Gay marriage now legal in 30 states
Unexpectedly and without comment, the Supreme Court turned away appeals from five states seeking to prohibit gay and lesbian marriages. The high court’s order effectively makes gay marriage legal in 30 states, including California, Hawaii, New Jersey, and New York.
On Monday, Oct. 6, Supreme Court justices brought to an end the ongoing delays in same-sex marriages in five states: Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Couples in six other petitioning states—Kansas, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Wyoming—should be able to get married soon. Those states would be bound by the same appellate rulings that were put on hold, pending the Supreme Court’s review.
With the new rulings this week, a total of 11 states, plus the District of Columbia, were added to the list of states that recognize same-sex marriage.
While the justices made no action regarding same-sex marriage nationwide, the urgent call for marriage equality is being made in every state.
“The [Supreme Court’s] delay in affirming the freedom to marry nationwide prolongs the patchwork of state-to-state discrimination and the harms and indignity that the denial of marriage still inflicts on too many couples in too many places,” said Evan Wolfson, president of the gay rights organization Freedom to Marry.
“Finish the job,” Wolfson called on the high court.
Experts and advocates on both sides of the issue were hoping the justices would make a final nationwide decision during this term, instead of not deciding.
“The justices have a obligation to settle an issue of such national importance, not abdicate that responsibility to lower court judges,” the advocates said. “Opting out of hearing the cases leaves those lower court rulings in place.”
Two other appeals courts in Cincinnati and San Francisco could issue decisions any time in same-sex marriage cases.
Some judges in the Cincinnati-based 6th Circuit weighed pro-gay marriage rulings in Midwest states Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, and Tennessee, and appeared more likely to rule in favor of state bans than did the 9th Circuit judges in San Francisco, who are considering restricted marriages in Idaho and Nevada.
Although just four out of nine SC justices are needed to vote to hear a case, it still takes a majority of at least five justices for an eventual ruling. Though Monday’s court ruling proved a major decision of equality for several states, the order did not indicate how the justices voted on whether to hear more state marriage appeals.
Still, to many civil rights and LGBT groups pushing for legislation, even a small victory is a victory.
(With reports from the Associated Press)
