Breaking: Kentucky Ban On Out-Of-State Same-Sex Marriages Ruled Unconstitutional

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A federal judge has just ruled that Kentucky’s ban on recognizing valid same-sex marriages from other states is unconstitutional. U.S. District Court Judge John G. Heyburn II ruled the ban violates Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection, under the 14th Amendment. Similar arguments have recently struck down marriage bans in Utah and Oklahoma, and a Texas judge today will decide a case argued under the same argument.

“Ruling in a suit brought by four gay and lesbian couples, Heyburn said that while ‘religious beliefs … are vital to the fabric of society … assigning a religious or traditional rationale for a law does not make it constitutional when that law discriminates against a class of people without other reasons,’” the Courier-Journal reports.

Heyburn said “it is clear that Kentucky’s laws treat gay and lesbian persons differently in a way that demeans them.”

Heyburn also rejected the arguments of the Family Foundation of Kentucky — that recognizing same-sex marriages would undermine the fundamental role of marriage in ensuring procreation.

Heyburn said there is no requirement that opposite-sex couples agree to procreate to get married.

He also said “no one has offered any evidence that recognizing same-sex marriages will harm opposite-sex marriages.”

The ruling strikes down a portion of Kentucky’s constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage but does not require the state to begin issuing licenses to same-sex couples.

A federal judge just struck down part of Kentucky’s same-sex marriage ban. Story soon. pic.twitter.com/uTOOheZTHU

— Matt Pearce (@mattdpearce) February 12, 2014