Nevada officials withdraw defense on state's same-sex marriage ban

According to court filings made on Monday with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto and other top state officials had withdrawn efforts to defend the ban on the state's same-sex marriage. Cortez Masto said that she nor the others, including Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval, plan to continue their defense on the enactment of the ba prohibiting same-sex couples to get married officially in the state.

The Wall Street Journal said that the withdrawal signaled the third time state law-enforcement officials publicly disavowed legislation limiting legal marriage to one woman and one man.

The briefing also added, "(As recently as late 2012), the law regarding treatment of same-sex couples under traditional marriage laws was uncertain and open to interpretation. Th[at] decision . . . is controlling and, as a result, the State has determined that its arguments grounded upon equal protection and due process are no longer sustainable."

WSJ said the briefing cited a June ruling by the US Supreme Court called United States V. Windsor, of which itr struck a law down that banned the government from recognizing marriages of same-sex couples. The court filing also mentioned a case that was handed down last month by the Ninth Circuit, wherein the court ruled that striking a juror on the basis of his sexual preference was improper.

On the other hand, WSJ believed that the decision of the state of Nevada will not end the case necessarily. The Coalition for the Protection of Marriage, an interest group, is currently listed as the defendant of the case, of which the newspaper hinted that a potential legal action might be launched by the group.

Tara Borelli, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said, "(The state's decision was) a powerful message to the court that government officials in Nevada are no longer willing to defend the exclusion of same-sex couples."

Tags

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

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