The California Supreme Court Wednesday rejected without comment a challenge seeking to remove a November ballot initiative that would ban same-sex marriage in the state. The petition, filed by Equality California, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, Lambda Legal and the American Civil Liberties Union, argued that the amendment would deprive same-sex couples of fundamental rights. If approved by voters, the California Marriage Protection Act would amend the state constitution to read, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." The ballot initiative comes in reaction to a May 15 California Supreme Court decision overturning a ban on same-sex marriage in the state.

The approval of the ballot initiative came after the Attorneys General of ten states submitted a brief to the Supreme Court of California, asking it to stay its decision until after the November elections. They asserted that allowing same-sex marriages would cause citizens in their own states to become "marriage tourists" in California, and their own state courts would then face unfair, extensive, and burdensome litigation on whether to recognize the marriages. A conservative advocacy group filed a similar petition requesting a stay until November. In May, the California Office of Vital Records issued a memorandum setting June 17 as the start day for issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

GPS Industries, Inc. the world's leading provider of WiFi-enabled golf management systems, announced today that it has filed suit for patent infringement in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against ProLink Holdings Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: PLKH), ProLink Solutions, LLC, ABC National Television Sales, Inc., and LinksCorp, Inc. The suit alleges infringement of U.S. Patent No. 5,685,786, which relates to on-screen display of centrally transmitted advertising and tournament standings information. GPSI has also asserted U.S. Patent No. 5,438,518, which relates to the Company's position-based hole advance and screen scrolling technology. The Complaint also alleges that the ProLink companies have made false representations in the marketplace and in connection with financing activities that they own rights in the '518 patent, when in fact they hold no interest in the patent are not authorized to utilize the technology it covers.

David Chessler, CEO of GPS Industries, offered the following comments: "Today's filing is an important step in our strategy to establish the Company's patent rights through the court system and to clear up the confusion ProLink has attempted to create in the marketplace. Our management team and key investors are committed to pursuing this legal strategy to a successful outcome. GPS Industries has invested millions of dollars in its intellectual patent portfolio. We have a responsibility to our investors and shareholders to vigorously defend these patents against any infringing parties."

A former employee of two local law offices pleaded guilty Wednesday to stealing more than $35,000 from the firms by falsely filling out closing documents.

Circuit Court Judge John Milling sentenced Carolyn Keys to 20 years in prison, which will be suspended after she serves three years in prison and five years on probation. Milling ordered the sentences to run consecutively, so if Keys does not successfully complete her probation, she must serve the remainder of her prison sentence.

Keys, 60, who lives with her sister in Virginia, pleaded guilty to two counts of breach of trust with fraudulent intent for two separate incidents at law firms in Horry and Georgetown counties, Solicitor Greg Hembree said.

Prosecutors had recommended the sentences to run concurrently, but Milling said he chose the consecutive sentence in case she failed the conditions of her probation, which include repaying $22,500 in restitution to the law firms, and random drug and alcohol testing.

Keys admitted she took $20,492 from the Manley and Hatley Law Firm while she worked there from May 2005 to December 2006 and $15,149 from the McNair Law Firm, where she worked after leaving the Manley and Hatley firm.

Keys' attorney, Mary Ashley Martin, told Milling that Keys suffered from leukemia and was first diagnosed when the incidents began. Martin said Keys also was under stress because her son had been deployed with the Marines to Iraq.

"I am so sorry. I know I can't correct what I've done. I hope you will forgive me," Keys said during the hearing as she turned to representatives of the law firms. "They put trust in me, and I betrayed that trust," Keys said.

Keys served a probation sentence in 2004 after she pleaded guilty to obtaining $1,850 under false pretenses, and she paid restitution to her former landlord in that case, Hembree said.

"She's been given a chance. Another judge gave her a chance and that experiment failed," Hembree said before Milling issued his sentence Wednesday. "This is not some kid down at the Wal-Mart, who does something stupid. This is a legal professional. We have to have faith and trust in this profession or it breaks down. She was single-handedly breaking it down."

Chad Hatley, who employed Keys, said he's spent at least $72,000 repaying clients, hiring auditors and accounting firms to review his records in addition to answering to the S.C. Bar Association about the misconduct in his office.

The unanimous decision means that, barring further legal action, voters will consider a constitutional amendment in November that would again limit marriage in California to a union between a man and a woman. The court did not give a reason for deciding not to accept the case.

"This was a frivolous lawsuit. It was a desperate attempt to try to keep the voter initiative off the ballot in November," said Glen Lavy, an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund representing the measure's sponsors.

If it passes, the amendment, known as Proposition 8, would overrule the Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage in the state as of June 16.

Equality California and other gay rights groups issued a statement Wednesday saying they were confident that the initiative, similar to gay marriage bans enacted in 26 other states, will fail.

"We're disappointed, but this ruling does not affect the campaign against Prop. 8 in any way," the groups said. "We have been focused on continuing the election and moving forward."

Equality California filed a petition last month arguing that the signature petitions used to put the proposal on the ballot, printed up before the court struck down the state's marriage laws, were misleading because they stated that the initiative would have no legal or financial effect.

The gay rights group also claimed that Proposition 8 would so drastically alter the promise of equality written into the California Constitution that it was improper to put it before voters as an amendment.

Dick Heller showed up early Thursday at the police department, but he's still upset with the city even after winning his case.

He says its strict new rules for handguns still violate the spirit of the court's ruling defending the constitutional right to bear arms.

They allow handguns to be kept in the home if they're used only for self-defense and carry fewer than 12 rounds of ammunition.

Gun owners can only register one weapon in the first 90 days. Police say the permitting process could take weeks or months. 6

Luis Moreno-Ocampo told reporters he informed the U.N. Security Council, which asked the court in 2005 to investigate the Darfur crisis, of his progress before requesting a court warrant on Monday to arrest President Omar al-Bashir.

"This was my last week to do it, so I did it when I had my evidence ready," said Moreno-Ocampo, noting that the court was about to take a summer recess.

He added that his responsibility is to investigate cases and he "cannot be considering political factors."

The world's first permanent war crimes tribunal is based on a treaty adopted on July 17, 1998 and since ratified by 107 nations.

Patrick Meehan is to be a shareholder in the Philadelphia-based professional corporation starting Monday. He is to handle white-collar criminal defense, internal corporate investigations and corporate commercial litigation.

Meehan's decision to join Conrad O'Brien was announced Wednesday, the day after his last day as U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He had served in that job since 2001 and was the district attorney of Delaware County before that.

There has been widespread speculation that Meehan will seek the Republican nomination for governor in 2010.