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Supreme Court temporarily blocks YouTube broadcast of Proposition 8 trial

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court on Monday temporarily blocked an order allowing delayed video coverage of the Proposition 8 trial on the constitutionality of California's same-sex marriage ban to be posted on YouTube. The court's decision to grant the stay overrules an order by Judge Vaughn Walker of the US District Court for the Northern District of California, who last week ruled the trial could be recorded and posted on the court's YouTube channel. The block on posting coverage of the trial, which begins Monday in federal court in San Francisco, will remain in place until Wednesday, giving the justices additional time to weigh the issue. Justice Stephen Breyer dissented, writing that he "would undertake that consideration without a temporary stay in place."Supporters of Proposition 8 have objected to the controversial decision to broadcast the trial proceedings, claiming it would result in witness intimidation. The YouTube broadcast of the case, Perry v. Schwarzenegger, is allowed under an experimental program approved by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit last month that allows cameras in civil, non-jury cases. Also last month, the Ninth Circuit ruled that same-sex marriage proponents cannot access Proposition 8 supporters' internal campaign communications. The court denied disclosure of the documents on First Amendment grounds, reversing a decision by Walker. Proposition 8 was approved by California voters in November 2008.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on January 11, 2010 (boomark / email).