January, 04 2011, 02:28pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Vaishalee Raja, Communications Director,PHONE: (916) 284-9187,EMAIL:,vaishalee@eqca.org
Equality California Hails Court's Decision Denying Standing to Imperial County in Prop. 8 Federal Challenge
Federal Court will now ask California Supreme Court to Consider Issue of Standing
SAN FRANCISCO
Today the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied Imperial County's
attempt to intervene in the Proposition 8 federal challenge, and the
court will now ask the California Supreme Court to consider whether the
groups that placed Proposition 8 on the ballot have legal standing to
appeal Judge Walker's decision to overturn Prop. 8 on the grounds that
the measure is unconstitutional.
Equality California filed the only amicus brief arguing
that Imperial County lacked legal standing to appeal Prop. 8. In
addition, out of the more than 25 amicus briefs submitted, the Ninth
Circuit Court has chosen to send the California Supreme Court Equality
California's second amicus brief arguing that Prop. 8 proponent Protect
Marriage also lacks legal standing to appeal.
Statement from Equality California Executive Director Geoff Kors:
"We are very pleased with the court's decision to deny
Imperial County standing, and it is clear the court wants to determine
if California law allows proponents of a constitutional initiative to
step into the state's shoes when state officials decline to defend a
measure that clearly violates the equal protections enshrined in the
U.S. Constitution. We are optimistic that the case will be dismissed,
marriage equality restored and that same-sex couples and their families
will finally enjoy equality and dignity under the law."
Equality California is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, grassroots-based, statewide advocacy organization whose mission is to achieve equality and civil rights for all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Californians.
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While applauding the U.S. House of Representatives' bipartisan passage of a bill to ensure that "law enforcement and intelligence agencies can't do an end-run around the Constitution by buying information from data brokers" on Wednesday, privacy advocates highlighted that Congress is trying to extend and expand a long-abused government spying program.
The House voted 219-199 for Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act (FANFSA), which won support from 96 Democrats and 123 Republicans, including the lead sponsor, Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio). Named for the constitutional amendment that protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, H.R. 4639 would close what campaigners call the data broker loophole.
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Wednesday's vote followed the House sending the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act to the Senate. H.R. 7888 would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows for warrantless spying on noncitizens abroad but also sweeps up Americans' data.
The House notably included an amendment forcing a wide range of individuals and businesses to cooperate with government spying operations but rejected an amendment that would have added a warrant requirement to the bill, which the Senate could vote on as soon as Thursday.
Noting those decisions on the FISA reauthorization legislation, Ruddock stressed that "today's vote is a victory but follows a recent loss and ongoing threat as that Section 702 bill moves to the Senate this week too."
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Kia Hamadanchy, senior policy counsel at ACLU, similarly said Wednesday that "the bipartisan passage of this bill is a flashing warning sign to the government that if it wants our data, it must get a warrant."
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As The Intercept's Ken Klippenstein and Daniel Boguslaw noted:
Since 2011, the U.N. Security Council has rejected the Palestinian Authority's request for full member status. On April 2, the Palestinian Observer Mission to the U.N. requested that the council once again take up consideration of its membership application. According to the first State Department cable, U.N. meetings since the beginning of April suggest that Algeria, China, Guyana, Mozambique, Russia, Slovenia, Sierra Leone, and Malta support granting Palestine full membership to the U.N. It also says that France, Japan, and Korea are undecided, while the United Kingdom will likely abstain from a vote.
Along with the United States, China, France, Russia, and the United Kingdom are permanent members of the UNSC, so they also have veto power.
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"Today is a mask-off moment for the Reactionary International and the parties, politicians, judges, journalists, foundations, think tanks, tech platforms, NGOs, activists, financiers, and entrepreneurs that comprise it," PI said.
"After a year of preparation, we finally open the doors to our new research consortium, exposing the global network of reactionary forces that corrode our democracies, destroy our planet, and drive us closer to world war," the group added.
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