Motions Being Filed for Resumption of Same-Sex Weddings
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown filed motions Friday calling for resumption of same-sex weddings in the state.
The officials filed the motions after U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker previously overturned Proposition 8, California's voter-approved gay marriage ban.
Resuming gay marriage "is consistent with California's long history of treating all people and their relationships with equal dignity and respect," Schwarzenegger said in his legal filing.
Walker ruled Wednesday the ban violates federal equal protections and due process laws.
However, he agreed to block gay marriages from immediately resuming until he can consider arguments on whether to keep the ban in effect while its supporters take their appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Brown, a candidate for governor, said that ruling means it's time for gays to begin marrying again.
"While there is still the potential for limited administrative burdens should future marriages of same-sex couples be later declared invalid, these potential burdens are outweighed by this court's conclusion, based on the overwhelming evidence, that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional," Brown said in his legal filing.
It was unclear when Walker would issue a ruling on the possible resumption of same-sex marriages.
The outcome in the appeals court could force the U.S. Supreme Court to confront the question of whether gays have a constitutional right to wed.
Currently, same-sex couples can legally wed only in Massachusetts, Iowa, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire and Washington, D.C.
