What is new on the Gay Marriage front?

[Ninja108]

Sweet 16 for marriage equality!

 

[Rolyo85]

And when I came to the US, we only had five.

 

[chrisrobin]

Sweet 16 for marriage equality!

Congratulations to the Aloha State.



Who's next?

 

[scream4ever]

New Mexico will be next, likely by the end of the year.

 

[Alnitak]

New Mexico without question. After we close out that state in a few weeks, I'll start a new thread summarizing our gains and things happening next year.

 

[chrisrobin]

.
Who's next? (He answers his own question.)

These Are the Next Gay-Marriage Battlegrounds

Read more: Next Battlegrounds: Where Gay Marriage Is and Is Not Legal in U.S. | TIME.com http://nation.time.com/2013/11/10/these-are-the-next-gay-marriage-battlegrounds/#ixzz2kZkMqj5o

A synopsis:

New Mexico: Possibly in Time for a New Year’s Eve Kiss
Oregon: Wait Until Next Election
Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Nevada, Utah: Targeting 2016
Virginia: Tell It to the Judge
North Carolina: Pressing the Issue
Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee: Not Anytime Soon

The others: When Hell freezes over

 

[scream4ever]

.
Who's next? (He answers his own question.)

These Are the Next Gay-Marriage Battlegrounds

Read more: Next Battlegrounds: Where Gay Marriage Is and Is Not Legal in U.S. | TIME.com http://nation.time.com/2013/11/10/these-are-the-next-gay-marriage-battlegrounds/#ixzz2kZkMqj5o

A synopsis:

New Mexico: Possibly in Time for a New Year’s Eve Kiss
Oregon: Wait Until Next Election
Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Nevada, Utah: Targeting 2016
Virginia: Tell It to the Judge
North Carolina: Pressing the Issue
Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee: Not Anytime Soon

The others: When Hell freezes over

Virginia, Colorado, and possibly Ohio are strong contenders for next year. In Virginia, Democrats have swept every statewide office, thus making it likely that no one will appeal a favorable ruling. Given the speed of the district court the case is being heard in (average filing to decision time frame is only 1 year), there's a good chance Virginia will be the 18th state with same sex marriage, and also the first southern state. Colorado is likely to announce shortly that they're going to the ballot in 2014. Signatures are already being collected and One Colorado has been traveling around the state meeting with supporters and sharing estimates as to what it will take to win (this past summer they consulted with Outfront MN to get said estimates). Ohio will depend largely on what happens in Indiana. Should Indiana send the amendment to the voters, Ohio will likely be put on the backburner until 2016. If the amendment dies in the legislature, there is a good chance Ohio will put it on the ballot. They have been collecting signatures and are likely close to their goal.

 

[Alnitak]

Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee: Not Anytime Soon

Texas and Tennessee just had federal lawsuits filed a few weeks ago. They are De Leon v. Perry and Tanco v. Haslam respectively. Mississippi does not have a lawsuit against its DOMA per se, just one that would require recognition of other states'.

However, those two cases might not even make it to appeals court before one of the oldest cases is decided by SCOTUS, and that could be either Sevcik (NV), Deboer (MI), or Kitchen (UT). The Nevada case currently before the 9th Circuit is already 18 months old. The Virginia and North Carolina cases will likely go undefended, and so they will not be appealed unless we lose them. All of the other cases were filed in July or later, so unless those oldies are the big 50 decision, we'll be watching them closely.

In all, 18 states have 23 challenges to their marriage laws.

 

[scream4ever]

So the Republican governor of North Carolina would be unable/unwilling to appeal the case?

 

[Ninja108]

There is a challenge to the new marriage law in Hawaii but I think it will DOA.

 

[Alnitak]

So the Republican governor of North Carolina would be unable/unwilling to appeal the case?

Roy Cooper sure won't.

 

[Alnitak]

It took some digging on Lexis, but yes the Attorney General of North Carolina is independent.

Dice v. Dep't of Transp., No. 831SC63, 1984 N.C. App. LEXIS 2989, at *12-14, 312 S.E.2d 241, 245-246 (N.C. Ct. App. 1984)

The constitutional independence of these offices, and their differing functions and duties, create clear potential for conflict between their respective holders. In the event of such conflict, power in the Attorney General to resolve, without their consent, controversies involving agencies or departments under the supervision of the Governor, could be abused by exercise in a manner effectively derogative of the Governor's constitutional duties to exercise executive power and to supervise the official conduct of all executive officers. We do not believe the General Assembly, in the enactment of G.S. 114-2(2), intended to create such potential.

...

This practice [of hiring additional counsel] would, however, cause additional expense to the State. It would also undermine, and perhaps ultimately destroy, the customary role of the Attorney General's office in representing the agencies and departments of the State, a role which historically has served the State well.

Thus, to avoid additional expense to the State, and to preserve for the Attorney General's office a well-established role of proven utility, we believe the better rule to be that an agency or department of the State should have the right possessed by other litigants to determine whether its counsel, whether the Attorney General or otherwise, can enter a consent judgment on its behalf. Such a right is also consonant with fulfillment by the respective agencies and departments of the State of their statutorily assigned duties.

So while the governor probably cannot overrule the attorney general's discretion, a separate agency would have the right to independent counsel. So it remains to be seen whether by this rule the case can proceed...

 

[scream4ever]

It took some digging on Lexis, but yes the Attorney General of North Carolina is independent.

Dice v. Dep't of Transp., No. 831SC63, 1984 N.C. App. LEXIS 2989, at *12-14, 312 S.E.2d 241, 245-246 (N.C. Ct. App. 1984)



So while the governor probably cannot overrule the attorney general's discretion, a separate agency would have the right to independent counsel. So it remains to be seen whether by this rule the case can proceed...

But would they have standing in federal court?

 

[Alnitak]

But would they have standing in federal court?

That's the $64,000 question. While the governor can approve special counsel for an agency, federal court might not accept it, so we'll see.

 

[Alnitak]

Speaking of North Carolina, briefs are due tomorrow. It is one of the five current cases filed before Windsor was decided.

 

[Ninja108]

I'll say this about the NOrth Carolina ban,the people pushing for it didn't even bother to hide what they think of us. There is no way they can say animus didn't play a part in it.

 

[Alnitak]

I'll say this about the NOrth Carolina ban,the people pushing for it didn't even bother to hide what they think of us. There is no way they can say animus didn't play a part in it.

They also said that they knew it would be over in 20 years, little did they know it might not even last three.

 

[Alnitak]

The judge in the Pennsylvania federal case renamed Whitewood v. Wolf has denied the state's motion to dismiss. A trial date will be decided next week.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-...age-lawsuit-can-go-forward-judge-says-1-.html

 

[chrisrobin]

.
I think this was inevitable:

http://progressillinois.com/news/co...gn=Feed:+ProgressIllinois+(Progress+Illinois)

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn plans to sign the state's marriage equality bill into law November 20. That same day, Bishop Thomas Paprocki of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield says he will perform “prayers of supplication and exorcism” at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the state's capital.

“It is scandalous that so many Catholic politicians are responsible for enabling the passage of this legislation and even twisting the words of the pope to rationalize their actions despite the clear teaching of the church,” Paprocki said in a statement issued Thursday.

As an evildoer who is destined for Hell I would like to tell Bishop Paprocki:

"You tend your garden and I'll tend mine."

 

[rareboy]

^ As one happy homo who doesn't give a Fuck what Paprocki thinks...I'd like to only say...'Bite me bitch'. You don't know squat about what Chrisianity does or does not care about.