Motion filed in response to judge’s call for information to resolve ‘factual disputes’

SAN FRANCISCO — Lambda Legal, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) today asked the U.S. District Court in San Francisco to allow Our Family Coalition, Lavender Seniors of the East Bay, and Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays to intervene in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, a federal lawsuit challenging California’s Proposition 8. In an order issued June 30 and confirmed at a hearing on July 1, Judge Vaughn R. Walker granted a motion to intervene by supporters of Proposition 8, and declined to rule on a request by plaintiffs for an immediate injunction staying the marriage ban. He called instead for a trial to resolve a number of critically important factual questions about LGBT people and constitutional rights, including questions about same-sex couples as parents, whether Proposition 8 was passed with discriminatory intent, and whether allowing same-sex couples to marry undermines the stability of heterosexual marriages.

“Denial of marriage inflicts harms that vary by age, socio-economic class, the presence of minor children and the many other ways the gay community is diverse, often stigmatized and uniquely vulnerable,” said Jennifer C. Pizer, National Marriage Project Director for Lambda Legal. “These groups wish to illustrate for the court the diverse needs of their members and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community generally to provide the full factual record Judge Walker said will help the appellate courts as they decide whether LGBT people in California have the same basic rights as the Golden State’s heterosexual population.”

“The questions posed by the court are exactly the questions our organizations have been addressing for years in state and federal courts all across the country,” said James Esseks, co-director of the ACLU’s Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Project. “Again and again we’ve seen that the more courts know about LGBT people, the better they understand why everyone must be free to exercise the same constitutional rights regardless of sexual orientation.”

The law firms Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and Boies, Schiller & Flexner filed Perry v. Schwarzenegger in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on May 27, 2009 on behalf of two same-sex couples who were denied a marriage license earlier that month.

“We believe the involvement of these community groups will significantly help the Court decide the case,” said Shannon Minter, Legal Director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. “Judge Walker said he believes the appellate courts will benefit if he creates an evidentiary record about the people affected by Proposition 8, the supposed reasons for the initiative, and its actual effects. His view is consistent with our experience that more information helps when courts are facing novel questions about LGBT people and our families.”

Lambda Legal, NCLR and the ACLU also filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the same case on June 26. Regarding the friend-of-the-court filing, Chad Griffin, Board President of The American Foundation for Equal Rights, the group backing the lawsuit, said in a statement, "We are pleased to have the amicus brief from the ACLU, Lambda Legal and NCLR, which have brought inspiring leadership and legal expertise to the cause of ensuring all Americans are treated equally under the law. This case is about the denial of fundamental Constitutional rights, and its significance is underscored by the united front presented to the court."

Lambda Legal is a national organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people and those with HIV through impact litigation, education and public policy work.

The National Center for Lesbian Rights is a national legal organization committed to advancing the civil and human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their families through litigation, public policy advocacy, and public education.

The American Civil Liberties Union is America’s foremost advocate of individual rights. It fights discrimination and moves public opinion on LGBT rights through the courts, legislatures and public education.

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A team of legal organizations applauded the city of Laguna Beach today for agreeing to settle a lawsuit over its treatment of disabled homeless people. The settlement agreement marks a significant shift away from the criminalization of homeless people and toward recognition of their membership in the community.

Under the agreement, the city’s police officers will not cite, arrest or harass people under state law simply for sleeping in public places, as long as there are no reasonable public health or safety concerns. The agreement also establishes a process for sealing, expunging or destroying citations that were written, and convictions that were obtained, under the city’s “anti-sleeping” ordinance. The city had already repealed key portions of the ordinance after being sued in December by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, the law firm of Irell & Manella LLP, and Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the University of California, Irvine law school.

“Laguna Beach’s action on this issue is a model for other cities in how to seek legal, compassionate and economically sound ways of eliminating homelessness, not the homeless,” said ACLU/SC Executive Director Ramona Ripston. “We applaud the mayor and the City Council for setting up a committee to further study and address the root causes of homelessness, and we’re hopeful that out of that process will come housing and services that will end homelessness once and for all in Laguna Beach.”

Andra Barmash Greene, the managing partner of Irell & Manella LLP’s Newport Beach office and co-counsel in the case, pointed out that the process for sealing, expunging or destroying citations and convictions was a key part of the settlement agreement, which will remain in effect for three years. "Citations and fines can exacerbate homelessness.They affect an individual’s ability to renew a driver’s license and receive state benefits, and often lead to arrest warrants and incarceration," Greene said. "We’re particularly pleased that the plaintiffs in this case will be able to resolve improper infractions on their records and avoid this destructive cycle, which unfortunately works to perpetuate homelessness in Laguna Beach and other cities.”

The lawsuit was filed after discussions between city officials and attorneys representing the homeless failed to yield necessary revisions to Laguna Beach’s policy toward homeless persons. In early 2008, the Laguna Beach City Council adopted recommendations from the city’s own homeless task force -- whose members included the current and former city mayors – supporting better mental-health care and transitional housing services for homeless people. Unfortunately, the City Council did not act on these recommendations, and instead continued harassing, citing and arresting homeless people in Laguna Beach

The city task force’s report concluded that there are an estimated 45 to 55 homeless people living in Laguna Beach. More recent estimates put the figure closer to 70. Nearly all the homeless people in Laguna Beach meet the definition of “chronically homeless” – people who have been homeless repeatedly or for an extended period of time, and have mental or physical disabilities, the task force noted.

“This settlement agreement builds on the city’s repeal of its anti-sleeping ordinance, and is one more important step toward decriminalizing homelessness in Laguna Beach,” said Hector Villagra, director of the Orange County office of the ACLU/SC. “It sets the stage for the city to adopt long-term strategies to end homelessness, rather than quick fixes to keep the homeless out of sight. We hope other cities will take note of this sensible approach.”