Nearly a month after a federal judge ruled that Kentucky’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway said that he will not appeal the part of the judge’s decision that the state must recognize same-sex marriages performed out-of-state. Gov. Steve Beshear will still appeal the decision though, using outside counsel.
“Judge (John) Heyburn got it right,” Conway told the media at his Frankfort, Ky. office, reports the Courier-Journal. He added that an appeal of the decision would be supporting discrimination “and that I will not do.”
However, the Associated Press reports that Beshear said he will hire outside attorneys to appeal U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn’s decision.
Back on Feb. 12, Heyburn ruled that Kentucky’s ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional, as was its refusal to recognize those performed outside of the state. Still, he put a 20-day stay on his decision to allow the state to appeal, which started on Feb. 28.
Other federal judges have put stays on their decisions to allow the states to appeal. Just last week, Texas had its ban overturned, while Virginia’s ban was ruled unconstitutional just days after Heyburn’s decision in Kentucky.
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