Yahoo! News - Gay Marriage Challenged in Calif., New York Courts
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California's Supreme Court declined on Friday to make an immediate decision on the state's request to halt same sex marriages in San Francisco that have intensified a national debate on gay rights.

Last week, California Attorney General Bill Lockyer asked the state Supreme Court to review the matter and a second group made a similar request. The court asked San Francisco to file a brief in the case by Friday, but then deferred making an immediate decision.

"This is to inform you that the California Supreme Court is not expected to take any action today on the two same-sex marriage cases that were filed in the court last week," spokeswoman Lynn Holton said. She added that the earliest the court "would decide something would be next week."

Opponents of gay marriage had hoped that the court would issue an immediate injunction to the same-sex weddings that have officially paired more than 3,600 gay couples. But the city's attorney, Dennis Herrera, argued there was no need to rush to a decision as the weddings were doing no harm.