The rate of state bans on gay marriage being overturned in courts has gone from a momentum to an avalanche.
Since the June 2013 Windsor decision by the U. S. Supreme Court that declared the federal Defense of Marriage act unconstitutional, seven more states have had their laws overturned and two additional ones have been ordered to recognize legal marriages performed in other states.
Most, if not all, of these seven will be appealed. But bear this in mind. The score is 7 to 0. In not a single one of the cases filed since Windsor has a ban been upheld. Those seven are: Utah, Oklahoma, Virginia, Texas, Michigan, Arkansas, and Idaho. Ohio and Kentucky are the ones ordered to recognize other-state marriages.
Just four days ago, I wrote about the new decision in the Arkansas case and said "maybe Georgia will be next," because a case had recently been filed in courts here. But then last night the Idaho decision came down.
Those seven, if upheld on appeal, join 17 other states and the District of Columbia as marriage equality states. One more, and it will be half the states.
Ralph
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The Idaho judge refused to put a hold on gay marriage pending appeal, as requested by the state.
ReplyDeleteEven more significant, the Arkansas judge also refused to issue a stay on her ruling. It has now been appealed to the state supreme court, which also refused to order a hold on implementation.
Oops. It gets complicated. Yes, the Arkansas State Supreme Court declined to order a stay on the judge's ruling that overturned the gay marriage ban.
ReplyDeleteHer ruling did away with both the constitutional amendment and a separate law that forbids same-sex marriage. But now they've come up with a third law that was not covered in the trial or the decision.
It seems there is another Arkansas law that imposes a fine on county clerks if they issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. So some of them, anyway, are refusing to issue licenses until that gets clarified.