Yesterday, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy issued an order (full text) reinstating the preliminary injunction issued by a federal district court in Washington state in John Doe #1 v. Ried. The injunction bars release of the names of signers of referendum petitions seeking to overturn a recently-enacted state domestic partnership law. The 9th Circuit last week reversed the district court (see prior posting), and plaintiffs seeking to prevent release of the names immediately petitioned Justice Kennedy. The full text of both appellants' application to Kennedy and the response by Washington's Secretary of State are available online. AP reports on the case, and Eugene Volokh weighs in on the latest developments.
UPDATE: On Tuesday, the full Supreme Court (Justice Stevens dissenting) confirmed Justice Kennedy's reinstatement of the district court's preliminary injunction, "pending the timely filing and disposition of a petition for a writ of certiorari." (Full text of order.) [Thanks to Eugene Volokh for the lead.]
