WASHINGTON – Appeals from Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin -which sought to ban same-sex marriages – were rejected today by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The action by the court essentially clears the way for gay and lesbian couples to wed in a total of 11 states which have tried to ban the practice. The judges offered no opinion, however, on the overall same-sex marriage issue, allowing the matter to play out for a longer period of time in the lower courts. Same-sex marriage is now legal in a total of 30 states – including Iowa and Minnesota – and Washington, D.C.
SCOTUSBLOG.com writer Lyle Denniston reported that “if the Supreme Court is not likely to uphold any state ban, either on same-sex marriage in the first place or recognition of existing such marriage, lower courts may see good reason to fall in line.”
Already, state bans on same-sex marriage have been invalidated in four federal appeals courts.
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