The 10th Circuit appeals court decision Wednesday puts the battle over same-sex marriage one step closer to a date in the Supreme Court
Lynn Herre (L) and her partner Jana Mark watch the Utah Pride Parade in Salt Lake City, Utah, June 8, 2014.
A federal appeals court ruled for the first time Wednesday that states must allow gay couples to marry, shooting down Utah’s bid to defend its same-sex marriage ban and setting up a possible battle in the US Supreme Court.
In a big win for supporters of same-sex marriage, the decision by a three-judge panel in Denver, Colo. upheld a lower court ruling that struck down Utah’s gay marriage ban.
The 2-1 ruling represents the first appellate ruling since the Supreme Court last year declared a portion of the federal Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.
Protesters called for marriage equality outside the federal courthouse in Denver during oral arguments in April.
(Photo: David Zalubowski, AP)
The 10th Circuit appeals court includes Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Wyoming, as well as New Mexico, where same-sex couples already can marry. Its precedent applies to all those states, but the panel blocked its ruling from taking effect pending appeal, and Utah’s attorney general said he intended to seek Supreme Court review.
[…] Last month, attorneys for three Utah gay and lesbian couples formally asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take Utah’s appeal of a favorable gay marriage ruling. […]