Don't be Camera Shy, Anti Prop 8 Attorney Tells Gay Marriage Foes

By Matt Smith Wed., Dec. 30 2009 at 12:10 PM

Categories: Celebrities, WTF?

Where it's at?

If the main protagonists were anyone other than celebrity lawyers David Boies and Ted Olson -- famous for arguing opposite sides of 2000's Bush v. Gore -- pre-trial debate over Proposition 8 might be dominated by arguments over the meaning of discrimination and the importance of matrimony.

Instead, we've got a tussle over a philosophical issue that really matters to high-profile talking heads: what it means to be on TV.

On December 29, Theodore Boutrous, who is part of the anti-Prop. 8 legal team led by Boies and Olson, sent a letter to Vaughn Walker, chief judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, urging him to allow television cameras in court for the upcoming trial.

Already, a coalition of news media had called for cameras in the courtroom. And Prop. 8 proponents had volleyed back, saying televised hearings would expose their side to intimidation and harassment by gay marriage supporters.

The Snitch thinks gay marriage foes shouldn't be such sissies.

In his letter, which was forwarded Wednesday to The Snitch, Boutrous, seconded the notion.

"Concerns about 'the possibility of safety, witness intimidation, and/or harassment of trial participants' are utterly unsubstantiated and groundless speculation," Boutrous wrote. "They certainly did not exhibit a similar fear of public attention when attempting to garner votes for Prop. 8 from millions of California voters, when touting their successful campaign strategy in post-election magazine articles and public appearances, or when volunteering in this case."

Boutrous tells us that the judge has scheduled a hearing on Jan. 6 to determine whether to permit cameras in the courtroom.

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