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Appeals Court: California's Gay-Marriage Ban Ruled Unconstitutional
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The long-awaited ruling on the constitutionality of California’s voter-approved ban on gay marriage is in and LGBT advocates are cheering today.
More than a year after the arguments were heard, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the state’s same-sex marriage ban with a 2 to 1 ruling that likely sets the stage for a U.S. Supreme Court showdown. Lawyers for Proposition 8, which 52 percent of Californians voted for in 2008, have reiterated that they would likely appeal any unfavorable ruling to a higher court and then to the nation’s highest court, if need be, according to the Associated Press.
"Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently. There was no such reason that Proposition 8 could have been enacted," declared the ruling.
In arguing for the ban, Proposition 8 supporters tried to convince the court that a ruling from Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker should be thrown out because he didn’t reveal that he was gay and in a long-term, same-sex relationship. But the court today ruled that there was no evidence of bias on Walker's part, according to AP.
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