11th Circuit Denies Alabama Stay of Same-sex Marriage Ruling

The United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit has refused to stay a District Judge's order striking Alabama's state constitution's ban on same sex marriage. The order takes effect tomorrow.  It has been denounced by Chief Justice Roy S. Moore, in a public letter to Governor Robert Bentley, as a usurpation of state sovereignty. "The laws of this state have always recognized the Biblical admonition stated by our Lord:

But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and
female. For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. (Mark 10:6-9)."

Moore was removed from office  in 2003 because he refused to obey an order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the courthouse grounds.  Moore's bio page explains that the federal court order denied "the sovereignty of God".  He was again elected Chief Justice in 2012.

The ABA Journal reports that Alabama's filing asked the 11th Circuit to wait until the U.S. Supreme Court reaches a decision in a pending appeal, granted cert (PDF) on Jan. 16. That appeal which focuses on whether the 14th Amendment requires states to license same-sex marriages, and if it requires states to recognize same-sex marriages licensed out-of-state.

On Jan. 24, U.S. District Judge Ginny Granade found (PDF) that the Alabama Marriage Protection Act was unconstitutional. The case was filed on behalf of Cari Searcy and Kimberly McKeand, a same-sex couple who legally married in California. They now reside in Alabama, and want Searcy to adopt McKeand’s biological son, who is 8.

The Alabama attorney general’s office has said it will appeal the stay denial to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Alabama Media Group reports.- gwc

Eleventh Circuit Denies Alabama's Request for Stay of Same-Sex Marriage Ruling | Daily Report:

A federal appeals court panel on Tuesday denied the state of Alabama's request for a stay of court orders finding the state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.

The one-page order by judges Gerald Tjoflat, Frank Hull and Stanley Marcus rejected the stay request without discussion in a two-page order. Tuesday's ruling means gay couples may soon begin marrying in Alabama.

U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. Granade's orders, issued last month in favor of gay couples who had sued, said that the ban on same-sex marriage found in Alabama's constitution and statutory code violate the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. She enjoined the state from enforcing the laws, but stayed her rulings until Feb. 9 to give the state a chance to ask the Eleventh Circuit to extend the stay while the appeals court considers any appeal.

In asking the Eleventh Circuit for a longer reprieve, Alabama's lawyers acknowledged the Eleventh Circuit already had denied a similar request by the state of Florida to pause a federal ruling declaring that state's same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional.

But Alabama argued that the Florida case was different because the federal judge hearing the Florida case already had put his ruling on hold for several months, giving officials an opportunity to prepare for its implementation. Moreover, Alabama's lawyers pointed out, the Florida stay request was denied by the Eleventh Circuit before the U.S. Supreme Court had agreed to consider whether the constitution requires recognition of same-sex marriage in a group of cases out of the Sixth Circuit, meaning any stay would last only a few months until the Supreme Court ruled. A stay would avoid the "chaos and confusion" that will result if same-sex marriages are temporarily legal in Alabama, but then not legal, Alabama's lawyers argued.

Read more: http://www.dailyreportonline.com/id=1202716890868/Eleventh-Circuit-Denies-Alabamas-Request-for-Stay-of-SameSex-Marriage-Ruling#ixzz3Qmf6PCss