Federal Judge Upholds Gay Marriage Ban, Slams ‘Ignorance’ Of Other Judges

FILE- In this June 26, 2013 file photo, gay rights advocate Vin Testa waves a rainbow flag in front of the Supreme Court in Washington. On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a pair of landmark rulings, one ... FILE- In this June 26, 2013 file photo, gay rights advocate Vin Testa waves a rainbow flag in front of the Supreme Court in Washington. On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a pair of landmark rulings, one striking down a law that denied federal recognition to same-sex marriages and the other clearing the way for gay couples to wed legally in California. In the 12 months since the Supreme Court issued a pair of landmark rulings on same-sex marriage, the ripple effects of those rulings have transformed the national debate over marriage, prompting many people on both sides to conclude that its spread nationwide is inevitable. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) MORE LESS
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A judge upheld Puerto Rico’s ban on gay marriage on Monday, becoming the first Democratic-appointed federal jurist to rule against same-sex couples’ right to wed since the Supreme Court axed the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013.

Carter-appointed Judge Juan Manuel Pérez-Giménez ruled that the Windsor v. U.S. opinion did not pave the way for same-sex marriage, contradicting all but one other federal trial judge who has reviewed the issue since the landmark ruling.

“The Windsor opinion did not create a fundamental right to same-gender marriage nor did it establish that state opposite-gender marriage regulations are amenable to federal constitutional challenges,” Pérez-Giménez wrote. “If anything, Windsor stands for the opposite proposition: it reaffirms the States’ authority over marriage, buttressing Baker’s conclusion that marriage is simply not a federal question.”

More than a dozen federal judges on the district and appellate level have struck down gay marriage bans as unconstitutional, citing Windsor to argue that they amount to impermissible discrimination against gays and lesbians.

Pérez-Giménez took a swipe at those judges.

“It takes inexplicable contortions of the mind or perhaps even willful ignorance – this Court does not venture an answer here – to interpret Windsor’s endorsement of the state control of marriage as eliminating the state control of marriage,” he wrote.

Puerto Rico Marriage DCt Ruling 10-21-14

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