This has turned into a gorgeous bit of civil disobedience! Can anyone tell me when a mayor, a city, and a county have done something like this before? Certainly, some Southern states & municipalities individually tried something similar regarding desegregation in the 1960s (and that was really a dispute between the Feds vs. the states,) but never all three at once, and in collusion.
The ADF (Alliance Defense Fund) was simply asking the judge for an injunction against any further same-sex marriages while he considered their contention: that SF was performing these marriages illegally, in violation of the state law.
San Francisco's case is quite brilliant, stating that denying same-sex marriages is in violation of the state constitution's equal protection clause. They also claim that:
-"Local officials are not barred from advancing their own interpretations of the state constitution..."
-"That the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that continuing to issue licenses for same-sex couples would cause the irreparable harm necessary to obtain a court stay..."
and,
-"That denying same-sex couples the right to marry would cause a greater harm."
Astoundingly, not a peep has been heard yet from Sacramento concerning this issue!