Prop. 8 foes sue to block amendment

Published online on Thursday, Nov. 06, 2008

Several Valley counties halted same-sex marriages Wednesday as a legal battle began over a ban approved by voters.

Gay-rights activists immediately filed court challenges to Proposition 8, approved Tuesday by more than 52% of California voters, and some counties continued to issue licenses. But Fresno, Madera and Tulare counties were among the jurisdictions that stopped the practice shortly after results became clear Wednesday morning.

"We will suspend issuing same-sex marriage licenses and performing marriages until we get direction from the state or our county counsel," said Fresno County Clerk Victor Salazar.

The passage of Prop. 8 was a win for defenders of a traditional definition of marriage, who fought hard to override a state Supreme Court ruling in May that opened the door to same-sex marriage. It was a loss for couples who still hoped to wed, and it cast a shadow of uncertainty on the legal unions of those who already have. Because the initiative holds that only marriage between a man and a woman is recognized in the state, courts must decide whether existing gay marriages are still legal, experts said.

Petitions filed in court

Gay rights supporters filed three petitions Wednesday asking the Supreme Court to invalidate the measure on the grounds that voters did not have the authority to make such a dramatic change in state law. They argue that the measure revised rather than amended the California Constitution, and therefore first should have been submitted to the state Legislature.

Glen Lavy, an attorney for the Prop. 8 campaign, called the lawsuits "frivolous" and "a brazen attempt to gut the democratic process."

The first action was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and Lambda Legal. Santa Clara County and the cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles also filed a suit, and Los Angeles lawyer Gloria Allred filed a third suit on behalf of a married lesbian couple.

All the lawsuits cited the constitutional revision argument, and two of them asked the court to block Prop. 8 from taking effect while the legal cases were pending.

In some parts of the state, gay and lesbian couples continued seeking marriage licenses, and they were successful in some counties. But in other jurisdictions, county clerks wanted direction before sanctioning any more same-sex unions.

"It's going to be up to the respective counties to make that call," said Rebecca Martinez, Madera County's clerk/registrar, and president of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials.

Kate Folmar, a spokeswoman for Secretary of State Debra Bowen, said initiatives typically take effect the day after an election. But hundreds of thousands of ballots remain to be counted, she said, and results from Tuesday's races will not be certified by the state until Dec. 13.

Attorney General Jerry Brown has said he thinks the ban would not apply to couples who tied the knot between mid-June and Election Day. As for those who manage to marry Wednesday, Dana Simas, a spokeswoman for Brown, said "that is an issue that we have not yet decided."

Other marriage bans pass

Gay-marriage bans also passed Tuesday in Arizona and Florida, with 57% and 62% support, respectively, while Arkansas voters approved a measure aimed at gays that bars unmarried couples from serving as adoptive or foster parents.

Massachusetts and Connecticut are now the only states to allow same-sex marriage.

With almost all precincts reporting, election returns showed California's gay-marriage ban winning with 52%. Valley voters approved the measure by a wider margin, including a 69% approval in Fresno County and 75% in Tulare County, according to the latest returns.