Experts testify at gay marriage trial

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Two expert witnesses testified Thursday in support of same-sex marriage in California, one on economic and the other psychological impacts.

Edmund Egan, an economist in San Francisco, said he believes same-sex marriages would give the city an economic boost, The Oakland 9Calif.) Tribune reported. Extrapolating from 5,000 weddings performed during the period when gay marriage was legal in California, Egan estimated such marriages would bring in $35 million a year for the city.

The California Supreme Court ruled in May 15, 2008, that the state's ban on gay marriage was unconstitutional. In November, voters approved Proposition 8, which overturned the Supreme Court decision, and is now being challenged in court.

Egan also suggested San Francisco and other cities would save money because gay couples would have less stress and lower medical bills.

Ilan Meyer, a professor at Columbia University in New York, testified his research shows discrimination does great psychological harm to homosexuals.