How can the California Supreme Court rule a constitutional amendment “unconstitutional”?
At that point it has become part of the constitution.
Judicial tyranny at its finest. Disenfranchised the 70% black voters who supported the amendment.
I could see the US Supremes ruling a state constitutional amendment “unconstitutional” under the US constitution but if that was what the California men in black dresses were tying to say, then the US men in black dresses did not do their job.
“How can the California Supreme Court rule a constitutional amendment “unconstitutional”?”
They didn’t. The CA Supreme Court ipheld Prop 8, and that’s why the gay marriages stopped. The appeal to US District Court (Perry vs. Schwarzenegger) said it was unconstitutional. And the 9th circuit agreed (Perry vs. Brown), but that’s the one that is being vacated because of standing.
All this happened in federal court with Proposition 8.
The California Supreme Court upheld the process and acceptance of Proposition 8 shortly after that vote took place.
After that happened, the homosexual activists, who were pissed off, decided to sue in federal court instead. It was a federal judge who overturned Proposition 8 as a violation of federal law, not state law.