State Asks Court To Continue Gay Marriage Ban

November 21, 2014

Attorney General Pam Bondi this week asked a federal appeals court to at least temporarily keep in place Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage, pointing in part to another court’s decision that upheld similar bans in four states.

Bondi’s request to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals came about three months after U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle ruled in two combined cases that Florida’s ban was unconstitutional.

Hinkle, however, placed a stay on his ruling to allow time for an appeal. That stay is scheduled to expire January 5. Bondi asked the appeals court this week to keep the stay in place until appeals are complete.

“This court should extend the stay because, on balance, it is in the public’s best interest to wait for an appellate decision before implementing an order of this significance,” Bondi argued in a document filed this week. Several appeals courts have struck down bans on same-sex marriage, and the U.S. Supreme Court has declined to take up appeals of those rulings.

But Bondi pointed to a decision this month by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that upheld bans in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee. She said appeals of that decision have been filed in the Supreme Court.

Comments

13 Responses to “State Asks Court To Continue Gay Marriage Ban”

  1. LW on November 25th, 2014 11:18 am

    If you don’t like the results of the vote, then move to another state that votes your way and is ok with gay marriage. You want equal rights only if it goes your way. Floridians have voted, now it’s time to make it stick. I don’t need the Government to tell me whats wright or wrong, my parents did a good job of teaching me that a long time ago.

  2. Claire hogan on November 24th, 2014 11:23 pm

    Florida needs to brought into the present kicking and screaming. It’s passing and Florida is dragging it’s feet. Equal rights is not a popularity contest but protected by our Constitution. Please if i you want to defend marriage outlaw divorce. No one ever gets divorce. Trying to stop an adult couple to marry, because you don ‘t like it, is mean . How does Gay Marriage harm you? Does it prevent you enjoying Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.?

  3. A on November 23rd, 2014 10:35 pm

    Please don’t allow gay marriage. We already have first blood cousins getting married all over our state, which is also forcing cousins to suddenly become brothers and sisters..then not when the cousin parents go getting divorced. Think about the future. Just say noooooooooooooooooooooooo. I beg you. Children count on adults to provide normal and realistic and stability.

  4. BT on November 23rd, 2014 11:30 am

    In your quest for less government, you seem to want government to have more control over private lives.

    When are we going to stop using government to impose our beliefs on others? Just because the majority is straight, white, and Christian, we can’t bowl over everybody else. That’s downright un-American.

  5. Curious on November 23rd, 2014 5:53 am

    melodies4us, you are right on target, couldn’t have said it better, if more people believed like you & I, the world would be a better place.

  6. melodies4us on November 22nd, 2014 3:02 pm

    Mighty is the nation whose God is their leader. Marriage is intended for 1 man and 1 woman. ( This is written in the red letters of Jesus)Accept yourself the way the Creator made you. Any sexual act outside of marriage is breaking the 6th commandment. Even sex between an unmarried heterosexual couple is a sin ( breaking the 6th commandment). Adultery angers god and is mentioned by Jesus in his gospels more than any other sin. The immorality of homosexuality is mentions in several places in the bible.

  7. Curious on November 22nd, 2014 6:22 am

    Chris, if the gays are tired of paying taxes, then by all means, they should move, nobody making them gay nor making them stay, if they want to go then let them, I say, ship em all to a lil island, including their loved ones that except them & let em have at it, share all the diseases, just keep them inside their walls, people wonder where all these diseases are coming from, I sure don’t want to be around them, if people vote against them, we’ll, they obviously don’t want to either, they, the gays, feel they have a right to speak out, but they don’t want others to say anything back, or they get their feelings hurt, we’ll, suck it up, others have just as much rights as they do, if they don’t want anyone talking, leave.

  8. Bryan Bethea on November 22nd, 2014 12:39 am

    The people of Florida can vote to decide that women should no longer be allowed to work outside the home too, but that would blatantly violate the US Constitution. The same is true of same-sex marriage. Yes, Florida’s voters enacted an amendment to the FLORIDA constitution defining marriage as a union between only a man and a woman. However, as court after court after court has decided, those types of bans violate the FEDERAL Constitution, which always has supremacy over any state laws. That is the way our system has worked since the Constitution was ratified in 1788.

    As other comments have noted, same-sex marriage is inevitable, and will be nationwide by the summer of 2015. If you don’t like gay marriage then don’t get gay married. It’s quite simple. Otherwise, leave folks to live their lives as they wish and they’ll be more likely to leave you alone to live yours.

  9. Chris on November 21st, 2014 12:46 pm

    Fishhook,
    Since you don’t want the Feds involved in marriage, how about we take away your federal rights such as spousal social security benefits, or filing jointly on federal taxes? I bet you’d sing a different tune then. Gay people are sick of paying taxes and being denied equal benefits.

    Just because the majority votes on something doesn’t make it right, I thought that was made clear back in the 1960’s. Same sex marriage WILL be legal nationwide soon, so there’s no point in spending money to delay the inevitable. I don’t know why people like you get so worked up over something that has ZERO impact on your life.

  10. countrygirl on November 21st, 2014 12:24 pm

    Amen, Fishhook240!!! “We, the people” are no longer being heard! We voted no same sex marriage… lots of states did! But look at where they are now! I am all for less government! I am not even that old but in my short life I can see such a drastic difference in what the government controls then and now! it’s completely ridiculous!

  11. RT on November 21st, 2014 12:07 pm

    OH MY!!! The poster woman for “Marriage Sanctity” is pushing her bigotry once again. Marriage equality in the state of Florida is inevitable. The ban is unconstitutional and will be overturned. This woman never should have been re-elected. But guess what….don’t vote and this is what you get. Pam should go ahead and waste the taxpayers money, they people that voted her in apparently don’t mind.

  12. Fishhook240 on November 21st, 2014 8:13 am

    I thought the taxpayer’s already spoke on this. They voted against it. No same sex marriage in this state. Are the not listening to us, Well we know that answer don’t we. If it is Unconstitutional then change the Constitution to be what Fl. Residents want. We don’t need no federal Court to decide what best for us. Marriage is a state law, govern by the states, not the Federal Government. The people have spoke. “Listen”

    Fishhook for less Government!!!!!!!

  13. Duke of Wawbeek on November 21st, 2014 2:12 am

    I agree with Pam, we might can tolerate a little buggery, but some things push the limit.