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Indiana Files Appeal to Strike Down Same Sex Marriage Ban

Hoosiers, along with officials from 31 other states, have rushed to file appeals asking the Supreme Court to consider the issue of same sex marriage. Fifteen months ago, in the case of U.S. versus Windsor, the Supreme Court struck down a portion of DOMA, the Defense of Marriage Act, that denied tax, health and veterans benefits to legally married same sex couples. Since that time, the Windsor decision has been used by nearly two dozen judges to strike down same sex marriage bans every region of the country. Just last week the Seventh Court of Appeals in Chicago unanimously ruled that bans against same sex marriage in Indiana and Wisconsin are unconstitutional. In his 40 page opinion, Judge Richard Posner said that the bans in Indiana and Wisconsin are irrational and animus-driven. He noted that Indiana refuses to recognize same sex marriages from other states, but it does recognize first-cousin marriages from other states, although first-cousin marriages are not legal in Indiana.
The appeals to the Supreme Court come from both sides – states that do allow same sex marriage and those that don’t. According to the Associated Press, thirty businesses including Amazon, Target, and General Electric, say the Supreme Court should extend same sex marriage nationwide because “the current patchwork of state laws causes employees justifiable uncertainty about how their employers and state governments will treat their familial relationships”. Many analysts believe the Supreme Court will decide to take up the matter when they meet in private on September 29th. However, it could be June 2015 until a ruling is issued.

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