Supreme Court to Hear Oral Arguments in Prop. 8 Cases on March 5, 2009

San Francisco—The California Supreme Court today announced that it will hear oral arguments on Thursday, March 5, 2009, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., in three cases challenging the constitutionality of Proposition 8, a statewide ballot initiative that was passed by a majority of California voters in November 2008. (Strauss v. Horton, S168047; Tyler v. State of California, S168066; City and County of San Francisco v. Horton, S168078).

The oral argument session will be held in the Supreme Court’s Courtroom, Earl Warren Center, Fourth Floor, 350 McAllister Street, San Francisco, as part of the court’s regular monthly calendar session in March 2009. The complete March 2009 oral argument calendar is available at http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/supreme/#cal .

In the cases before the court, the court has issued an order listing the following three issues to be briefed and argued:

1. Is Proposition 8 invalid because it constitutes a revision of, rather than an amendment to, the California Constitution?
2. Does Proposition 8 violate the separation of powers doctrine under the California Constitution?
3. If Proposition 8 is not unconstitutional, what is its effect, if any, on the marriages of same-sex couples performed before the adoption of Proposition 8?

The three cases before the court were filed directly in the California Supreme Court on November 5, 2008, the day following the voters’ approval of Proposition 8 at the November 4, 2008 election.

On November 19, 2008, the court agreed to hear the cases, denied a request to stay the operation of Proposition 8 pending the court’s resolution of the cases, granted the motion of the official proponents of Proposition 8 to intervene in the action, and established an expedited briefing schedule. Briefing in the Supreme Court was completed on January 21, 2009.

In an order issued today, the Supreme Court specified the amount of time each of the
petitioners, the Attorney General, and the interveners will be allocated for oral argument.

ACCESS TO ORAL ARGUMENTS

To increase public access to the court session, the Supreme Court has designated the
California Channel, a public affairs cable network, to provide a live TV broadcast of the
session and to serve as the “pool” channel. California Channel will provide a press pool
outside the State Building to facilitate coverage of the oral argument by television and radio stations. For a list of cable companies that carry the network, see
http://www.calchannel.com/carriage.htm .

Oral arguments also will be broadcast in an overflow viewing auditorium in the Milton
Marks Conference Center, Hiram J. Smith State Office Building, Lower Level, 455 Golden
Gate Avenue, San Francisco. In addition, the Supreme Court has announced that all briefs in the Proposition 8 cases are now posted to a special section of the California Courts Web site at http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/courts/supreme/ .

Under the applicable court rules, the Supreme Court generally issues a decision, through a written opinion, within 90 days of oral argument. For more information on the cases, including the attorneys of record, please see the Supreme Court’s online Case Information System at http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/search.cfm?dist=5 .

Public and press seating in the courtroom will be extremely limited. Press seats will be
available on a first-come, first-served basis, with one seat to be allocated per media
organization. To reserve a seat, please e-mail Lynn Holton (lynn.holton@jud.ca.gov) or call 415-865-7726/7740.

Liberals Being Intolerant On Twitter Again – This Time Over Prop 8

The people have spoken in California, again. This time Californian’s have voted to amend the state’s constitution to contain, “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid and recognized in California.”

On November 5th, 2008, with 100% of the precincts reporting, the tally is:

Yes Votes	%	No Votes	%
5,387,939	52.5%	4,883,460	47.5%

Let’s see what the standard-bearers of “tolerance” have to say about it on Twitter.

xtopher42: Retweeting @jacobjackson: The bigots who voted for Prop 8 can die in a fire.
meredithmo: So many emotions this morning. I’m overwhelmed.We’re solid as Barack, but Prop 8 supporters need to die in a fire.
gazellesoncrack: I’m waiting for CA Prop 8 results & want to say if my best friend isn’t married tomorrow, I will kick each &every voter until they die.
0Randy0: Prop 8 supporters can eat shit and die
wilw: Resolved: the next asshole who encourages me to vote yes on prop 8 via bigoted flyer on my doorstep will be encouraged to die in a fire.
Smalltimejazz: PROP 8 can go to hell. Fuck religion.
_jas_: After Prop 8, it’s clear that religious groups shouldn’t be a protected class of people under the law. Oppressors needn’t be protected.
Melindhra: @RJToronto Prop 8 is bullshit. I can’t believe that anyone wouldbe stupid enough to vote for it.
FearCake: I hate to say it but finding out that over 70 percent of blacks voting for prop 8 makes me very distrustful of themas a whole.
_jas_: It’s laughable that the LDS was such huge supporter of Prop 8. Can they really be protectors of marriage? Polygamist bigots.
ajkl27: the whole prop 8 thing makes me wanna move to california and go on a jason style rampage
timbond: @pdxmikek I am with you there. I can’t get over the evil that is Prop 8
JamesJumpsuit: Fuck my parents for voting YES on prop 8,stupid hairy cunts!
Plaid23: I truly wish death on those who supported prop.8 in Cali.An amendment to limit freedom? Shame on you! Please die soon and horribly!
sleepingschnauz: mad that prop 8 passed.stupid right Wing christians.
nexusdivine: fuck you prop 8…fuck you.right in the ass.with a REAL mans cock.
electasy: Today just SUCKS! Prop 8 SUCKS! 52% of California?s population SUCKS! /cry
jhorsley3: to California any anyone who supported it – FUCK YOU FOR PROP 8
Miss_AnnThrope: also, I’m going to go take a shit on some yes for prop 8 signs, anyone wanna join?
deets: Fuck you California and the Mormon Church for passing Prop 8. Seriously, go fuck yourselves
urban_ryoga: Is restraining himself from pissing on all Yes on Prop 8 signs
Ryudo9: prop 8 can eat donkey cock cheese, that’s just messed up. Like a giant dump on the bill of rights
whatszachdoing: california voted yes on prop 8. FUCK YOU CALI! FUCK YOU LONG AND HARD! no offense @Myrindaside + @leslie666
barr: With prop 8 passing, the next person who says CA is a liberal state should be punched in the mouth
timylee: Not all battles were won last night, shocked by the passing of Prop.8 (aka,Prop. Hate) in Cali. Talk about a dose of bigotry.
sfosav: After Prop 8 I have no faith in religion.Who are religious nutbags to say who marries who. F you Church.
eschaton: I won’t be leaving politics behind, especially the abomination that is Prop 8. If you voted for that, you may as  well have joined the Klan.
Merosmash: Hey California … WTF IS WITH PASSING PROP 8, YOU HORRIBLE BASTARDS? (not all of you, 48% of you are cool)
girliedrummer: DD: i cannot believe that Prop 8 was passed! i’m ticked!!! everyone who voted for Prop 8 is a bunch of homo-phobic bitches!!!
ShadowSync: The passing on Prop 8 is a piece of Henious fuckery most foul.
skywaterblue: Just remember about Prop 8: We are many. We are legion. We cannot be stopped. We have over 9000 PENISES ALL RAPING YOUR CHILDREN.
eschewcapitals: seriously, is anyone actually happy with the outcome of prop 8? (and if you are, i’d advise you getaway from me quickly)
erikthedane: To the fucktards in CA that voted in Prop 8, may you never know the happiness you are trying to deny people.
sprigglebot: Fuck prop 8!
spleenless1der: I think passing Prop 8 lowered the state IQ by a few points…seriously, the idiots are out en masse 😦
Meredith122: If you voted for prop 8 FUCK YOU

Let’s see, threats of death, many by fire (fire? no idea, must be some gay retribution thing), and plenty of ad hominem statements (if they even qualify that high), hate speech against blacks and Christians, or mostly just vitriolic tirades. Take a look through Twitter’s search engine and try to find a Prop 8 supporter engaging in such behavior. I couldn’t.

many_eels: I’m not sure of i want prop 8 to go to the supreme court just yet. I’m scared of what they’ll say

Anyway, I included the last tweet above since many_eels seemed to be the smartest one of the bunch. After Prop 8 was decided by the people, several law suits were filed claiming “foul”. However, the gay rights groups have called for people not to file cases in federal court. Pushing this issue now and having the case ultimately fail in front of the Supreme Court will take gay marriage off the table for generations. Gays, it’s your call. Let this drop now for a bit, or get spanked at the federal bench? Although, some of you might like the sound of that.