Oregon Gay Married Couples Sue State
PORTLAND, Oregon (Reuters) - Nine gay couples sued the state of Oregon on Wednesday for refusing to recognize their marriages; a legal test case intended to prompt the state's highest court to hand down a ruling on the hot-button issue.
"Oregon's constitution does not allow people to be discriminated against because they are lesbian and gay, but that is exactly what Oregon's marriage law does," Jann Carson, associate director of the American Civil Liberties Union (news - web sites) of Oregon said, adding that the lawsuit would "get this issue before the courts in the fastest way possible.
In the lawsuit, filed by the ACLU in Multnomah County Circuit Court, the plaintiffs claimed that their rights were violated when the state refused to recognize their marriages or register their licenses.
Multnomah County, which includes Portland and is the most populous in the state, has handed out more than 2,550 marriage licenses to same-sex couples since March 3. It is the only jurisdiction in the United States still issuing licenses to gay couples after cities from San Francisco to New Paltz, New York, stopped the practice under threat of lawsuits.
In Oregon, attorneys from both sides of the issue have agreed to focus only on the constitutionality of the marriage statute and to expedite filings and arguments, so as to put the issue before the state Supreme Court as soon as possible.
Opponents such as the Defense of Marriage Coalition plan to intervene in the case, but will also stick to the single issue and run a streamlined process, lawyers for the coalition said.
The coalition, which opposes same-sex marriage, will drop another suit in Multnomah Circuit Court in order to speed the new case through, spokesman Tim Nashif has said.
The ACLU's Carson said she hopes for a circuit court decision by the end of the month. The case could be heard by the state's appeals court, although lawyers said the case would likely pass directly to the Oregon Supreme Court.
In addition to the lawsuit, some groups are working to put a measure on Oregon's November ballot to change the constitution to define marriage as between one man and one woman. Some of the Multnomah County commissioners who supported issuing the same-sex licenses also face recall efforts.
"Our most important hope on this matter is that ultimately it be decided by a vote of the people," said Nashif of the Defense of Marriage Coalition
PORTLAND, Oregon (Reuters) - Nine gay couples sued the state of Oregon on Wednesday for refusing to recognize their marriages; a legal test case intended to prompt the state's highest court to hand down a ruling on the hot-button issue.
"Oregon's constitution does not allow people to be discriminated against because they are lesbian and gay, but that is exactly what Oregon's marriage law does," Jann Carson, associate director of the American Civil Liberties Union (news - web sites) of Oregon said, adding that the lawsuit would "get this issue before the courts in the fastest way possible.
In the lawsuit, filed by the ACLU in Multnomah County Circuit Court, the plaintiffs claimed that their rights were violated when the state refused to recognize their marriages or register their licenses.
Multnomah County, which includes Portland and is the most populous in the state, has handed out more than 2,550 marriage licenses to same-sex couples since March 3. It is the only jurisdiction in the United States still issuing licenses to gay couples after cities from San Francisco to New Paltz, New York, stopped the practice under threat of lawsuits.
In Oregon, attorneys from both sides of the issue have agreed to focus only on the constitutionality of the marriage statute and to expedite filings and arguments, so as to put the issue before the state Supreme Court as soon as possible.
Opponents such as the Defense of Marriage Coalition plan to intervene in the case, but will also stick to the single issue and run a streamlined process, lawyers for the coalition said.
The coalition, which opposes same-sex marriage, will drop another suit in Multnomah Circuit Court in order to speed the new case through, spokesman Tim Nashif has said.
The ACLU's Carson said she hopes for a circuit court decision by the end of the month. The case could be heard by the state's appeals court, although lawyers said the case would likely pass directly to the Oregon Supreme Court.
In addition to the lawsuit, some groups are working to put a measure on Oregon's November ballot to change the constitution to define marriage as between one man and one woman. Some of the Multnomah County commissioners who supported issuing the same-sex licenses also face recall efforts.
"Our most important hope on this matter is that ultimately it be decided by a vote of the people," said Nashif of the Defense of Marriage Coalition
