Schwarzenegger continues to reject Prop 8 appeal

[Newsjock]

Source: Associated Press

California's governor does not have the legal duty to appeal the recent ruling that overturned the state's same-sex marriage ban, a lawyer for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said today.

In a letter requested by the California Supreme Court, counsel Andrew Stroud said the governor, "like any litigant, has complete discretion over his own litigation strategy, including whether or not to appeal an order."

The letter came in response to an effort by a conservative legal group to force Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to challenge a federal judge's Aug. 4 ruling that declared the voter-approved ban unconstitutional.

The Pacific Justice Institute has petitioned the Supreme Court to order the two officials to appeal Chief U.S. Judge Vaughn Walker's decision to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The institute brought its motion on behalf of Joshua Beckley, a San Bernardino pastor.

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