San Francisco, CA February 2, 2012 ― Marriage Equality USA is disappointed that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal today denied public access to videotapes of the Proposition 8 trial, but is hopeful that the court will issue a decision soon striking down Prop. 8 itself.
"Two years ago, the district court conducted a 12-day trial where anyone and everyone had the opportunity to present evidence about Proposition 8. The court concluded in an extraordinarily detailed 136-page opinion that the opponents of marriage equality had produced not even a scintilla of evidence that could justify Prop. 8's exclusion of loving, committed same-sex couples from marriage," said John Lewis, Marriage Equality USA's Legal Director.
"And even though today's court order prevents the public from seeing video of the compelling testimony presented at trial, the strength of that evidence gives us great hope that the Ninth Circuit will uphold the trial court's ruling that denying same-sex couples the freedom to marry violates the Constitution. It's really all about fairness," said Lewis.
"The heart of the marriage equality movement is our coming out about our relationships and our families. It's clear why marriage equality opponents don't want the public to be able to see firsthand the trial testimony of lesbian and gay couples: public support for the freedom to marry is growing consistently across America -- from Washington State to New Jersey, from California to Maine -- because brave same-sex couples are standing up for their families and the truth of their lives. We will continue to do so, and I'm confident that the public will eventually get to see the videotapes of the Prop. 8 trial," said Stuart Gaffney, Marriage Equality USA's Media Director.
Founded in 2001, Marriage Equality USA is a national grassroots organization whose mission is to secure legally-recognized civil marriage equality for all, at the federal and state level, without regard to gender identity or sexual orientation. For more information go to www.marriageequality.org .
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