Same-sex marriage advocates lose ground in four states

In Nebraska, a federal appeals court, the highest-level federal court to take up the issue, reinstated a ban on same-sex marriage that had been approved by voters in 2000. A federal district judge had overturned the ban last year, saying it was discriminatory and punitive.

In Tennessee, the State Supreme Court ruled that a proposed constitutional amendment against same-sex marriage could stay on the November ballot. The American Civil Liberties Union had sued to block the measure on technical grounds, saying the state had not met notification requirements. The court dismissed the suit, saying the A.C.L.U. had no standing.

 

The rulings came a week after courts in New York and Georgia sided with opponents of same-sex marriage. The New York Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, ruled that the State Constitution did not require same-sex marriage. The Georgia Supreme Court reinstated a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and legal benefits to same-sex couples in civil unions.

   

For more information on the New York and Georgia rulings, see Amy Goldstein, Same-Sex Marriage Ruled Out in New York, Georgia , Wash. Post (July 7, 2006).

   

The individual cases may be accessed at the following links: