[JURIST] The Supreme Court of California [official website] Wednesday denied [order and press release, PDF] bids by two conservative groups to stay the Court's May 15 decision [opinion, PDF; JURIST report] overturning a ban on same-sex marriage in the state. Last month, the Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund and the Campaign for California Families had petitioned the Court to stay its ruling pending a November ballot initiative [JURIST report] to amend the state constitution [text] to ban same-sex marriage. If approved by voters, the California Marriage Protection Act [ballot materials, PDF; proposition website] would amend the constitution to read, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

Last Friday, the Attorneys General of ten states also submitted a brief [JURIST report] to the Court, asking it to stay its decision until after the November elections. They asserted that allowing same-sex marriages would cause citizens in their own states to become "marriage tourists" in California, and their own state courts would then face unfair, extensive, and burdensome litigation on whether to recognize the marriages. Little more than a week ago, conservative advocacy group Alliance Defense Fund filed a similar petition [JURIST report] requesting a stay until November. AP has more.