Judges would be banned from Boy Scout leadership under California ethics proposal
Judges should be banned from participation in the Boy Scouts because the group discriminates against gays, according to a California ethics proposal.
The California Supreme Court’s ethics advisory committee proposed the ethics rule change on Wednesday, report the Los Angeles Times and the San Francisco Chronicle. The proposal would take effect in August after a public-comment period if approved by the California Supreme Court.
Currently 47 states ban judges from belonging to groups that discriminate, and 22 of those states ban judges from belonging to groups that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. California is among those 22 states, but it has an exception that allows judges to participate in nonprofit youth organizations. The new proposal would eliminate the exception.
The Boy Scouts decided last year to repeal its membership ban on gay youths, but retained its ban on gay adult leaders.
