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14 Jun 2011 18:00

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Politics: District court chief: Prop. 8 Judge Walker is impartial

  • The mere fact that a judge is in a relationship with another person — whether of the same sex or the opposite sex — does not ipso facto imply that the judge must be so interested in marrying that person that he would be unable to exhibit the impartiality which, it is presumed, all federal judges maintain.
  • U.S. District Court Chief James Ware • Explaining his ruling that retired Judge Vaughn Walker, a gay man who ruled against California’s Proposition 8 in court, should not have had to remove himself from the case. This is a major victory for gay-rights advocates, and the legal opponents of Proposition 8; its supporters had argued that Walker’s long-term relationship with another man biased his judgment in the case, as he might want to get married. Walker’s ruling against Prop. 8 is still on hold pending a circuit court appeal. source

29 Sep 2010 21:55

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U.S.: My work is done here: Prop. 8 judge Vaughn Walker retiring

  • He’s only going to be remembered for that one case. Vaughn Walker had a long career as a judge in California, but it’s a decision he made in August that made him famous. Walker, the chief judge of the Northern District of California, struck down Proposition 8 using a tightly-written decision that law scholars are going to be reading for decades to come. Walker’s second act? He doesn’t have one. He’s retiring at the end of the year. Might as well go out on top. Bravo, dude. Have fun playing golf. source

16 Aug 2010 20:09

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U.S.: Gay marriage will have to wait for anti-Prop. 8 Californians

  • what An appeals court blocked gay marriages from taking place after lower court judge Vaughn Walker said they could. So they’ll have to wait for now.
  • why The court appeared to agree with pro-Prop. 8 lawyer Charles Cooper’s take – that allowing them could cause  “irreparable harm” to the trial. source

04 Aug 2010 21:03

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Politics: Marriage ban overturned: Other key storylines in the Prop 8 case

04 Aug 2010 20:33

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Politics: Judge Vaughn Walker’s decision tightly-written, well-considered

  • Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite sex couples are superior to same-sex couples.
  • Judge Vaughn R. Walker • In his decision on same-sex marriage. To put it simply: Prop 8 made gay people second-class citizens. No mincing words. Walker says that the law violated the plaintiffs’ due process and equal protection rights, which overall locks up the ruling tightly. Of course it’s going to get appealed all the way to the Supreme Court, but it’s worth noting two things: First, Walker, who is gay, was assigned the case randomly. And second, lest you think he’s an activist judge, he’s actually a right-leaning George W. Bush appointee. Bush, as you might remember, was a hard-left liberal. source

16 Jun 2010 11:15

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U.S.: The Prop. 8 trial hits the closing arguments. What’s next?

  • A final decision will be coming in a few weeks. A lot of people are watching California’s gay marriage trial, and it’s one that should have a lot of fireworks. In the closing arguments, Judge Vaughn Walker is looking to see if gay marriage threatens the institution of marriage, if being gay is a choice, and if California voters were justified in banning gay marriage. Today could change everything. source