SAN DIEGO -- Nine people were arrested Thursday during a demonstration outside the county clerk's office by a group demanding that same-sex marriages be allowed in the San Diego area, despite court and ballot-box setbacks that have put the issue in legal limbo.

Weddings between gay and lesbian couples in the state had been scheduled to become recognized by law again Wednesday evening. Two days earlier, however, an appeals-court decision put that prospect on hold for at least four months.

Nonetheless, several same-sex couples arrived at the bayfront San Diego County Administration Center first thing Thursday morning to demand marriage licenses as a constitutional right, and dozens of others gathered to rally in support.

When the group of roughly 50 chanting activists was deemed an impediment to routine business at the government complex, the Sheriff's Department sent in a team of riot-gear equipped personnel known as a mobile field force, Lt. Mike Munsey said.

The deputies ordered the protesters to disperse and gave them five minutes to do so. Those who refused were taken into custody.

The arrestees were booked at county jail on suspicion of trespassing, but they were released on their own recognizance late Thursday afternoon, 10News reported.

Proponents of same-sex marriage contend that forbidding the practice -- as Californians narrowly voted to do via Proposition 8 two years ago -- is unconstitutional on equal-protection grounds.

Two weeks ago, a federal magistrate came to the same conclusion. U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco ruled Aug. 4 that the voter-approved initiative violated the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equal protection to all U.S. citizens.

This week, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals put a final decision on hold until at least December, when it plans to hold a hearing on whether it would even hear an appeal of a Walker's ruling striking down Proposition 8.

At the scene of this morning's protest, County Clerk David Butler stressed that this week's appeals ruling forbade him from granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples, at least for the time being.

"It the courts say this, they're the final say at this point," Butler told reporters outside his office. "And that stay, unfortunately, has stopped everything (to the point) where I'm legally prohibited from issuing a license at this point."

In his ruling early this month, Walker put the resumption of same-sex marriages on hold until 5 p.m. Aug. 18, pending any intervention by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Attorneys for a group called ProtectMarriage.com appealed Walker's decision and asked that a stay remain in effect until the appeal is heard.

The appellate panel, however, decided that it wanted to hear arguments about whether the opposition group has legal standing to pursue the appeal. The original defendants in the lawsuit were Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state Attorney General Jerry Brown, and they have both declined to further pursue the case.

The court stated that it would schedule a hearing during the week of Dec. 6 in San Francisco.

The county clerk's office told 10News 91 appointments were made for Thursday, with 67 marriage licenses issued and 32 marriage ceremonies performed.