US: California county clerks urge court to continue to allow same-sex marriage licences

Jul 23 2013
Written by Joseph McCormick

Illustrated rainbow pride flag on a white background.

County clerks in the US state of California have urged courts to continue to allow the issue of same-sex marriage licences, despite calls from some for further clarification on the Supreme Court’s Proposition 8 ruling.

On Friday, The San Diego county clerk filed a petition which seeks a court order to exempt California county clerks from issuing marriage licences to gay couples.

Twenty-four county clerks from around California weighed in to say that there should be no interruption to the issuing of marriage licences to same-sex couples.

The US Supreme Court last month refused to rule on the case of Proposition 8, California’s state-wide ban on equal marriage. It therefore deferred to the District Court’s 2010 ruling, allowing same-sex weddings to resume.

Despite two court filings challenging the decision by the Supreme Court by arguing that the Proposition 8 ruling only applied to the plaintiffs in the case, the 24 clerks said that it should apply state-wide.

The Supreme Court in the US state of California already refused to halt the resume of same-sex marriages in the state earlier this week, following the US Supreme Court’s ruling last month, and a petition filed challenging it.

Earlier this month supporters of California’s Proposition 8 filed a petition to the state Supreme Court challenging the recent resume of same-sex wedding ceremonies, however the Supreme Court refused to do so.

The first same-sex wedding took place between the plaintiffs who brought the case against Prop 8 at the end of June, following the Supreme Court declining to take up the case, and as the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals since gave the green light for same-sex weddings to resume.

The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals previously lifted its stay on an injunction, which had ordered state officials to stop enforcing Prop 8, meaning marriage licenses could immediately be issued to same-sex couples.