SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- A San Francisco judge Friday refused to issue a temporary restraining order that would have halted same-sex marriages in the City by the Bay.
The judge ruled conservative groups had not proved there was an urgent need to halt the controversial proceedings that began last week when Mayor Gavin Newsom decided that limiting marriage licenses to heterosexual couples was a violation of the California constitution's equal-protection provisions.
The conservative plaintiffs have vowed an appeal. They argued Newsom overstepped his authority in the matter and was not authorized to decide constitutional issues.
Nearly 3,000 homosexual couples have tied the knot in San Francisco since last Thursday even though the unions could be officially dissolved by the ongoing legal challenges.
