Proposition 8 Trial Begins With Passionate Testimony From Same Sex Couples Unable To Marry
A trial to establish whether Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage in California, is unconstitutional, has begun in the San Francisco courthouse with passionate testimony from both gay and lesbian couples who believe the denial of the right to marry as heterosexual couples makes them second class citizens.
Having heard opening statements from both sides, Chief US District Judge Vaughn Walker then listened to the two Californian gay couples, one lesbian and one gay, present their case on what the voter approved ban has meant to them, with one witnesses, Sandy Stier, a Berkeley resident and one of the plaintiffs in the case saying “I’m just trying to get the rights the Constitution says I have.”
Expected to go on for a number of weeks, this historical case which sees high profile lawyers on either side, has already shown itself as one full of passion with both sides more than willing to argue with the judge with the questions he posed. Filming of the trial had been expected however this was halted at the last minute when the Supreme Court placed a ban on filming until Wednesday, something which has angered many who believe this to be one of the most important cases of current times. Cameras may have been banned but this however didn’t stop courtroom being packed with not only lawyers but also the media and other interested parties,whilst outside the courthouse itself there were hundreds of demonstrators gathered to protest both for and against the issue of gay marriage.
The block on the filming of the trial follows an appeal by Proposition 8 supporters who believe filming would jeopardise the trial, and whilst the high court has not said it agrees or disagrees with this, it did move to halt the filming till Wednesday to allow them to more deeply consider the issue. It is also widely predicted this won’t be the last time the Supreme Court is drawn into the issues of the trial either, with experts believing the San Francisco trial could force the Supreme Court to also act to determine if states have the right under the federal constitution to deny same-sex couples the right to marry.
Questioning by Judge Walker in the first day of the trial was aimed at both sides with him asking Theodore Olson, one of the plaintiffs’ lead attorneys, as well as a US solicitor general in the Bush administration “Why shouldn’t the courts stand back and let this develop?” and repsonse to Charles Cooper, the lead attorney for the Proposition 8 campaign, stating judges should step away from the issue said “There are certainly lots of issues taken out of the body politic,” the judge replied. “Why isn’t this one of them?”
Both of the same sex couples, Stier and Kristin Perry and Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo, who brought the case have spoken, with the Proposition 8 side choosing only to cross examine Katumi. It is now predicted that the rest of the witnesses with be expert witnesses for both sides, with Nancy Cott being the first expert witness to speak today. Whilst there was no filming, video has already been used extensively in the trial and looks set to continue.
