Judge puts hold on same-sex marriage case

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — U.S. District Judge Chuck Chambers put a hold on a case Tuesday challenging West Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage.

Chambers’ brief order said he’ll wait until a federal appeals court makes a decision on a similar case challenging Virginia’s ban.

The case was argued May 13 and a decision from the 4th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals is expected sometime this summer.

Lambda Legal filed the case in West Virginia last October after three same-sex couples were denied marriage licenses in Kanawha and Cabell counties.

The plaintiffs sought a ruling from Judge Chambers earlier this year.

Since we filed our lawsuit in October, same-sex couples in four more states have secured the ability to marry,” said Beth Littrell, a Senior Attorney in Lambda Legal’s Southern Regional Office said at the time. “We do not want a country divided by unfairness and discrimination. Same-sex couples are in loving, committed relationships in every state and should be treated the same way. When same-sex couples in West Virginia are denied the freedom to marry, the government sends a message that they are second class citizens and their families are not worthy of equal dignity and respect.”

The plaintiffs include: Nancy Michael, 45, and Jane Fenton, 43, together for 16 years, and their six-year-old son, Drew; Casie McGee, 30, and Sarah Adkins 32, together for more than three years; and Justin Murdock, 32, and William Glavaris, 31, together for more than two years.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has intervened in the case on behalf of the state.





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