Judge refuses to order Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown to defend Prop. 8
Fri. September 3, 2010 1:15 PM by GoPride.com News Staff
San Francisco -
A California judge has refused to force Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to defend Prop. 8, the voter-approved ban on gay marriage.
In August, a federal judge tossed out Proposition 8. Gay marriages are still on hold as the case works its way through the courts.
Normally, state officials are obligated to defend laws passed by legislatures and citizens. But Brown is opposed to Prop. 8 and Schwarzenegger said after the August ruling that he would not appeal. Schwarzenegger also said that California state offices were ready to issue gay marriage licenses whenever the courts told them to do so.
Schwarzenegger's and Brown's attitude towards the voter-approved law did not sit well with the conservative Pacific Justice Institute, which sued them on Monday.
"When the people peacefully enact a constitutional provision and the attorney general refuses to give them meaningful review in the federal judiciary, then you have a veto by the executive branch," Pacific Justice Institute lawyer Kevin Snider told the San Francisco Chronicle. "That is a constitutional crisis, usurping the power of the people."
The problem for supporters of Prop. 8 is that they might not have the legal standing to argue the case before higher courts.
The Wall Street Journal reports that if Prop. 8's supporters are not legally allowed to defend it, and they can't force other surrogates to do so, "the appeals court could uphold Walker's ruling on procedural grounds without deciding whether the initiative was constitutional."
That would mean that gays and lesbians would be allowed to marry in California, without a higher court ever deciding whether such a right is guaranteed by the constitution.
In August, a federal judge tossed out Proposition 8. Gay marriages are still on hold as the case works its way through the courts.
Normally, state officials are obligated to defend laws passed by legislatures and citizens. But Brown is opposed to Prop. 8 and Schwarzenegger said after the August ruling that he would not appeal. Schwarzenegger also said that California state offices were ready to issue gay marriage licenses whenever the courts told them to do so.
Schwarzenegger's and Brown's attitude towards the voter-approved law did not sit well with the conservative Pacific Justice Institute, which sued them on Monday.
"When the people peacefully enact a constitutional provision and the attorney general refuses to give them meaningful review in the federal judiciary, then you have a veto by the executive branch," Pacific Justice Institute lawyer Kevin Snider told the San Francisco Chronicle. "That is a constitutional crisis, usurping the power of the people."
The problem for supporters of Prop. 8 is that they might not have the legal standing to argue the case before higher courts.
The Wall Street Journal reports that if Prop. 8's supporters are not legally allowed to defend it, and they can't force other surrogates to do so, "the appeals court could uphold Walker's ruling on procedural grounds without deciding whether the initiative was constitutional."
That would mean that gays and lesbians would be allowed to marry in California, without a higher court ever deciding whether such a right is guaranteed by the constitution.