Kansas’s state ban on same-sex marriages was declared unconstitutional by a federal judge on Tuesday.
U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Crabtree placed an injunction on the state’s ban, blocking the state from continuing to bar same-sex marriages, until November 11. Crabtree gave one week to give the defendants an opportunity to appeal the case.
“Judging the constitutionality of democratically enacted laws is among ‘the gravest and most delicate’ enterprises a federal court ever undertakes. But just as surely, following precedent is a core component of the rule of law,” Crabtree wrote in his opinion. “When the Supreme Court or the Tenth Circuit has established a clear rule of law, our Court must follow it.”
The 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals recently struck down same-sex marriage bans in Oklahoma and Utah as well. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed those decisions to stand, implicating that if other states within the Tenth Circuit were to make similar decisions, it would be likely to follow suit.
If an appeal is not filed, or if the appeal fails, then marriage licenses will start being issued immediately.
The original case was filed by American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in October on behalf of their plaintiffs, two same-sex couples.
Currently, more than 30 states now allow same-sex couples to marry legally. After the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear cases on states’ same-sex marriage bans in early October, the legal tide has dramatically shifted in favor of legalizing same-sex marriages across the country.
