Well, that was fun while it lasted: Wisconsin is putting the breaks on marriage licenses for now. For the last week-ish, couples have been able to get married thanks to a federal judge overturning the state’s marriage ban. Of course, antigay politicians have now appealed the ruling, and that means the weddings must stop for a while.
We’ve been here before, of course. In Utah, couples were able to marry for a few weeks around Christmas. There, as in Wisconsin, some politicians have been particularly evil about denying marriage: they’re insisting that the licenses the state issued aren’t valid. The ACLU has been fighting them to ensure that the couples are protected, so expect lots more litigation in Wisconsin.
Meanwhile, we have yet more lawsuits around the country: a new one in North Dakota, another in Alabama, and one more in Michigan. A few decades ago, the US Supreme Court refused to hear a marriage equality case “for want of a substantial federal question.” That’s certainly not the case anymore.
There’s also been an interesting slowing-down of cases in the Fourth Circuit. With a ruling in AFER’s Virginia case due any day now, litigants in North Carolina and West Virginia are asking lower courts to hold off on issuing any rulings until the court of appeals weighs in.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Cam
What happened? Just because the case was appealed wouldn’t necessarily have stopped the marriage. Who stopped them, how and why?
hyhybt
Breaks?
1EqualityUSA
These law suits are designed to make us spend inordinate amounts of money fighting for rights that should never have been up for a vote in the first place.
EdWoody
@hyhybt: I know, right? I should be over Queerty’s general illiteracy by now, but I keep wincing anyway.
tdx3fan
I really dislike the way they started this article…
“Fun while it lasted?”
Seriously, for all of the couples that have fought for the right to get married in their state (and for some of our low income brothers and sisters probably had no real option to go somewhere else) this was a very needed thing. The fact that it is now being taken away from them is NOT “fun while it lasted.” It is a ton more serious.
For the curious, the stay was issued by the federal appellate court pending appeal. It is very similar to every other state that has been granted a stay (which I think is most of them). Some differences apply; however, such as Ohio where the judge announced the decision before time in order to allow for the stay to be automatic and avoid a limbo of marriages being issues before the stay and appeal.
Cam
@tdx3fan:
Thank you for the added info!
jwrappaport
@tdx3fan: Actually, I believe it was the trial court (Crabb) who issued the stay, not the appeals court.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/13/wisconsin-gay-marriages-halted_n_5493690.html
gaym50ish
@hyhybt: Hey, give the writer a brake!