Chief Justice John Roberts' Lesbian Cousin Will Attend Prop. 8 Hearing With the Woman She Hopes to Marry

AP

The lesbian cousin of Chief Justice John Roberts will be at Tuesday's hearing when the Supreme Court takes up Proposition 8, California's ban on same-sex marriage, along with the woman she hopes to wed.

Jean Podrasky, 48, is Roberts' first-cousin on his mother's side and his mother is her godmother, she told the Los Angeles Times.

“I am so excited,” Podrasky, a San Francisco resident, said. “I feel quite honored and overwhelmed.”

She sees Roberts only at family functions, but said he knows she's gay. She hopes to introduce him to her partner of four years, Grace Fasano, during their visit.

“He is a smart man,” Podrasky told the Times. “He is a good man. I believe he sees where the tide is going. I do trust him. I absolutely trust that he will go in a good direction.”

Podrasky -- who obtained the courtroom seats by emailing Roberts' sister and then going through his secretary -- said she has no idea of her cousin's views on same-sex marriage, but thinks the court will overturn Prop. 8. In the lead up to the November 2008 election, when the measure passed, she carried a sign that said, "Prop. 8 is hate."

She wrote a guest column for the San Francisco-based National Center for Lesbian Rights about being related to Roberts, set to go out Monday.

“Everyone in this country has a family member who is part of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community…,” she wrote. “As a Californian, I want nothing more than to marry my wonderful girlfriend. And as a tax-paying citizen, I seek basic fairness.”

Podrasky said she doesn't know whether having a gay family member will influence Roberts' thinking.

“Everybody knows somebody” who is gay, Podrasky told the Times. “It probably impacts everybody.”

--

​Related:

• Obama: My ‘Evolution’ on Gay Marriage Is the Same as the Rest of the Country
• Obama Admin. Set to Urge Supreme Court to Overturn California’s Gay Marriage Ban
• Confirmed: Clint Eastwood Urges Supreme Court to Overturn Gay Marriage Ban
• Obama Admin. Calls on Supreme Court to Strike Down Defense of Marriage Act Defining Marriage As Between a Man and Woman
• Scalia Comes Clean on Obamacare Outcome: ‘I Was Disappointed’ With John Roberts