Same-sex Marriage Stay to be Lifted

A federal judge on Thursday ruled that the stay that is in place to prevent same-sex marriages will be lifted Aug. 18.

The ruling comes a week after Chief U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that Proposition 8, the 2008 referendum that defined marriage as between a man and a woman, is unconstitutional.

The delay gives proponents of the measure, who argued that same-sex marriage was not good for families or children, time to appeal the ruling to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Paula Pilecki, executive director of the Spectrum LGBT Center in San Rafael, said the delay will allow the legal process to be carried out in an orderly fashion. 

"Hopefully, marriages can resume next week," Pilecki said.