals court upheld a lower court's ruling which found Prop 8 in violation of the constitutional rights of gay couples who wish to marry in California.

The sponsors of the ban asked the court for an en banc review, which would expand the number of judges reviewing the case to 11. Few such requests are granted, but the Supreme Court often won't take a case in which petitioners have not exhausted all of their legal options.

Supporters are most certain to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.

Article provided in partnership with On Top Magazine

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