The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has decided that the Prop 8 videotapes will remain sealed in its just-released ruling. Details follow. 

Legal teams in the Prop. 8 trial made what is expected to be their last appearance before the Ninth Circuit Court Of Appeals this afternoon, with plaintiffs explaining why videotapes of the Proposition 8 trial should be publicly accessible and why Proponents’ motion to vacate judgment is meritless. Get the details of what happened inside the court after the jump.

You've read our wrap-ups about celebration rallies in both Los Angeles and New York right here at instinctmagazine.com, but what happened up in Kern County, CA? Where's that you ask? That's the southern Central Valley of the Golden State between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and it's one place that voted overwhelmingly against us and for Prop 8. One of Instinct's frequent contributors offers his take on events following Judge Walker's ruling.

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As the initial celebrations settle from the announcement of Judge Walker’s ruling of Proposition 8 being unconstitutional, the war of words wages in conservative Kern County as both sides gear up for the next steps in seeing gay marriage become a reality, again.

Lead gay activist, Whitney ...

Be sure to go to FOX News and vote YES! This means Judge Walker made the right decision. Be sure to pass this on to friends and family as well. 

Here's what Ah-nold just issued via press release:

“Judge Walker had the great responsibility of deciding whether Proposition 8 violates the Constitution of the United States. He heard in-depth arguments from both sides on fundamental questions of due process, equal protection and freedom from discrimination. There are strong feelings on both sides of this issue, and I am glad that all viewpoints were respected throughout the proceedings. We should also recognize that there will continue to be different points of view in the wake of this decision. “For the hundreds of thousands of Californians in gay and lesbian households who are managing their day-to-day lives, this decision affirms the full legal protections and safeguards I believe...

UPDATED: Tuesday, August 2, 5:30PM PST

The American Foundation for Equal Rights will hold a news conference in San Francisco immediately after a decision is announced and will hold a public event later in the day in West Hollywood, CA.  Both events will include the plaintiffs, lead attorneys and Foundation leadership.

Looks like they'll be flying south to L.A. after they speak in San Francisco, and they may know more than we know because they're announcing the event in Weho for 4:30PM PST...

Last week Judge Vaughn Walker issued 39 questions to those involved in the federal Prop 8 trial, and today the Olson/Boies team has responded with the answers it hopes will repeal Prop 8 and let equality reign (until the likely appeals come).

Some excerpts from the plaintiffs' answers include:

“Neither tradition nor moral disapproval is a sufficient basis for a State to impair a person’s constitutionally protected right to marry. “Tradition alone is not enough because the constitutional imperatives of the Equal Protection clause must have priority over the comfortable convenience of the status quo.”

“If a state constitutional provision is inconsistent with the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, it can no longer be ...

Update:

Apparently, not so. The court released the following statement:

"On January 15, 2010, Chief Judge Walker withdrew his previous request to include Perry et. al. v. Schwarzenegger et. al . in the Ninth Circuit’s pilot program permitting broadcasting of district court proceedings in limited circumstances. On the same date, Chief Judge Kozinski approved the request to withdraw the Perry case from the program. Broadcasting closing arguments would require Chief Judge Walker to request that these arguments be included in the Ninth Circuit’s pilot program and approval of that request by Chief Judge Kozinski. No such request has been made."

Final briefs are due in the Prop. 8 trial today, with the judge likely to announce a date...

The expected final day of the Prop. 8 trial got off to a much calmer start than yesterday, as David Blankenhorn was back on the stand for his continued cross-exam by plaintiffs’ attorney David Boies. Boies spent a good amount of time asking Blackenhorn about his prior writings, some of which actually seem to place same-sex marriage in a favorable light.

“I’m going to start with some things we agree on. You agree that marriage is a public good,” asked Boies.

“Yes.”

“What is a public good?”

“Benefits society...

Update:

Boies continued to poke holes in Miller’s direct testimony, and also his personal feelings toward gay rights.

“Do you believe that laws that discriminate against intimate relationships between gays and lesbians is prejudice?” asked Boies.

“I would vote to repeal such laws. I have no idea what good purpose would they would serve,” Miller answered.

Of course, the big misstep came when Miller, the witness on the Prop. 8 side and the supposed “expert” called federal laws prohibiting gays to serve or marry discriminatory.

“Are you aware of any official discrimination against gays and lesbians in this country today other than DADT policy?” asked Boies.

“I’m trying to think of other laws that are ...

Update:

If you think the morning was tough, just wait...

Update:

After lunch, the plaintiffs’ team brought out the big guns while Segura remained on the stand: the Mormon and Catholic church involvement in the Prop. 8 campaign. Prop. 8 lawyers tried to keep e-mails and literature distributed by religious groups out of the trial—under the argument that churches have a right to communicate within their organizations and such communication is private—but the judge didn’t buy it. He said Prop. 8 was a political campaign, therefore communication is out in the open, and so the evidence was entered into the trial.

Documents are shown, some with areas blacked out for the public view, that show, to varying degrees, the role religious institutions played in the campaign: from major funding to...