Tuesday, Utah U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby denied a request by state officials to stay his historic ruling from last week that struck down Utah’s ban on marriage for lesbian and gay couples. Across the country, another federal judge in Ohio ruled that the state must recognize an out of state marriage for the purpose of a death certificate. While the Ohio ruling is limited to the circumstances in a case brought by James Obergefell and John Arthur, the Judge wrote that “once you get married in one state, another state cannot summarily take your marriage away…”
The New York Times reported that a spokeswoman for Ohio’s attorney general, Mike DeWine, said he would appeal the ruling to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
The Ohio decision did not go as far as the ruling in Utah, but experts said both were among federal cases around the country likely to return the issue of same-sex marriage to the Supreme Court.
“Utah and Ohio are going to be the beginning of decisions from federal courts that many think are going to rule that state marriage provisions violate the federal Constitution,” said James D. Esseks, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s challenge to same-sex marriage bans, who was not involved in the Utah or Ohio case.
Human Rights Campaign (HRC) President Chad Griffin said, “Across the country, our judicial system is standing up for the fundamental equality guaranteed to LGBT people by the United States Constitution. In Utah the images of happy couples making lifelong commitments show that marriage equality is about allowing every person to experience the joys of this cherished institution. In Ohio, we see the promise realized that soon no government can stand in the way of the bonds forged in sickness and health. In the midst of this holiday season we share in the joy experienced by those finally grasping the freedom and equality they deserve.”
