Another Step Towards SCOTUS in the Prop 8 Case
Very interesting!
The 9th District Court of Appeals has issued a 2-1 panel ruling affirming the lower-court ruling that overturned CA's Prop 8. The full ruling is quite long, I haven't been able to get into it yet, but here are the key points from the summaries I've read:
1. The stay is still in effect, pending deadlines for filing an appeal, so nothing changes for those seeking to get married in CA. The Prop 8 Proponents will probably ask for a longer stay as they continue the appeal process (if the Circuit Court of Appeals refuses as stay, they could ask for a stay from SCOTUS).
2. The next step in appeals is to ask for the entire set of 9th Circuit Court Judges rule on the case en banc.
3. The ruling seems to be on rational basis instead of strict scrutiny grounds, so doesn't require argument about whether laws regarding sexual orientation require stricter review.
4. It's a narrow ruling, in that it specifically looks at the issue in the context of CA, which has marriage-minus-"marriage" civil unions (both before and after Prop 8). A lot of the arguments that Prop 8 serves a legitimate government interest refer to interests that are not in fact served merely by removing the term "marriage". The ruling concludes: "Proposition 8 serves no purpose and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples." It is an attempt at "separate but equal" which cannot be constitutional.
If SCOTUS ever ends up hearing this case, I'd hope they wouldn't be so restrained in scope and not rule against "separate but equal" in a way that leaves open the question of whether states can simply ditch the "but equal" part on this particular issue (leading to a scramble to repeal long-established compromises on civil partnerships / civil unions). But making a narrow ruling increases the probability that SCOTUS will just decline to review the case, letting it stand for now (until other circuit courts have a chance to rule on it, anyways).
The 9th District Court of Appeals has issued a 2-1 panel ruling affirming the lower-court ruling that overturned CA's Prop 8. The full ruling is quite long, I haven't been able to get into it yet, but here are the key points from the summaries I've read:
1. The stay is still in effect, pending deadlines for filing an appeal, so nothing changes for those seeking to get married in CA. The Prop 8 Proponents will probably ask for a longer stay as they continue the appeal process (if the Circuit Court of Appeals refuses as stay, they could ask for a stay from SCOTUS).
2. The next step in appeals is to ask for the entire set of 9th Circuit Court Judges rule on the case en banc.
3. The ruling seems to be on rational basis instead of strict scrutiny grounds, so doesn't require argument about whether laws regarding sexual orientation require stricter review.
4. It's a narrow ruling, in that it specifically looks at the issue in the context of CA, which has marriage-minus-"marriage" civil unions (both before and after Prop 8). A lot of the arguments that Prop 8 serves a legitimate government interest refer to interests that are not in fact served merely by removing the term "marriage". The ruling concludes: "Proposition 8 serves no purpose and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples." It is an attempt at "separate but equal" which cannot be constitutional.
If SCOTUS ever ends up hearing this case, I'd hope they wouldn't be so restrained in scope and not rule against "separate but equal" in a way that leaves open the question of whether states can simply ditch the "but equal" part on this particular issue (leading to a scramble to repeal long-established compromises on civil partnerships / civil unions). But making a narrow ruling increases the probability that SCOTUS will just decline to review the case, letting it stand for now (until other circuit courts have a chance to rule on it, anyways).