Today's Prop 8 hearing on relevance of Judge Walker's orientation & trial video release

UPDATE: Just bumping up since the hearing is under way. Via Zack Ford at ThinkProgress LGBT:

The first of two motions in today's Proposition 8 proceedings has already been decided against those attempting to maintain inequality. Defendants of Prop 8 argued that all the videos of the trial from last year should be kept from public consumption, a concern they raised after now-retired Judge Vaughn Walker used one of the videos in a lecture he gave a few months ago. Though Walker returned all the videos, attorney Charles Cooper argued that all the videos should not only be recollected, but destroyed.

The new judge presiding over the trial, Judge James Ware, pointed out that he was the one who gave Judge Walker the tapes at Walker's retirement ceremony. Perhaps foreshadowing how he will rule in the other motion - about whether Judge Walker should have recused himself because he is in a same-sex relationship - Ware asked Cooper if he, too, should consider recusing himself because of his connection to the videos. When Cooper did not respond (perhaps because of the laughter in the gallery), Ware added, "I don't need an answer now."

Today there is a hearing regarding the most preposterous of circumstances - the anti-marriage equality forces have a motion questioning Judge Walker's ability to fairly render a decision based on the fact that he is gay.

On a call last Friday with Ted Olsen and others from the American Foundation for Equal Rights, they made it clear that the Prop 8 proponents are over-reaching with this motion, in essence saying that any personal attributes could render a jurist unable to rule fairly on cases. After all, does that mean a Catholic cannot rule on abortion, or a person of color cannot render a case on civil rights? What about a woman on the bench considering a case involving discrimination based on sexual harassment. The possibilities are endless. It's ludicrous.

But you don't have to be there to take in coverage. From Prop8Trial Tracker:

The hearing will commence this Monday, June 13th at 9 AM PST in San Francisco at the Philip Burton courthouse. A ruling is not expected on the same day. Courage's founder and chair Rick Jacobs, who blogged from the trial in January 2010, will be sending in dispatches from the courthouse, as will Arisha Michelle Hatch, our lawyer-cum-national field director. Courage's new communications manager Ana Beatriz Cholo will also be in attendance, so we'll have a lot of dispatches coming in. I know a lot of you will also be there - if you have photos and video to send in, send it to prop8trial AT couragecampaign DOT org and I'll look forward to getting it up. And of course, comment away!Shannon Minter of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the lead attorney on the original In re marriage cases of 2008 that led to equal marriage for same-sex couples before Prop 8, will be blogging here on the hearing, legal observations and what happens next. NCLR's Chris Stoll, who along with Shannon did us the courtesy of answering lots of questions not once, but twice, will also be stopping by to provide his legal expertise. If you're new or want to re-read the transcript full of legal Q's and A's, here's the first one from August 23rd and the second from January 4th.I also invited Roland Palencia, incoming Executive Director of Equality California, to stop by and provide his observations. As has been extensively covered and debated by many here on the blog and in the comments, EQCA is considering going back to the ballot to repeal Prop 8 in 2012.Brian Leubitz of Calitics.com, who along with his husband have provided legal interpretation of the Prop 8 rulings, briefs, motions and other important legal movements, will also be providing his take on what happened and what's next.

We have a handy widget that has live Tweeting from John Bare and the Courage Campaign's Adam Bink and Ana Beatriz Cholo. Hashtag: #prop8. Twitter handles: @JBinSFO @equalityontrial @couragecampaign