Same-Sex Marriage Opponents Want Calif. Supreme Court To Stop Gay Weddings

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Opponents of same-sex marriage say they are asking the California Supreme Court to order county clerks to deny marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

The group that sponsored the 2008 ballot measure banning gay marriage in the state said it filed a petition on Friday that makes a two-pronged legal attack against same-sex marriages.

First, the group says state officials ordering county clerks to issue the licenses have no legal authority to do so. They also say Proposition 8 actually remains in force because the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out the case on a legal technicality rather than ruling directly on the constitutionality of the marriage ban.

The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this month refused to hear the case on the grounds that the plaintiffs lacked standing.

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