Gay Marriage Stalls in Calif., Mass.
Fri Mar 12,12:09 AM ET Add U.S. National - AP to My Yahoo!
By DAVID KRAVETS, Associated Press Writer
SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court ordered an immediate halt to same-sex weddings in San Francisco on Thursday as Massachusetts lawmakers gave preliminary approval to a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriages in the only state where they have been ruled legal.
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Slideshow: Same-Sex Marriage Issues
Teary-eyed couples were quickly turned away at San Francisco's City Hall, where 4,161 gay couples have tied the knot in the last month.
"We were filling out the application and they told us to stop," said Art Adams, who was the first to be denied as he and partner Devin Baker sought a license. "It's heartbreaking. I don't understand why two people in love should be prevented from expressing it."
The high court moved to block any more marriages, at least for now, until they decide whether San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom had the power to authorize such unions. The court said it would hear arguments in May or June on whether Newsom had that authority.
On the other side of the country, Massachusetts legislators returned to the Capitol to consider a constitutional amendment that would strip gay couples of their court-granted right to marriage but allow civil unions.
The amendment won approval during three preliminary votes, before the Legislature recessed just before midnight Thursday. Lawmakers planned to return March 29 to resume deliberations.
The amendment's final passage is far from certain, however, as gay marriage supporters were conducting procedural maneuvers that could ultimately lead to the proposal's defeat.
Massachusetts took center stage in the national debate over gay marriage following a landmark decision by its highest court in November that was reaffirmed last month. The rulings set the stage for the nation's first legally sanctioned gay marriages on May 17.
Lawmakers seeking to put a gay marriage ban before Massachusetts voters were unsuccessful during a joint House-Senate session last month.
San Francisco's mayor waded into the debate at about the same time, ordering his administration on Feb. 12 to issue same-sex marriage licenses.
Newsom's defiance of California law prompted officials in several other cities and counties across the nation to follow suit, and President Bush (news - web sites) last month cited the San Francisco weddings when he announced that he supports changing the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriages. Lawmakers in dozens of states have also taken up the issue.
The high court's unanimous decision Thursday marked a victory for conservatives who have been fighting for a month to block the rush to the altar by gay couples.
Had the court declined to intervene, the legal battle over gay marriage in California would have taken years as gay marriage lawsuits traveled through the state's lower courts.
"They restored order to chaos in San Francisco," said Joshua Carden, an attorney with the conservative Alliance Defense Fund.
The Alliance Defense Fund, a fellow conservative group and state Attorney General Bill Lockyer had asked the court to immediately block the gay marriages.
Jon Davidson, an attorney for the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, a gay rights legal aid group, said the ruling simply puts the issue on hold for now. About 2,688 couples had wedding appointments that are now on hold.
"The court has put everything on pause rather than stop," he said. "They are saying that until we hear this, you are on pause."
The court said whether the California Constitution permits same-sex marriage is a question that should work its way through the lower courts. That process could take a year or more before it again reaches the state high court.
San Francisco, in response, immediately filed a lawsuit in state court demanding that a judge declare that the state constitution permits same-sex marriages.
"While we are disappointed with the interim stay of same-sex marriages here in San Francisco, we must remain cognizant that our overriding purpose is to ensure marriage equality for all Californians, not merely those performed within our city limits," City Attorney Dennis Herrera said.
In Massachusetts, both sides acknowledged that they face a long battle.
Several of the most ardent supporters of gay marriage actually gave preliminary approval to the ban. By doing that, the lawmakers eliminated the possibility of other, less appealing versions coming forward at this time. They hope to withdraw support on the crucial final vote needed before the end of the session.
The gay marriage ban needs to be approved by two consecutive Legislatures before reaching the ballot. The earliest that could happen is November 2006.
"The silver lining out of this is you saw a desire here to protect marriage," Ron Crews, head of the Massachusetts Family Institute, said of the preliminary approval.
The first constitutional convention ended after three versions of a gay marriage ban met narrow defeats during two days of passionate debate, pitting civil rights against the desire to preserve the traditional definition of marriage.
By 6 a.m. Thursday, hundreds of people stood at the Statehouse entrance before the start of the second convention, and others chanted, waved flags and sang Gospel music on the sidewalks.
"No Hatred. Just loving biblical truth," read posters held by some of the opponents of gay marriage.
Lynn Tibbets, 50, of Boston, held a sign urging "No discrimination in the constitution." "It used to just make me mad — the people on the other side. Now it just makes me sad," Tibbets said as she choked back tears.
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