Tag: Utah

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Salt Lake Tribune Names Six Marriage Equality Plaintiffs “Utahns Of The Year”

Moudi Sbeity, Derek Kitchen, Kate Call, Laurie Wood and Kody Partridge (Karen Archer not pictured)

The Salt Lake Tribune names the six same-sex marriage plaintiffs “Utahns of the Year.”

This is really quite beautiful.

These six people put their names to the lawsuit challenging Amendment 3. They stood up, stood together and helped history along.

Through 2014, they rode the legal roller coaster — to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld Shelby’s ruling, and onto the U.S. Supreme Court, which issued a stay on the ruling.

In October, the high court declined to hear appeals from Utah and four other states. In essence, the denial made same-sex marriage legal in those states.

Because of these Utah plaintiffs — who bravely made public their most private lives — the state took an unlikely position among the vanguard in the biggest civil-rights movement of the day. Forever, their names will be associated with a tidal wave of change that swept the country.

For that, Derek Kitchen and Moudi Sbeity, Karen Archer and Kate Call, Laurie Wood and Kody Partridge are The Salt Lake Tribune Utahns of the Year.

Unlike the cowards who sent funds to support Prop 8 anonymously, these six people proudly stood up in the public square and asked for equality.

Props to the Salt Lake Tribune for understanding the contribution these couples made to society.

(h/t JMG)

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Utah: Facebook donates $10,000 to anti-gay Attorney General Sean Reyes

Sean Reyes

Facebook has a strong history of supporting LGBT equality.

So, it was a bit confounding when news came to light that the company donated $10,000 to Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes’ re-election campaign.

Remember, this is the man who vowed to ‘spend whatever it takes’ to prevent gay couples from marrying in his state.

And this is the company that says it “values the impact that every individual can have. We are dedicated to creating an environment where people can be their authentic selves and share their diverse backgrounds, experiences, perspectives and ideas.”

QSalt Lake reports:

When asked about the donation to the person who has arguably become the face of legal opposition to marriage equality in America, a Facebook spokesperson responded with:

“Facebook has a strong record on LGBT issues and that will not change, but we make decisions about which candidates to support based on the entire portfolio of issues important to our business, not just one. A contribution to a candidate does not mean that we agree with every policy or position that candidate takes. We made this donation for the same reason we’ve donated to Attorneys General on the opposite side of this issue – because they are committed to fostering innovation and an open Internet.”

Reyes recently appealed the 10th Circuit Court’s ruling against the Utah’s same-sex marriage ban directly to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Utah officially asks SCOTUS to rule on marriage equality

Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes has officially filed an appeal to the US Supreme Court to rule on the current ongoing same-sex marriage case.

Here’s the background so far:

• December 20, 2013 – U.S District Court Judge Robert J. Shelby ruled Utah’s same-sex marriage ban in violation of the U.S. Constitution. More than 1,000 same-sex couples to married before the U.S. Supreme Court halted marriages pending appeal

• April 10, 2014 – 10th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the case

• June 25, 2014 – 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 to uphold a lower court’s ruling that Utah’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional

Worth noting that SCOTUS does not have to take the case.  Should SCOTUS refuse, the 10th’s ruling would stand and same-sex marriage would be legal in Utah.

Peggy Tomsic of the Salt Lake City law firm of Magleby & Greenwood, P.C. (currently representing the plaintiffs) issued this statement:

“We respect the State’s right to seek review of its own law in the highest Court in the land, but we also respectfully, and vehemently, disagree with the notion that States can deny one of the most foundational rights to the millions of same-sex couples living across this great land. We look forward to reviewing the Petition filed by Utah’s excellent lawyers, and to responding to it in due course.”

(source)

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SCOTUS grants Utah’s request to stay court order recognizing same-sex marriages

US Supreme Court has granted Utah’s appeal to stay a court order instructing the state to recognize same-sex marriages performed in state.

The order affects more than 1,000 married same-sex couples in Utah.

The temporary stay from the 10th Circuit Court was due to expire on Monday at 10am.  So just before 5pm EST the Supreme Court issued the court order granting stay during the appeal process.

It appears that Justice Sonia Sotomayor referred the request to the full Supreme Court.  See court order below.

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10th Circuit Court of Appeals denies Utah indefinite stay on same-sex marriage ruling

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals gave Utah until July 21st to ask SCOTUS for an indefinite stay on a ruling that ordered the state to recognize same-sex marriage.

From the ACLU:

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit denied Utah’s request to suspend a lower court’s ruling ordering the state to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples who were legally married after a federal court struck down a state ban, but before the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily halted additional marriages from taking place.

Over 1,000 same-sex couples married in Utah during that time period. In May, a federal court ordered the state to recognize those marriages as legally valid, but Utah had asked that the lower court’s order be suspended as the appeals process continued. Today’s ruling denies that request, but does give the state 10 days to decide to seek a stay from the U.S. Supreme Court.

Utah’s Attorney General has issued a statement saying he will appeal to Justice Sonia Sotomayor (who handles appeals requests for the 10th Circuit):

“The State recognizes that pending cases regarding same-sex marriage in Utah impact the lives of many individuals and families and is diligently seeking uniform certainty through proper and orderly legal processes until Kitchen v. Herbert is resolved.”

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Utah Attorney General taking marriage equality case to US Supreme Court

Last month a three-judge panel in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that Utah’s same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional.

AG Sean Reyes had three options:
1. Accept the ruling by the 10th Circuit panel
2. Ask for a en banc review (full panel of judges)
3. Head to the US Supreme Court

Today was the last day to opt for number 2; number 1 wasn’t going to happen; and this afternoon the Utah AG’s office confirmed the case will go to SCOTUS.

Here’s the statement from the AG’s office via Utah reporter Ben Winslow:

The NCLR issued this response:

We want this case to move forward to a final resolution as quickly as possible. Every day, loving and committed same-sex couples and their families in Utah are being harmed by the continued enforcement of measures that deny them equal dignity, security and protection—even though both the federal district court and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals have held they violate fundamental constitutional guarantees. We look forward to the day every family in Utah has the freedom to marry, and we will work hard to make that happen as soon as possible.

Freedom To Marry offered this:

The Supreme Court should take this case and swiftly move to end marriage discrimination across the country. Every day of delay is a day of hardship for couples and their loved ones wrongly denied the freedom to marry and respect for their families. The American people support the freedom to marry, but the law still discriminates for too many American couples in too many states.

It should be noted that SCOTUS can choose to not take the appeal. Should that happen, the 10th Circuit ruling would go into effect for Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico and Wyoming.

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Salt Lake City officer says he never “refused” to work Pride Parade

I recently reported on a Salt Lake City police officer who allegedly “refused” an assignment to work on the Utah Pride Parade.

It turns out there’s another side to that story. According to the officer’s lawyer, he never “refused” to work the Parade, just asked to not ride a motorcycle at the head of the parade.

From FOX13 in Salt Lake City:

The officer’s attorney, Bret Rawson, told FOX 13 that his client worked on the motorcycle squadron for the Salt Lake City Police Department and was uncomfortable with his role at the pride parade. Rawson said the officer has “conservative, religious beliefs” and felt that riding with the motorycle squad would be seen as “advocating in favor of the LGBTQ community, a possition which made him uncomfortable given his personal and religious beliefs.”

Rawson claims the officer had managed to trade roles with another officer, when department administration intervened and put him on suspension.

“He never flatly refused to do his job in that motorcade,” Rawson said in an interview with FOX 13. “Instead of being given that opportunity, he was ridiculed in the press by allegations of bigotry and more.”

On Friday, the officer was put on paid administrative leave after he reportedly refused an assignment during this past weekend’s Utah Pride Festival.

I would love to say, if true, this makes the story a different issue. BUT – for one thing, as the police department pointed out, officers don’t get to pick and choose their assignments. So why should this instance be different?

Also, with a motorcycle helmet and sunglasses and uniform, I can’t imagine anyone would even recognize this particular officer. So the idea of his being seen as “advocating” homosexuality is a stretch. I think that idea would only exist in his head.

It’s interesting that he did not want to be on a motorcycle at the head of the parade, but now feels he’s been “defamed” by the police department’s statements – which did not include his name.  How can you be “defamed” if no one knows who you are?

See FOX13’s report below.

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Utah police officer refuses to work Pride Parade, placed on leave

KSL.com is reporting a police officer assigned to perform traffic control and security for Utah Pride Parade has been placed on leave after refusing the assignment.

“We don’t tolerate bias and bigotry in the department, and assignments are assignments,” said department spokeswoman Lara Jones.

The officer is on paid administrative leave as the internal affairs unit reviews the situation, Jones said. He had been given a traffic control and public safety assignment.

“We serve a variety of community events with similar functions, and to allow personal opinion to enter into whether an officer will take a post is not something that can be tolerated in a police department,” Jones said.

The police department has provided these services since the parade began. In addition, several Salt Lake City police officers, including the Police Chief, have marched in the Parade.

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Sen. Orrin Hatch on the inevitability of marriage equality in the US

Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch

Seven term Republican Senator from Utah Orrin Hatch indicated during a radio interview with KSL Radio’s “Doug Wright Show” that he views marriage equality as inevitable, and anyone who doesn’t think so “Isn’t living in the real world.”

“Let’s face it, anybody who does not believe that gay marriage is going to be the law of the land just hasn’t been observing what’s going on. There is a question whether [the courts] should be able to tell the states what they can or cannot do with something as important as marriage, but the trend right now in the courts is to permit gay marriage and anybody who doesn’t admit that just isn’t living in the real world.

“We have an excellent federal bench [in Utah]. Other federal judges down there might not have arrived at the same conclusion that these two have. But I think it’s a portent of the future that sooner or later gay marriage is probably going to be approved by the Supreme Court of the United States, certainly as the people in this country move towards it, especially young people.

“I don’t think that’s the right way to go; on the other hand, I do accept whatever the courts say.”

It should be noted that Hatch played a key role, as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, in the nominations of both Robert Shelby (who ruled Utah’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional) and Dale Kimball (who recently declared Utah must recognize those same-sex couples who married in Utah during the brief window between late December and January 6).

(source)