by Matthew S. Bajko The California Supreme Court's ruling that same-sex couples can legally marry doesn't go into effect until 30 days after May 15,

By Andrew Denney The California Supreme Court ruled the state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional Thursday, but voters can override the decision in

By Mike O'Sullivan The California Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry, overturning a state ban on gay marriage.

Thursday's favorable marriage-equality ruling in California was a fabulous anniversary present for Massachusetts gays and lesbians, who've been getting married since May 17, 2004, nearly four years ago to the day. “We’re overjoyed that gay and lesbian couples in California will now have the same opportunity we’ve had in our state, to realize their hopes and dreams of marrying the person they love, regardless of their gender, with all of the crucial protections that marriage brings with it," Marc Solomon, MassEquality campaign director, told The Advocate.
That was among the reactions to the California decision in the Bay State, where more than 10,000 same-sex couples have

By LA Vess | 5/15/2008 “It's an extraordinary day,” San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said Thursday after the California Supreme Court ruled 4-3 to overturn

By RUTH MARCUS WASHINGTON - The court stepped in, summarily overturning laws in 16 states. Tossing aside evidence that the framers of the relevant constitutional provision never intended for it to apply to the situation at hand -- in fact, such laws were in place when the amendment was approved -- the court instead looked to what it grandly described as the "broader, organic purpose of a constitutional amendment."
Another example of "unelected judges" demonstrating "little regard for the authority of ... the states" and "even less interest in the will of the people"? Of judges, unconstrained by constitutional text or history, turning to "emanations ... and other airy constructs

(05-15) 17:18 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Four state Supreme Court justices may have made history, but they overreached and invited a voter backlash that will

By JM Brown - Sentinel staff writer SANTA CRUZ - Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Santa Cruz County breathed a sigh of relief, along with their straight allies, as news spread Thursday of the California Supreme Court's ruling to uphold same-sex marriage.
"I was blown away," said Merrie Schaller, co-chair of the GLBT Alliance of Santa Cruz, which has long lobbied elected officials and local organizations to support equal access to marriage.
n to overturn a Virginia law banning interracial marriage. Still, she said, Thursday's ruling doesn't mean there will be a rush of same-sex couples to City Hall or the nearest affirming church.

At the vanguard of civil rights, the California Supreme Court affirmed the right to gay marriage today by overturning two of the state’s previous bans. The legislative debate over “gay marriage” (now, simply marriage) began in California in 2004, when San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom ordered the county clerk to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Already opponents of the decision have thrown down the gauntlet, saying that they will push to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot to ban gay marriage. I say bring it on — I hope that people vote down such an obvious attempt to abrogate a decision that, at its core, is based on principles of equality. And then,

By Amy Hollyfield - KGO SAN FRANCISCO (KFSN) - The California Supreme Court has issued a historic ruling overturning the state's voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage.
The stunning 4 to 3 decision paves the path for California to now become only the second state to allow same-sex marriages.
e has taken four years to get to this point. The majority wrote that the right to marry can not be eliminated by the legislature or the electorate.

Stuart Gaffney, left, and John Lewis reacted to the California Supreme Court decision in San Francisco. More Photos >
By ADAM LIPTAK
Gay Marriage Ruling Slide Show

SOME STATES have gone out of their way to stigmatize gay and lesbian couples, but California hasn’t been one of them. Even as state law forbade these couples to marry, it offered a similar option, domestic partnership. So when the state’s highest court overturned that ban yesterday, the issue wasn’t whether California should recognize same-sex couples, but whether it can do so while denying them the dignity of the word ‘‘marriage.’’
No, it can’t, the California Supreme Court ruled. That state will become the second, after Massachusetts, to recognize full marriage rights for gay couples. But the ruling is significant for another reason: It points out the fundamental flaw

Reaction to today's (Thursday, May - California Supreme Court ruling that overturned the state's ban on same-sex marriage was swift. LGBT political leaders, human rights groups, and allied organizations all sent out statements, along with one from an anti-gay group. Below is a compilation of statements that were sent.
"We are witnesses of history today in California and I applaud the Supreme Court's ruling on the right of gay and lesbians to marry. It is a great step forward to equality for all Californians. It's a day to celebrate." – State Senator Christine Kehoe (D-San Diego)
ecision will have a tremendously positive impact on same-sex couples and their families not only in California but across the globe.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - California's Supreme Court declared gay couples in the nation's biggest state can marry — a monumental but perhaps short-lived victory for the gay rights movement Thursday that was greeted with tears, hugs, kisses and at least one instant proposal of matrimony.
Same-sex couples could tie the knot in as little as a month. But the window could close soon after — religious and social conservatives are pressing to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot in November that would undo the Supreme Court ruling and ban gay marriage.
thouse. In the Castro, the historic center of the gay community in San Francisco, Tim Oviatt wept as he watched the news on TV.

"Hillary Clinton believes that gay and lesbian couples in committed relationships should have the same rights and responsibilities as all Americans and believes that civil unions are the best way to achieve this goal. As president, Hillary Clinton will work to ensure that same-sex couples have access to these rights and responsibilities at the federal level. She has said and continues to believe that the issue of marriage should be left to the states."
Illinois senator Barack Obama
should be making these decisions."

By DON THOMPSON AP Writer SACRAMENTO—Both houses of the Legislature were in session considering dozens of bills Thursday morning, but the handful of gay and

SAN FRANCISCO—After a four-year hiatus, same-sex marriage, the hot-button cultural issue that served as a partisan divide in the last presidential election, is back. Today, the California Supreme Court declared unconstitutional a voter initiative banning same-sex marriage in the state. Its 4-to-3 decision paves the way for California to join Massachusetts, where the state's highest court legalized same-sex marriage in 2004, as one of two states where gay and lesbian couples can legally marry. "It is a precedent-setting case," says Douglas Kmiec, a law professor at Pepperdine University. "It's a major victory for proponents of same-sex marriage in the most populous state in