Judge: Prop 8 Sponsors Must Hand Over Documents Immediately

Backers of California's Proposition 8 must immediately hand over documents to those pursuing them in federal court, Judge Vaughn Walker ruled on Friday:

"The sponsors had sought to keep the documents while challenging the order to turn them over in an appeals court. But in a ruling late Friday, Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker of San Francisco said backers of Proposition 8 had failed to show that disclosing internal memos and e-mails would violate their freedom of speech or subject them to harassment. He said they had refused to identify any documents that needed special protection and noted that he could order their opponents to keep any sensitive material confidential. 'It simply does not appear likely that (Prop. 8's) proponents will prevail on the merits of their appeal,' Walker said. He said he doubts that a federal appeals court even has jurisdiction to consider the dispute at this early stage of the case....The lawsuit by two same-sex couples, a gay rights organization and the city of San Francisco contends Prop. 8 violated the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of equality by discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender. Walker has scheduled a trial in January. Plaintiffs in the suit said documents from the Yes on 8 campaign might help them prove that the ballot measure was motivated by anti-gay bias, which would increase their chances of overturning it."