KGO is reporting, and our sources are confirming, that a three-judge panel of 9th US District Court of Appeals has granted a motion filed by supporters of Proposition 8, blocking gay and lesbian marriages for the time being.
In sum, that means there won’t be any same sex weddings this Wednesday after 5, as was allowed by the ruling issued by Judge Walker last week. On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled against granting a long-term stay in the case but issued a temporary stay to allow Proposition 8 supporters to appeal the decision.
The temporary stay was set to be in place until 5 p.m. on Wednesday. If the appeals court panel hadn’t granted the emergency stay, gay and lesbian couples could have begun obtaining marriage licenses after that time. According to the Chron, the three judges who decided to uphold the stay were appeals Judges Edward Leavy, Michael Daly and Sidney Thomas.
Next up: Prop 8 supporters’ appeal of Walker’s ruling overturning California’s same sex marriage ban, which while previously planned for December, has been moved up to next month. The Weekly quotes the order (which you can read here) as saying that “The opening brief is now due September 17, 2010. The answering brief is due October 18, 2010. The reply brief is due November 1, 2010.”
In a statement released by Gavin Newsom this afternoon, the mayor sees the glass as half full, saying (in part):
While today’s Ninth Circuit Court ruling is a disappointment for many of us who agree with Judge Walker’s decision that marriage discrimination is unconstitutional, I am heartened by the Court’s decision to resolve the appeal on an expedited schedule. Today, I am more confident than ever that justice and equal rights under the law will ultimately prevail.
Marriage equality group Equality CA echoed Newsom’s sentiments, saying in a statement that “we are extremely disappointed that loving same-sex couples will have to wait to marry, and that we are once again being denied our fundamental rights.”
Bay City News contributed to this report
