Judge Who Ruled Against Prop. 8 Retiring

Carlos Moreno, the California supreme court judge who has repeatedly ruled for marriage equality, is stepping down from the state's high court February 28.

The Los Angeles-based Democrat was part of the 4-3 majority for In re Marriage Cases, the 2008 decision that struck down laws limiting marriage between a man and a woman. Months later, California would narrowly pass Proposition 8, which reversed the high court's decision.

After Prop. 8, several lawsuits challenged the antigay initiative. The state's high court consolidated them for 2009's Strauss v. Horton, where the court ruled that Prop. 8 was valid but that same-sex marriages performed before it passed were valid. Moreno was the sole dissenter who ruled against Prop. 8.

Moreno, 62, is currently the only Democrat and only Latino on the high court. He was appointed in 2001 by Gov. Gray Davis. His departure will allow newly elected governor Jerry Brown a chance to nominate a new judge for California's supreme court.

It's not clear whether Moreno will take part in the appeal of Perry v. Schwarzenegger. That federal case struck down Prop. 8, and an appeal of that decision is currently under way. On Tuesday a three-judge panel on the ninth circuit court of appeals revealed that they are asking the California supreme court to clarify whether antigay groups have standing to appeal Perry v. Schwarzenegger, since neither the governor nor attorney general of California supports Prop. 8.