Gay marriage ban struck down

California's Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that the voter-approved prohibition against same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. Mayor Villaraigosa praised the ruling as the "right thing to do," and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he would follow the court's direction and repeated his opposition to a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage that could be on the November ballot here. Quick legal analysis suggests the ruling is based entirely on the state constitution, so cannot be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court and could be changed by a state amendment. The ruling is due to take effect in 30 days. LAT, NYT, Volokh Conspiracy