US: Appeals court to hear Indiana and Wisconsin marriage ban cases next month
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals will hear same-sex marriage cases from the states of Indiana and Wisconsin on August 26, it has been announced.
US District Judge Barbara Crabb struck down Wisconsin’s same-sex marriage ban on June 7, while Judge Richard Young declared the Indiana Defence of Marriage Act unconstitutional on June 25.
Both rulings are stayed until the appeals process has concluded, and earlier this month the appeals court combined and fast-tracked the two cases.
Following the submission of legal briefs, the court has now confirmed that the two cases, which will be heard at the same time, will go before the court on August 26.
Earlier this week, the two states filed legal briefs citing everything from political theory to social stability to biblical text in their legal briefs in the case.
One brief claims in part: “Marriage has its origin, not in the will of any particular people, religion, or state, but rather, in the nature of the human person, created by God as male and female.
“If pursued consistently, a policy of voiding laws when they reflect controversial religious or moral judgments would mean the end of representative government as we know it.”
Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen claimed in his brief that marriage is not a fundamental right for same-sex couples.
