LGBTQ news and entertainment
The governor of Utah requested a stay regarding the recent ruling on marriage equality in Utah, again, this morning after receiving a “no” last night.
And for a second time, the 10th Circuit of Appeals denied the request.
Read the ruling here.
Still waiting on Judge Shelby’s decision this morning on whether he will or will not stay his own decision. Should have news any minute.
On Sunday, the United States Court of Appeals Tenth Circuit denied Utah Gov. Gary R. Herbert’s request seeking an Emergency Motion for Temporary Stay following a federal judge’s ruling that struck down Utah’s ban on same-sex marriage.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Shelby ruled Friday in a lawsuit brought by two gay men that Utah state law violates their right to equal protection and due process under the U.S. Constitution.
According to the documents, the filing for an Emergency Motion for Temporary Stay did not address nor satisfy the factors that must be established to be entitled to a stay pending an appeal. The denial is without prejudice if the defendants-appellants file a motion for stay pending appeal that complies with regulations.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert Shelby has scheduled a hearing Monday at 9 a.m. on the state’s request to halt same-sex marriages, and pro same-sex marriage groups in Utah encouraged people to take advantage of the limited window in which marriage licenses were guaranteed to be granted in several counties.
In a post on their Facebook page, Equality Utah said, “Worst case scenario we will only have 1 hour in which marriages can be performed by the respective county clerks.”
In the post titled, “Everything you need to know about getting married tomorrow morning” Equality Utah said they had confirmed that Salt Lake and Weber county clerks would be open and ready to marry people “exactly at 8am”. The post advised couples to download and fill out their applications online ahead of time to expedite the process.
Many legal experts predict Judge Shelby will not issue a stay on his ruling.
(source)
|
| Photo: Elizabeth Frantz |
The first same-sex ceremony at Fort Bragg’s Main Post Chapel for a gay couple was held yesterday.
Major Daniel Toven and Johnathan Taylor, who wed in Washington, D.C. in August, blessed their marriage before more than 100 people at Fort Bragg on Saturday.
The ceremony — while not technically a wedding, which would be barred by state law — is believed to be the first for a same-sex couple at Fort Bragg.
The couple exchanged vows and were blessed in front of their family and friends packed in the chapel, which dates to 1934.
Soldiers in and out of uniform mixed with family and friends in the church pews during the Episcopal service, led by the Rev. Harry Abernathy.
Attendees at the service included a one-star general and a command sergeant major.
(tip from TRR reader Jim)
|
| Utah Gov. Gary Herbert |
Utah’s Governor Gary Herbert and Acting Attorney General Brian Tarbet are in full panic mode over the ruling by Federal District Judge Shelby that the state’s ban on marriage equality is unconstitutional. They head into court at 9am tomorrow morning asking Judge Shelby for a stay on his ruling while they appeal.
Said Governor Herbert:
“Yesterday afternoon’s ruling from Judge Robert Shelby of the U.S. Federal Court has created a chaotic situation in our state that requires an expedited judicial resolution. Utahns deserve a fair and complete judicial process, and I strongly encourage Judge Shelby to grant the motion for stay until the appeal can be heard and Utah’s constitutional defense of traditional marriage restored.”
Said acting Attorney General Tarbet:
“We are vigorously pursuing an appeal and we intend to bring a Motion to Stay before Judge Shelby at 9:00 a.m. Monday morning. If he declines to rule at that time, we have already petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit for a temporary stay pending Judge Shelby’s decision.”
Law professor David Cruz says Shelby isn’t likely to issue a stay:
When a loser in federal court asks for a stay of the court’s judgment in order to preserve the status quo during an appeal, Tenth Circuit rules require the court considering such a motion to consider four factors: “(a) the likelihood of success on appeal; (b) the threat of irreparable harm if the stay or injunction is not granted; (c) the absence of harm to opposing parties if the stay or injunction is granted; and (d) any risk of harm to the public interest.” The state official’s arguments on these points in their six-page motion are mighty slim. I recognize that they filed this motion the same day the trial judge ruled in the case, but they should have been prepared for the possibility that he would rule against them and not stay his judgment. (After all, that’s what Chief Judge Vaughn Walker did in the federal litigation that held California’s Proposition 8 unconstitutional.)
(source)
Even as same-sex couples in Utah lined up until late in the evening to get a marriage license minutes after Judge Robert J. Shelby declared the state’s ban on gay marriage unconstitutional, the state requested an emergency stay and filed a notice of appeal:
The state filed a notice of appeal late Friday and was working on a request for an emergency stay that would stop marriage licenses from being issued to same-sex couples.
“It will probably take a little bit of time to get everything in place,” said Ryan Bruckman, a spokesman for the attorney general’s office. Bruckman said the judge told the attorney general’s office that it would be a couple of days before he would review any request for an emergency stay.
The Attorney General’s office also released a statement that said, “The federal district court’s ruling that same-sex marriage is a fundamental right has never been established in any previous case in the 10th Circuit. The state is requesting an emergency stay pending the filing of an appeal. The Attorney General’s Office will continue reviewing the ruling in detail until an appeal is filed to support the constitutional amendment passed by the citizens of Utah.”
(source)
Roosevelt County manager Charlene Webb confirmed that Clerk Donna Carpenter and Deputy Clerk Janet Collins announced their resignations Friday morning.
Roosevelt is a rural, conservative county along the Texas-New Mexico border. Its county seat is Portales, a town of about 12,000.
Webb declined to say why they quit. But county commissioners said it was in protest of Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling declaring it unconstitutional to bar same-sex couples from getting marriage licenses.
Commissioner Bill Cathey said the two had made it clear they would quit “rather than be associated with that. She told us in the past that’s what she would do,” he said. “… I am personally very disappointed in the decision of the judges, and I don’t blame our clerk for doing what she did.”
Meantime, other rural counties began issuing gay marriage licenses following the Thursday ruling, which came after county officials asked the high court to clarify the law and establish a uniform state policy on gay marriage.
(source)
Mayor Becker of Salt Lake City has just officiated the marriage of state Senator Jim Dubakis and his now husband (see pic above).
And he just announced that he will stay and marry any couples tonight that want him to do so!
Celebrate! Yay! Happy dance!
Read Seth’s Twitter feed as he live tweeted the whole adventure:
