High Court Blocks Prop 8 Broadcast

The U.S. Supreme Court is blocking broadcast of the federal Proposition 8 trial, at least for the first few days, the Associated Press reports.

The trial is under way in U.S. district court San Francisco this morning. Although cameras will be allowed in the courtroom, the high court will block the planned broadcast of the footage on YouTube until Wednesday.

Opponents of the broadcast argued that witness testimony might be affected if cameras are allowed in the courtroom.

Vaughn R. Walker, chief judge of the court where the suit is being heard, said the more than 130,000 public comments were overwhelmingly in favor of the trial being broadcast. Only 32 comments opposed the broadcast.

The Supreme Court justices also said they would not allow real-time streaming that would permit the trial to be seen in other federal courthouses.

The Advocate will be covering today's testimony with live updates via Twitter.