Conservative Supreme Court justice Samuel Alito has just denied a request by a county clerk to halt the marriages of same-sex couples in Pennsylvania, effectively securing marriage equality in the Keystone State.
Theresa Santai-Gaffney a Schuylkill county clerk had petitioned Justice Samuel Alito — who oversees Pennsylvania as part of his assigned region, the 3rd Circuit — to halt same-sex marriage in the Keystone State. Moments ago Justice Alito, one of the Court’s more conservative members, denied her request.Â
Equality on Trial notes Santai-Gaffney could theoretically petition another SCOTUS justice but chances are slim she would — and likely even more slim another justice would grant her request.
Same-sex marriage came to Pennsylvania in May, after a federal judge struck down the state’s ban as unconstitutional, and in a surprise move, conservative Republican Governor Tom Corbett refused to appeal the ruling.
#BREAKING – SCOTUS denies County Clerk’s motion to stay @aclupa’s #Whitewood victory securing the #freedomtomarry in PA. #LoveStillWins
— ACLU of Pennsylvania (@aclupa) July 9, 2014
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