Esperanza_Hidalgo
Literotica Guru
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Forgive if this has made the rounds already
Prop. 8 trial: San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders says lesbian daughter should have right to wed
By Howard Mintz
SAN FRANCISCO — For supporters of same-sex marriage, Tuesday's testimony from San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders in the Proposition 8 trial would seem an important moment for their cause. A conservative Republican describes his transformation from gay marriage opponent to vocal critic of denying gays and lesbians the right to wed.
To foes of gay marriage, however, such testimony, in the words of Proposition 8 counsel Andrew Pugno, is "just irrelevant."
These competing views of the value of the emotional side of testimony in the historic Proposition 8 trial are now among the issues Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker must resolve in the legal challenge to California's ban on same-sex marriage.
Sanders'
Prop 8 Trial Primer
* The Judge: Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker
* Plaintiffs Attorney: Theodore Olson
* Plaintiffs Attorney: David Boies
* Defense Attorney: Charles Cooper
* The Plaintiffs: Kristin Perry and Sandy Stier; Paul Katami and Jeff Zarillo
* What the Prop 8 trial is all about
* What's at stake in the Prop 8 trial
testimony came as the plaintiffs are drawing closer to finalizing their case in their effort to overturn Proposition 8. Lawyers for same-sex couples seeking the right to marry are expected to wrap up their case either today or Friday, with testimony from Proposition 8 backer William Tam still to come.
The trial, now in its second week, has been heavy on experts and academics on the subject of same-sex marriage, but it has been spiced all along with the accounts of individuals such as Sanders, who tearfully recounted how he renounced his own stance on gay marriage after learning his daughter is a lesbian.
The mayor, with his daughter, Lisa Sanders, in the courtroom, described the difficulty of confronting his own prejudice and risking the wrath of San Diego Republicans. His change of heart became public several years ago, when he supported the city's decision to file briefs in favor of same-sex marriage in the earlier legal battle in the state courts.
Lisa Sanders married her partner, Meghan, in Vermont last month, but Mayor Sanders said she ought to be able to marry in California. San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera persuaded Sanders to testify, and questioned him Tuesday.
"My daughter deserves the same opportunity to have a wedding in front of family, friends and co-workers," Sanders testified, choking up repeatedly on the stand.
The plaintiffs consider Sanders' testimony important to exposing the depths of discrimination against California's gays and lesbians. They've included other first-person accounts from the two couples suing to overturn the same-sex marriage ban, as well as from San Francisco writer Helen Zia, a lesbian who married before voters approved the law in 2008.
But Proposition 8 supporters consider these accounts beside the point. Pugno called it "emotional testimony about feelings" that does not justify a change in the Constitution.
Tuesday's trial proceedings did include the drier expert testimony
Prop. 8 trial: San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders says lesbian daughter should have right to wed
By Howard Mintz
SAN FRANCISCO — For supporters of same-sex marriage, Tuesday's testimony from San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders in the Proposition 8 trial would seem an important moment for their cause. A conservative Republican describes his transformation from gay marriage opponent to vocal critic of denying gays and lesbians the right to wed.
To foes of gay marriage, however, such testimony, in the words of Proposition 8 counsel Andrew Pugno, is "just irrelevant."
These competing views of the value of the emotional side of testimony in the historic Proposition 8 trial are now among the issues Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker must resolve in the legal challenge to California's ban on same-sex marriage.
Sanders'
Prop 8 Trial Primer
* The Judge: Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker
* Plaintiffs Attorney: Theodore Olson
* Plaintiffs Attorney: David Boies
* Defense Attorney: Charles Cooper
* The Plaintiffs: Kristin Perry and Sandy Stier; Paul Katami and Jeff Zarillo
* What the Prop 8 trial is all about
* What's at stake in the Prop 8 trial
testimony came as the plaintiffs are drawing closer to finalizing their case in their effort to overturn Proposition 8. Lawyers for same-sex couples seeking the right to marry are expected to wrap up their case either today or Friday, with testimony from Proposition 8 backer William Tam still to come.
The trial, now in its second week, has been heavy on experts and academics on the subject of same-sex marriage, but it has been spiced all along with the accounts of individuals such as Sanders, who tearfully recounted how he renounced his own stance on gay marriage after learning his daughter is a lesbian.
The mayor, with his daughter, Lisa Sanders, in the courtroom, described the difficulty of confronting his own prejudice and risking the wrath of San Diego Republicans. His change of heart became public several years ago, when he supported the city's decision to file briefs in favor of same-sex marriage in the earlier legal battle in the state courts.
Lisa Sanders married her partner, Meghan, in Vermont last month, but Mayor Sanders said she ought to be able to marry in California. San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera persuaded Sanders to testify, and questioned him Tuesday.
"My daughter deserves the same opportunity to have a wedding in front of family, friends and co-workers," Sanders testified, choking up repeatedly on the stand.
The plaintiffs consider Sanders' testimony important to exposing the depths of discrimination against California's gays and lesbians. They've included other first-person accounts from the two couples suing to overturn the same-sex marriage ban, as well as from San Francisco writer Helen Zia, a lesbian who married before voters approved the law in 2008.
But Proposition 8 supporters consider these accounts beside the point. Pugno called it "emotional testimony about feelings" that does not justify a change in the Constitution.
Tuesday's trial proceedings did include the drier expert testimony
