SOCIAL ISSUES

 

City wants 'gay' judge in marriage case
Battling with opponents over role of Earl Warren's grandson

Behind the scenes of San Francisco's historic defiance of marriage law, the city's attorneys are battling to ensure an avowed homosexual judge presides over a crucial court hearing next month.

Two judges refused the requests by traditional-family defenders to stop San Francisco's issuance of marriage licenses, which now has surpassed 3,000. The two cases were consolidated Friday, and under the rules of consolidation, Judge Ronald Quidachay would preside over the March 29 hearing because his case was filed first. But the city is pressing for San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Warren, the grandson of famed U.S. Supreme Court Judge Earl Warren and a homosexual who was "outed" by San Francisco Magazine in June 2002. Although they won't divulge their reasons, the opponents of same-sex marriage are adamant about not arguing their case before Warren. Lawyers representing the Campaign for California Families, or CCF, which filed the lead suit, submitted a motion yesterday to remove Warren because their clients' cause of action would be prejudiced. "We are not going into further detail, and we are following a declaration by our client that confirms we have good faith," Mathew Staver, president and general counsel for Liberty Counsel, told WorldNetDaily.