The U.S. Supreme Court has put a temporary hold on same-sex marriage in the state of Utah as it appeals a December ruling that ruled its ban unconstitutional.
The highest court in the country only issued a short written brief Monday morning, reports the Associated Press. The brief blocks same-sex marriages in the state until the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals makes a ruling on Utah’s appeal against U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby’s ruling on Dec. 20.
Shelby struck down the state’s ban, claiming that the state’s reasons for it were not strong enough to deny lesbian and gay couples the same rights as heterosexual couples. His ruling came just a day after New Mexico’s Supreme Court also called that state’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.
However, Utah filed an appeal of Shelby’s ruling, and asked the Supreme Court to put a halt to the unions. According to The Wall street Journal, the state said Shelby’s sudden ruling was against the state’s wishes for “being able to define marriage through ordinary democratic channels.”
Although the Supreme Court has granted the state’s request, over 900 same-sex couples have married since Shelby’s ruling.
The Supreme Court already struck down the federal Defense of Marriage Act in June 2013.
image: Wikimedia Commons
