The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals Friday halted same-sex marriage in Indiana, granting a motion by Attorney General Greg Zoeller to stay the effects of a ruling that struck down the state’s gay marriage ban.
District Court Judge Richard Young Wednesday handed down a decision ruling Indiana’s gay marriage ban unconstitutional and ordered counties to license marriages for same-sex couples.
Zoeller filed a motion with Young, asking him to halt the effects of his ruling until an appeal was heard. But Young never responded, prompting Zoeller to file an emergency motion with the 7th Circuit.
The appeals court responded almost immediately, granting that stay and prohibiting any future same-sex marriages until the appeal is decided. American Civil Liberties Union-Indiana legal director Ken Falk says the state should recognize the marriages of those same-sex couples who got married before the stay was granted.
“If people do not, then we have to bring litigation as to them not being honored but I do believe they’re valid marriages," Falk says.
The Attorney General’s office could not comment as to whether same-sex marriages licensed before the stay are valid.
