Following a ruling late Wednesday which applied only to St. Louis, a federal judge has struck down Missouri's gay marriage ban, the ACLU reports:
U.S. District Court Judge Ortrie D. Smith ruled today that same-sex couples can obtain marriage licenses. This judgment strikes down Missouri's 2004 constitutional amendment that excluded gay men and lesbians from marriage allowing Missouri to join the 32 states and the District of Columbia that issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
The ruling came in Lawson v. Jackson County, a lawsuit filed June 24 by the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri (ACLU of Missouri) on behalf of two couples (Angela Curtis & Shannon McGinty and Kyle Lawson & Evan Dahlgren), who were denied marriage licenses earlier this year.
Said Jeffrey Mittman, executive director of the ACLU of Missouri:
“Today's ruling affirms what the ACLU has always proclaimed—same-sex couples and their families should be treated just like any other loving family. Missouri will no longer categorically exclude gay men and lesbians from the institution of marriage—marriage is marriage, regardless of your sexual orientation.”
Read the ruling HERE.
