June 14, 2011
Motion to vacate Prop 8 ruling over Judge Walker’s sexuality is denied
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Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Vaughn R. Walker, in 2008.
A federal judge has denied Prop 8 proponents’ motion to vacate Judge Vaughn Walker’s ruling against a ban on same-sex marriage over Walker’s sexuality, CNN.com reports.
A federal judge who ruled against a ban on same-sex marriage in California and later revealed that he is gay showed no evidence he was prejudiced in the case, according to a ruling Tuesday.
The judge, based in San Francisco, upheld former colleague’s Judge Vaughn Walker’s ruling on California’s Proposition 8. Questions had been raised about Walker’s ability to impartially decide the controversial question of same-sex marriage.
“It is not reasonable to presume that a judge is incapable of making an impartial decision about the constitutionality of a law, solely because, as a citizen, the judge could be affected by the proceedings,” U.S. District Court Judge James Ware ruled.
Ware backed the original ruling by Walker that the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage in the state was unconstitutional. The new order keeps the issue on track to an expected Supreme Court challenge, perhaps by next year.
Read more at CNN.com.
