California Supreme Court Upholds Gay Marriage Ban
The California Supreme Court has upheld a voter referendum banning gay marriage in the state, but has ruled that some 18,000 marriages performed before the initiative passed will remain valid.
Gay rights activists plan to seek repeal of the referendum in a new initiative effort, possibly as early as next year, the Los Angeles Times reports. The voter ban on gay marriages known as Proposition 8 passed by a narrow margin of 52 percent last November.
A year ago, the California Supreme Court had found a constitutional right to same-sex marriages. Voters passed Proposition 8 six months later.
The opinion today by Chief Justice Ronald George said the initiative was not a far-reaching constitutional revision requiring either a two-thirds vote of the legislature or a constitutional convention. He also said the ban did not unconstitutionally take away an inalienable right, an argument advanced by state Attorney General Jerry Brown.
The only dissenter was Justice Carlos Moreno, who wrote that the initiative was an illegal constitutional revision, according to the Los Angeles Times account.
The decision had been expected, although at least one publication had predicted there would be two dissenters.
Additional coverage:
Washington Post: “California Supreme Court Upholds Same-Sex Marriage Ban”
New York Times: “California Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Same-Sex Marriage”
