Attorney General Jerry Brown Files Answer in Support of Federal Lawsuit To Overturn Prop 8

06/12/09 San Francisco Chronicle:

(06-12) 21:01 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Attorney General Jerry Brown, who tried to persuade the state Supreme Court to overturn California's ban on same-sex marriage, took the same position in federal court Friday [Perry et al v. Schwarzenegger et al., (N.D.Cal. 3:09-cv-02292, filed May 22, 2009)], saying Proposition 8 violates the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of equality ... Brown's refusal to support Prop. 8 means that the conservative Christian groups who sponsored Prop. 8 will defend it in federal court, as they did in the state Supreme Court.

Here is the California Attorney General's answer to the Perry complaint. In his answer, Brown states:


The Attorney General of California is sworn to uphold the Constitution of the United States in addition to the Constitution of the State of California. Cal. Const., art. XX, § 3. The United States Constitution is the “supreme law of the land.” U.S. Const., art. VI, § 2; Cal. Const., art. III, § 1. Taking from same-sex couples the right to civil marriage that they had previously possessed under California’s Constitution cannot be squared with guarantees of the Fourteenth Amendment. Accordingly, the Attorney General answers the Complaint consistent with his duty to uphold the United States Constitution, as Attorney General Thomas C. Lynch did when he argued that Proposition 14, passed by the California voters in 1964, was incompatible with the Federal Constitution. Reitman v. Mulkey, 387 U.S. 369 (1967).

And here is Brown's "Opposition to Plaintiffs' Motion for Preliminary Injunction":

Staying operation of Proposition 8, without the certainty of a final judgment as to its constitutionality, would leave same-sex couples, as well as their families, friends, and the wider community, in legal limbo.

06/13/09 LA Times:

Brown's willingness to fight a state law that has been upheld by the state's highest court contrasted sharply with President Obama's decision this week to oppose a federal challenge to the U.S. Defense of Marriage Act brought in Orange County.

06/12/09 San Jose Mercury News (Source: Gay Marriage Watch):

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown on Thursday urged a federal judge to keep Proposition 8 in force for now, arguing that it would create too much uncertainty across the state to put the voter-approved ban on gay marriage on hold while the latest legal challenge unfolds in the federal courts ... Brown and Schwarzenegger argued separately that it would create too much havoc to put the law on hold until the constitutional issues are resolved, perhaps eventually by the U.S. Supreme Court. If Proposition 8 is blocked while the case is litigated, same-sex couples could resume marrying in California.